Cat Clarke's new novel 'Girlhood' & a backlist classic: 'The Lost and The Found'.
So,
some of you readers may have noticed that I am a sucker for a good
cover on a book. Yeah yeah, I know the cliché, but c'mon. You cannot
deny a cover will pull you right in at times. And recently, a certain
author's backlist of books have had makeovers to coincide with and
celebrate the publication of her latest novel!
The gorgeous Cat Clarke's books are a staple on the bookshelf. Everyone I know has read at least 3 of her works and loved every single one. I recently read her latest, 'Girlhood', in under 48 hours because my gosh, it was a thrill ride. (Also mentioned that wild card of a book in my April reading wrap-up!)
In this post, I'll be sharing info on (imho) one of Cat's very best: 'The Lost and The Found'. This book came about in 2015, published by Quercus.
I fell hard for this book just reading the plot. I am a sucker for drama, as you all know. By the end of the book, the tension had made me shaky and the characters were imprinted forever in my mind. Srsly.
SHE
WAS LOST...
When
six-year-old Laurel Logan was abducted, the only witness was her
younger sister, Faith. Faith's
childhood was dominated by Laurel's disappearance - from her parents'
broken marriage and the constant media attention to dealing with
so-called friends who only ever wanted to talk about her sister.
NOW
SHE IS FOUND...
Thirteen
years later, a young woman is found in the garden of the Logans' old
house, disorientated and clutching the teddy bear Laurel was last
seen with. Laurel is home at last, safe and sound. Faith always
dreamed of getting her sister back, without ever truly believing it
would happen. But a disturbing series of events leaves Faith
increasingly isolated and paranoid, and before long she begins
to wonder if everything that's lost can be found again...
Cat has shared a song that she feels goes perfectly alongside this book: 'Safe and Sound', by Taylor Swift & The Civil Wars.
"Maybe a bit of an odd choice, but this was the first song on my playlist for The Lost and the Found… mostly because the original title of the story was (you’ve guessed it) Safe and Sound. This song has the added bonus of reminding me of a happy time in my life."
If you fancy 'The Lost and The Found', it's only £6.71 on A Great Read!
The hot new novel 'Girlhood' will be out in the UK on the 4th of May.
Do check out other blog posts celebrating Cat's backlist!
- Chelley Toy at Tales of Yesterday puts a spotlight on 'Torn'.
- Kirsty on The Overflowing Library shares her love for 'Undone'.
- Debbie at Snuggling on the Sofa looks at 'A Kiss in the Dark'.
Why did you choose to make Harper go through so much?
I keep thinking about that conversation in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix when Hermione explains the emotions Cho Chang is experiencing after Cedric’s death. Ron says, "One person can't feel all that at once, they'd explode." Hermione replies, “Just because you've got the emotional range of a teaspoon doesn't mean we all have.”
I think there’s this idea that a person can only experience one big emotion at a time, and that all the others just have to wait their turn. But life is messier than that. There is no “right” time for the worst thing to happen to you, or the best thing for that matter.
Harper is a human being dealing with an incredible amount of stress, grief and guilt. Sometimes she makes terrible decisions, because that’s what human beings do. In a way, I suppose I wanted to show that even though it sounds like too much for one person to go through, it’s possible to survive.
What don't we know about Harper? Is there something – a memory, perhaps – that you chose not to include in the book?
Confession time: I considered making something up just to answer this question, but the truth is I couldn’t think of a single thing! (And I could never lie to you, Grace!) Most of what I know about Harper is in the book, and anything that isn’t, I’ve forgotten. As soon as I start working on a new book, the last one vacates my brain. I should really create some study notes for situations like this!
...Okay,
I couldn't stop there. I simply had to
take advantage of this hotline to the lovely Cat Clarke and ask her
some burning questions about her latest novel 'Girlhood' – it's
been playing on my mind ever since I finished the last page!
What
was it that brought about the brilliant idea for the plot of this
book?
It was a couple of things. First of all, my childhood love for Malory Towers by Enid Blyton. I was OBSESSED. 'Girlhood' is my love letter to those books, even though I’m pretty sure Enid Blyton would be horrified by some of the things my characters get up to. The other piece of the puzzle was my interest of the idea of the best and worst possible things happening simultaneously in someone’s life. In 'Girlhood', Harper’s dad wins the lottery the day after her twin sister dies. How do you even start to deal with something like that?
It was a couple of things. First of all, my childhood love for Malory Towers by Enid Blyton. I was OBSESSED. 'Girlhood' is my love letter to those books, even though I’m pretty sure Enid Blyton would be horrified by some of the things my characters get up to. The other piece of the puzzle was my interest of the idea of the best and worst possible things happening simultaneously in someone’s life. In 'Girlhood', Harper’s dad wins the lottery the day after her twin sister dies. How do you even start to deal with something like that?
Why did you choose to make Harper go through so much?
I keep thinking about that conversation in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix when Hermione explains the emotions Cho Chang is experiencing after Cedric’s death. Ron says, "One person can't feel all that at once, they'd explode." Hermione replies, “Just because you've got the emotional range of a teaspoon doesn't mean we all have.”
I think there’s this idea that a person can only experience one big emotion at a time, and that all the others just have to wait their turn. But life is messier than that. There is no “right” time for the worst thing to happen to you, or the best thing for that matter.
Harper is a human being dealing with an incredible amount of stress, grief and guilt. Sometimes she makes terrible decisions, because that’s what human beings do. In a way, I suppose I wanted to show that even though it sounds like too much for one person to go through, it’s possible to survive.
What don't we know about Harper? Is there something – a memory, perhaps – that you chose not to include in the book?
Confession time: I considered making something up just to answer this question, but the truth is I couldn’t think of a single thing! (And I could never lie to you, Grace!) Most of what I know about Harper is in the book, and anything that isn’t, I’ve forgotten. As soon as I start working on a new book, the last one vacates my brain. I should really create some study notes for situations like this!
***
So,
there you have it. Some more juicy details about this delightfully wicked new novel. Tomorrow 'Girlhood' is published, and you all need to get on it and binge read it, as I did. Then I suggest you go back through Cat's whole backlist, and maybe discover some new favourites!
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