Award-winning journalist Sue Williams gives us a gripping account of Peter Falconio's disappearance in the Australian outback, Joanne Lee's traumatic escape and the trial of alleged murderer, Bradley Murdoch.
Two young English tourists waylaid in the outback by a predatory stranger, a single gunshot, and then the darkness.
Peter Falconio's disappearance sparked one of the biggest manhunts and mysteries in Australia's history. The only witness was Peter's girlfriend, Joanne Lees, who was found wandering the highway, her hands bound in front of her and tape matted in her hair. The only clue was a pool of blood found by police at the back of the couple's Kombi.
Joanne's account of her ordeal - the apparent murder of her partner, her binding and gagging, and her miraculous escape into the bush away from her burly attacker and his dog - provoked a frenzy of media interest and a huge police operation, but as clues to the attacker's identity were few and far between and police blunders mounted, doubts about Joanne's story began to surface. Was this seemingly innocent English backpacker a liar, after all?
Three years on, the saga continues with the trial of Bradley Murdoch, a gun-happy drifter from Western Australia, numerous conspiracy theories and, finally, the discover of some vital genetic evidence.
