Today I'm delighted to welcome
REBECCA GRIFFITHS
to share her BEST OF CRIME ...
... AUTHORS
This is a difficult one ... John Fowles, Hilary Mantel, Ian McEwan, Roald Dahl, Ruth Rendell, John Harvey to name but a few ... but if really pushed, I’d have to say, Friedrich Durrenmatt. His book The Pledge is one I return to time and again. For its atmospheric settings and scenes that play like a musical accompaniment to the dramatic storytelling that leads the reader to the shocker of an ending. It is a study of obsession and the precarious balance which exists between good and evil - in a nutshell, I admire Durrenmatt as a writer because he creates excitement and tension by quiet and simple means.
... FILMS/MOVIES
Another difficult one! There are so many, and my favourite genre in film has to be a great court room drama like: To Kill a Mockingbird, The Accused, Reversal of Fortune. But, if pushed, the absolute standout film in the crime/thriller genre for me has to be, Gorky Park (written by Dennis Potter, from a Martin Cruz Smith novel, and directed by Michael Apted).
I first saw this film in my late teens, and have watched it many times since. The most striking thing for me, is that it hasn’t dated, and is as absorbing, chilling and fresh today as it was 35 years ago. From the gruesome opening scene, when three murder victims are found in Moscow’s Gorky Park without their faces or fingertips, it creates an immediate intensity that’s sustained throughout by a cast of characters you care about who unearth a network of deceit and intrigue. In essence, this is a taut and clever psychological plot entwined in a tender love story. Haunting and bleak and moody, it is strangely riveting without need for endless shootouts, car chases or elaborate special effects.
... TV DRAMAS
The Strike Series (from the books by Robert Galbraith). Private Detective Cormorant Strike and his assistant, Robin Ellacott, are so terrifically drawn and believable, it’s difficult to pull your eyes away from the screen. Fundamentally, what makes them interesting to me, is they are, both of them, wounded; either physically or psychologically, or both, and I find I don’t really care about the crime they are solving (although the crimes are thrilling) - what I love, is the absorbing and touching way these two interact with one another. They truly are a fabulous duo, and I can’t wait for the next book in the series, Lethal White (published September 2018) to be televised.
... FICTIONAL KILLERS
Jack Vance (created by Val McDermid). A TV celebrity with a secret lust for torture, murder and underage girls. Wire in the Blood was published in 1997, but what echoes it has with what went on to be revealed about Jimmy Saville after his death in 2011. Chilling, doesn’t come near it. ‘Who knew?’ - it’s a question I’m waiting to ask Val McDermid.
... FICTIONAL DETECTIVES
Detective Inspector Charlie Resnick (created by John Harvey). A sensitive, intelligent and three-dimensional character, that Harvey goes on to develop throughout the series of books. Resnick has become so real in my head, I can go to town and see him drinking his strong, black Polish coffee at a café in the undercover market, a blob of mayonnaise on his tie!
... MURDER WEAPONS
I have to say, it’s more the 'why' rather than the 'how' that interests m The steady unravelling of the human psyche, and how personal backgrounds and prejudices influence actions ... that can evolve to become deadly actions.
... DEATH SCENES
Lamb to the Slaughter (1953) is a short story by Roald Dahl. *spoiler alert* ... The story was supposedly suggested to Dahl by his friend Ian Fleming: "Why don't you have someone murder their husband with a frozen leg of mutton, which she then serves to the detectives who come to investigate the crime?"
Brilliant!
... BLOGS/WEBSITES
I like trawling through Facebook and Twitter. It’s often where I find my characters’ names and information on the lives they lead and the jobs they do - social media sites provide an amazing treasure trove of goodies, as they shine a rather bold, unerring, if not unintended light into the warped workings of the human mind!
... WRITING TIPS
Just do it.
... WRITING SNACKS
I try not to! Limiting myself to mugs of hot black tea and the odd rhubarb and custard sweet until it’s deemed a decent hour in the day for a large gin and tonic!
About REBECCA GRIFFITHS
Rebecca Griffiths grew up in rural mid-Wales and went on to gain a first class honours degree in English Literature. After a successful business career in London, Dublin and Scotland she returned to mid-Wales where she now lives with her husband, a prolific artist, their three vampiric cats as black as night, and pet sheep the size of sofas.
Find Rebecca Griffiths on Twitter - @rebeccagriffit7
About A PLACE TO LIE
Publisher's description
In a dark, dark wood
In Summer 1990, Caroline and Joanna are sent to stay with their great aunt, Dora, to spend their holidays in a sunlit village near the Forest of Dean. The countryside is a welcome change from the trauma they know back home in the city; a chance to make the world a joyful playground again. But in the shadowy woods at the edge of the forest hide secrets that will bring their innocence to a distressing end and make this a summer they will never forget.
There was a dark, dark house
Years later, a shocking act of violence sends Joanna back to Witchwood. In her great aunt's lonely and dilapidating cottage, she will attempt to unearth the secrets of that terrifying summer and come to terms with the haunting effects it has left on her life. But in her quest to find answers, who can she trust? And will she be able to survive the impending danger from those trying to bury the truth?
A Place to Lie is published by Sphere on 6 December 2018.
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