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WORK TITLE: The Boy at the Door
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE:
CITY:
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Half-American, Half-Norweign Lives in both London and Sandefjord.
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born in Oslo, Norway; children.
EDUCATION:Bath Spa University, B.A., M.A.; Bath University, M.S.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Author.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Norwegian author Alex Dahl’s debut novel is the psychological thriller The Boy at the Door, which tells of the unravelling of the web of lies and deceit surrounding Norwegian wife and socialite Cecilia Wilborg. Cecilia has a well-maintained home in the trendy seaside town of Sandefjord, a husband who loves her, and two beautiful daughters. Her life changes—not for the better—when she is asked to take a little boy named Tobias who has apparently been abandoned by his parents at the town pool. “Cecilia takes him to his house,” stated Zoe Morris in the Bookbag, “[but] she quickly sees it’s no suitable environment for a young boy and so, against her better judgement, she can’t leave him there and takes him back to hers instead. Luckily, they have a nice large house, so while she and the girls are tucked in upstairs, she sticks him in … the basement.” However, Cecilia is concealing “a frightful secret,” explained Booklist reviewer Jane Murphy, “and the more challenging hiding it becomes, the more she drinks, takes pills, and lies.” Her “fraught involvement with the boy,” wrote a Publishers Weekly reviewer, “soon leads to a dizzying downward spiral of alcohol, drugs, lying, and guilt.”
Cecilia is perhaps the epitome of the unreliable narrator and readers, reviewers note, quickly come to realize that there is more to her story—and to Tobias’s—than she is revealing. “She is a spectacularly unreliable narrator,” declared Emma Hamilton on the Buried under Books website, “who abuses drink, drugs and people she perceives to be her social inferior, constantly distancing the reader with her little cruelties and complete self-absorption. It’s a testament to Dahl’s skill that, somehow, we find ourselves not quite hating her: somewhere, under all that façade, there is a sad little girl.” “The lies she tells and secrets she keeps are all to maintain her lifestyle, the money, the beautiful house, etc. However, … what she values most is her ability to make others envy her and her image,” opined a Murder and Moore website reviewer. “Many of the lies we tell ourselves,” Dahl told a Publishers Weekly interviewer, “are because the truth is too painful; all mothers love every child equally, the man who was violent toward you only did it because he loves you too much, the loved one who passed away felt no pain.”
Critics find the characters in The Boy at the Door both disturbing and compelling. “The characters generally kind of just come to me,” Dahl said in an interview found on the website Two Girls and a Book Obsession. “I ‘observe’ them in my mind, a bit like watching a movie in my head, and feel them out. Sometimes, I do characterization exercises to get to know them better. Very rarely do I base any character traits on real people in my life, but I may occasionally use something someone has said. My main character in The Boy at the Door, Cecilia, is most certainly made up, but she has some charming, and less-charming personality traits that I may have observed over the years in my extended social circle.” Other aspects of the story emerge through the related tale of Annika Lucasson, a drug-addicted, victimized woman whose tale is connected to both Cecilia and Tobias. “Dahl is wise enough to realize that a whole book of self-absorbed Cecilia would be rather hard to take,” explained a Saturday Reader website reviewer, “so the author intersperses chapters told from Cecilia’s point of view with Tobias’s backstory and excerpts from Anni’s diaries and letters.” “Dahl has created a gripping and murky story which will take readers on an emotional roller coaster,” said the Murder and Moore website reviewer. “The Boy at the Door has a strong sense of foreboding that will hook readers from the first page.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, June 1, 2018, Jane Murphy, review of The Boy at the Door, p. 40.
Publishers Weekly, May 7, 2018, review of The Boy at the Door, p. 48; May 14, 2018, “True Lies by Alex Dahl,” p. 36.
ONLINE
Bookbag, http://www.thebookbag.co.uk/ (October 17, 2018), Zoe Morris, review of The Boy at the Door.
Buried under Books, https://buriedunderbooks.co.uk/ (June 25, 2018), Emma Hamilton, review of The Boy at the Door.
