When I first thought about doing this blog, I discarded the idea because ‘everyone’ does it. But then I decided that my choices are different from anyone else’s, and you might just be interested in them. I don’t read exclusively in my genre — psychological thrillers — or even particularly in the broader crime genre. I read (fiction) widely, hoping that I will learn from other authors, no matter what they’re writing about. I’m interested in compelling stories, because that’s w

I've borrowed this descriptor from Amazon, because I think it's so apt. Just after I read the book, I saw the play – at the Bridge Theatre, with Joanne Froggatt as Frances. It was brilliant, and really brought this gripping, unsettling novel to life. The story follows a woman called Frances, who’s a newspaper subeditor on the book review pages – an ordinary job, and she seems quite ordinary too. She is first on the scene of a car accident. In the dark, she talks to the woman