It’s my absolute pleasure to welcome T.M. Payne to Linda’s Book Bag today to discuss her latest book in the DI Sheridan Holler series. Tina is such a witty, mischievous and friendly person that I have a feeling we’re in for quite an evening!
Let’s find out more:
Staying in with T.M Payne
Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Tina and thank you for agreeing to stay in with me.
Thank YOU for inviting me. I promise to wipe my feet before I come in…oh and was I supposed to bring wine?
Er, no. I can’t drink wine as it makes me ill. I can, however, drink champagne so, you know… next time…
Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?
I’ve brought Play With Fire, which is the third in the DI Sheridan Holler series, and I’ve chosen that one because it’s out today! 14th March.
Happy Play With Fire publication day.
I have to say, it’s still strange to think that I’m talking about book 3 in the series already.
I imagine so. I think when we first met you’d only just written book one. Tell us a bit about the series.
The first book, Long Time Dead was published in April 2024, the second called This Ends Now was out in October and now here we are talking about the third one.
I’d also like to share (am I talking too much?) that I have recently signed a further four book deal with my publisher, Thomas and Mercer, so there will be at least seven books in the series.
Wow! That’s fabulous news. Congratulations.
What can we expect from an evening in with Play With Fire?
PLAY WITH FIRE sees the return of DI Sheridan Holler and her team….and of course, Maud the cat, who is gearing up to be somewhat of a favourite amongst readers. It sounds a bit strange that a cat is an important character when I’m writing a crime fiction series, but I’m a huge animal lover and had to have a cat in there. If I had my way, there would also be dogs, a giraffe and probably a penguin, but they’d be difficult to place in a crime novel. Not that I won’t try one day. (Don’t tell my agent…our secret, eh?)
My lips are sealed Tina!
I have said before that although I kill off characters in my books (being crime fiction and all that) I will never kill off Maud, no matter how old she gets as the series progresses. The wonderful Anna Mazzola actually reliably informed me recently that the oldest cat lived until the ripe old age of 38, so Maud’s going to be fine.
She should last those next seven books then!
Tell me about the setting for the series.
So, the series is set in Liverpool and the Wirral, although I’m originally from Hampshire, but call myself an adopted scouser. I’ve lived on the Wirral for six years now, having met my wife, Susie, nine years ago, who’s a scouser. I fell in love with the place the very first time I visited her (I kind of liked Susie too, of course) and just had to set the series here. Honestly, scousers have the best sense of humour and I like to feed that humour into my characters. Even though the subjects I write about can be quite dark, I think it’s important to keep a bit of humour in there.
I totally agree – a bit of Shakespearean light relief, but how did you come to that conclusion?
I spent 18 years in Norfolk police and 14 of those as a Case Investigator in the Domestic Violence Unit. It was heavy going dealing with high-risk victims of domestic abuse every day, but my colleagues and I would (never at the expense of a victim) grab moments when we laughed out loud. It’s a coping mechanism when you’re working in a job like that, it gets you through the toughest of days. And so, I inject humour into Sheridan and her team, because I know how police officers need to let off steam and I think it keeps that authenticity when you’re writing about what goes on in a busy CID or specialist unit, or any job that involves high levels of stress.
Absolutely.
I also thought that as I have quite a lot of experience working in domestic abuse, I’d include this in the books. So, there’s a character called Anna Markinson, who’s a detective sergeant, and she’s not only a colleague of Sheridan’s, she’s also her best friend. I wanted to show that anyone can be a victim of domestic abuse, even a police officer.
I think it’s always surprising what goes on behind closed doors Tina. Exploring those experiences through fiction is an important means of bringing them out into the open.
So have you always been involved in crime – in the best possible way of course?
I’ve pretty much always worked in the criminal justice system. I trained to be a store detective when I was in my early twenties and loved it. However, looking back it was such a dangerous job. I once had a massive kitchen knife pulled out on me and on another occasion, I got thrown in a river when I chased a kid onto a campsite after he’d nicked a load of stuff from the shop I was working at. It wasn’t the kid who threw me in, just to be clear, but some of his family. They were very nice about it and laughed while they picked me up by my arms and legs and swung me a few times before they launched me into the water.
