What is the secret to writing an unputdownable thriller?
Creating characters we really, really care about. That is the primary thing. If a writer dreams up a character I can identify with, or become invested in, and then they put the character through obstacles, challenges and setbacks, I, as a reader, am all in. It’s not the obstacles that make the thriller, it’s the protagonist. Genuinely caring for a person trumps the fanciest of fancy polit twists.
As this is the 6th book in the series, how important is it to wrote to sustain the curiosity of existing readers and ignite the curiosity of new?
I have no idea! I’m honestly just focussed on storytelling. I love writing Tuva, and small-town Sweden, and that is what I work hard at. I’m very fortunate readers around the world connect so strongly with her.
What inspired you to write thrillers, especially those in more rural, isolated settings?
Being a reader. Being a shy, awkward kid from a rural area in the Midlands. And having that magical experience, throughout my life, of opening a new book and getting hooked and propelled and falling in love and being utterly terrified. I still remember the feeling in my gut when I read Danny, The Champion of the World, Trainspotting, Frankenstein, The Secret History, Dark Matter, Sharp Objects, The Paying Guests, The Driver’s Seat, Shutter Island, Under the Skin. I am constantly striving to find that next thrill: both as a reader and as a writer.
Ice Town is an incredibly intense read, a significant part of this being the tunnel in the mountain with only one way in/out; what research did you do to make this atmosphere feel both genuine and effective?
I come from the flatlands of the East Midlands. I enjoy those open skies. Now I live in a Swedish forest and feel very protected by the many millions of trees all around me, and yet I can still escape in any direction. The idea of being locked inside in a small town (with no police force) in a steep mountain valley, where the access tunnel closes each and every night, haunts me. I researched the town of Whittier, Alaska (they have a similar tunnel) and I observe the cultural nuances (and extreme climate) every day here in rural Sweden. But, mostly, and most enjoyably, I rely on my childlike imagination to fill in all the gaps.
Tuva Moodyson and the missing teenager are both deaf, this ties their characters together in a way the other characters cannot understand. What attracted you towards creating this relationship between these two characters in this particular book in the series?
It’s vital that a protagonist be proactive. In a long-running series, the protagonist should also develop and grow. Tuva has been promoted at the newspaper and she is keen to stretch her muscles and test herself. I don’t this she ever envisaged travelling so far north in midwinter. I like the fact that, three books ago, she would have never taken this assignment on, but now, in a split-second, she decides she is the only reporter whi can adequately cover this particular story. She then sells the idea to her editor. The virtual connection between Tuva and the missing teenager is felt through their shared battles and strengths. They have never met. They don’t get to meet in the story. And yet there is a strong thread joining them. I think many of us can empathise with that kind of subtle connection. Tuva feels a tremendous compulsion to do the teenager justice, and to fight to uncover what has happened to him in this isolated, cut-off place. She says in the book that she was him ten years ago. So she climbs into her trusty Hilux and races north towards Ice Town. It’s what she does.
