So long, 2020...

Twelve months ago, I wrote a blog listing my highlights of the year. I was planning to do the same for this year - but it feels weird writing about the ‘best bits’ of 2020 when so many people have had such a tough time. January feels so long ago, like a different age, a different era.

But on a personal level, I’m glad to be ending the year with a couple of pieces of welcome news.

First of all, the gorgeous proofs of Trust Me are here! This is my fifth standalone thriller and I’m especially excited because it’s my very first hardback, which feels like new territory for me as a writer. Trust Me starts with two strangers meeting on a train, and one simple act of kindness that has terrifying consequences . . .

It’s publishing on 18 March 2021 and I can’t wait for it to be out there – more importantly, I can’t wait to hear what you all think.

As well as the proofs, I had another piece of lovely news at the beginning of December: an email from my publisher telling me I had sold one million books in the UK!

It’s such a mind-blowing figure that it hasn’t really sunk in yet. Just under four years ago, in January 2017, I was a debut author nervously awaiting publication of my first book, Lies. I had no way of knowing how it would be received, whether I had a future in fiction or if it might be a one-off, a fluke.

Luckily, lots of people seemed to like that book and those that have followed, 29 Seconds, The Holiday and this year, The Catch. It’s a dream come true to have reached one million books and I’m hugely grateful to everyone who has been a part of it by reading, recommending, reviewing and buying my thrillers over the last four years. Thank you.

For me, there have been some other personal highlights over the year.

One of my favourite days was getting together to celebrate my mum’s 80th birthday in the summer. We had a lovely meal – strictly according to the rules, of course – with my brothers, sisters-in-law and children. It was so nice to be able to get the family together and mark Mum’s big day, complete with a birthday picture quiz (which she won, appropriately). I was due a ‘big’ birthday bash of my own in 2020 which couldn’t go ahead, but we’ve pledged to do it next year instead. It means I can knock one year off my age, which is a bonus!

This has been a crazy year but it’s definitely given me a new appreciation for my own family, and I have enjoyed the four of us being together at home in Nottingham for longer periods. Writing can be a solitary existence and it has been great to see more of everyone during the day, working and studying from home. Holding my first Facebook Live launch party for The Catch in June was another highlight – made possible with the help of my wife and daughter on the day.

It’s impossible to know what the future holds but I have a feeling things are only going to get better once we get through the winter. Whatever you’re doing to mark the end of this year, I wish you a very merry Christmas and a healthy, happy New Year. See you in 2021!