About the author

Born in Manchester, England, and raised between the UK, US and Australia, Jane Harper, 36, recalls a happy childhood “full of books”. For the past 13 years, she has worked as a journalist in Melbourne and as inspiration to finish her debut novel, entered the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for an Unpublished Manuscript. “I was hoping at best to perhaps get some feedback, so to win the prize was unbelievable,” she says. When Reese Witherspoon’s production company bought the film rights, Jane was astonished. “Even when imagining my ultimate ‘best case scenario’, it had never occurred to me that her company, Pacific Standard, would be interested, or even hear about the book.”