SINGAPORE - British author Paula Hawkins has always preferred the darker side of things.

"From childhood, I was fascinated by family stories in which terrible things happen," says the 44-year-old, whose last novel, the psychological thriller The Girl On The Train (2015), was a runaway bestseller that has since been made into a film starring Emily Blunt.

She speaks to The Straits Times over the telephone from London about her new novel Into The Water. Set in the beautiful, eerie town of Beckford where women through the ages keep drowning in a certain pool, it dives into the issues of domestic violence and brutality against women.

Here are some audio excerpts from the conversation with the author.

Look out for the full interview, and review of Into The Water, in Life next Tuesday (June 6).