Discover: SHUTTER Will Give You Shivers

For me, the best part of watching a horror movie is watching the characters all make the WORST decisions possible.

SHUTTER by Melissa Larsen was like that, times ten. I had no idea what I was in for, but I trusted SHUTTER and it did not disappoint.

Guest Blogger: Melissa Larsen

“SHUTTER makes an excellent case for not accompanying a mysterious filmmaker into the woods.” – Popsugar

“Taut and barbed as razor wire, Melissa Larsen’s prose catches hold of you and won’t let go until the last reel. In the tradition of Patricia Highsmith and Daphne du Maurier, SHUTTER is a stunning debut!” – Carol Goodman, author of The Sea of Lost Girls A young woman agrees to star in a filmmaker’s latest project, but soon realizes the movie is not what she expected in this chilling debut novel. In the wake of her father’s death, Betty Roux doesn’t allow herself to mourn. Instead, she pushes away her mother, breaks up with her boyfriend, and leaves everything behind to move to New York City. She doesn’t know what she wants, except to run. When she’s offered the chance to play the leading role in mysterious indie filmmaker Anthony Marino’s new project, she jumps at the opportunity. For a month Betty will live in a cabin on a private island off the coast of Maine, with a five-person cast and crew. Her mother warns against it, but Betty is too drawn to the charismatic Anthony to say no. Anthony gives her a new identity—Lola—and Betty tells herself that this is exactly what she’s been looking for. The chance to reinvent herself. That is, until they begin filming and she meets Sammy, the island’s caretaker, and Betty realizes just how little she knows about the movie and its director. SHUTTER is available from Berkley/Penguin Random House online and in bookstores, including Barnes & Noble, Target, Book Passage, and IndieBound.

I used to live on the Maine coast, and I was always fascinated with the small, inhabited islands completely cut off from the mainland. What inspired you to set SHUTTER on one such island?

The early drafts of SHUTTER had the filming take place on a lakeside estate in Upstate New York. After the book sold (to our beloved publisher!) and I was getting ready for a huge revision, I searched for writing retreats in that general area. It was by chance that I found the Norton Island Residency for Writers and Artists, which offered two weeks of living in a tiny cabin in the woods on a private island off the coast of Maine. It was like walking into my own book! The cabin in the trees, the main house for everyone to congregate in…it was exactly as I had pictured, only better! 

Shutter draws on the familiar–Hitchcock thrillers, tragic starlets, the angst of making art–but in a voice that is wholly new and immediately compelling. Larsen’s smart, self-aware protagonist reads like a lovechild between Daphne du Maurier and Lorrie Moore. Larsen’s supple prose and intricate plotting make this book a dark delight.” – Nicola Maye Goldberg, author of Nothing Can Hurt You

While SHUTTER is a thriller, there are a lot of classic horror elements in it from the creepy cabin in the woods to the main character running off alone into the dark. What’s your favorite horror movie/show/book?

For films: I’ve written previously about my obsession with Scream and The Ruins, but I also think everyone should watch Relic (2020), The Endless (2017), Triangle (2009), and Sea Fever (2019), and come talk to me about them!

For books: I’ve been a huge Stephen King fan, ever since I was eleven and my father gave me his copy of The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon. It’s hard to pick favorites among his works, but I have returned to It, Dreamcatcher, 11/22/63, and The Tommyknockers many, many times. The two books that have (most recently) made me nearly crawl out of my own skin from fear are Amy Lloyd’s The Innocent Wife and Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House. I was reading the latter in bed, around one a.m., freaking out, and a spider walked down my chest. I screamed for my life!

For shows: The Terror, Season 1. That was probably the most frightening watching experience I’ve ever had. It was also tremendously heartbreaking and horrific and has one of the best monologues ever (if you know you know!).

You and I both published our debut novels with Berkley in 2021, and also we both chose the fabulous Megan Tusing to narrate our audiobooks. What was it like selecting a narrator and hearing your book come to life in someone else’s voice?

Oh, the fabulous Megan Tusing! I just want to take a moment to appreciate Megan and her range! She completely transforms into Odessa Dean, KILLER CONTENT’s protagonist, and then somehow fully inhabits Betty Roux, SHUTTER’s Main Character. She sounds completely different in both performances. She’s so talented!

I had been looking forward to (and dreading!) the audiobook selection process. I’m a HUGE fan of audiobooks and can be pretty picky when it comes to readers. Some voices I just can’t connect with! I scoured through my favorite readers, but none felt right for Betty’s voice. It wasn’t until I discovered Megan’s reading of Catherine Lacey’s The Answers that it fell into place. That was Betty’s voice. It’s tough for me to hear my book read in general—I know it all so well at this point!—but I’ve skipped around the audiobook and I am so blown away by her performance.

I think readers will be blown away by SHUTTER in any format – trade paperback, e-book, or audiobook (narrated by the amazing Megan Tusing!) I know I was!

From Mystery & Suspense Magazine: “Larsen shows in Shutter that she has what it takes to stand above many in the genre….With a chilling end, Shutter leaves the reader thinking well after turning the final page—the essence of a strong thriller.”   Melissa Larsen has an M.F.A. from Columbia University and a B.A. from NYU’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study. She has interned and worked extensively in publishing. Shutter is her first novel.   Melissa Larsen can be found at: Instagram: @lissalarsen (most active) Twitter: @lisslarsen My website: www.melissa-larsen.com