THE COLD ROOM ~ a DI Eleanor Raven novel by Karen Long #interview

cold room

The Cold Room

by

Karen Long

cold roomPublication Date: 8th May 2017

Series: Eleanor Raven – Book 3

Genre: Crime / Thriller

The brand new thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat from the author of The Safe Word and The Vault.

Winter is settling on Toronto and a series of seemingly unconnected murders are weighing heavily on DI Eleanor Raven. When an army veteran holds his family hostage, leaving chaos and an unidentifiable skeletal human hand in his wake, Raven is left tangled in a web of leads, lies, and secrets, with each thread leading her closer to the all too terrifying truth.

But with time running out, Raven needs to re-connect with her past life – the one she thought she’d finally escaped from – if she’s to find out who the killer is before they strike again . . .

Buy Links

AMAZON UK

AMAZON.COM

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I’m thrilled to have Karen Long here at Celtic Connexions to answer a few questions. Without any further ado…

When did you first know you wanted to be an author?

I have always loved creative writing. Conversations are ethereal endeavours, which change with time and recollection. Putting words onto a page and making them available to people you have never met, is a deeply personal and thrilling concept. I’ve always wanted to write and ultimately to be read, probably since primary school.

Of all the cities in the world, what was it about Toronto that made you want to set your novels there?

Toronto is a fabulous city. It is exotic, exciting, a little dark and dangerous in places but has a recognisable British vibe to it. It felt very liberating to set the novel there and I have visited all of the places mentioned. One of the reasons to take a break from writing the series is that I’ve run out of geographical experience.

Where do the ideas for your books come from? Do you use actual events then massage them into your own fictional work?

I was staying in Toronto when I read an article in a local paper about a ‘Red Letter’ sexy kidnapping that went wrong when local residents, fearing a woman was being abducted, called the police. It was such a gem of an idea, I used it as the basis of the first book. Every experience you have, from a snatched conversation, a trip to a museum or listening to the radio,  provides material. The fun is raking through the mundane and seemingly irrelevant, to find the idea that will launch your story.

Is your Eleanor Raven character based on anyone in particular or a mish-mash of a number of people?

Eleanor can only exist because I can share, or at least imagine her thoughts and reactions. Every character I write, even the psychopaths, are believable to my way of thinking. I don’t share their life experiences (that’s what the internet is for) but I absolutely understand how they reach their conclusions. Therefore, I suppose they are all manifestations of my personality. However, none look like me so I take physical attributes from people I meet, or actors I like.

Anything else you’d like to share?

It’s been an absolute pleasure answering these questions.

Thank you so much for taking time out during your busy blog tour to stop by and answer these questions.

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ABOUT KAREN LONG

cold room

Karen Long was born and raised in the English midlands, educated at Bangor University and taught English and Drama for fifteen years. During her teaching years she studied biology and neurology with the Open University and this interest in medicine, forensics and forensic psychology is reflected in her writing. She is an enthusiastic traveller and has spent time in Toronto, which became the backdrop and inspiration for The Safe Word.

She is a keen amateur naturalist with a deep and abiding love for the crow family. She has dedicated time, love and several fingers in an effort to rehabilitate crows, magpies, rooks and ravens.

Karen is happy to correspond with readers and can be contacted through her website KarenLongWriter.com, where she posts regular blogs.

The Safe Word is Karen’s first novel and was an Amazon bestseller, later joined by the second in the Eleanor Raven series, The Vault.

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All author or review enquiries, please contact Karen Long’s Personal Assistant J.B. Johnston – brookbooks@hotmail.co.uk

Did you know that Eleanor Raven is also online?

http://twitter.com/RavenEleanor

https://www.facebook.com/TheEleanorRaven/

GIVEAWAY!

2 lucky readers have the chance of winning a signed paperback copy of the book!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

PLUS…………..

HEAD ON OVER TO GOODREADS FOR ANOTHER CHANCE TO WIN A COPY OF THE BOOK!

https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/236099-the-cold-room

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