"Written by that award winning master of paranormality, Stephen M. Irwin, The Broken Ones takes you down a path that makes The Twilight Zone about as uneventful as a long walk in the park. Infusing equals parts of horror and crime, The Broken Ones is masterfully written and an entertaining read." Birmingham Times

Starred Review. "A flawlessly assembled thriller." Kirkus Reviews

Starred Review. "Blending the supernatural thriller with hard-boiled crime fiction, Australian Irwin, in his second novel which follows the acclaimed The Dead Path, depicts a bleak future...in a story that also offers cinematic descriptions of a rain-drenched, ruined Brisbane and smoothly incorporated supernatural elements.  A unique and thrilling blend of horror and crime ." Booklist

"A truly unique and harrowing vision--Irwin's ability to blend genres is as remarkable as his imagination." Lincoln Child, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author

"Irwin works a highly original idea—an unexplained cosmic catastrophe has left everyone in the world haunted by a persistent personal ghost that only they can see—into an engrossing hard-boiled thriller... The link between the murders and the ghostly hauntings proves as ingeniously imagined as the novel’s premise. Irwin’s depiction of a world falling apart under the onslaught of supernatural forces, and the desperate measures some will take to remedy it, is one of the more memorable in recent weird fiction." Publishers Weekly

"Genre-bending and imaginative, Irwin's sophomore novel is part fantasy, part supernatural crime thriller.  Similar in style and content to the works of Cherie Priest and Richard Matheson, this will appeal to a variety of genre readers who enjoy intelligent fiction that pushes boundaries ." Library Journal

"Neither pure horror nor run-of-the-mill police procedural crime fiction, The Broken Ones is a supernatural thriller that is full of dark ideas, scary characters and horrifying glimpses of a terrible future. With echoes of Alice Sebold's The Lovely Bones and more than a strong whiff of Stephen King at his very best, Stephen M Irwin has written a masterpiece." ABC Radio

"If you think The Dead Path is some excellent reading then you ain't seen nothing yet, Stephen M Irwin simply goes one step beyond with The Broken Ones. Irwin can write a Detective story, his character Oscar Mariani is certainly a match for any of the downtrodden police officers you might care to mention. Full recommendation on this novel, it'll rock your house down. 9 stars." ScaryMinds

"Tautly plotted and acutely visual, with an appealingly rumpled, flawed yet doggedly incorruptible central character, it seems tailor-made for cinematic adaptation.  Gothic, gripping and genuinely scary, The Broken Ones is one to read late into the night." Who Weekly

"Some of the best work being produced across all the art forms in this century derives its quality and its energy from the mixing up of forms and genres... This ambitious novel combines not just two genres, but three, mixing up the conventions of supernatural mystery, police procedural and speculative fiction to produce a futuristic dystopian society that has broken down after an invasion of ghosts, with a hero straight from the hard-boiled school of crime... The writing is at once witty, gritty and grim.  The horrors are genuinely horrible and the imagined scenario is satisfyingly rich and suggestive." Fiction Pick of the Week by Kerryn Goldwsorthy  Sydney Morning Herald

"Irwin's novel is a genre-bender, a refreshing take on two themes. The Broken Ones is a well-written adrenalin pumper likely to keep you awake into the small hours.  Verdict: natural-born thriller." Herald Sun

"Brisbane author Stephen M Irwin’s last book published in 2009, was described as one of the scariest of that or any other year – a tough act to follow. But Irwin takes readers on another creepy and haunting ride in his newest supernatural thriller The Broken Ones."  bmag