{"id":6503,"date":"2026-02-19T17:33:44","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T07:03:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/?p=6503"},"modified":"2026-02-19T17:35:46","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T07:05:46","slug":"announcement-wakefield-press-acquires-troy-hunters-third-gus-mystery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/2026\/02\/announcement-wakefield-press-acquires-troy-hunters-third-gus-mystery\/","title":{"rendered":"ANNOUNCEMENT: Wakefield Press acquires Troy Hunter’s third Gus mystery"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Wakefield Press is delighted to announce the acquisition of world rights to Troy Hunter<\/a>\u2019s third YA novel, Gus and the Climate Killer<\/em>, via Jane Novak Literary Agency. The final instalment in Troy\u2019s bestselling mystery series, Gus and the Climate Killer <\/em>is slated for March 2027 publication.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Find out more about this exciting new acquisition below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Author image credit: Tony Zara Photography<\/h3>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s been a whirlwind couple of years for our amateur sleuthing trio. In their short careers, Gus, Shell and Kane have solved a decade-old kidnap case and a murder by fire, along with tracking down Gus\u2019s long-missing birth mother, Jane.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

But the puzzle of Gus Green is still missing a piece: his father. With an uneasy blessing from Jane and his adoptive mother Meg, Gus turns to DNA testing to see if he can find his dad. The results come back with a match for Dr Harry Marter, a climate scientist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gus and Shell devise a plan to meet Harry before they reveal the news. Posing as student journalists, they head to his office to interview Harry about the innovative carbon capturing pods his company is developing. Harry gives them a tour of the lab, but he cuts the interview short after arguing with his boss, Dr Marisa Hart, over the phone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On their way out of the building, there\u2019s a huge explosion on the roof, drawing Gus and Shell back upstairs to the lab to find the burnt-out husk of one of the pods, and Harry standing over Marisa\u2019s dead body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harry is swiftly arrested, but Gus can\u2019t accept that the man who could be his father might also be a murderer. It soon becomes clear that all of the company\u2019s employees benefit from Marisa\u2019s death, not just Harry.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Kane goes undercover, getting a job as a security guard in the building to help Gus and Shell wade through corporate secrets, embezzlement, grudges and blackmail. With the evidence against Harry piling up, the race is on to get answers. But the identity of the murderer will shock them to their core and change their lives forever. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Head of YA Maddy Sexton says, \u2018It\u2019s such a joy to be back in the world of Gus, Shell and Kane as they navigate yet another twisty case. I\u2019m delighted that Troy has brought this beloved trio back for one more case, and I can\u2019t wait to work with him again.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Troy says, \u2018What a privilege to be able to complete this trilogy of mystery stories with Wakefield Press. This book cranks up the stakes while also finishing Gus, Shell and Kane\u2019s stories off with a bang \u2013 literally!\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gus and the Climate Killer<\/em> is a standalone sequel to Troy\u2019s Gus and the Missing Boy<\/a><\/em> (Shortlisted for the 2024 Ned Kelly Awards and the 2025 BAD Sydney Crime Writers Festival Danger Awards) and Gus and the Burning Stones<\/a><\/em>.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\u2018Page-turning mystery fun that is meta-AF, full of wit and self-discovery. Loved it!\u2019
\u2013 R.W.R. McDonald<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘Troy Hunter\u2019s prose crackles with sharp wit and youthful energy. A fantastic book that skilfully blends humour and heart with a plot so pacey I didn\u2019t want to stop reading \u2013 I devoured it in a single day.\u2019
\u2013 Holden Sheppard<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘A gripping mystery, told with compassion and authenticity.\u2019
\u2013 Amie Kaufman<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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‘Will keep you guessing to the very end.’ \u2013 Amy Doak<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘A mystery romp with a twisty plot, characters I cared desperately about, and a huge beating heart at its centre.’
\u2013 Kate Emery<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘Where there’s smoke, there’s murder – Gus, Shell and Kane are back, funny and fearless as ever, in a mystery that’ll keep you gripped till the end.’
\u2013 R.W.R. McDonald<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘A real page turner … a gripping mystery.’ \u2013 Holden Sheppard<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

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<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wakefield Press is delighted to announce the acquisition of world rights to Troy Hunter\u2019s third YA novel, Gus and the Climate Killer, via Jane Novak Literary Agency. The final instalment in Troy\u2019s bestselling mystery series, Gus and the Climate Killer … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"Wakefield Press announces the acquisition of world rights to Troy Hunter's GUS AND THE CLIMATE KILLER, the final instalment in his YA crime series.","jetpack_seo_html_title":"Wakefield Press acquires Troy Hunter's third Gus mystery","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[80],"tags":[780,955,986,890],"class_list":["post-6503","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-for-fun","tag-loveozya","tag-acquisitions","tag-troy-hunter","tag-ya-fiction"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4v1Of-1GT","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6503","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6503"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6503\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6507,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6503\/revisions\/6507"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6503"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6503"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6503"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}