‘When I read, I like a good page turner that makes you think. And I like relatable characters that you can see. These are the elements I incorporate into my own writing. My job as a writer is to make your reading experience as easy and rewarding as possible, and to keep you imagining long after you’ve finished the book.’
Who is Peter Edward?
Peter Edward is a new Tasmanian-born author who likes to write contemporary thrillers and suspense dramas based around world issues and the human psyche. His writing has been described as fast paced with original themes and a distinctive author voice. Peter is a former advertising copywriter, creative director, and festival director. He lives off-grid in the high country of Tasmania in what he describes as a writer’s paradise. Peter’s interests include all things creative; all things outdoor, sustainable, and delicious; world affairs; and above all, family. Peter writes upmarket fiction and non-fiction stories and poetry, often with the help of a good glass of wine! He is currently working on a memoir about life, love, loss and grief.
Books by Peter Edward
Want to know what happens when heavens explode?
THE PROPHECY HOAX is a contemporary psychological thriller. Emotionally driven characters become embroiled in a cyber scam that collides with an overdue cosmic event. Fast paced, multi-POV storytelling, about deceit, manipulation and hypocrisy.
Father Brian Abernathy, a disgraced priest banished to a small country town in Australia, is infatuated with a solar scientist who is trying to predict the unpredictable.
On the opposite side of the world, two bored former hackers are inspired to release a cyber virus professing the return of Jesus Christ.
Two prophecies: one fake, one imminent. When heavens explode, who are you going to believe: the priest, the pimp, the pope, or the scientist?
Or perhaps an act from God himself?
The Prophecy Hoax is available as a Paperback and eBook. https://amzn.asia/d/02K9H9ol
Title note: This novel was first released by the same author under the title of The Second Coming. To avoid confusion with other titles with the same name, it was re-released as The Prophecy Hoax in late 2026. The physical book size was also slightly increased, and some errors were fixed.
Like your thrillers on ice?
ICE QUEST is a mystery adventure thriller set in the Southern Ocean about a restless salesman driven to capture and tow a glacial iceberg to Tasmania.
An overheard conversation in a bar leads to an adventure in the Southern Ocean that Nigel ‘Rocky’ Turner never thought possible. He’s risking everything to live out a childhood dream, but not all is as it seems.
Most of the story takes part on an ocean-going tug. On board is a crew of four including Hannah Hiscott, a cadet journalist with a nose for uncovering the truth. When Nigel’s behaviour becomes unpredictable, the crew become suspicious. Confrontations turn ugly and the real motivation for the mission is revealed. Just like an iceberg, what you see on the surface is not the whole picture.
Ice Quest is available as a Paperback and eBook.
https://amzn.asia/d/0eTU4qIB
Meet the author
‘Hi, I’m Peter Edward.
In my previous advertising career I used to ask a question to both clients and colleagues: what do you want to be when you grow up? When I retired (the first time) I asked myself the same question. My answer was succinct: I wanted to be an author.
My love of writing and creativity started at an early age. As a child I loved to draw and write stories in my head. It eventually became my career, albeit in a commercial capacity. The inspiration for becoming a literary writer came when I attended a writing course run by advertising contemporary Bryce Courtney. He was also a ‘late starter’ in literary writing. He was well into his fifties when he released his first novel The Power of One. I remember at that writing course he implored us to make a start, then and there. He also espoused that ‘character is plot’. It stuck and not long after I had the bones of a screenplay in my head. I called it The Second Coming (I later changed the title to The Prophecy Hoax). It went through various drafts and edits and then life and career got in the way. It sat untouched in a bottom drawer for twenty years. When I made my epiphany on my third-age career, I vowed to revisit the screenplay and turn it into a novel. I’m glad I did, as it is a much better novel than it was a screenplay. Age has improved my writing. More worldly perspectives have improved the character development and story narrative.
The Prophecy Hoax was initially inspired by the fear and apprehension surrounding the Millenium Bug, or Y2K. I thought, what if there was a cyber bug or virus released not out of malice but simply just for fun. And what if that virus tapped into society’s yearning for a saviour. And what if natural phenomena (some long overdue) gave validation to the virus.
Recent world events have played into the storyline and remind us of how easily people can be manipulated. How reliant we have become on electronic communication. Whether beliefs can be believed.
The Prophecy Hoax is part thriller, part psychological drama, part suspense and part love story. The characters are laid bare, exposing all their human faults and frailties, along with their ambitions. They will make you angry, make you cry, make you laugh, and perhaps make you question your own beliefs.
My second novel Ice Quest also had a long gestation period. It’s an entirely different story to The Prophecy Hoax but it has the same fast pacing and suspense. The central characters are diametrically opposed on so many levels. This becomes the catalyst for onboard tension and suspicions. Staging most of the story on board a tugboat enabled me to explore these tensions and heighten the sense of intrigue about what happens next. And just like my first novel there are twists and turns you won’t see coming!
Contact
Peter likes to hear from readers so please feel free to make contact.