My guest today is psychological thriller writer Rachel Sargeant, who is published by HarperCollins. Based in Gloucestershire for several years, she previously lived in Lincolnshire, Surrey, Shropshire, Nordrhein-Westfalen and Ceredigion. She likes to feature settings she knows in her writing, but gives them a twist so they are far darker than the real places.
Hi how lovely to see you in my virtual cocktail lounge, Rachel. What can I get you at the bar?
R: Thank you for inviting me, Anne. I’m going to pretend it’s a balmy evening and your cocktail lounge has moved outside. Please can I have a Pimm’s and lemonade with lots of strawberry, orange, cucumber and a sprig of mint to enjoy on this sunny patio.
Always happy to enjoy a drink in the evening sunshine. So where did we first meet in real life?
R: We met in the grand foyer of The Midland Hotel in Morecambe during last year’s Morecambe and Vice Crime Writing Festival. We admired the wonderful art-deco staircase that featured in at least one Poirot episode.
We did and what an impressive building! And a fabulous festival. First impressions?
R: I’d formed my first impressions of you the day before when I attended the panel Let Them Lead the Way. You ably moderated a panel of children’s mystery writers: Sharna Jackson, Sarah Todd Taylor and Nicki Thornton. It was a lovely panel that particularly interested me as my last job before I became a full-time author was librarian in a primary school. I had read Sharna’s novel and bought it plus books by Sarah and Nicki for the school library. It was good to hear them speak enthusiastically about their work with children. You did an excellent job of moderating. It was clear you had done a huge amount of preparation, but, like the good author you are, you didn’t let your research dominate. Perfectly demonstrating the art of show not tell, you posed well-thought-out questions and let the panellists take centre stage.
Wow thank you! Points in common?
R: I think on that occasion in the hotel foyer we talked about the rain. There was rather a lot of it that morning. Since we’ve been friends on Twitter, it’s clear that we share a love of languages as well as writing. I believe you studied French at university. I studied German and lived there with my family for several years. We took the opportunity to travel to other European countries. My daughter spent last year in Belgium and Germany, and it was wonderful to see those countries again when we visited her. Spending time with our European neighbours is an enriching experience.
Talking about university reminds me of your latest book. Tell me more.
R: The Roommates is a psychological thriller set on a fictional British university campus during freshers’ week. Four new students, each hiding a secret from their past, find themselves sharing a flat. When one of them suddenly disappears, the others must trust each other and work together to find out what has happened. Little do they realise the danger ahead.
R: Four roommates, four secrets, one devastating lie.
What are you working on now?
R: I’m putting the finishing touches to two books. One is a serial killer thriller, the first in a new police procedural series. The other is a psychological thriller set in a Then-There-Were-None-type inaccessible location. I’m also part way through the first draft of a literary project that is going to take at least two years to complete.
You obviously don’t let the grass grow… What would be your dream panel (at any event) – subject, fellow panellists or a Q&A with someone you have met or would love to meet?
R: I think I speak for all authors in 2020 when I say any panel at all would be a dream panel.
R: I was due to appear at CrimeFest to discuss: Sanctuary? When Familiar Surroundings Become Murderous. I hope it gets to take place one day as my novels tend to feature everyday settings that have taken a turn towards darkness and I was looking forward to talking about the theme.
R: I went to CrimeFest last year but not as a panellist. It was my first time at a literary festival and I’m so grateful to Chris Curran and Anja de Jager for keeping me company in the bar each evening and inviting me to join them for dinner. It would be nice to appear on the panel with these friendly writers. I know setting is important to both of them. Anja’s Lotte Meerman police detective series is set in Amsterdam, and Chris’s alter ego Abbie Frost has scored a recent hit with The Guesthouse.
What are you most looking forward to when lockdown is finally lifted?
R: When lockdown is properly over, I’ll be very pleased to go to the seaside, but I won’t go yet. I like all the fish and chip cafés, town museums and souvenir shops that go with a day out.
That’s another point in common. I love English seaside towns – and fish and chips – but like you I’ll be waiting for the right time. Thank you so much for joining me today, Rachel and I look forward to seeing you at a book event when they again become a feature in our lives.
Find out more about Rachel Sargeant’s books here and follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RachelSargeant3