Two Islands: Ian Kemish in-conversation with Max Uechtritz

When a desperate young man arrives on an isolated Scottish isle, the locals view him with suspicion. But Niko is there for a reason – he’s running for his life, pursued by those who want him silenced for what he has seen in the Balkan War. His neighbour is a recluse known to the villagers as ‘Slow Fergus’. As the two men circle each other, Australian war crimes investigator Anita Costello races against sinister forces to locate her key witness.

Against this rugged landscape, where the tight-knit island community holds painful memories close, Niko must weigh his loyalties to his family, his country and himself.

Written with compassion and insight, Two Islands explores how the ripples of distant conflicts can wash up on the most remote shores.

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Ian Kemish AM is a former Australian diplomat who served as ambassador to Germany, high commissioner to Papua New Guinea, international adviser to the Prime Minister, and head of the consular and crisis management service. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in recognition of his leadership of the emergency response to the 2002 Bali bombings. An adjunct professor at the University of Queensland, he continues to work as a strategic advisor and as a volunteer director in the homelessness and international humanitarian sectors. Ian’s first book, The Consul (UQP, 2022), offered a personal perspective on Australia’s foreign affairs challenges over two decades − spanning hostage diplomacy, natural disasters and evacuations from war zones. Two Islands is his first work of fiction, drawing on both his diplomatic work in the Balkans in the mid-1990s and his strong family links with the western isles of Scotland.

Max Uechtritz was a foreign correspondent then Director of News and Current Affairs at the ABC, Director of News of the Nine Network and Director of Programmes (current affairs and documentaries) at Al Jazeera English. He now runs his own documentary company Kundu Productions.