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Crime stories are, as you know, one of the most popular forms of entertainment that exist. If you then try to have something to say... that I have, of course.

I tell the stories that are of interest to me.

The best crime novels are all based on people keeping secrets. All lying - you may think a lie is harmless, but you put them all together and there's a calamity.

Crime stories show us the part of people's lives they try to keep hidden.

In everything I've written, the crime has always just been an occasion to write about other things. I don't have a picture of myself as writing crime novels. I like fairly strong narratives, but it's a way of getting a plot moving.

All stories should have some honesty and truth in them, otherwise you're just playing about.

I knew that my interest lied in international stories. I was interested in how women were living under the Taliban, for example.

There's no worse crime in journalism these days than simply deciding something's a story because Drudge links to it.

Crime stories are our version of sitting round a camp fire and telling tales. We enjoy being scared under safe circumstances. That's why there's no tradition of crime writing in countries that have wars.