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novelist

Life-changing literature

I have dreamt in my life, dreams that have stayed with me ever after, and changed my ideas; they have gone through and through me, like wine through water, and altered the colour of my mind. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte I first read Wuthering Heights as a teenager, and since then, I've read itRead More »Life-changing literature

The Priest and the Lily – the inspiration for my novel about men and flowers

Many of our most common and beautiful garden plants have come from far-flung locations throughout the world, brought to us by intrepid explorers who have literally risked life and limb in their search for the rare and exotic. Our gladioli originally came from South Africa, rhododendrons from the Himalayas, the monkey puzzle tree is indigenousRead More »The Priest and the Lily – the inspiration for my novel about men and flowers

One Year Later – Bethany

I recently saw a set of three mugs in one of my favourite shops. They read: I'm the oldest child - I make the rules. I'm the middle child - I'm the reason we have rules. I'm the youngest child - the rules don't apply to me. I had great fun creating Bethany’s character. She’sRead More »One Year Later – Bethany

Labyrinth – the setting

Setting is so important to me. It's almost like another character, setting the tone and the mood as well, as obviously, the location. My last four psychological thrillers, Bone by Bone, The Stolen Child, My Mother's Secret and One Year Later, are all, or partially set in Bristol, where I lived for many years.  TheRead More »Labyrinth – the setting

Labyrinth – new thriller!

My exciting news is that I'm working on a new book. Provisionally called Labyrinth, it's a re-imagining of Vertigo, the movie directed by Hitchcock. It's a slight departure for me, as it's less psychological thriller / family drama and more of a crime thriller. It's set in Hackney in London, and as you'd imagine, fromRead More »Labyrinth – new thriller!

One Year Later – Dante

I did not die and yet I lost life’s breath… I always like to have a theme or a leitmotif running through my novels and in this one, One Year Later, it’s Dante’s The Divine Comedy. There’s the obvious aspects - it’s set in Italy, it’s hot as hell, but it’s about a young man’sRead More »One Year Later – Dante

One Year Later on Bristol TV

    Bristol TV has just put out a short film about my latest psychological thriller, One Year Later! At its heart, it's a novel about family secrets and grief.