The Club

"In the novel, there’s something called ‘The Home.’ It’s a bit like Soho House, a members’ club. Everyone who is a member seems to be a TV star or a film director, and it’s all very, very glamorous. The owner of The Home, Ned, has stepped up even for him, and has now bought an island. I love the feeling that everything has been raised a notch — every scenario is brighter and more vivid, and the characters are under more tension. It’s the big opening night to this new ‘Island Home.’ Everything’s riding on it and everyone wants an invitation. People are trying to sneak in or bribe their way in. But of course there are secrets lurking in the background, and Ned goes missing. At this point, I have to stop talking about the plot or I’ll give too much away. By the time Ned goes missing, we have a whole array of characters who hate him. Is he dead or isn’t he? If he is, what’s happened to him and who’s done it? Again, it’s all set against a beautiful backdrop. The book describes, at one point, about being able to have a bath and look out the window and nobody can see you. There’s a feeling of privacy, seclusion and luxury. There’s even an underwater restaurant in the book, which is brilliant. However, nothing is as it seems. It’s a great book. I really raced through it. I loved it. Yes, they do have a residents’ meeting in the novel, where one of the members from The Home has to go and defend the building of a new club on the island. There’s a brick thrown through the window and all the local residents are up in arms."