AS novelist Jodi Picoult prepared to tour the UK to promote her latest bestseller, she could never have guessed the book would prove to be so eerily and tragically topical.

In Nineteen Minutes, Picoult, who will be at Bournemouth University tomorrow (April 25), explores the horror of a fictional high school shooting and the book's UK release has coincided with the real-life events at Virginia Tech last week.

The 33 killings carried out by Cho Seung-Hui have reignited the debate on US gun laws that has been ongoing since the 1999 Columbine massacre but Picoult, speaking exclusively to the Daily Echo, believes we cannot blame gun laws.

"It is the easy way out to say it is US gun control law," she said.

"The shootings all happen for different reasons and every time it happens it is an enormous tragedy.

"Most psychiatrists will tell you that if a student wants to commit violence they will find a way. If they don't have a gun they can find out how to make a pipe bomb on the internet in a few minutes."

Jodi added: "I am not surprised it has happened and I think it will continue to happen until we look at the root causes rather than just analysing it afterwards."

In Nineteen Minutes, the central character, 17-year-old Peter Houghton, explains his shooting of 10 people with the words: "They started it."

The main theme of the novel is bullying in schools and how it can lead to revenge on an epic scale.

Nineteen Minutes is Picoult's 14th novel and is at the top of the New York Times best-seller list. Her previous works have also tackled controversial topics, ranging from child abuse and rape to religion and teen suicide.

Her next novel, due for release this time next year, focuses on organised religion and the death penalty.

Picoult will be at the Lees Lecture Theatre, Talbot Campus, from 7.30pm tomorrow to talk about her work and will then hold a book signing. Tickets are £3 and are redeemable against the cost of Nineteen Minutes. For more information call 01202 548566.