Barbara Lamplugh
This answer contains spoilers…
(view spoiler)[From living in Granada, where the legacy of the Islamic culture that lasted nearly 800 years is all around and is what brings so many tourists to the city and yet something still lingers of the historic conflict between Muslims and Christians, especially in the aftermath of 9/11 and then 11-M (the 2004 Madrid train bombings). I was fascinated by this paradox. And then one of the themes that has always interested me is that of lies and their consequences. So on a political level, the lies told by the government in the days immediately following the train bombings with an election due imminently - and the consequences of that lie being discovered - were interesting. I then wanted to draw a parallel with lies and their consequences in the sphere of personal relationships so I needed a story that would form the main plot of the novel. I had been struck after moving to Granada by the very different concept you have of a place when you live there and are immersed in the culture compared to the view of a tourist or occasional visitor. That gave me the idea of the two sisters: Deborah who has lived in Granada since 1985 and her sister Alice who lives in England, doesn't speak Spanish and only visits occasionally. The secret they share explores an issue that tends to crop up in several of my novels (and which I won't reveal!). The consequences of their lie and also the consequences on individual lives of a political event (in this case the terrorist attack in Madrid, which Deborah is caught up in) are what give the novel tension and suspense as the reader shares Alice's fear of their secret being exposed. (hide spoiler)]
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