Erin Kelly

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Erin Kelly headshot (c) John Godwin

Books

Associate: Eli Keren

Books

Erin Kelly is the author of seven novels, most recently Watch Her Fall, published by Hodder & Stoughton. Sunday Times bestseller He Said/She Said, was shorlisted for the Specsavers National Book Awards and for Crime and Thriller Book of the Year, and was a Simon Mayo Radio 2 Book Club pick and a Richard and Judy Book Club pick.

Her debut novel, The Poison Tree, which was a major ITV drama, a Richard and Judy Bestseller and longlisted for the John Creasy Dagger Award, and in 2013 Erin was chosen to write the official novel of the Bafta-winning Broadchurch. Her work has been translated into seventeen languages.

Erin has been a freelance journalist since 1998, and also teaches creative writing. She lives in London with her family.

For film, theatre and TV enquiries, please contact Yasmin McDonald at United Agents.

 

Current publication

WATCH HER FALL - Hodder & Stoughton - April 2021

Swan Lake is divided into the black acts and the white acts. The Prince is on stage for most of the ballet, but it's the swans audiences flock to see. In early productions, Odette and Odile were performed by two different dancers. These days, it is usual for the same dancer to play both roles. Because of the faultless ballet technique required to master the steps, and the emotional range needed to perform both the virginal Odette and the dark, seductive Odile, this challenging dual role is one of the most coveted in all ballet. Dancers would kill for the part.

Ava Kirilova has reached the very top of her profession. After years and years of hard graft, pain and sacrifice as part of the London Russian Ballet Company, allowing nothing else to distract her, she is finally the poster girl for Swan Lake. Even Mr K - her father, and the intense, terrifying director of the company - can find no fault. Ava has pushed herself ahead of countless other talented, hardworking girls, and they are all watching her now.

But there is someone who really wants to see Ava fall . . .

 

Praise for WATCH HER FALL - Hodder & Stoughton - April 2021

“This multi-layered, deftly written thriller set in the cut-throat world of ballet has all the ingredients of a must-read... Expect deceit and duplicity and one hell of a twist!” (Red

“Kelly’s best yet... Genius twists and turns.” (Good Housekeeping

“With major Black Swan vibes, this thriller is one of the best books we’ve read this year.” (Sun on Sunday Fabulous

“Full of intrigue and secrets, this is set in the dazzling and claustrophobic ballet world.” (Prima

“With its compelling arena, this dark thriller executes a fouetté turn half way through that will leave you breathless.” (Heat)

“Kelly offers a nuanced account of the lengths to which dancers will go – or are driven to – when ambition is transmuted into obsession... Ava is a fascinating blend of control, power, and precision in the public sphere, but who is privately plagued by neuroses... A noir pas-de-deux that overflows with femmes fetales, but one written with a compassionate understanding of the intolerable pressures ballerinas must learn to live with.” (Irish Times

“I was utterly immersed in this rarefied but cut-throat world. From the first page I was wrapped up in Ava's swooping, all-consuming passion and totally gripped by the explosive twists which held me to the very last page.” (Adele Parks, Platinum)

"Most ambitious and captivating book to date . . . so thrilling and unexpected that it made my head spin." (Lisa Jewell) 

"Superbly dark, gloriously twisted and utterly seductive - this is Erin Kelly at her mind-bending best." (Ruth Ware)

"Her plots are the smartest in the industry, but with this one she somehow captured the intense, constrained, sinister world of ballet. I absolutely loved it." (Gillian McAllister) 

"Watch Her Fall is not only a cleverly plotted, beautifully written thriller; it is also a mesmerising glimpse behind the curtain into a world few of us will ever see." (Clare Mackintosh) 

"The brilliant Watch Her Fall will take some beating." (The Bookseller
 

Previous publication

WE KNOW YOU KNOW - Hodder & Stoughton - April 2019

You can’t keep the secret.

You can’t tell the truth.

You can’t escape the past…

Marianne was seventeen when she fled her home, her family, her boyfriend Jesse and the body they buried. Now, forced to return, she can feel the past closing around her. And Jesse, who never forgave her for leaving, is finally threatening to expose the truth. Marianne will do anything to protect the life she’s built; the husband and daughter who must never know. Even if it means turning to her worst enemy…

But Marianne may not know the whole story – and she isn’t the only one with secrets they’d kill to keep. Moving back through time to reveal twists you’ll never see coming, 

 

Praise for WE KNOW YOU KNOW - Hodder & Stoughton - April 2019

"A beautifully dark, Gothic story of characters haunted by their past: poignant and tragic, full of unexpected shifts and twists, addictively scary and thrillingly audacious." (Nicci French)

"The incomparable Erin Kelly has written another captivating, cleverly constructed contemporary novel." (Paula Hawkins)

