Outback Outlaw

The Dark Legacy of Australia’s Backpacker Killer, Ivan Milat

By: Ryan Green

Narrated by: Steve White

"He was going to kill somebody from the age of 10. It was built into him…I knew he was on a one-way trip. I knew that it was just a matter of how long.” (Boris Milat, Ivan’s brother).

Detaining a man like Ivan Milat would be a monumental challenge. His obsession with firearms and hatred of state power were a highly volatile combination. Sending just a couple of men would result in two dead officers and a prime suspect on the run.

Fifty armed police officers surrounded Milat’s home on the day of his arrest. He would pay for practicing his favourite sport: hunting humans.

Backpackers were his favoured prey, lured into his car with an unassuming charm and taken to his gruesome playground, the Belanglo State Forest. This was where he subjected his victims to unspeakable torture before ending their lives in the most brutal way imaginable.

Outback Outlaw is an unflinching and uncompromising account of a man forever cemented in the annals of Australian true crime. Ryan Green’s riveting narrative draws the listeners into the real-life horror experienced by the victim, and has all the elements of a classic thriller.

©2023 Ryan Green (P)2023 Ryan Green

Great Read

Outback Outlaw: The Dark Legacy of Australia's Backpacker Killer, Ivan Milat was a great read by Ryan Green. Ivan Milat had an obsession with firearms and hated state power. He would up going on the run after two killer two police officers. On the day that Ivan was arrested, there were fifty armed police officers surrounding his home. He would prey on backpackers and lure them into his car with charm. He would then take them to Belanglo State Forest. This is where he would torture them in the Australian outback. This was a good true crime read. I enjoyed reading this book and cant wait to read more by the author.

Hitch Hiker's Horror Story

Yet another horror filled story by the great true crime writer Ryan Green. If you have never read or listened to any of his books, you are missing out on something outstandingly horrifying. Sure, you may have heard of the crime or killer before.... but what you are missing out on is "the way" the story is told. Mr. Green ingeniously takes on the killer's persona and narrates the story from his/her perspective. This technique is beyond creepy, most of the time it is insidiously nightmarish, and I LOVE IT! Mr. Green breathes new life into some of the most well-known true crimes and HIS re-telling is the one that you will NEVER forget.
Here, in his latest book about the infamous Ivan Milat, known throughout Australia as the Backpack Killer, Green takes us on a hitch hiker's tale of true horror. Reliant on the kindness of strangers while backpacking in and around the Belanglo Sate Forrest near Sydney, Milat's victims were hoping for a ride from someone nice but instead were picked up by evil incarnate. This is one true crime story to keep hitch hikers from ever sticking out their thumbs again!
Accompanying Green, narration provided by the perfect partner, Steve White. No, his voice is not deep and raspy nor sinister and scary, it's just perfect. Perfect in its sly, nonchalant way. You may have to listen to him to understand my meaning but once you do - you'll get it. ;-)

Don't Hitchhike!

Once again, Ryan Green has written a truly horrifying account of a serial killer who preyed on young hitchhikers in the Outback of Australia. I appreciate the fact that Mr. Green not only delves into the mind of the killer, he also brings the victims to life and gives them a name and a personality. I always know that when I read one of his books, I will be horrified (but also entertained). It's hard to imagine how many truly awful people there are in the world.

Even though I had previously read the ebook version, listening to the audiobook was even more chilling. The narrator does his usual outstanding job in bringing the book to life. If you are a true crime fan, this is a great book (as are all of Mr. Green's books). You won't be disappointed!

The horrifying hazards of hitchhiking...

With his latest title, Outback Outlaw, Ryan Green cements his position at the summit of the true crime genre. His flowing narrative style coupled with impeccable attention to detail serve to provide the reader with a bone-chilling, completely immersive, yet somehow incredibly addictive reading experience. Much like watching an approaching hurricane, no matter how much you may want to look away, you simply cannot bring yourself to take your eyes off of the spectacle unfolding before you. This story, centered around the life and crimes of Ivan Milat, will draw you into his world on the first page and won’t let you go until you finish the very last page. Milat, known as the Backpacker Killer, earned his somber sobriquet by offering young hitchhikers rides that took them not to their intended destination, but to their brutal and grisly end. He is considered one of Australia’s worst serial killers, having been convicted of the slaughter of two men and five women between 1989 and 1992. The actual number of his victims may never be determined with any certainty as the Belanglo State Forest, where he would leave the bodies to suffer the ravages of nature, is too vast an area to be thoroughly searched. His story, so eloquently detailed by Mr. Green, captured my full attention as completely as Milat captured his victims. Having previously read the printed book, I just recently had the opportunity to listen to the audiobook and I must say for those who prefer to listen to the audiobook version that the narrator, Steve White, once again delivers a truly compelling reading that will draw you into the story and keep you riveted to your seat right to the very end. I believe this story will both educate and terrify any who pluck up the courage to read or listen to such an intimate portrait of this supremely disturbed individual.