Murder and Moore, https://www.murderandmoore.com/ (July 15, 2018), review of The Boy at the Door.
Penguin Random House website, https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/ (October 17, 2018), author profile.
Saturday Reader, https://saturdayreader.wordpress.com/ (May 19, 2018), review of The Boy at the Door.
Two Girls and a Book Obsession, https://twogirlsandabookobsession.com/ (May 7, 2018), “Q & A with Alex Dahl ~ Author of The Boy at the Door.“
Alex Dahl
Photo of Alex Dahl
Photo: © Nina Rangoy
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alex Dahl was born in Oslo and is the critically acclaimed author of The Boy at the Door. She graduated with a B.A. in Russian and German linguistics with international studies and went on to complete an M.A. in creative writing at Bath Spa University, followed by an M.S. in business management at Bath University. Alex has published short stories in the U.K. and the U.S. and is a serious Francophile.
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Print Marked Items
True Lies by Alex Dahl
Publishers Weekly.
265.20 (May 14, 2018): p36.
COPYRIGHT 2018 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Norwegian author Dahl makes her debut with a psychological suspense novel, The Boy at the Door
(Berkley, July), about a suburban mom, Cecelia Wilborg, whose decision to help an abandoned boy leads to
trouble.
What is fiction, if not carefully crafted deceit? Art is the world edited, distorted, amended, and represented.
In art, in love, and in life itself, humans tell stories. We have to. "We have art, in order not to die from the
truth," Nietzsche said. There is a fine line between truth and lies; a line that sometimes blurs in the minds
and hearts of humans, real and fictional alike. A good novel tells us the truth about something, wrapped up
in fabrication; truth derived from lies.
And so it is in life and love, too. Many of the lies we tell ourselves are because the truth is too painful; all
mothers love every child equally, the man who was violent toward you only did it because he loves you too
much, the loved one who passed away felt no pain.
We try to change the unpalatable realities of the human experience by shaping the world to fit our
perception of events. We have no choice but to shelter our tender hearts from rejection and injustice.
When my novel, The Boy at the Door, sold in several countries last year, an acquaintance said to me, "You
must feel like you've won the lottery, you know, being a single mom and all." And in my mind, I thought
"Come again?" In my perception of myself I was never a struggling single mother; even touching on that
experience would have been too depressing and demotivating. I was always a mother ready to fall in love
again and a writer who was going to make it or die trying. Self-lies? Perhaps, but necessary ones, and ones
that both became truth.
Some lies people tell themselves may be of a darker, more sinister nature, and these particularly lend
themselves to deeper exploration in fiction. In The Boy at the Door, Anni Lucasson, a drug addict who has
lost everything, believes that her violent, drug-addicted boyfriend can change and "become the man he
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really is, deep down." Anni must believe this, because in her heart, she knows she will never be free of him.
Equally, Cecilia Wilborg convinces herself of a reality completely removed from actual events; she has to,
as the truth would bring her carefully curated life crashing down. Stories are essential to human existence.
Telling stories in an attempt to shape our perception of the world is what separates us from animals. We
need deception to reveal truth as much as we rely on truth to reveal deception.
As both Cecilia and Anni come to understand, we write our own reality and, to a large extent, our own truth.
The real danger arises when the truth becomes so threatening that you will do absolutely anything to keep it
hidden.
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"True Lies by Alex Dahl." Publishers Weekly, 14 May 2018, p. 36. General OneFile,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A539387405/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=d6da433d.
Accessed 30 Sept. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A539387405
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The Boy at the Door
Publishers Weekly.
265.19 (May 7, 2018): p48.
