Interview: Carole Brungar talks about Finding Us

Carole Brungar is a New Zealand multi-award-winning author whose novels have attracted international acclaim. She is the author of 12 novels and writes love stories set in the 20th Century and contemporary romance. She is best known for her powerful and gritty Vietnam series, which highlights the New Zealand experience. Finding Us is her first attempt at a light-hearted, fun contemporary romance. Carole talks to NZ Booklovers.

Tell us a little about your novel.

Finding Us could be set in any small town in New Zealand. We all know a town where everyone knows everyone else. In the story, we meet Reid, a mechanic who has been set up and sent to prison and now that he’s out, is suspicious of everyone around him. And then to make matters worse, Louise, the woman he kissed the last time she was in town, is back and is given a job by his brother in their garage. Unfortunately, it’s not going to be a smooth ride for Reid, when Louise decides she’s going to clear his name. What could possibly go wrong?

What inspired you to write this book?

I was inspired by New Zealand author Janet Elizabeth Henderson. She writes hilarious rom-coms, and I wanted to try my hand at creating chaos for my characters in a way that would make readers laugh, too. I’m nowhere near as good as she is, so I don’t know if I pulled it off, but I’m really happy with how the story turned out.

What was your process when writing this book?

I thought this story would be much easier to write than my big historical novels, which require a lot of research and thorough checking of facts and details, but it wasn’t. Although I didn’t need to embark on lengthy research assignments, I kept having to stop and tell myself that what I was writing was ‘too normal’ and then ask myself what could happen that would upset one or more characters, be totally unexpected and be funny at the same time. I was also aware that what I find funny might not be funny to another reader, so I was terribly nervous on release day! 

If your book was made into a movie, who would you like to see playing the lead characters?

I think Alex Pettyfer would make a good Reid, while Olivia Parker could play Louise, and Martin Henderson would play Connor.

What did you do to celebrate finishing this book?

I don’t consider I’ve finished writing the book until it’s published, so after it came out I gave myself about 4 weeks off and had a relaxing reading holiday where I got to read lots of books on my TBR pile.

What is a favourite book you have read so far this year?  

I really loved Franz Josef by Alan Carter. I enjoy all his books, and this one didn’t disappoint. Great ending!

What’s next on the agenda for you?  

I am working on a new 20th-century historical. This one is set in New Zealand in the 50s and 60s and I’ve had to do a lot of research around the political scene and what was happening in the 50s. My characters will also be heading to Vietnam, but it’s not related to my other stories in any way. It’s been an interesting topic to research; I just have to make sure I can pull it off. It won’t be finished until the end of this year or perhaps the beginning of 2027 and then I plan to write another story around one of the characters from Finding Us. I have so many ideas, and so little time to write the stories!