Every great mystery has a beginning. What was the very first seed of an idea for the Kat & Lock series?

I wanted to write a crime novel, but I couldn’t think of something different from a pretty crowded market. Then in 2017, for my work I was researching the potential impact of AI on the future workforce, and I suddenly thought, I wonder if you could have an AI Detective? I carried out some initial research, and learnt that police forces were already experimenting with AI, raising important questions about whether decisions should be made using algorithms or gut instinct, the strengths and limitations of AI and the value that only humans can add. This gave me the idea to pair DCS Kat Frank with the world’s first AI Detective AIDE Lock, allowing me to explore issues of love, loss and ultimately what it means to be human.

Sum up Body of Lies in three words…

Shocking, scary and emotional (Lock would probably point out that is four words…)

What (food, drink) fuels your writing sessions?

Lots of tea! I love tea, but it needs to be scalding hot, in a big mug with sugar-free soya milk. I am not a big snacker when I am writing (too messy!), but if I am in the zone I often skip lunch, and then something like fig rolls or coconut macaroons are great because they are quite filling and can keep me going until dinner.

What crime novel would you always pick up if you saw it in a Lounge Library?

Aargh, what a hard question! I would probably pick them all up, but if I had to say one it would probably be When Will There Be Good News by Kate Atkinson. I have read this at least 5 times. I love the Jackson Brodie series, but this has it all: a teenage ‘detective’ called Reggie, dogs, missing people, lots of humour and a huge emotional impact. In fact, writing this has made me want to read it all over again…

Every great mystery has a beginning. What was the very first seed of an idea for Deception?
When creating my moral dilemmas, the first thing I do is consider which life element is at stake: is it a person’s professional duty being called into question, or is it about justice and the law? With Deception, I wanted to explore healthcare, and how in so many parts of the world, healthcare isn’t considered a right, but a product you can either afford or you can’t. I wanted to explore the lives of those who can’t afford it, and how playing with right and wrong in this arena asks the reader to consider what they would do in the characters’ shoes: how far would they go to save someone they love, when let down by the system, which is supposed to save them?

Sum up Deception in three words…
High-octane, heart-wrenching, propulsive!

What food and drink fuels your writing sessions?
I start the day with a pain au chocolat and extra hot soya latte (iced soya lattes if it’s warm outside!), and then run on Coke Zeros and a midday KitKat! If I have lunch, it’s often a mid-afternoon chicken Caesar salad or a smoked salmon bagel. Essentially: caffeine, sugar and carbs!

What crime novel would you always pick up if you saw it in a Lounge Library?
Although historical, I consider this a landmark crime fiction title, too: Fingersmith by Sarah Waters. I’ve read it three times, and it has the best twist I’ve read in fiction (yes, it even beats Gone Girl in my book!).

Every great mystery has a beginning. What was the very first seed of an idea for A Plot to Die For?

I had a strong image in my mind of somebody dying horribly at choir practice during a rendition of What The World Needs Now. At the time, I was helping to care for my mother, who’d had a bad accident. It occurred to me that such a mother/son combination might be the basis for a good detective partnership. The son soon became a celebrity gardener, returning to his small town in Ireland after a successful career in the UK, who uses his horticultural skills to help solve murders.

Sum up A Plot to Die For in three words…

Funny, warm, twisty.

What fuels your writing sessions?

I am pretty abstemious once I get into a writing frenzy. I can go for hours without even a sip of water. But with perfect timing, my wife will often revive me with a cup of coffee and a Wagon Wheel.

What crime novel would you always pick up if you saw it in a Lounge Library?

The Hollow Man by John Dickson Carr. It’s one of the original locked room mysteries. Apart from being quite characterful and amusing in its own right, it is a primer in the history of the locked room genre.

What would Finn from A Plot to Die For order at a Lounge and why?

As a keen gardener, I think he’d enjoy a Big Veggie Breakfast to fuel a day of amateur sleuthing.