COPYRIGHT 2018 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
* The Boy at the Door
Alex Dahl. Berkley, $16 trade paper (368p) ISBN 978-0-451-49179-4
Set in Sandefjord, Norway, Dahl's heartrending first novel focuses on Cecilia Wilborg, a well-to-do
suburban wife seething with anger, frustration, and a long-hidden secret. One October evening, after her
daughters' swimming session, Cecilia finds herself willy-nilly caring for Tobias, a seven-year-old boy who
was abandoned at the public pool. When she tries to take Tobias home, she discovers that the address he
gives is an empty house. Cecilia's fraught involvement with the boy soon leads to a dizzying downward
spiral of alcohol, drugs, lying, and guilt. Her first-person narrative alternates with two other pain-filled
stories, one revealed through the cathartic journal kept by Annika Lucasson--a viciously exploited drug
addict who once tended to Tobias and knows Cecilia's secret--and the other centered on the psychologically
damaged Tobias. Their intersecting tales reveal ironic twists of fate en route to the bittersweet conclusion.
Dahl savagely delineates the price of living in a society that insists women must try to be perfect wives and
mothers and have successful careers, too, or they'll be inevitably made to feel they're never good enough.
Agent: Jill Marsal, Marsal Lyon Agency. (July)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"The Boy at the Door." Publishers Weekly, 7 May 2018, p. 48. General OneFile,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A538858669/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=edd64b92.
Accessed 30 Sept. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A538858669
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The Boy at the Door
Jane Murphy
Booklist.
114.19-20 (June 1, 2018): p40.
COPYRIGHT 2018 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Full Text:
The Boy at the Door. By Alex Dahl. July 2018. 368p. Berkley, paper, $16 (9780451491794); e-book, $9.99
(9780451491800).
This absorbing and stunningly atmospheric debut was written while Dahl was living in coastal Sandefjord,
the most affluent city in Norway, where the story is set. Winter is closing in, and all of Cecilia Wilborg's
tastefully placed Missoni throws can't relieve the chill. Her carefully staged life is unraveling. She lives in a
gorgeous home in a picture-perfect place with her handsome husband and two beautiful daughters, but she
has a frightful secret, and the more challenging hiding it becomes, the more she drinks, takes pills, and lies.
Annika Lucasson, by comparison, has had a sad life of addiction, betrayal, and violence; but things are
coming together for her because she knows Cecilia's secret. The two women's lives collide when Cecilia
ends up with temporary custody of an abandoned eight-year-old boy. This is about as noir as Scandinavian
noir gets. None of the characters is especially likable, but the reader is drawn to them nonetheless, as each
tells his or her own story in turn. A tangled web, masterfully constructed and certain to satisfy fans of the
genre.--Jane Murphy
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Murphy, Jane. "The Boy at the Door." Booklist, 1 June 2018, p. 40. General OneFile,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A546287503/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=b0de5344.
Accessed 30 Sept. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A546287503
The Boy at the Door by Alex Dahl
Category: Thrillers
Rating: 3.5/5
Reviewer: Zoe Morris
Reviewed by Zoe Morris
Summary: It starts well, but the intriguing premise gradually becomes confused and overly involved.
Buy? Maybe Borrow? Yes
Pages: 368 Date: July 2018
Publisher: Head of Zeus
ISBN: 978-0451491794
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Cecilia is picking her daughters up from swimming when the pool's receptionist asks a quick favour of her – to drop off a little boy from the class as his parents seem to have forgotten to collect him. The pool is about to close, and it's not a big ask although Cecilia is somewhat put out that it will interrupt her routine. But, minor inconvenience isn't really a good enough reason to say no so she agrees and bundles the boy whose name is Tobias into the car with her girls. This is a decision that will change her life, and that minor inconvenience quickly becomes something much larger that will haunt her every waking moment.
I've only been to Norway for a flying visit (a laughingly expensive lunch in an airport while changing planes) but Cecilia struck me as genuinely Nordic. I imagined her as tall, blonde and…mean? Maybe. She is certainly into keeping up appearances and worries about what others think of her, but at the same time will make statements that don't really endear herself to the reader. It's just so hard to be a working mother even though she doesn't work full time, her girls are now school age, and the family have an au pair who seems to do most of the heavy lifting. Call me old fashioned but if you have time for the indiscretions Cecilia makes time for, life can't be all that hard.
