I was born and grew up on the small island of Guernsey, one of the British Channel Islands in the English Channel.
I’ve been obsessed with words and books since the day I first learned to read, and grew up on classic children’s authors like Enid Blyton and Edith Nesbit. I have always been a hopeless romantic, and my favourite novels are beautiful, intelligent love stories that combine a gripping plot with gorgeous prose and wonderful historical detail to lose yourself in.
Throughout my time at university I studied 1900-1945 European history and culture—a period that continues to fascinate me. I always knew that when I eventually wrote my first novel it would be a novel of historical fiction set during the first half of the twentieth century. And that it would be first and foremost a love story. Mental health is a subject that has always hugely interested me, too, and through Beyond The Moon I wanted to shine a light on the often appalling conditions found in privately-run UK psychiatric facilities. Sadly there really are places like Coldbrook Hall.
I hope you enjoy Beyond The Moon as much as I loved writing it.