That’s OK Then!
Then, I spent a few years working for a private investigator in London. Now, that was a job and a half. You never knew what you were going to be asked to do when you went into the office each day. There was one job that came in where my partner and I had to observe a building in London and the only place we could stand with a clear view was outside a bank. Obviously, this came with its own problems because we looked pretty dodgy hanging around there. So, I bought a newspaper, laid it on the ground and started singing American Pie by Don Mclean, pretending to be a busker. I picked that song because it’s really long and I knew all the words. It worked too, because we got the information we needed about the building we were watching… and I made about five quid in change from passers-by who actually thought I was a busker.
That’s hilarious. If I’d sung they’d have paid me to shut up. I bet you’ve got considerable things in your background that you can draw on for your books then.
I’ve got hundreds of stories to tell about the jobs I’ve done and people I’ve met along the way and believe me, the saying ‘the truth is stranger than fiction’ is spot on. Some of the things that have happened to me wouldn’t be believed if I put them in my books.
But my life experience does help me to create the characters I write about. Some are based on people I’ve encountered…good and bad.
Is Sheridan you then?
Although Sheridan is not based exactly on anyone I know, there are elements of her which resemble an ex-colleague of mine and there’s probably a bit of me in her as well. Although she’s tall and slim… and I’m not.
Not many of us are! Tell me more about Sheridan.
I love writing about Sheridan, she’s a really strong lead character who isn’t afraid to bend the rules, sometimes to the point of breaking them, and she does this because she desperately wants to solve every case that comes her way. She wants justice for the victims and will push boundaries to get it. She has wonderful support from her team, because they respect her and they know that if she has a gut feeling about something, she trusts that instinct and in turn, the team trust her. She sees things that others don’t, like that tiny speck of a clue that might have been overlooked, or that comment made by a suspect or witness that many wouldn’t pick up on. She misses nothing. I also like her because she’s not angst-ridden. I didn’t want to create a character who goes home and drinks herself into a stupor every night because she needs to block out the horrors of her job, or has ongoing issues and constant battles with her boss or colleagues. I wanted her to be mentally very ‘together’ even though she carries her own tragic past.
Interesting. So many of our fictional detectives have huge emotional baggage. How did Sheridan become a police officer?
Sheridan’s backstory is, when she was 14, her brother, Matthew, who was 12, was found murdered and his killer was never caught. Sheridan made a pact with herself to join the police force, become a detective one day and solve his murder. So, this is a sub plot in the books as we follow the ongoing cold case into Matthew’s death.
I really think it’s about time I caught up with the series Tina! It sounds fabulous. Is it a challenge to keep a series going?
I love writing this series and get excited when I start the next book. I also love an epigraph (that little poem or famous quote that authors use at the beginning of a book) but after spending days searching for something to fit the first book in the series, Long Time Dead and realising that nothing worked, I decided to write my own epigraphs. So, this is the epigraph for Play With Fire.
The storms are coming, so hold your breath. For one brings rage and one brings death.
While Satan watches from the wings, awaiting what will be.
He will pretend that he’s your friend. Four souls. Two blind. Two see.
He’s found you now, too late to run. And now the stakes are higher.
It’s the sacrifice of men and mice. And those who play with fire.
I love that!
I really enjoy writing my own epigraphs; I can play about with them until I get them right…although I do have to be careful that I don’t give anything away about the plot. I’m in awe of authors who tell an audience about their books and don’t let out any spoilers. I’m rubbish at it, probably because I don’t stop talking.
I hadn’t noticed your garrulousness at all Tina… (cough).
What else have you brought along and why have you brought it?
I’ve brought a few things with me. The first is a bottle of Jack Daniels, not that it has anything to do with the books, I just fancied having a cheeky drink while we were ‘staying in’ … have you got any ice?
I have, but I’ll have a Baileys with mine.
The next thing I’ve brought along is a packet of Jaffa cakes…because Maud the cat loves them, as do I. I know cats are allergic to chocolate, but she only eats the biscuit bit and the orangey filling. Maud is based on my old cat, Cookie Dude, although he was a boy, he used to steal biscuits, especially Jaffa Cakes.
