Farrokh Suntook has spent most of his career in international marketing research consultancy and business development, but more recently he has been a coach to non-English speaking executives seeking to improve their English language communication skills. His marketing research experience formed the basis of his business book, The Stakeholder Balance Sheet, which was published by Wiley.
 
Born into a Parsi family, he started his life in Bombay, finished his schooling in London, got his bachelor’s degree at LSE and then spent three years in New York, initially to do his MBA at Columbia University.
 
Married, with a daughter and two little grandchildren, he spends most of his personal time with his family, which among other things means currying favour with his granddaughter and grandson by taking them to Hampstead Heath – not for healthy walks but for unhealthy treats at the Kenwood House café. He also finds time for reading (and being humbled by the likes of George Eliot and Jane Austen) and for indulging his passion for classical music, Wigmore Hall and the Royal Opera House being his second and third homes (and in The People We Know the power of music is a leitmotif running through much of the narrative).
 
Although The People We Know is his debut novel, he has already started fantasising about his next foray into fiction.