STAR INTERVIEW

Police officer turned bestselling crime writer Clare Mackintosh tells Tina Jackson about how her own property obsession fuelled her new novel, and how the theme of grief underpins all her work

B estselling author Clare Mackintosh has become a star of the crime-writing scene for a very good reason. She understands what makes people tick. She’s clued in not just to people’s feelings and emotions, but to how we live now; what we tune into on social media; what we want to buy; the ways in which we want to project an image; what we aspire to owning, and being – and how far some people might be prepared to go to get what they want.

‘Crime readers want to think, what would I do in this terrible situation?’ says Clare.

In her new crime thriller Other People’s Houses, Clare takes a dark look at people’s obsession with property, and what the perfect house represents in terms of social status.

‘People are looking for different things. For some people property is all about status. For other people, a house is a home, somewhere to live. I find it very interesting why people choose the houses they do, and why they choose to move house.’

It’s not a detached interest either; Clare shares the popular fascination with ‘property porn’.

‘I am obsessed with houses,’ she confesses. ‘Obsessed with looking at Rightmove! I love snooping round people’s houses. I love a floor plan. I’ve had a few property nightmares of my own – buying property is one of the most stressful things you can do. When we moved the family to Wales, we were buying this beautiful property, but the purchase fell through… in the next one, we were gazumped. I really wanted to write a bad estate agent. I’m not saying they deserve to be murdered though!’