To be honest, I wrote so many drafts of this book [ The Nightingale ] and changed the characters so many times; the real surprise is that I finished the book at all.

I am one of those authors who believes (perhaps foolishly) that she is in complete control of the story.

Sight is one of the most easily deceived senses. I could make a coin disappear and your eyes would believe it gone, even if it were merely up my sleeve.

In the end, there's only one thing you can believe. Bodies are honest; they don't lie.

In the end, the best part of the whole book [The Nightingale ] to me was the research, reading about the courageous, ordinary French women who put their lives on the line to save others. It was really inspirational.

Calling it lunacy makes it easier to explain away the things we don't understand.

I think The Nightingale is my best, most mature, most moving novel, but maybe that's just because I love these characters. I love the setting.