My Life of Crime welcomes Amanda Brittany author of Her Last Lie

Delighted to welcome Amanda Brittany to The Crime Warp. Amanda writes psychological crime thrillers. Her debut, Her Last Lie was published in January 2018, with all her eBook royalties being donated to Cancer Research UK in memory of her younger sister. Her Last Lie is presently being made into a film.

Amanda lives in Hertfordshire in the UK with her husband and two crazy, cute dogs. She's studied psychology & creative writing, and has a BA in English literature. When she's not writing, she loves spending time with her family and friends, travelling, walking her dogs, reading & sunny days. Although she also has a soft spot for snow, which features quite a bit in her writing!

She also writes psychological suspense novels as A J Brittany with Karen Clarke. Their debut The Secret Sister is out NOW, and they are presently writing book 2.

Amanda's fourth book I Lie in Wait is out in August 2020 and is available to pre-order. Tell the Truth and Traces of Her are out now. She is published by HQ/HarperCollins. Over to you now Amanda. 

Dear Reader 

I’m delighted to be invited on the Crime Warp Blog to tell you a little bit about what has influenced me as a crime writer.

Books

The book that influenced me most in my writing has to be And Then There Were None by  Agatha Christie. I read it in my teens and was hooked on ristie’s novels from then on. It has always fascinated me how she weaved her twists and turns into an absorbing plot, and always left me surprised at the end.

There are so many other books that have influenced me through the years, far too many to mention. But one book stands out as a bit of a game changer for me because it made me cry on a train. It was One Day by David Nicholls – and I thought how powerful words can be at triggering emotions in readers – I knew I wanted to be able to do that.

Music

I rarely listen to music when I write, but I do imagine music playing at various times during my plots, if that makes sense. I also like to have my characters listening to music from time to time. Amelia – the main character in I Lie in Wait listens to her late mum’s Fleetwood Mac album, evoking emotions in her. 

Two songs that have influenced me most in my life have been ‘Hide in your Shell’ by Supertramp. It made me realise as a teenager that I wasn’t alone in feeling shy and a bit lost at times;

 and ‘Supertrouper’ by Abba. It was actually my sister’s favourite song. She passed away in July 2017, and when I hear it she’s back with me, and we’re being daft together again.

TV/Film

‘Sherlock’ starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman has to be the TV drama that   has had the greatest influence on me with my writing. I’m in awe of the clever way the plots are executed by the talented team involved.

My books often have a twist that hopefully the reader doesn’t spot before the end, so I have to say the film ‘Shutter Island’ starring Leonardo DiCaprio influenced me greatly.

The two people who have influenced me most are my dad and sister. They always had so much faith in my writing. They are both no longer with us, but I know they are looking down still cheering me on.

Places

My first book Her Last Lie was set partly in Kiruna in Sweden. I visited Kiruna a few years back, and knew it was the perfect setting for a psychological crime thriller, with its freezing winter weather, and the amazing northern lights. The other place that has influenced my writing is Sligo in Ireland. My grandfather was born in Cliffony, Sligo, and when I visited I knew it had to feature in a story. Sligo features in Tell the Truth, and The Secret Sister, a psychological suspense I co-wrote with Karen Clarke. It also features in a comedy I’ve written that is not yet published – so you can see I love the place.

Amanda's Books 

Avaiable here

Available here

 You can connect with Amanda here

Website: www.amandabrittany.co.uk

You can follow her on:
Twitter: @amandajbrittany
Facebook: www.facebook.com/amandabrittany2
Instagram: @amanda_brittany_author

Available here