Kevin Wignall’s new book A Death in Sweden is set for release on January 1. The novel is part of Kindle First program and already received positive feedback averaging with 4.8 Amazon stars. After gathered strong initial interest, the title occupies now the #1 spot at Kindle bestselling list.
It’s a great pleasure to introduce at Land of Books the British writer himself.

– Kevin, what is your new book A Death in Sweden about?
– It’s about Dan Hendricks, someone who used to do dirty work for the CIA and knows they’d now like to get rid of him. He’s offered a job that might get them off his back but it’s not as simple as it seems – he has to find out why a man called Jacques Fillon, who recently died in a bus crash, went to hide out in northern Sweden. Only problem is, the victim of the crash must have been someone else, because Jacques Fillon never existed.

– How did you decide to write the story?
– I often have lots of ideas swirling around, and on this occasion I was thinking a lot about the people who worked freelance for the CIA and others after 9/11, and how those people became a bit of a liability after Wikileaks. The ideas finally all came together when I was on a bus journey in northern Sweden, just like the one at the beginning of the book.
– What was the biggest challenge during the write up process?
– For me the challenge always comes before the writing. I can spend a year or more thinking about an idea. Once I start writing it’s usually fast and painless.
– Tell us something more about your main characters Dan and Jacques? Are they close to someone from your real life?
– You’ll have to read the book to find out about Jacques! As for Dan, he’s someone who’s at the top of his game, renowned for being able to track people down (and sometimes to make them disappear more permanently) but he’s very aware that he’s not getting any younger and that he’s missed out on what you might call a normal life.
– How much time did you need to finish the story and to publish it?
– I wrote it in about six or seven weeks (once I started writing). After that it took longer, partly because I changed one of my agents.
– What was your initial reaction when you saw A Death in Sweden in Kindle Amazon Top 3?
– Actually, as I sit here answering your questions, it’s at No.1. I couldn’t be happier. You write for readers, so to know it’s attracting people’s attention is the best feeling.
– What the readers will find in your popular novel The Hunter’s Prayer and when the movie will be released?
– I haven’t seen the movie yet, and I don’t know much about it, except that they changed it… a lot. But I hope people will enjoy them both. The book is the story of a young woman whose family is murdered and the hitman who saves her from the same fate. The movie is kind of like that too, but different.
– Who are you?
I’ve been trying to describe myself for the last fifteen years across six novels – I still don’t know the answer.
– What are your writing habits?
– As I said before, I think a lot, and when I’m in that phase I don’t write at all. Once I start writing a novel, I usually start mid-afternoon, and sometimes keep working until the early hours of the morning.
– Are you satisfied by the sales of your books?
– Right now I am.
– What are you doing to promote your book by the best possible way?
– Honestly, I leave that to my publisher because they seem to know what they’re doing. I’m not sure I could do anything extra – they have all the bases covered.
– When we will see your next novel and would you unveil something more about it?
– The Traitor’s Story comes out in June. It’s about a disgraced former spy who is asked for help by his neighbors when their 15 year old daughter goes missing. It’s only when he looks into it that he realizes her disappearance might have something to do with his former career.
– Do you remember the exact moment when you decide to become a full time writer?
– Kind of. I’d been talking about becoming a writer for a long time but had never actually written a full-length novel. One day, I just thought, “It’s now or never…”
– If you may ask yourself one question in the interview what it will be?
– Q: What’s your favorite word? A: Heeltap. (When you finish a drink and it looks as if there’s a little left in the bottom of the glass, but when you try to drink it, nothing comes out – that’s a heeltap.)

To learn more about Kevin Wignall check out his Website

Take a look at his books
The Hunter’s Prayer
A Death in Sweden
The Traitor’s Story
Who is Conrad Hirst?
People Die