But back to Tobias. When Cecilia takes him to his house she quickly sees it's no suitable environment for a young boy and so, against her better judgement, she can't leave him there and takes him back to hers instead. Luckily, they have a nice large house, so while she and the girls are tucked in upstairs, she sticks him in one of the spare rooms two floors below them in the basement (but don't judge…after all her life is so hard).
The next few days, weeks, months involve all the professionals, all the agencies that Cecilia would normally never have to deal with: social services, police, psychologists. Her husband Johan is supportive, but Cecilia starts to crack under the scrutiny. And as she starts to unravel, so do some of the story arcs. It goes from a straight forward but intriguing thriller I could keep up with, to a tangled mess of woolly clues and hints and red herrings that didn't always make sense. By the end it felt like the whole story was a metaphor for Cecilia's mental health – more than a little bit bizarre, definitely confused and with a touch of mania.
There were definitely some good points to the story. The book alternates viewpoints between Cecilia and Tobias and the latter gives it a definite touch of Room by Emma Donoghue to it as the child's voice was well written and so innocent. There are diary entries and letters, too, which add different layers. Ultimately, though, I started to like the story less and less as it approached the three quarters mark. It was too confusing with some reveals too convenient. It was too lots of things for me, actually – too over the top, too convoluted, and in the end it felt like it just went too far from reality.
I'd like to thank the publishers for sending us this book to review. I would recommend it as a library pick first so you can draw your own conclusions. For another intriguing Scandinavian take on life, we would recommend The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
REVIEW: ‘The Boy at the Door’ by Alex Dahl
Share: • June 25, 2018 in Book Reviews, Crime, Fiction
debut novel, secrets, unreliable narrator
Imagine.
A small, unfamiliar boy is standing, parentless, companionless, by the swimming pool reception. The pool is closing. The receptionist wants to go home. You want to go home. The receptionist asks you to take the boy home and you agree, reluctantly. But when you get there, the house is clearly not a home. What do you do now? It’s dark. It’s raining. It’s late. Do you call someone? Or do you take the child home with you?
Cecilia Wilborg takes the boy home. Why she does this and the subsequent threat to her carefully curated existence forms the narrative arc of this compelling thriller. Who is this boy? Who is Cecilia? And how far will she go to protect what she considers hers?
What’s it about?
Ooh so many things. Primarily the unravelling of Cecilia’s life: the reader is desperate to understand Cecilia’s secret, then desperate to see if she can keep it! But it’s about more than that. It’s about the weight of expectations on women growing up in Norway. It’s about the damage we do to others and ourselves. It’s about the damage we do to our children.
Cecilia is the main female character, but she’s not the only female voice, and I was fascinated by the relationship that develops between her and another damaged woman. The parallels between them are striking but the contrasts are even more so. Cecilia despises the other woman but cannot see the whole truth of her, even when given unparalleled access to her thoughts. But then, as Sue Trowbridge accurately notes, Cecilia is ‘at best, a narcissist, and at worst, a sociopath’ (quoted from review on The Saturday Reader). She is a spectacularly unreliable narrator, who abuses drink, drugs and people she perceives to be her social inferior, constantly distancing the reader with her little cruelties and complete self-absorption. It’s a testament to Dahl’s skill that, somehow, we find ourselves not quite hating her: somewhere, under all that façade, there is a sad little girl who never grew up.
What’s it like?
Compelling. Disquieting. Completely unputdownable. (Genuinely: I tried to go to bed when I had fifty pages remaining; I couldn’t sleep so had to get up and read to the end!) I loved the way actions are gradually revealed and the ending was fantastic.
Although I do love unreliable narrators, it is perhaps refreshing to have a break from Cecilia’s concerns to hear from two other first-person narrators: another woman and the boy himself. Gradually, the history of all three characters is fully revealed, offering fresh insight into the events at the beginning of the story. Dahl cleverly interweaves the three, revealing or hinting towards just enough information to keep us frantically turning pages, searching for the truth. Cecilia herself wonders: ‘Have I told so many lies, both to myself and to others, that I have lost the ability to recognise the truth?’
