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John Marrs

John Marrs is a British author of psychological and speculative fiction. He is best known for The One (2017), which became a Netflix original series in 2021 and was translated into 35 languages. He has also received the International Thriller Writers award for What Lies Between Us (2020) and was shortlisted for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize for The Vacation (2021).

John Marrs was born in Northamptonshire, England. He began writing at the age of 18, contributing to local newspapers in Northampton, Daventry and Peterborough. After moving to London, John worked as a freelance journalist for two decades. He interviewed film, music and television celebrities for The Guardian, Empire, Total Film, Q and OK!. Magazine, and The Independent, among others.

He started writing fiction to challenge himself. "I read an article in a magazine that made it clear to me that this was a great concept for a book," he stated. His first novel, The Wronged Sons, was self-published in 2013 and later reissued as When You Disappeared in 2017. After being rejected by 80 agents, it found success on Amazon and attracted the attention of Thomas & Mercer, selling over 350,000 copies.

His third novel, The One, was also self-published before being acquired by Penguin. It was an international bestseller and was released as an eight-part Netflix series in 2021. "It was surreal," he stated. "I had this crazy idea and now they're all here because of it."

In the same year, Pan Macmillan republished his second book, Welcome to Wherever You Are, under the title The Vacation. His 2017 thriller The Good Samaritan was a global No.1 bestseller. His later novels include Her Last Move (2018), The Passengers (2019) and The Minders (2021), all of which are speculative fiction.

His psychological thrillers include What Lies Between Us, which sold over 300,000 copies and attracted interest from Renée Zellweger's production company. He followed it with Keep It In The Family (2022) and The Stranger In Her House (2024), both of which TV producers have optioned for adaptation.

In 2023, he released The Marriage Act, followed by The Family Experiment in 2024. Another thriller, You Killed Me First, is scheduled for release in 2025.

John Marrs writes stand-alone novels in two genres: speculative fiction and psychological thrillers. He draws inspiration from daily life, newspaper articles, dreams and conversations. He wrote his first five books on commuter trains, but now writes at home and in cafés, aiming for 2,000 words per day.

Photo credit: www.johnmarrsauthor.com

Quotes

namjoons lasttiddiehas quoted2 years ago
Without warning, Nina grabs my wrist and digs her fingernails into it. I let out a yelp and feel them pushing deeper into me, pressing my tendons until the pain becomes too much and my hand unclenches from the balled fist it was in. The corkscrew I had partially hidden under my sleeve falls to the table with a clunk. Nina’s hand remains where it is, her nails still drilling into my skin, and I bite hard on my tongue and try not to show her how much she’s hurting me. Eventually, she lets go.
namjoons lasttiddiehas quoted2 years ago
‘Okay,’ I say, ‘lift your leg up’, and she obliges, familiar with our well-practised routine. I remove a key from my pocket and undo the padlock attached to the clamp around her ankle. The chain falls to the floor with a heavy thump. I attach a second, much shorter clasp and chain to her ankle and lock it. This chain doesn’t extend far from the spike. Once again, I have her confined to her bedroom.
namjoons lasttiddiehas quoted2 years ago
I pick up the remote control and switch on children’s TV. The programmes are a bit babyish but I like background noise as I do my homework. Dad says he doesn’t know how I can concentrate with all that noise; I remind him I’m a girl and it’s been scientifically proven that we can multitask better than boys. I read it in Just Seventeen magazine so it must be true. Besides, I’ve only got an English lit essay about the Brontë sisters to finish tonight and they’re my favourites.
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