I loved it so much that I was amazed to discover that it is S J Bolton’s debut novel – I simply had to find out more about this incredible author and so we go in touch with her publicist. Thankfully, Sharon turned out to be an equally incredibly nice individual and was only too happy to answers our questions – even some of the stranger ones!

So, feeling like an explorer who has just uncovered some ancient burial site full of priceless antiquities, I set about trying to discover what makes this writer tick and how Sacrifice came about. Read on to find out...

Sacrifice revolves around Shetland Folklore, what was it about this particular legend that inspired you to write a novel about it?
I’d had an idea buzzing around for a couple of years: that of a woman, who desperately wanted to be pregnant, conceiving a child that was in some way alien and that would, ultimately, destroy her. I had a feeling I could base it on Germanic, Scandinavian or Norse legend. So I pitched up at the library one day and found the section on mythology. The legend of the Kunal Trows caught my attention partly because it had a lot of similarities to my own idea, but mainly because it was so fabulously creepy.

This is your debut novel, when did you realise that you wanted to become a writer?
Relatively late in life because, for a very long time, it never occurred to me that I could do it. I feel stupid, looking back, because all the ingredients were there: I’ve always read avidly, my job was 70% writing (albeit technical stuff) and I’m one of those people who have an imaginary life running in parallel with their real one. It took a push from someone else to make me think...I wonder. Once I started, it was like falling off a log. The stuff just poured out. Of course, it was still a good while before I came up with anything publishable.

What made you choose this particular genre?
I write the sort of book I love to read. Crime with a twist. I enjoy the excitement, suspense and the sense of characters-in-peril that you get with crime stories and I tried to put a lot of that into Sacrifice; but I also love plots that are original and unusual.

How much time did you have to spend researching all the medical and other technical details contained in your novel?
A lot. I have no medical background and I had to start from scratch with the forensic stuff. I enjoy the research. I’m learning a huge amount all the time.

Why did you feel the need to have so much detail?
Partly because it was very important to me that Tora should be credible as an obstetrician. The reader needs to believe she is capable of delivering a baby and of taking care of business in an operating theatre. Later, her medical and obstetric skills are important factors in her cracking the case.

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