Perplexing psychological novel that’s built on a series of unexpected twists

The Story of Before

The story shocked her, and stayed with her through the years. So when she was looking for an idea for a novel, it seemed a natural place to start.

“My initial idea was to write about the tragedy; and to explore what happened to the perpetrator afterwards,” she says. “But when I started writing, I realised the story belonged to Ruth, an 11-year-old, and to her family. It became about them, and about the events that led up to the tragedy.”