How first-time author Jo fulfilled her lifelong dream in the Night Lagoon

"Dark, full of twists and intoxicating." This is how University of Leeds graduate Jo Morey describes her debut novel The Night Lagoon.

- by Jennifer Cartwright

The literary suspense follows hearing-impaired chef Laelia Wylde as she finds herself trapped in the Belizean jungle 5,000 miles away from home. Perfect for fans of The White Lotus or Where the Crawdads Sing, The Night Lagoon is a thrilling escapist read, perfect for your next vacation.

The idea for The Night Lagoon initially came to Jo around seven years ago. Without a clear plot or setting, the first-time author had an image in her mind of a woman "who was lonely but not alone".

Jo said: "I didn't know at that point who she was or where she was exactly but I scribbled down a page of notes about this woman and I put it to one side."

For years, Jo kept this image as an idea at the back of her mind. When time passed and she decided to realise a lifelong ambition to write a novel, she found the old piece of paper and decided to explore this concept in greater depth.

The Night Lagoon is set in the Belizean jungle. In Jo's opinion, this setting where anything can take an unexpected turn and danger lurks in the shadows provided "the perfect cocktail for a literary suspense".

While writing the novel, Jo travelled to Belize with her family and here she found herself talking to locals, Mayan healers, orchidologists and doctors, all of whom influenced the direction The Night Lagoon took.