Final thoughts
This was an absolutely compelling domestic thriller with two deeply troubled female protagonists. Having thoroughly enjoyed reading this, I now find myself still thinking about the characters and the connections between them, their obsessions, their choices and, of course, their impact on a small boy who just wanted love.
I can’t wait to read what Alex Dahl writes next.
‘The Boy at the Door’,
Head of Zeus,
2018, ARC paperback
Many thanks to Alex Dahl for giving me an advance copy of this book at CrimeFest. This is my honest review.
About Emma Hamilton
buriednderbooks@gmail.com
Emma Hamilton is a stay at home mum, book reviewer and former English teacher. She enjoys reading, writing and discussing all things book related.
“The Boy at the Door” by Alex Dahl
May 19, 2018trow125
The Boy at the DoorI’m attending the CrimeFest conference this weekend, and while there are plenty of authors here with whom I’m already familiar—Lee Child, Simon Brett, Yrsa Sigurðardóttir, Peter James, etc.—I wanted to check out some of the new writers. Alex Dahl’s debut thriller is set in Norway, and I’m always interested in the latest in Scandinavian crime fiction. Unlike a lot of the Scandi-noir titles that make it to the U.S., this one isn’t a bestseller in its homeland that’s just been translated; Dahl was raised in Oslo but she’s half-American, so she wrote this book in English.
I’m on the record as being a fan of books with complicated, even frankly unlikable narrators, so I was immediately captivated by Cecilia Wilborg, who is… well, at best, a narcissist, and at worst, a sociopath. Cecilia lives in the town of Sandefjord, which she describes as “a wealthy town full of spoiled, bored wives.” She works as an interior decorator, and the money she earns helps keep her in cashmere Missoni throws and designer dresses. Her husband is a successful businessman, and they have two beautiful daughters.
“All I ever wanted was a normal family, the kind of family others may look to for inspiration. Does that make me bad?” muses Cecilia. “I’ve worked hard at being the perfect wife and the perfect mother.”
When something comes along to threaten that perfection, Cecilia is forced to make some difficult decisions. A small, olive-skinned boy named Tobias is found alone at the local swimming center, and Cecilia, who is there with her own children, is persuaded to take him in for a few days while the authorities search for his parents. She is furious at the inconvenience, but relents. Soon, she discovers that Tobias has a connection to a drug user named Anni—a woman who knows some shocking secrets that Cecilia has tried very hard to hide.
Dahl is wise enough to realize that a whole book of self-absorbed Cecilia would be rather hard to take, so the author intersperses chapters told from Cecilia’s point of view with Tobias’s backstory and excerpts from Anni’s diaries and letters. As Cecilia’s carefully constructed web of lies begins to fall apart, the question becomes whether she’ll be able to outrun her past, or if her misdeeds will finally be exposed.
The Boy at the Door is a genuine page-turner, a fascinating psychological study and a must-read for people who can’t resist twisty thrillers with unreliable narrators. It’s already available as an ebook from the U.K. publisher Head of Zeus; it’ll be out in the U.S. in July.
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Book Review | The Boy at the Door by Alex Dahl
JULY 18, 2018
The Boy at the Door
by Alex Dahl
Berkley
Publication Date : July 24, 2018
Pages : 386
Synopsis from Publisher :
Cecilia Wilborg has it all--a loving husband, two beautiful daughters, and a gorgeous home in an affluent Norwegian suburb. And she works hard to keep it all together. Too hard...
There is no room for mistakes in her life. Even taking home a little boy whose parents forgot to pick him up at the pool can put a crimp in Cecilia's carefully planned schedule. Especially when she arrives at the address she was given
and finds an empty, abandoned house...
There's nothing for Cecilia to do but to take the boy home with her, never realizing that soon his quiet presence and knowing eyes will trigger unwelcome memories from her past--and unravel her meticulously crafted life...
Over the past three months, I have read and listened to mostly police procedurals and serial killer thrillers. I had another serial killer thriller scheduled as my next read, but I was starting to feel a little burned out. I could feel a reading slump approaching. I decided to shake things up a little bit with a psychological thriller; I am so glad I did. The Boy at the Door was just what I needed. The Boy at the Door is a mind blowing, twisty tale of a woman who will stop at absolutely nothing to hang on to the things she holds most dear.
