Before becoming a writer, Hannah was a TV and film producer, spending fifteen years producing and commissioning documentaries about the Arts, History and Science both in the UK and the US.
She lives in London with her husband and daughter.
Tell me about your latest book and why we should read it?
My new novel is called If Only I Could Tell You and it’s a story about families, secrets and the quiet strength of women. Sisters Lily and Jess haven’t spoken for thirty years, but neither of them will say why. When their mother, Audrey, is diagnosed with terminal cancer, she is determined to find out the cause of the estrangement, and to try and fix her broken family before it’s too late.
If you like stories about complex families, decades-old secrets and books that might require a side order of Kleenex, If Only I Could Tell You could be your next perfect read.
If someone was to write your life story what would the title be?
She Got There In The End.
What’s the strangest fan question or request you’ve received?
When I have some fans, I’ll let you know.
If you could co-write with anyone in the world (alive or dead) who would it be?
Maggie O’Farrell. She could do the writing, I could make the tea, and then I could bask in the glory of her brilliance.
Tell me something nobody else knows about you (yet!).
I could, but then this blog post would self-destruct in ten seconds…
Finally please recommend 3 books that you have recently read and tell me why you’ve chosen these.
John Boyne’s A Ladder to the Sky – it’s deliciously dark, has a brilliantly conceived protagonist and the plotting is meticulous.
The Cut Out Girl by Bart van Es – it won the Costa Book of the Year, and is a profoundly moving and beautifully written biography of a Jewish woman who, as a child, was hidden by strangers from the Nazis during WW2.
Queenie Malone’s Paradise Hotel by Ruth Hogan – it’s a gorgeous story about mothers and daughters, about love and loss, and about how family comes in all different shapes and sizes.
