7:40am Sunday 5th September 2010
By Kirsty Whalley
An author is hoping to get her anti-knife crime message across to teenagers in her new supernatural romance based in Croydon.
Marimba Easmon, from South Norwood, has just published her second teen novel called Karis.
It is about a youth called Ryan Knight who falls in love with the mysterious Karis.
Miss Easmon said: “It is about a boy who moves to Croydon from Essex and falls foul of the local gang. It is a love story and a revenge story.
“It deals with gang culture and elements of knife crime and deals with the effects of violence on teenagers.”
The 28-year-old, who has lived in South Norwood for 10 years, said her characters were based on people she knew growing up.
Miss Easmon said: “The story contains a lot of twists and turns but there is a very strong anti-knife message.”
The author, who is a temp worker, writes in her spare time and has also written and directed a film called Counterfeit Butterfly about a love triangle leading to murder.
She was inspired to write what she calls “urban magic realism” when she realised there were no children’s books that reflected the kind of world she grew up in.
Her first book is about a boy called Jackson Lyme, a psychic teenager rapper.
She said: “I am a self published author and my first novel was well received in Croydon. I have been around schools speaking to children about it and have got good reviews.
“Teenagers seem to like my books because they can identify with the themes and also the way my characters speak, which is very street.
“I enjoy writing for that age group. I feel I connect with them and identify with their issues.”
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