Cecilia Wilborg is living a dream life in the small, exclusive, and privileged town of Sandefjord Norway. With a kind and loving husband, two daughters, and a beautiful home, her life is one many would envy. Behind Cecilia’s mirage of wealth and happiness, is a women hanging on by a thread and weighed down by secrets. Secrets that could shatter her entire life and she has worked hard to maintain her secrets. One evening while attending one of her daughter’s swim meets, Cecilia is asked to take a little boy, Tobias home. It appears Tobias’ parents have forgotten to pick him up from the pool. When Cecilia arrives at Tobias’ home, no one is there and the house has been abandoned. She takes Tobias home with her and she very quickly becomes unsettled. Although Tobias is just a little boy, he seems to see through her facade of the happy mother and wife. Tobias’ arrival at the Wilborg home sets in motion a series of events which could unravel Cecilia’s carefully crafted world.
When I first started reading The Boy at the Door, I had certain assumptions of what kind of story it would be; these assumptions were completely wrong. This is what made The Boy at the Door so enjoyable for me. I thought the story would be more along the lines of a dangerous little boy invited into the home of an innocent family and the havoc which followed. Instead The Boy at the Door is a cautionary tale of no matter how much we bury the truth, the truth will out.
Cecilia Wilborg is a complicated character. I did not really decide how I felt about her until the very end of the story. The lies she tells and secrets she keeps are all to maintain her lifestyle, the money, the beautiful house, etc. However in my opinion what she values most is her ability to make others envy her and her image. After she tells a lie or does something questionable she then attempts to validate or justify her actions. She does this with the sole concern of what others will think. Cecilia’s main objective is to control the way others perceive her and this makes her unlikable.
Dahl uses diary entries to introduce readers to Anni. A drug addicted and troubled woman who has the power to disassemble Cecilia’s life. For me the most compelling element of the book was the wait to find out how Cecilia and Anni’s worlds collide. This aspect makes The Boy at the Door a story of suspense.
Dahl’s descriptions of Anni’s struggle with addiction are the most human and realistic of any book I have ever read in which drug abuse is discussed. Dahl depicts Anni as a person rather than an addict. Dahl displays sympathy and gives Anni a fairly normal childhood but places obstacles in her life with which I could relate. Many times I found myself wondering what I would do in Anni’s situation. I could clearly see how Anni managed to trap herself in a cycle of abuse and addiction, as well as how easy it can be to find yourself in a very bad situation.
Dahl has created a gripping and murky story which will take readers on an emotional roller coaster. The Boy at the Door has a strong sense of foreboding that will hook readers from the first page. Fans of Alice Feeney and Fiona Barton should add The Boy at the Door to their list of must reads.
**Thanks to Berkley for my free copy of The Boy at the Door**
Murder and Moore Rating :
4.5 out of 5 Stars
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MAY 7, 2018TEACHLOVEREAD
Q & A with Alex Dahl ~ Author of The Boy at the Door ~ Publication Day 6/18/18 @alexdahlauthor @HoZ_books
Alex Dahl is a half-American, half-Norwegian author. She has an MA in Creative Writing from Bath Spa University. Born in Oslo, she currently lives in London. The Boy At The Door is her first novel.
What are your favorite things about living in London and Sandefjord?
I love the nearness to the sea in Sandefjord. There are wonderful places to explore nearby, such as Ula, a beautiful fishing village with one of Norway’s best beaches. There is also Stavern, a cute town with lots of galleries and cafés, and also a great beach. Sandefjord has an international airport with flights to London, which makes it very easy to come and go. Sandefjord also has great independent shops and coffee shops. I grew up in Oslo, but after spending a couple of years in Sandefjord, I found I missed the capital much less than I thought I would. I love the diversity and buzziness of London. I also love the foodie scene and the markets. I am particularly attached to my local area, Wimbledon, as I find it offers the best of all worlds- a country-like feel, as well as being within striking distance of one of the world’s most exciting cities.
