Libby Reads with Ben Hobson

Sunshine Coast Libraries are excited to participate in Libby Reads with Ben Hobson, a monthly online event hosted by Ben Hobson best-selling author of Snake Island.   

Join Ben Hobson in conversation with author Tim Ayliffe to discuss their novel ‘Dark Desert Road’.

During this digital book club, guests will have the opportunity to ask questions, interact with the authors, and enjoy a well-rounded bookish discussion.

Date and time	Registration
Tuesday 22 September, 7.30-8.30pm (AEST)	Libby Reads featuring Tim Ayliffe A Zoom link will be sent via email upon registering

About the book

A fugitive sister. A dangerous father. A terror cell hiding in plain sight. Kit McCarthy hasn't seen her identical twin sister, Billie, in more than a decade. The sisters don't see eye to eye, which is understandable, considering Kit's a police officer and Billie followed their violent father into a life of crime. Kit is no angel. Burnt out by years working in child protection, she has been accused of using excessive force in the arrest of a violent drunk. Kit has just been ordered to take time off work when she gets a frantic message from Billie, telling her she has a young son and that somebody is trying to kill her. And then Billie disappears. Determined to find her estranged sister, Kit's only lead comes after visiting their father in prison. 

Malcolm McCarthy claims Billie married a former United States Marine and has been living with a group of sovereign citizens in the desert country of the New South Wales Riverina. Kit's journey to find Billie takes her through shuttered towns destroyed by drought, where everybody owns guns, nobody talks to cops, and people get lost for a reason. Out here a war is brewing between a ruthless bikie gang and a separatist community that is re-engaging with society in the most violent way. Kit will risk everything to find her sister and the nephew she never knew she had. But does Billie really want to be saved?

About the author

Tim Ayliffe’s thriller novels have been informed by his 25-year career as a journalist in Australia and around the world. He writes about espionage, extremism, and the global power games at play in the 21st Century. He has been the Managing Editor of Television and Video for ABC News and also Executive Producer of News Breakfast. He is the author of the standalone novel, Dark Desert Road, and the ‘John Bailey’ series including The Greater Good, State of Fear, The Enemy Within, Killer Traitor Spy and The Wrong Man. Tim's thrillers are also in development for TV. 

Ben Hobson

The monthly online book club host, Ben Hobson is a teacher and author, based in Brisbane. To Become a Whale, his debut novel, was released in 2017. It was longlisted for the ABIA Debut Fiction award and shortlisted for the Courier-Mail’s People’s Choice Award. His second novel, Snake Island, a literary thriller, was released in 2019. The Death of John Lacey is his third novel, which was released in February 2023. He also runs the Burgers, Beers and Books podcast.