AS soon as Annie Seaton arrived at Ruby Gap in the Northern Territory, she knew she would write a story about this remotely rugged area and its outstanding natural beauty – and that novel became ‘East of Alice’.

Three years ago, Annie and her husband set off on a trip to the Red Centre to explore the better-known tourist destinations such as Coober Pedy, Uluru, Kings Canyon and Alice Springs.

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“When we travel, I’m always on the lookout for a story,” said Annie.

“We don’t usually map out an exact plan for a trip, we tend to stumble upon enticing landscapes in our off-road caravan, creating fascinating detours, but this time was different.”

Several years earlier Annie and her husband had met a fellow traveller who mentioned a place east of Alice Springs called Ruby Gap.

“I researched the history of this fascinating location before we left home, and began to form the basis in my mind for a contemporary mystery set in this same place.”

Research led Annie to explorer David Lindsay, who was surveying this remote area for the South Australian Government in 1886.

While digging for water in the sandy bed of the Hale River, Lindsay discovered what he thought were rubies.

Lindsay’s discovery sparked a controversy that reached all the way back to England, and this scandal began to form the basis in Annie’s mind for a contemporary mystery set in the same place.

‘East of Alice’ is a gripping mystery and was rated No. 3 on Amazon’s Hot New Release list last Monday along with Robert Galbraith (aka J K Rowling) and Wilbur Smith.

In the story, Gemma Hayden has returned to her hometown of Alice Springs for a new job as a primary school teacher.

It’s been six years since her family broke apart following the disappearance of her twin brother.

And the scars still run deep.

Hard on the heels of her homecoming, Saul Pearce, the man she once loved, is reposted from Parks and Wildlife in Darwin back to Alice.

When an old car wreck is uncovered, washed down the river to Ruby Gap, Saul investigates only to find that the wreck belonged to Ethan, Gemma’s twin – and there’s a coded note for her in the glovebox.

Joining forces, they trek through the rugged outback, piecing together clues that not only bring them to the attention of a criminal organisation, but lead them to uncover an even older puzzle.

One now lost to the history books.

With targets on their backs, will they unearth the truth in time?

Annie Seaton is better known in the Nambucca Valley as Annie Smith and has been writing for the past ten years.

Her career and studies have spanned the education sector for most of her working life, including a Masters Degree in Education, and working as an academic research librarian, a high school principal and a university tutor until she took early retirement and fulfilled a lifelong dream of a full-time writing career.

Annie was voted Author of the Year in 2014, and Best-Established Author in 2015 and 2017 in the AusRom Today.com Reader’s Choice Awards.

In 2018, her novel ‘Whitsunday Dawn’ was voted Book of the Year by AusRom readers, and was also a finalist in the ARRA Romantic Suspense book of the year awards.

You can catch up with Annie Seaton at her book launches in November.

Join her at Macksville Library on November 4 at 10:00 am, at Kempsey Library on November 24 at 11:00 am, and at Port Macquarie Library on November 8 at 10:30 am.

Visit www.annieseaton.net/store.html for more information about Annie’s past releases.

By Karen GRIBBIN