Celebrating books and readers, this is a new monthly series of in-depth and relaxed conversations with authors about their latest work, and their body of work, their writing process and the ideas that inspire them.

Michaela Kalowski is an interviewer, moderator and curator for writers and ideas festivals. Highlight interviews include Margaret Atwood, David Mitchell, Michelle de Kretser, Amos Oz, Stan Grant, Holly Ringland & Etgar Keret. She's the curator of ABC RN’s on-air writers festival, Big Weekend of Books, now in its 4th year. In 2022 she was curator of International Author events for Brisbane Writers Festival. Michaela has conducted radio interviews for ABC RN’s The Music Show, Big Ideas & The Bookshelf, ABC Classic and has presented programs across ABC radio.

February’s featured author: Ashley Kalagian Blunt

Ashley Kalagian Blunt is a writer, speaker and podcaster whose latest work Dark Mode, is a riveting psychological thriller drawn from true events that delve into the terrifying reality of the dark web, and the price we pay for surrendering our privacy one click at a time. It’s out 1 March in Australia through Ultimo Press. Her previous books are How to Be Australian (2020), a memoir and My Name Is Revenge (2019), a thriller novella and collected essays which was shortlisted for the 2019 Woollahra Digital Literary Awards and was a finalist in the 2018 Carmel Bird Digital Literary Award.

Her writing appears in the Sydney Morning Herald, Overland, Griffith Review, Sydney Review of Books, Australian Book Review, Kill Your Darlings and more. Ashley teaches creative writing and co-hosts James and Ashley Stay at Home, a podcast about writing, creativity and health. Originally from Canada, she has lived and worked in South Korea, Peru and Mexico.

‘With Dark Mode, Ashley Kalagian Blunt has turned her love of true crime and passion for suspense fiction into a fierce wake-up call of a thriller, one that looks unflinchingly at the horrors of the dark web and sheds light on the unimaginable. Riveting, tense and supremely chilling, this is an eye-opening must-read for crime fiction fans everywhere.’ - Anna Downes, author of The Shadow House

Tickets are $10.00 per person +bf with doors opening at 7 pm.

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Petersham Bowling Club is honoured to present these events for our community and would like to acknowledge the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the traditional custodians of this land we meet on and pay our respects to the Elders both past, present and emerging.

Contact the host of READERS - Books and Conversations with Ashley Kalagian Blunt