A new guest to the Bookends Beach Party

We have a new guest at the Bookends Beach Party! Phoebe Locke, author of the gripping thriller The Tall Man, is here to reveal her guilty holiday pleasures and more in the Bookends Beach Party!

What will be in your beach bag for 2018?

Definitely mostly books… I’ve got Darling by Rachel Edwards, The Missing Girl by Jenny Quintana, Three Little Lies by Laura Marshall and Lying To You by Amanda Reynolds at the top of my reading pile. But I’ll also be packing plenty of suncream as I’m pretty pale and burn really easily, plus big sunglasses to hide behind for a sneaky snooze mid-afternoon.

What are your guilty holiday pleasures?

I do love a good lie-in, and I never do that at home – I find I write best if I get up early. So that’s always a nice treat. Also room service! And reading a book from cover to cover in one sitting (I actually don’t feel guilty about that in the slightest – it’s a brilliantly indulgent way to spend a day). Oh and an afternoon cocktail (or two)! I love holidays.

If you got to take one of your characters on holiday, who would it be and where would you go?

Probably Greta, the documentary filmmaker who is researching the Banner family in The Tall Man – I think she’d be good fun and always up for hunting down the best little restaurants and bars, but she’d also know never to interrupt someone when they’re reading. She’d probably also have a great stack of books so we could swap once we were done. And I don’t think I’d be able to turn my back for a second if I took either Amber or Sadie… I’m picturing Greta and me in Corfu or possibly Provence but she’s pretty well-travelled so maybe I’d have to let her do the planning.

Do you have a favourite writing getaway spot?

I actually love to write on trains or planes so it’s often the journey that’s the most productive part of a holiday for me! But also anywhere beside water, whether that’s in a beautiful hotel overlooking the sea or next to the pond in my parents’ garden – I find something about it very soothing.