Albury author Maria Stefanidis releases new book 'The Invisible Thread'

Stefanidis' latest book The Invisible Thread, a tale of forbidden love, self-sacrifice, hope and remarkable heroism, draws from her experiences and observations from her birthplace, Cyprus.

She said after the publication of her first historical-fiction novel The Sunny Side of the Street in 2015, she had, in reality, "never stopped writing".

"It's in my blood," she told The Border Mail. "My writing journey began some forty years ago at the kitchen table of my mother's matrimonial house in the small village of my birthplace Cyprus.

"I've remained heavily acquainted with my birthplace since working and holidaying there throughout the years.

"I like my readers to experience the place, culture and era that I'm writing about, thus it is important to keep the story authentic both in dialect and character traits."

Stefanidis' latest historical-fiction novel, published in January by Silverbird Publishing, takes place in a heavily Turkish populated village in the north of Cyprus.

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It was a time when Greek and Turkish Cypriots lived in discord as neighbours because of the inter-communal conflict between the two ethnic groups.

"Once again, I was obliged to introduce a realistic aspect of the Cypriot culture and social behaviour of the characters in the narrative," she said.

"The catalyst for writing my second novel is, or should I say was, a real person - Bebek, the youthful woman who lived under the sinister character Spyros' house.

"I met her some thirty years ago while holidaying in Cyprus.

"The stranger her behaviour became the more incited I was to probe deeper into what might have been the real cause behind her mysterious illness, or terrible affliction.

"Overall, the book is interlaced with multiple twists and turns, surprises, and intriguing characters, both likeable and menacing, and the humour is a subtle diversion to the melancholic parts of the narrative.

"I'd like to write another fiction novel once I come up with an idea. I consider myself a compulsive thinker, always searching for an idea."

She is happy to share her writing sojourn with readers at the Albury Library Museum this Sunday.

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