It's 2006, and terror scaremongering in the media has rattled the
residents of sleepy, suburban Dunlop Crescent. When a Maori family moves
into number 14, the local cranks assume they are Middle Eastern
terrorists hell-bent on destroying the Australian way of life. Rumour
has it that they plan to turn their house to face Mecca.
This sets off an extraordinary chain of events that embroils the entire
neighbourhood as well as cynical media figures, bumbling antiterrorist
police and a gang of white supremacists with a radical plan to wake up
the country and 'preserve Australian values'.
At the centre of it all is Gordon, a retired widower, who just wants a
bit of peace and quiet. Deadly Kerfuffle is a smart, riveting and
incredibly funny novel inspired by actual letters to the editor in a
local newspaper. Through biting satire and a cast of unforgettable
characters, it's an insight into the kind of paranoia that could only
ever blossom in the quietest and safest of places.