Q&A: Elly Griffiths, November 1, 2010
Nov 1, 2010In 2009, Elly Griffiths’s acclaimed debut, The Crossing Places, introduced U.S. mystery readers to British forensic anthropologist Ruth Galloway; her foil and lover, DCI Harry Nelson; and the windswept, stark beauty of England’s Norfolk coast. In her second series entry, The Janus Stone (see review on p. 52), Griffiths again successfully combines compelling suspense with a touch of the gothic as her engaging, outspoken, and newly pregnant sleuth investigates a child’s skeleton that might be either a Roman “foundation sacrifice” to the god Janus or a more modern murder victim.
Your debut novel, The Crossing Places, was short-listed for some impressive awards and immediately brought you comparisons with Aaron Elkins, Ian Rankin, Erin Hart, and others. Did all of this praise put pressure on you when you were writing your second book?
I still can’t believe that I have been compared to these incredible writers. I was very nervous about the second book. People had liked Ruth so much in The Crossing Places that I was worried about getting her right in another book. It was also the first time I had ever written a sequel. I’ve been delighted that the second book, The Janus Stone , has been very well received in the United Kingdom. And people still like Ruth!
What inspired you to choose the mystery genre? Do you read mysteries, and, if so, who are your favorites?
I had written previous books under my own name, Domenica de Rosa. I suppose you would describe them as women’s fiction. However, I increasingly became more interested in incorporating mysteries into the plots. My publishers weren’t too pleased, and, when I wrote The Crossing Places , they didn’t want it at all. So my agent suggested a new name and a new publisher! I’ve always loved mysteries, crosswords, and cryptic clues. I love C.J. Sansom and Ian Rankin, but my favorite writer of all time has to be Wilkie Collins.
What kinds of research in forensic archaeology and police procedure have you done to give your stories authenticity?
My husband is an archaeologist, and he helps me with my research. He introduced me to a forensic archaeologist who has been a great help. I’ve also got a friend who used to be a policeman. He tells me that, far from being a dinosaur, [DCI Harry] Nelson is actually rather enlightened!
Ruth Galloway is a woman with whom readers can readily identify: late thirties; well educated; likes cats, books, her privacy, Bruce Springsteen...and her DCI colleague Nelson. How did you choose to define her?
I’ve been so happy that people have taken Ruth to their hearts. I suppose there is a little of me in her. I love cats and Bruce Springsteen, and I struggle with my weight! She also has some characteristics of my two older sisters and my aunt—all strong, independent women. It was my aunt, who lives in Norfolk, who first inspired me to write about the area. I suppose I would just define Ruth as human. She’s not perfect, and she doesn’t think she knows all the answers.
Rather than living in a city or academic community among her colleagues, Ruth lives on the wild, windswept, gothic Saltmarsh. What caused you to choose this setting?
I’ve always been drawn to remote coastal landscapes. I live on the south coast of England, near Brighton, though, for anyone who knows the town, there is nothing lonely or windswept about Brighton. We spend part of every summer staying with my aunt on the Norfolk coast, which is the setting for The Crossing Places. It was my husband who gave me the idea though. We were walking across Titchwell Marsh when he mentioned that marshland was sacred to prehistoric people because it is neither land nor sea but something in between. The entire plot of The Crossing Places came to me in that instant.
Can you give us some insight into the future of Galloway and Nelson? How many books do you plan for them?
Well, I’m currently writing Book 4, and their relationship just gets more and more complicated. I really don’t know how it will work out, but I comfort myself that this is just like life! I’ve got ideas for at least another four books. As long as people still want to read them....—Susan Clifford Braun , The Aerospace Corp., El Segundo, CA
