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Desert Island Crime with Egan Hughes

Desert Island Crime
By Brionee Fenlon
Related Categories: The Crime Vault Exclusives, The Crime Vault Interviews, The Crime Vault Posts

Egan Hughes is the author of the dazzling debut crime novel, THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY, which published last week in digital and is coming out in paperback in August. We asked her about the crime books she’d take with her to a Desert Island

 

Over to you Egan:

 

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

I’ve read this book more than any other and am drawn to the story of the second Mrs De Winter (we never know her first name), living in the shadow of wild, reckless Rebecca. The dangerous Cornish seas beside Manderley add a sense of foreboding that’s tied up in how Rebecca died.

 

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

Celeste Ng writes brilliantly about family, belonging, race and what it is to be an outsider. At its heart is the nomadic Mia and her teenage daughter, Pearl, who attempt to settle in Shaker Heights, but why did Izzy burn the house down?

 

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

I love an unreliable narrator and the guessing game that ensues. Gone Girl takes it to new heights. Amy is utterly relatable in the early chapters of her toxic marriage to Nick. And then the twist changes everything.

 

You Don’t Know Me by Imran Mahmood

This debut by criminal defence barrister Imran Mahmood shows there’s no escape from London gang culture for some young people. The unnamed defendant stands accused of murder and gives his own shattering defence speech.

 

Fingersmith by Sarah Walters

Thrillers don’t come more perfect than this nineteenth century tale of betrayal and family secrets, and the twists are sublime. Sue Trinder travels from the back streets of London to be a lady’s maid in an imposing country house, but nothing is as it seems.

 

Skin Deep by Liz Nugent

The manipulative Delia grew up in an isolated island community and is irresistibly drawn to the sea. We know from the outset that her terrible past is catching up. It’s set in Ireland and in Nice, where I spend a lot of time when it’s possible to travel.

 

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

Narrated by Richard, the outsider, who’s studying ancient Greek on a scholarship with a privileged group of students. We know from the start that Bunny has been murdered, and their own Greek tragedy plays out in Vermont.

 

The Talented Mr Ripley by Patricia Highsmith

Things get deadly on the Amalfi coast during a long, hot summer. Tom Ripley is a darker character than in the film and it’s perfect summertime noir. Highsmith set out to write a true to life psychopath and said, ‘It felt like Ripley was writing it.’

 

 

The One That Got Away is available in eBook now and Paperback this Autumn!