{What's On Your Kindle?} André Spiteri on Vanity Project
DI Brian Brandon’s first murder investigation after a forced leave of absence seems open and shut. A love triangle gone horribly wrong.
But, the more he digs into the life of the victim — freelance cybersecurity consultant Ray Higgins — the deeper he’s drawn into a complex web of greed and betrayal.
With bodies piling up and the press baying for blood, Brian faces a race against the clock. What he hasn’t planned on is that his own demons are also hot on his heels.
Can he uncover the killer’s true identity before they catch up with him, or is he doomed to pay the ultimate price?
Book Information
Release Date: November 27, 2024
Publisher: Maverick Words
Kindle eBook: 1505 KB; $3.99 (FREE ON KINDLE UNLIMITED)
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DLGMF1LZ
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0DLGMF1LZ
André Spiteri is the author of award-nominated crime thriller Back From The Dead and other novels featuring struggling characters with troubled pasts. He was born on the sunny island of Malta in 1982 and lives in Edinburgh with his wife, their two daughters, and two cats.
Website & Social Media:
Website ➜ www.andrespiteri.com
Facebook ➜ https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61555188546340
Instagram/Threads ➜ https://www.instagram.com/andrespiteri_
André : Hey, and thank you for having me.
So, initially, the title of the book was Weapon of Vanity, and the boring truth is that it came about out of practical necessity. I needed to name the file I was writing the story in so I could save it, couldn't think of anything, and went with the name of the first song that popped into my head: Weapon of Vanity by the Swedish death metal band Soilwork.
I knew it didn't quite work as a title, but I reckoned I'd worry about that later. I did like the ring of it, though. And then, without going into too many specifics because I don't want to reveal too much about the story, I realised that what my killer was doing was essentially a vanity project — an attempt to make themselves feel better about something they'd been through because they couldn't handle an unpalatable truth. And denial is kind of the central theme of the book. All the major characters are in denial. So I thought it worked nicely and it stuck.
Can you tell us a little about your main characters?
André: My main character, Brian Brandon, is a troubled soul. He's an extremely dogged, dedicated policeman, and a good man, but he's had a bad run of luck — his marriage imploded because of infertility problems and he experienced a traumatic event at work (which I won't go into because it's an important part of the story). At the start of the book, he practically begs his superior to end his forced leave of absence, because he thinks filling his day with work will solve his traumas. Except it never quite works out like that, does it? There are triggers everywhere and he spirals badly, which almost proves to be his undoing.
Where is your book set and why did you choose that particular location?
André: My book is set in the fictional Scottish city of Strathburgh, which I like to think of as Edinburgh if it had Glasgow's grit. Stephen King was a huge influence on me growing up and I loved that he created his own fictional settings, so that's something I always wanted to do in my work. I also thought it would save me having to research locations and describe them accurately. Except it's actually harder to write a fictional city — no Google Maps to bail you out when you can't remember what a place is called or where it is ha ha
What part would you say was the most exciting to write about?
André: The entire third draft. The first two drafts were a bit of a slog, if I'm honest. I put a lot of pressure on myself and the results weren't great. But, in the third draft, it all came together and I got really excited. There were times when my head felt like it was going to explode if I didn't write the story down, and days where I wrote 3000, 4000 words, which is extraordinary for me, because at most I can usually manage 1500 words. And that's on a good day.
What's next for you?
André: I'm 80K words into the first draft of the sequel. It's due to hit my editor's inbox in early March next year, so I need to finish it, take a break from it, and iron out as many kinks as possible before then. We'll get there!
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