Today I’m delighted to revisit my Five on Friday interview with author Amanda Robson who writes domestic suspense novels. This feature which was first posted in Feb 2019 and has been brought up to date to reflect Amanda’s latest publications.
Sunday Times bestselling author Amanda Robson, started life after graduation as a scientist working at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and subsequently at the Poison’s unit at Guy’s Hospital, where she became a co-author of a book on cyanide poisoning.
Married to a workaholic barrister, after having her two sons she became a stay-at-home mother for many years. When her two sons reached their late teens she had a ‘light-bulb’ moment. where she realised her life had stopped moving forwards. She had become simply an enabler for everyone else in her family. She determined to write a novel, something she had wanted to do since the age of twelve when she was inspired by falling in love with Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca.
Amanda attended the Faber Academy writing a novel course run by Richard Skinner in 2011. A pivotal experience for her which she would recommend to any aspiring novelist. Her first book Obsession was published with Avon HarperCollins in 2017. She now writes full-time from home, living in Wales and London, with her husband Richard, golden retriever, Siberian kitchen and grouchy old black-and-white cat. Her two sons, following their father’s footsteps are both lawyers, and have now fled the nest.
Amanda loves her London social life, the peace and beauty of her home in the Brecon Beacons, and sailing on her yacht, Heartbeat.
Over to Amanda:
Which five pieces of music/songs would you include in the soundtrack to your life and why?
Time from Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd – The lyrics to this song have inspired me since I was a teenager. Pink Floyd are my favourite band of all time.
Imagine by John Lennon – The lyrics to this song nail it for me.
Hearts and Flowers by Joan Armatrading – A song for my husband.
Dancing Queen by Abba – I was seventeen when this came out. Seventies disco with your whole life in front of you.
100% fun, Uptown Funk by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars – Love this. Still having fun now.
What five things (apart from family and friends) would you find it hard to live without.
It took 2 seconds to think about this, and given the community who might read it I guess I don’t need to give an explanation.
Coffee
Alcohol
Reading novels
Writing
Watching drama on Netflix.
Give five pieces of advice to your younger self?
Don’t worry about things so much. The bad stuff that comes is totally unexpected.
Ditch bitchy friends. Stick to kind ones.
Listen to advice – but follow your own judgement.
Everything is just a stage. Appreciate the good while you have it. Remember the bad will pass.
If you really want to do something, do it. Later might be too late.
Tell us five things that most people don’t know about you
I am a very open person, so most people who know me, know most things about me.
Tell us five things you’d still like to do or achieve.
Things to do before I ‘kick the bucket’ so to speak. Well I am not young; so I have already done 4 of them.
Got married.
Had children.
Written a novel or two.
Bought a sailing cruiser – just a month ago.
So … what I really want to do is continue to enjoy what I have. I would like to press a button right now, and keep my life just as it is – for ever.
Amanda’s Books
(NB This post features Affiliate links from which I earn a small commission on qualifying purchases)
The Party Guest
A birthday to remember. But would they rather forget…?
Ralph is turning 45, and the only gift he wants is his ex-wife.
Gemma, his trophy girlfriend, won’t let anything ruin her plans for an engagement.
Sarah, the ex-wife, has agreed to attend Ralph’s party, with her new man in tow.
And Jack, her partner, will stop at nothing to keep Sarah out of her ex-husband’s clutches.
It’s a celebration like no other. The whole extended family in a villa on the beautiful Amalfi coast.
But by the end of the trip, two people will be dead.
At this birthday party to remember, will anybody unwrap the truth…?
Two weeks. Four guests. One party to die for.
The Unwelcome Guest
SHE HAD THE PERFECT MARRIAGE. UNTIL HER MOTHER-IN-LAW MOVED IN…
Saffron vowed to love Miles no matter what life threw at them both. But when her mother-in-law moves into their happy family home, Saffron’s shiny life begins to tarnish.
Even as Caprice’s barbed comments turn to something more sinister, Saffron hopes the new nanny’s arrival will shield her from the worst of it. She’s starting to feel paranoid in her own home.
Little does she realise that Caprice longs for a new daughter-in-law – and she’ll do anything to make that happen…
My Darling
A new couple moves in next door.
And nothing will ever be the same again…
I watched you move in and thought we might be friends.
I saw you watching from the window – and knew I’d have to keep you away from my husband.
I started to trust you. Confide in you.
I started to mistrust you. Suspect you.
I was confused when I blacked out after an evening at your place. Was I really that drunk?
I came up with a plan. A plan to make you both pay . . .
Envy
She wants your life – and she’ll do anything to get it…
Erica has always wanted to be exactly like her neighbour, Faye: beautiful, thin, and a mother. But Faye’s life isn’t as perfect as it seems – she has a terrible secret, and slowly but surely, it is threatening to destroy her and everything she holds dear.
When Faye’s daughter Tamsin goes missing after school, the police turn to Erica. But is Erica the only one who has been enviously watching Faye? Or is there another threat hiding in the shadows…?
Guilt
Your sister. Her secret. The betrayal.
There is no bond greater than blood…
When the body of a woman is found stabbed to death, the blame falls to her twin sister. But who killed who? And which one is now the woman behind bars?
Zara and Miranda have always supported each other. But then Zara meets Seb, and everything changes. Handsome, charismatic and dangerous, Seb threatens to tear the sisters’ lives apart – but is he really the one to blame? Or are deeper resentments simmering beneath the surface that the sisters must face up to?
As the sisters’ relationship is stretched to the brink, a traumatic incident in Seb’s past begins to rear its head and soon all three are locked in a psychological battle that will leave someone dead. The question is, who?
Obsession
One evening, a wife asks her husband a question: who else would you go for, if you could?
It is a simple question – a little game – that will destroy her life.
Carly and Rob are a perfect couple. They share happy lives with their children and their close friends Craig and Jenny. They’re lucky. But beneath the surface, no relationship is simple: can another woman’s husband and another man’s wife ever just be good friends?
Little by little, Carly’s question sends her life spiralling out of control, as she begins to doubt everything she thought was true. Who can she trust? The man she has promised to stick by forever, or the best friend she has known for years? And is Carly being entirely honest with either of them?
Obsession is a dark, twisting thriller about how quickly our lives can fall apart when we act on our desires.
Jill's Book Cafe 