Lorraine Mace: Karen King is Turning to the Dark Side

Turning to the Dark Side

I started my writing career writing for children but now am mainly known for my romance novels so it will come as a surprise to my readers that my latest book – The Stranger in My Bed - to be published by Bookouture in November - is a psychological thriller. It might seem strange to go from writing ‘happy ever afters’ to stories about the darker side of relationships, but to me it was a challenge I had been wanting to take for quite a while. In fact I started writing a rough draft of The Stranger in My Bed over ten years ago, although it’s changed a bit and had a different title back then.

The way I see it, I write about relationships, so I’m still writing in genre but rather than a relationship that starts out rocky, then goes right, this story is about a relationship that starts out right, then goes wrong.

In a romance, the heroine and hero usually have some conflict right from the beginning, although there is chemistry between them, and that conflict has to be resolved before they can get together, admit their love for each other and get married, but with my psychological thriller, Freya and Phil are instantly attracted to each other, fall head over heels in love, and marry within six months. Then everything goes drastically wrong.

The main differences that I found when writing The Stranger in My Bed was that I had to make a conscious effort not to make it ‘emotional women’s fiction’ and to bring in some twists and turns to the plot to add to the tension necessary for the ‘thriller’ genre. I used shorter chapters and different POV’s to help me do this.

Although my romance novels are written mainly from the heroine’s POV I do frequently write scenes from the hero’s viewpoint, and my last novel, Single All The Way, featured the marriage break up of a mother and daughter and there were four different POV, so I am used to writing a story through different viewpoints. The main difference was writing from the ‘bad’ character’s point of view. I also had to make sure I held back ‘reveals’ and didn’t give everything away in the first couple of chapters, which meant switching some chapters around when it came to structural edits time! Thank God for my lovely editor.

It’s been a challenging story to write, and I have to admit that I’m nervous how it will be received, especially as I have a two-book contract from Bookouture so am now currently writing my second thriller. Fingers crossed that my readers will enjoy reading them.

The Stranger in My Bed

‘We have a patient who has been involved in a serious accident. We believe he’s your husband.’

When Freya first met Phil, she thought he was the man of her dreams. He bought her roses every week, booked surprise trips to sun-soaked destinations, and showed her affection like she’d never experienced before. But over time the dream had become a violent nightmare. And now Freya is packing her bags, knowing it’s time she escaped their increasingly broken marriage.

But then Freya gets a visit from the police. Phil’s been in a horrific car crash and – as he comes around – it becomes clear that he remembers nothing since their blissful honeymoon two years before, back when their relationship was perfect. All he wants is to be happily married again.

Freya knows giving him another chance could be dangerous. But now he’s the one who needs her, it’s a chance to turn the tables, and to change the outcome of their relationship once and for all. After all, he will only know what she chooses to tell him…

But what really happened during those two years of marriage? And as they start over again, who is safe? And whose life is in danger?

Fans of The Girl on the Train, Behind Closed Doors and Date Night who are looking for a dark, gripping psychological thriller, with a final twist that will leave their jaw on the floor, will love The Stranger in My Bed.

Now on preorder!

Amazon: https://geni.us/B08GKRRPWHCover

Apple: http://ow.ly/u5Po50B8dyr

Kobo: http://ow.ly/RvQb50B8dwv

Google: http://ow.ly/1IPa50B8lnh

Karen King bio

Karen King is a multi-published bestselling author of fiction for both adults and children. She has also written several short stories for women's magazines.

Currently published by Bookouture and Headline. Karen has recently signed a two-book deal with Bookouture to write psychological thrillers. The first one will be out in November, and the second one in 2021. She is also contracted to write three romance novels for Headline, which will be out in 2021 and 2022.

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