with Peter Swanson
We are delighted to welcome author Peter Swanson to Omnimystery News today.
Peter's new suspense thriller is The Kind Worth Killing (William Morrow; February 2015 hardcover, audiobook and ebook formats) and we recently had the opportunity to catch up with him to talk more about it.
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Omnimystery News: Introduce us to the lead characters of The Kind Worth Killing? What is it about them that appeals to you as a writer?
Photo provided courtesy of
Peter Swanson
Peter Swanson: The book begins with the character of Ted and the character of Lily meeting at an airport bar at Heathrow. Ted has just discovered his wife is cheating on him, and wants revenge. Lily is a little more mysterious, especially since she seems willing to help Ted get what he wants. I like writing Ted because he's lost his sense of self, and he's on a mission of revenge, and I liked writing Lily because, at least to me, she is a very interesting (and almost sympathetic) sociopath.
OMN: The Kind Worth Killing is your second stand-alone thriller. Have you considered writing a series character?
PS: I'd write a series if I came up with a main character that I really wanted to write about over a series of books. I haven't yet. But it would be nice.
OMN: Into which genre do you place the book?
PS: My publisher calls it a thriller, and I'm happy with that designation. Suspense novel would work as well. I don't have a big problem with labels, since I do feel as though I fall strictly into the "novel of suspense" category. I guess maybe I'd care if they called me something that I didn't think I was.
OMN: Tell us something about The Kind Worth Killing that isn't mentioned in the publisher's synopsis.
PS: It's hard to do that, actually, without giving too much away, but I'll say that there are multiple narrators in the book, and also multiple murders.
OMN: How would you tweet a summary?
PS: A man and woman meet on a plane, and the man confesses that he's thinking of murdering his wife. She tells him she'd like to help.
OMN: Describe your writing process for us.
PS: Every book is a little different, but in the case of The Kind Worth Killing, I started with the premise and then let the book develop as I wrote. I knew the backstories of the characters, and I knew the general direction that I wanted the book to take, but other than that, I was flying by the seat of my pants.
OMN: If we could send you anywhere in the world, at our expense, to research the setting for a book, where would it be?
PS: I'd really love to go to Scandinavia, and I've heard it's very expensive, so I'll take a comprehensive tour of Scandinavia, all expenses paid, please.
OMN: What are some of your outside interests? And have any of these found their way into your books?
PS: I'm a huge movie buff, and I think that works its way into my books, both in the sense that I am influenced by films, and that I try and write, in a way, cinematically.
OMN: What is the best advice — and harshest criticism — you've received as an author?
PS: The best advice I've gotten was from my agent, who said that in order to surprise your readers you must surprise your characters. The harshest criticism was probably also from my agent, and there are too many examples to cite. He's a tough critic, which is a good thing. The advice I'd give aspiring authors is to write every day and get to the finish lines of stories and books.
OMN: What kinds of books did you read when you were young?
PS: I read anything I could get my hands on as a child, but I always loved creepy stories — anything with villains and heroes, anything with detectives. These definitely influenced my decision to become an author and write suspense novels.
OMN: And what do you read now for pleasure?
PS: I look forward to Ruth Rendell's mysteries and psychological thrillers. She's one of the best, I think. And right now I'm enjoying the second Cormoran Strike novel by J. K. Rowling. I also like to go back and re-read the Travis McGee novels by John D. MacDonald.
OMN: Have any specific authors influenced how and what you write today?
PS: Robert Parker, who wrote the Spenser series of detective novels, introduced me early on to suspense novels that were set in my own backyard. Later, I fell in love with the novels of John D. MacDonald, who taught me that being a thriller writer did not mean that you were a hack in any way. He's a brilliant writer.
OMN: You mentioned the cinematic quality of your books and that you're a movie buff. What kinds of films do you enjoy watching?
PS: I watch all kinds of films, but my favorite filmmaker is Alfred Hitchcock. My favorite films of his are The Lady Vanishes, Rebecca, Notorious, Rear Window and North by Northwest. I love his films so much that there is no way they don't seep into what I write.
OMN: What's next for you?
PS: I'm working on another thriller about a woman who moves from London to Boston and winds up in a very creepy apartment building.
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Peter Swanson is the author of two novels and has won awards for his poetry from The Lyric and Yankee Magazine. He is currently completing a sonnet sequence on all 53 of Alfred Hitchcock's films. He lives with his wife and cat in Somerville, Massachusetts.
For more information about the author, please visit his website at Peter-Swanson.com and his author page on Goodreads, or find him on Facebook and Twitter.
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The Kind Worth Killing
Peter Swanson
A Novel of Suspense
On a night flight from London to Boston, Ted Severson meets the stunning and mysterious Lily Kintner. Sharing one too many martinis, the strangers begin to play a game of truth, revealing very intimate details about themselves. Ted talks about his marriage that's going stale and his wife Miranda, who he's sure is cheating on him. Ted and his wife were a mismatch from the start — he the rich businessman, she the artistic free spirit — a contrast that once inflamed their passion, but has now become a cliché.
But their game turns a little darker when Ted jokes that he could kill Miranda for what she's done. Lily, without missing a beat, says calmly, "I'd like to help." After all, some people are the kind worth killing, like a lying, stinking, cheating spouse …
Back in Boston, Ted and Lily's twisted bond grows stronger as they begin to plot Miranda's demise. But there are a few things about Lily's past that she hasn't shared with Ted, namely her experience in the art and craft of murder, a journey that began in her very precocious youth.
Suddenly these co-conspirators are embroiled in a chilling game of cat-and-mouse, one they both cannot survive … with a shrewd and very determined detective on their tail.