"Atmospheric, compelling and worryingly apposite. This is powerful storytelling for the times we're in." (Tammy Cohen)

"A treat for anyone who loves their suspense gothic and poignant. The chilling Nazareth Mental Hospital haunts the lives of all who come there, reserving its coldest touch for those women who dare have ambition." (Lucie Whitehouse)

"Full of sentences that are so good I want to write them down and pin them to the wall." (Mark Edwards, author of In Her Shadow)

"Kelly is a masterful storyteller. The twists and turns keep you gripped until the very last page... This is a brilliant, beautiful book - and an important one." (Paul Burston)

"Dickensian in scope and atmosphere, superbly researched and absolutely gripping." (Sinead Crowley)

 

Praise for Erin Kelly
 
“Erin Kelly is a seriously good writer.” (Sophie Hannah)
 
"Prepare to be gripped." (Fabulous Magazine)

“In a strong field, Kelly is among the strongest. Her formidable control of plot twist and character keep you gripped, unsure of the outcome, until the bitter end.” (Alex Marwood, author of Wicked Girls)

"Brilliant." (InStyle)

"Kelly's ingenious, smart, engrossing books fill me with joy. Her twisted understanding of human nature is second to none." (Alex Marwood, author of The Darkest Secret)

“An author in total command of the tensions within dysfunctional families… Gripping all the way.” (Marcel Berlins, The Times)

"Erin Kelly's psychological insight and taut plot create a highly satisfying thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat." (Daily Record)
 
"Extremely clever… The writing is exemplary… If this was a film, it would be an Alfred Hitchcock great." (TheBookBag.co.uk)
 
"Erin Kelly's fourth novel sees her develop her already impressive crime writing skills as she moves away from the domestic thriller to a tale of thuggery in Sixties Brighton... Full of well-drawn characters and heart-stopping moments, Kelly's book is deeply satisfying." (Sunday Express)

"[Kelly] has proved herself – with three books – to be among the most accomplished and pin-sharp of writers working in the crime genre." (Barry Forshaw, Independent)

"Kelly has hit her stride in this third outing, a classic dark thriller combining suspense with gorgeous, evocative prose... With writing so seductive and multiple voices that are pitch-perfect for the characters she’s created, Kelly shows that she is a writer who doesn't need to keep repeating herself to stay in the game." (Kirkus)

"The Burning Air is a clever, creepy exploration of the deceit hidden even within the most apparently loving of families and the very fine line between justice and revenge. Erin Kelly is brilliant at showing the relentlessness of obsession and the evil that can be done in the name of love." (Elizabeth Haynes, author of Into the Darkest Corner)

"The Burning Air is a classic of the psychological thriller genre and puts Kelly firmly in the same league as Ruth Rendell writing under her Barbara Vine pseudonym; both women showing a great gift for characterisation and a mastery of understanding human nature’s twisted desires… I loved it ... Erin Kelly puts a satisfying contemporary spin on her genre, showing a sympathy for all her characters, even the supposed ‘baddies’, and a love of a moral dilemma which could happen to any one of us. It is this realism, a hand-grenade thrown into uneventful and supposedly comfortable lives, which makes The Burning Air such an involving read." (Sunday Express)                 

"Expect dark secrets and a killer twist. So thrilling, this book will have you sleeping with the lights on." (Company)

"Another ah-maz-ing book by Erin Kelly. She’s one of the best psychological thriller writers out there just now… The Burning Air is nothing short of brilliant… a genuinely gripping read and at the end, you still don’t quite know who to trust. You’ll be thinking about it for weeks." (Cosmopolitan)

“Erin Kelly has produced another excellent psychological thriller in The Burning Air. Dark, chilling and with nail biting twists, I read deep into the night, unable to put it down. From start to finish, I was gripped by the story of the MacBride family and their mysterious stalker. A must read for all fans of the psychological thriller.” (New Books Magazine)

"Erin Kelly masterminds her most psychological thriller yet… has a twist so shocking you’ll need a lie down." (Grazia)

"Suspenseful and clever . . . her best so far." (Literary Review)

"Kelly excels at thrillers set in middle-England idylls, that sidestep the clichéd and the cosy to go for the jugular. [The Burning Air] sees her reach another level." (Independent on Sunday

"Everything you want from a psychological thriller – elegant writing, clever plotting, shocking twists and a looming sense of menace… Erin Kelly just gets better and better with every book!" (Good Housekeeping)

"It’s not often I read a book where the twist is so surprising, I have to go back and work out how I missed it, but that’s what  happened here… Brilliant and heart-stopping." (Woman)

"Her new book is every bit as dark and intriguing as her previous novels." (Bella)

"Compelling: a macabre tale of motherhood and vengeance." (Woman’s Weekly)