Did you love to read as a child? What were some of your favorite books growing up that inspired you as a reader and writer?
I was a very big reader as a child and teenager, something I believe was hugely influential in terms of becoming a writer. My grandmother wrote children’s books, my father was a writer, too, and my mother is extremely well read, so I was always surrounded by books and words. As a child, I loved Roald Dahl, Enid Blyton and my grandmother’s books- she taught me so much about storytelling. I began reading more seriously in my early teens, and at that time I was particularly drawn to the Brontë sisters, Wilkie Collins, Russian classics, Amy Bloom, Anne Rice, William Boyd and Kazuo Ishiguro. But my favorite book as a teen was Bram Stoker’s Dracula!
Can you describe the most influential educator you had in your life…Someone who encouraged you to pursue your dreams?
I was a peculiar kid, and didn’t feel that liked by many of my early teachers. I was a dreamer and was probably quite spaced-out in class. In secondary school, I had two wonderful English teachers, Mrs. Bergan and Mrs. Vanberg, who both encouraged my love for writing. I remember Mrs. Vanberg once read out a creative writing piece I’d written to the class and saying ‘Maybe we have a novelist-in-the-making here’ and feeling like I might pass out…But overall, I didn’t feel much encouragement for creativity or writing in the educational system- I felt the expectation to conform.
If we were to interview your mother or father, what might she say to us if we asked her what you were like as a child?
My mother would definitely say I was quite wild. I was extremely active, and liked being outdoors. I skied most days after school and loved playing in the trees with the neighborhood kids. I was a real tomboy and my mother would probably say I didn’t realize I was a girl until I was about fourteen… I was also bookish and very close to my mother. I dreamed of traveling and the big world out there- I kept begging my mother to find a job abroad so I could experience living in different places.
Preferences…cold beer, aged wine- spicy or mild- dark chocolate or milk chocolate, beachside or country living, ice cream sundae or cone?
Great question! I love wine; rosé in the summer, rich reds in the winter, and champagne year-round! I also love spicy food. I am one of those people who pours hot sauce on absolutely everything. I like it so hot it properly burns my mouth. Definitely dark chocolate. I want everything, so I’m going to say country living but very close to the beach, and mountains are a must. This is why I love the Côte d’Azur- it has everything. Ice cream cone, and preferably watermelon sorbet.
Where do you get the inspiration for the characters in your stories? Are any of the characters based on real people in your life?
The characters generally kind of just come to me. I ‘observe’ them in my mind, a bit like watching a movie in my head, and feel them out. Sometimes, I do characterization exercises to get to know them better. Very rarely do I base any character traits on real people in my life, but I may occasionally use something someone has said. My main character in The Boy at the Door, Cecilia, is most certainly made up, but she has some charming, and less-charming personality traits that I may have observed over the years in my extended social circle.
What is your biggest pet peeve…something that annoys you that not everyone may know about you.
I hate being stuck in traffic. It makes me irrationally upset. I also very much dislike hand-cream! I am quite hypersensitive and find the sensation on my hands unbearable. Weird, I know.
Where is the most unique or ideal place that you have traveled or vacationed?
I absolutely adore the Isles of Scilly for their stunning natural beauty. I spent all my childhood summers there and want to go back soon with my own children. Costa Careyes in Mexico was incredibly beautiful, I’d like to go back. But my overall favorite destination is France- I’ll go anywhere, really, as long as it’s France.
Describe a secret talent, one that some people may not know you have!
I am quite hard to beat on world capitals, I’ve heard. Good dinner party trick.
Can you give your fans a little hint about what you are working on now and what we can expect from you in the future?
I am currently finishing up the first draft of my next novel. It is a psychological suspense novel centering around a mother who becomes obsessed with the little girl who received her dead daughter’s heart… It is a grief novel with the traction and themes of a psychological thriller. In the future, I want to continue writing suspenseful novels set in exotic locations. I like to work with multiple storylines and voices, and want to address important issues through my work, such as gender inequality, discrimination, and the many forms of manipulation and domestic abuse.