We are so excited to share an interview with A. J. Clack, author of Lie or Die – a Mafia meets The Traitors style reality-TV based YA thriller where winning the game becomes the least of their problems when, one by one, the contestants start dying for real …
Could you tell us a little about Lie or Die?
Lie or Die is a twisty, dark YA thriller set in a Reality TV game show. It follows 17-year-old Kass Kennedy who auditions for the show to help her fame obsessed best friend, Thea. Once in the game Kass soon realises that not everything is as it seems and, as the contestants start dying for real, Kass realises that they are trapped in a TV show set with someone who isn’t here to play. To survive Kass must figure out who the real killer is and find a way out.
Reality TV just got real!
You’ve worked in television before. Did this inspire any elements of the book?
I did! Lie or Die’s setting is inspired by my time as a Production Manager for Fountain Television Studios in Wembley, the biggest TV studio in Europe. It was my job to oversee the shows that came in, working closely with each production to make sure they had the crew, equipment, facilities, hospitality and celebrity care they required. I worked on a number of shows with a great deal of celebrities, directors and crew, giving me quite a thorough and unique insight into the world of TV and celebrity. My (now) husband worked on all the reality shows, from Big Brother, X Factor to I’m a Celeb so I had a real insight into reality TV from the inside. When I had the idea to make a Mafia type murder mystery game show, it seemed natural to place it in a reality TV setting.
There was one character in particular who I really didn’t want to kill, but realised I had no choice! Sorry – I can’t tell you which one **spoiler**.