Briefly tell us about your book.
It’s about a father who creates a series of picture books all about his daughter and her cat. The books are rumoured to contain clues to a treasure hunt, but as fans of the series start searching the countryside for the treasure, the daughter begins to realise that the clues lead to something far darker than gold and jewels: a devastating secret carefully concealed within the pictures.
What inspired the idea behind this book?
There were two distinct moments: the first was when I rescued an Oriental cat, which is very similar to a Siamese. I wanted to write about him, but a cat needs an owner, and that’s how the protagonist, Romilly Kemp, came to be. The second moment was when I listened to a BBC Radio Four documentary about a picture book called Masquerade, dubbed as an ‘armchair treasure hunt’: the clues in the pictures led to real treasure buried somewhere in the British Isles. It had been a huge hit in the late seventies, prompting lots of people to start digging holes all over the UK! I didn’t actually look at the book until I’d written my novel, so that I wasn’t too influenced by it, but I’ve read it many times since.
Tell us about your background and what led you to writing this book?
I’ve always written. I wrote my first novel when I was nineteen, but it took another twenty years – and countless beginnings of novels – to get a publication deal. I began The Book of Hidden Wonders about eight years ago, writing in the small snatches of time between looking after my son. It’s the longest I’ve ever stuck with writing a book, and I think that must be because I had confidence in it that one day it would be published.
How does it feel to hold your book in your hands?
It was always going to be an incredible moment, especially as I’d seen pictures of the stunning design before it was sent to me, but nothing prepares you for seeing your words in a book. I love the cover so much. It has little clues all over it, just like the story inside. But the real treasure for me was the way the title changes colour when it catches the light. I had no idea it would do that! It’s just…hypnotising.
What are you hoping the reader will take away from reading your book?
Although at first glance it’s a magical coming of age novel, the story itself is stitched through with dark secrets, and it deals with a few weighty subjects. I think the main message of the novel is one of hope, and if the reader takes away a feeling of resolution and satisfaction when they reach the end, I will have done what I set out to do.
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