Mine

Someone's stolen your baby. But no one believes you.

You wake up alone after an emergency caesarean, desperate to see your child. And when you are shown the small infant in the nursery, a terrible thought takes root: this baby is not your baby.

No one believes you. Not the nurses, your father or even your own husband. They say you're confused and delusional. Dangerous.

But you're a doctor – you know how easily mistakes can be made. It's up to you to find your real child, your miracle baby, before it's too late.

With everyone against you, is it safe to trust your instincts? Or are memories from your past clouding your judgement? This can't all be in your head... can it?

Susi Fox is a writer and GP from rural Victoria, Australia, who is currently completing her Associate Degree in Professional Writing and Editing at RMIT. She received a 2015 Varuna Fellowship and was a participant in the 2015 QWC/Hachette Manuscript Development Program. Susi commenced her Master of Medicine at University of Sydney in 2017. Mine is her first novel.

Mine
Penguin Random House
Author: Susi Fox
ISBN: 9780143787365
RRP: $32.99

 

Interview with Susi Fox

Question: Where did the idea for Mine come from?

Susi Fox: The idea came from a nightmare where I held a baby in my arms and showed the baby to a group of faceless people gathered around me, saying emphatically, -This is not my baby.' None of the people believed me; they all stepped away. I awoke, heart thumping. The haunting tone of the dream, along with the terror of not being believed, lingered for weeks afterwards.

Soon after the nightmare, I was fortunate enough to participate in a writing retreat for doctors, where I began to write a passage based on the dream. The words flowed easily, and I knew then that this was a story I had to continue to write and explore.


Question: Are the characters based on anyone you know?

Susi Fox: All the characters are fictional. It was a delight to allow my brain the freedom to create the cast of characters solely from my imagination in order to explore the darker side of what may happen if a woman becomes convinced that her newborn baby is not her own.


Question: How much of your inspiration comes from real life and real people?

Susi Fox: There are many examples of baby swaps from all around the world. For example, two baby girls born in France in 1999 were mixed up after receiving treatment for jaundice. The girls were aged nine when the mix-up was discovered due to one of the fathers refusing to pay child support. I researched baby swaps during the writing of Mine and was startled by the frequency with which women's concerns about potential baby mix-ups were dismissed.

However Sasha's story is not based on any particular baby swap, and is entirely fictional. I have revelled in the opportunity to develop this narrative from my creative imaginings.

Interview by Brooke Hunter

Mine
Penguin Random House
Author: Susi Fox
ISBN: 9780143787365
RRP: $32.99