If you’re going to bring Jaffa cakes Tina, you can come again.
I thought I’d also bring along a bit of music, a song by Adele, called ‘A million years ago.’
Why that piece?
In book 2 in the series, This Ends Now, there’s a scene on Crosby beach in Liverpool which, when I listen to this song, it puts me right there. It just fits the scene perfectly. I get goosebumps when I hear it and imagine those beautifully haunting statues called the Iron Men. There are a hundred of them along the estuary. They’re life-sized casts of their creator, Antony Gormley. Seriously, if you ever get the chance to visit Crosby beach, they really are quite mesmerising, so I had to have a scene in the book which included them.
I’m hoping to take a trip in the motorhome this year actually as the statues are on my list of things I want to see.
And lastly, I’d like to bring along Judi Dench. Not for any other reason other than I love Judi Dench. I think she’d be fascinating to talk to… certainly more fascinating than me. Although she’s probably never been thrown in a river. At least I hope not.
Judi Dench is VERY welcome, although you’ve been pretty fascinating yourself.
Oh…actually, can I be greedy and bring the wonderful Heather Bleasdale too? Heather narrates the audiobooks, and she has absolutely nailed every character. I think having her here would be like having Sheridan in the room.
You can indeed. The more the merrier. Thanks so much for staying in with me Tina to chat about Play With Fire. You’ve been one of the best guests I’ve ever had. I’m now desperate to read the whole series.
Well, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed staying in with you, Linda. It’s been an absolute pleasure, but I’m going to go now because I’ve noticed there’s only one Jaffa Cake left, and I can see you eyeing it up.
Damn! I hoped you hadn’t noticed!
Play With Fire
A missing woman. A gruesome delivery. A terrifying discovery. Where is Caroline Crow?
“Just when you think Payne is at the top of her game, she pulls this out of the bag.”―Graham Bartlett
All has been quiet in Liverpool, suspiciously quiet…
So, when a frantic 999 call comes into Hale Street Police Station reporting a missing woman, it seems like there’s work to do. Except for DI Sheridan Holler there are questions. Why did Caroline Crow take her purse, suitcase and even tell friends she was going away? There’s no reason to suspect foul play…until a severed, burned hand is delivered to another address.
With no hard evidence linking the two cases, Holler’s gut is telling her that all is not as it seems and if she’s right, time is running out to find Caroline alive.
As DI Holler attempts to weed out the truth from the lies, will this be one puzzle that runs out the clock? Or can Holler and her team fit the pieces together before it’s too late?
Published by Thomas & Mercer today, 14th March 2025, Play With Fire is available for purchase here.
About T.M. Payne
T.M. Payne (Tina) was born in Lee on Solent, Hampshire and now lives on the Wirral with her wife, Susie, who she works closely with on her novels. Tina is the best-selling author of the D.I. Sheridan Holler series, set in Liverpool and the Wirral. Her debut novel, Long Time Dead was published in April 2024 and went to number one in Crime Fiction in both the UK and Germany.
The second book in the series, This Ends Now, was published in October 2024 and went to number one in the UK and Australia.
The third book, Play With Fire is published today, 14th March 2025. Tina has written book 4 in the series and is currently working on book 5.
Tina has spent most of her working life in the criminal justice system, starting out as a Store Detective, before joining a private investigator agency (where she once nearly got arrested) She then became a Prisoner Custody Officer (where she carried a prisoner out of the courtroom single-handedly, when he started hallucinating butterflies).
She has worked in practically every London court, including the Old Bailey and Court of Appeal and has been handcuffed to murderers, rapists, and one of the worst sexual predators this country has ever seen. In 2001, she joined Norfolk Police as a Detention Officer, working in the custody suite, before joining the Domestic Violence Unit as a Police Case Investigator. In her 14 years in that role, she dealt with thousands of victims of domestic abuse, with one of her cases earning her a Chief Constable’s commendation.
Having left the police in 2019, Tina now writes full time.
For further information, follow Tina on Twitter/X @tinap66payne.
