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Sins of the Father is a well-crafted, tightly knit, and highly researched book.
Feature image credit: Pan Macmillan Australia
The Smith Brothers, Tommy and Billy, born and raised in Millers Point, come from the wrong side of the tracks. The sons of convicted criminal Edwyn Smith, they are desperate to move on to better things and leave their father’s legacy behind. On the other side of Sydney, Charles Davies, son of raconteur Arthur Davies, lives an enviable but lonely life, desperately trying to win his father’s approval.
Unbeknown to the sons, their fathers share a past. When Edwyn Smith is found dead, Arthur Davies is blamed, arrested and sent for trial. As the trial draws to a close, Arthur Davies dies of a heart attack, in the middle of the courtroom, in front of his only son. His father’s death is the catalyst for a year’s long search for revenge against the Smiths and the young lady who testified against his father, Angeline DuBois.
Over the next decade, the paths of the Smiths, Davies, and DuBois will criss-cross from Sydney to Anzac Cove, from the far north of Australia and back to Sydney again. Their lives will become entangled, the past always looming like the spectre of deaths gone before and the violence yet to come.
John Byrnes’ second novel is one that is rich in both detail and characterisation. Byrnes has done his homework on the geography of early 20th century Sydney, detailing the squalor and poverty of Millers Point, juxtaposed with the highlife elegance of Sydney’s more upmarket locations. He also weaves in characters with a depth of individual personality and a genuine delivery of the speech patterns of Australia at that time.
With the essence of the tale being the paternal links that tie Tommy, Billy, and Charles together, Byrnes has created a believable narrative for their continual future encounters. From the disparate paths that bring them together, thousands of miles from home to the reuniting of the trio back on Australian soil, there is a sound universal logic to each ‘surprise’ reunion. Even the thread of Angeline DuBois’ connection to the trio is written as a narrative of the treatment of women at the time, as well as an essential aspect of the trio’s tale.
Sins of the Father is well-crafted, tightly knit, and highly researched. Beyond this, however, it is a classic Australian tale, in the language of the era, that delivers a paced, captivating tale of a driver as old as time itself: the lust for revenge.
Reviewed by Glen Christie
The views expressed in this review belong to the author and not Glam Adelaide, its affiliates, or employees.
Distributed by: Pan Macmillan AustraliaReleased: July 2025RRP: $34.99
