Paige Toon has sold more than 1 million copies of her novels since being first published in 2007. Her 12th novel, Five Years from Now, is published by Michael Joseph.

THE VELVETEEN RABBIT
Margery Williams

Growing up, I wrote a lot of stories with sad endings. I wanted to take adults expecting fairies and fun by surprise, but I think I was also inspired by this moving tale about a stuffed rabbit who longs for his owner's love to make him "real". I read it to my children recently and found it far more heartbreaking than they did. The bittersweet tone undoubtedly influenced me.

SENSE AND SENSIBILITY
Jane Austen

I first read this as a teenager with a tendency towards melodrama and at the time I was far more drawn to young, impetuous Marianne Dashwood than to her older and wiser sister, Elinor. While my head knew that Marianne ended up with the good guy, my heart pined for the other one. I've gone on to write several love stories featuring torn heroines, with outcomes that haven't always been what my readers were expecting.