“I don't think lightning strikes twice”

When the Booksellers Association invited us to Spellbound in Sandwich for National Bookshop Day, we went along to meet owner Abigail Worthington. There also happened to be an author signing books in the corner, so naturally Steven went and bothered Felicity Epps too.

Felicity Epps is currently writing the third book in The Society of Free Spirits, a young adult gothic mystery series whose first instalment became a Waterstones Book of the Month. She is friendly and enthusiastic as readers arrive to buy her books.

While some writers might prefer the relative safety of being left alone with a laptop, Felicity enjoys signings and meeting readers. “I think it's because I love to chat to people who like reading books.”

“My friends will be people who love reading books. So, if I get to come and chat with people who are readers, that's just fun for me. I think this suits me best, because you get to chat to people one-on-one, you get to say what books you enjoy and have the normal conversations you would have in a bookshop.”

The best encounters are with people who have already read the books and have come specifically to meet her. “I think that always stands out to me. I'm not making a sale, but they read it in two days. That's always the best moment, because they've come to the shop to meet me.”

The books are gothic murder mysteries aimed at readers aged 12 and over. “It's quite a nice genre, because it's so flexible”, Felicity says. She has always liked stories with something spooky going on and an investigation at their centre.

Felicity deliberately chose that age range because she remembers it as an awkward gap in the market. “At that age you can go older or younger, and it can sometimes be quite hard to find things that fit perfectly in between.”

As a teenager, she read anything she could get her hands on. “That was the perfect age for me. It's the age at which I think you're leaning a little bit older, but you still want the whimsy and magic, and something that can just draw you into a really good story.”

I always loved the spooky side of history

“The first book I called A Grave Inheritance. It opens with my character, Dolores.” During the story, she befriends her neighbour Ada and a spirit medium called Violet. The second book, A Deadly Scandal, shifts the focus to Ada, while the as-yet-untitled third will centre on Violet.

Felicity would happily keep going. “I signed a contract for three books, so that's what we're focusing on.”

The series is set in Victorian London, drawing on Felicity’s longstanding love of history. She grew up reading and watching Horrible Histories. “I always loved the spooky side of history.”

“I knew I loved ghosts, and it actually led into spirit mediums, séances and then I just thought it would be cool to have a murder mystery that is solved by séances and by spirit mediums.”

Felicity also happens to be an enthusiastic supporter of independent bookshops. “I'm local to the area. I live in Broadstairs.” Sandwich is somewhere she regularly ends up on days out, and she visited Spellbound as soon as it opened.

“I was really excited when a new independent bookshop opened, so I came on opening day, and I loved how whimsical and magical it is here”.

Not that she requires much of an excuse. “I would be in a bookshop even if I wasn't signing books.”

Before her debut had even been published, Felicity learned it had been chosen as a Waterstones Book of the Month. “I knew a month in advance, but I had to keep it a secret.” She had to wait until midnight on release day before she could tell anyone.

“It was exciting, because obviously it was my debut book and it was unexpected.” Seeing it in Waterstones windows across the country was particularly surreal. “That was the most exciting thing.” The exposure quickly brought readers and invitations to visit schools, something Felicity was comfortable with through her work as a primary school club assistant.

The second book did not receive the same treatment, though Felicity seems entirely relaxed about that. “I don't think lightning strikes twice. It struck once, I’m happy with that.”