Susan Hill's novels and short stories have won the Whitbread, Somerset Maugham and John Llewellyn Rhys awards and been finalists for the Booker Prize. She is the author of over 40 books, including the 6 previous Serrailler crime novels. The play adapted from her famous ghost story, The Woman in Black, was recently made into a film starring Daniel Radcliffe. Hill was born in North Yorkshire, England and educated at King's College, London. She is married to the Shakespeare scholar Stanley Wells, and they have 2 daughters. She lives in Gloucestershire, where she runs her own small publishing firm, Long Barn Books.