Q&A: Sarah Hornsley, Author of ‘Bad Blood’

We chat with author Sarah Hornsley about Bad Blood, which is a story of dark secrets, complicated families, and fraught homecoming, which will keep readers guessing until the very last page.

Hi, Sarah! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?

Hi, I’m a debut author living in Essex, England, which is where my novel BAD BLOOD is set. I write by night and by day I am a literary agent for Peters, Fraser + Dunlop, having worked in publishing for more than a decade.

When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?

I grew up in a house full of storytelling but my own love for writing first really became something I wondered if I could do as a career when I took a three-month screenwriting course in London at Ealing Studios during the summer break of university.

Quick lightning round! Tell us:

• The first book you ever remember reading: I read everything I could get my hands on by Jacqueline Wilson and particularly remember being obsessed with The Lottie Project.
• The one that made you want to become an author: My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult for making me really respect how books could tackle complicated situations and messy family dynamics.
• The one that you can’t stop thinking about: The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks

Your debut novel, Bad Blood, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?

Buried secrets, first love, murder.

What can readers expect?

Atmospheric and fast-paced suspense. I really wanted to pack a punch with the ending of this book so, if you like something that keeps you on your toes until the very last page, then I hope BAD BLOOD is the one for you. I’ve been told it has a triple twist, but that depends on if you guess any of them or not…

Where did the inspiration for Bad Blood come from?

I really wanted to explore the role of silence as the traumatic event within a family unit, rather than the trauma itself. Looking back on my own experience of assault as a teenager I found it was the way in which the situation was handled that shaped how I felt about what had happened to me. In BAD BLOOD I look at what happened to our protagonist in her past from the four different perspectives of her family members and we see how all the gaps in communication, the omissions, add together to have devastating consequences eighteen years later.

Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?

I really enjoyed writing my main character, Justine Stone, because written in the first person you can get completely under their skin and you don’t have to filter anything out. You can explore the rawest form of someone. The thoughts we may have and the dark places we may go in our minds, whilst portraying a totally different image of ourselves on the outside. I really lent into that and loved it.

Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?

I was writing this book with a newborn and a full-time job and so I found finding the time to write really difficult. The only way to make it work was to have a really rigid routine that as a family we all had to commit to. In a way, having such limited time to write I think helped create the pace of the book. I had to know what my plot was and what I was trying to achieve in each chapter and then make that happen quickly in each writing session. Without meaning to, it was a great tool for helping me stick to the writing rule for each scene of ‘enter late and exit early’.

This is your debut novel! What was the road to becoming a published author like for you?

A whirlwind! As an agent I am fully aware of how difficult and unpredictable the industry can be, which meant I never let myself think beyond the writing stage as I would have become too frozen with fear and never finished it. Apparently, I am an expert in compartmentalising! Once the book was ready and on submission with editors, it felt incredibly surreal because I’d been blocking out that whole part of the process. BAD BLOOD was then pre-empted in the UK within 48 hours and everything else followed from there. So it was all very fast and unexpected, for which I am very grateful!

What’s next for you?

I am currently writing book two, which is a standalone thriller also set in Essex. I can’t say much more at this point but look forward to announcing it soon!

Lastly, what books have you enjoyed reading this year? Are there any you’re looking forward to picking up?

I recently devoured RUNNER 13 by Amy McCulloch and THE NEW NEIGHBOURS by Claire Douglas. I know I’m a bit behind with this one but I’m also desperate to read David Nicholls’ YOU ARE HERE.

Will you be picking up Bad Blood? Tell us in the comments below!