"A masterfully plotted dark tale of how a small injustice can have devastating consequences. I devoured it in one sitting." (Irish Independent)

"Written with empathy, psychological insight and a real feel for the menace and conflict at the heart of families, it’s a superior example of its genre." (Big Issue)

"Very cleverly written and full of unexpected twists as the tension keeps being ratcheted up another notch before the big reveal at the end…. Deeply enjoyable but deeply unsettling: the perfect mixture for a psychological thriller!" (The Sun - Fabulous blog)

"Her narrative choreographs a succession of hints, twists and revelations with elegance and precision.  The novel is beautifully written and the characters have a dreadful plausibility about them that engulfs you in their untidy lives. Like all the best psychological thrillers, this one leaves the reader feeling mildly traumatised – and hungry for the author’s next book." (Spectator)

"'The Burning Air once again highlights the originality of Erin Kelly’s plot lines and her ability to build anticipation that, in my opinion, is rarely matched by other thriller/suspense writers. Her ability of taking something everyday and warping it into something dark and twisted, whilst effortlessly weaving sequences from all parts of the characters’ lives is not something everyone can do… This book is a definite page turner that once picked up cannot be put down, with an inventive plot and characters that grab you and hold on tight whilst steering you through the subtle complexities." (CrimeSquad.com)

Fiction

Publication DetailsNotes
2021

Hodder & Stoughton

Ava Kirilova has reached the very top of her profession. After years and years of hard graft, pain and sacrifice as part of the London Russian Ballet Company, allowing nothing else to distract her, she is finally the poster girl for Swan Lake. Even Mr K - her father, and the intense, terrifying director of the company - can find no fault. Ava has pushed herself ahead of countless other talented, hardworking girls, and they are all watching her now. But there is someone who really wants to see Ava fall . . .

2019

Hodder & Stoughton

A lifetime ago, a patient escaped Nazareth mental asylum. They covered their tracks carefully. Or so they thought.
Thirty years ago, Marianne Smy committed a crime then fled from her home to leave the past behind. Or so she thought.
Now, Marianne has been forced to return. Nazareth asylum has been converted to luxury flats, but its terrible hold on her is still strong. A successful academic, a loving mother and a loyal wife, she fears her secret being revealed and her world shattering.

2017

Hodder & Stoughton

In the hushed aftermath of a total eclipse, Laura witnesses a brutal attack.

She and her boyfriend Kit call the police, and in that moment, four lives change forever.

Fifteen years on, Laura and Kit live in fear.

And while Laura knows she was right to speak out, she also knows that you can never see the whole picture: something is always hidden... something she never could have guessed.

2014

Hodder & Stoughton

THE TIES THAT BIND is the fourth novel from Erin Kelly, the author of THE POISON TREE and THE BURNING AIR. Gripping, twisty and compelling, it confirms her as a mistress of psychological suspense.

2013

Hodder & Stoughton

"Of course it was love for my children, love for my son, that caused me to act as I did. It was a lapse of judgement. If I could have foreseen the rippling aftershocks that followed I would have acted differently, but by the time I realised the extent of the consequences, it was too late." The MacBrides have always gone to Far Barn in Devon for Bonfire Night, but this year everything is different. Lydia, the matriarch, is dead; Sophie, the eldest daughter, is desperately trying to repair a crumbling marriage; and Felix, the youngest of the family, has brought a girlfriend with him for the first time. The girl, Kerry, seems odd in a way nobody can quite put their finger on - but when they leave her looking after Sophie's baby daughter, and return to find both Kerry and the baby gone, they are forced to ask themselves if they have allowed a cuckoo into their nest . . .

2011

Hodder & Stoughton

'You kept my secret. I know yours now. That makes us even.'
Paul has been led into a life of crime by his schoolyard protector, Daniel - but one night what started as petty theft escalates fatally. Now, at nineteen, Paul must bear witness against his friend to avoid imprisonment.

Louisa has her own dark secrets. Having fled from them many years ago she now spends her days steeped in history, renovating the grounds of a crumbling Elizabethan mansion. But the her fragile peace is shattered when she meets Paul; he's the image of the one person she never thought she'd see again.

A relationship develops between them, and Louisa starts to believe she can experience the happiness she had given up on; but it soon becomes apparent that neither of them can outrun their violent past . . .

2010

Hodder & Stoughton

THE POISON TREE, Erin Kelly's debut novel, is set in the sweltering summer of 1997. Karen, a straight-laced, straight-A university student, meets the impossibly glamorous Biba, a bohemian orphan who lives in a crumbling old mansion in Highgate with her enigmatic brother Rex. She is soon drawn into their world – but from the present-day passages, we know that something terrible will happen. We just don’t know who will end up dead..