Katherine Howell

Katherine Howell worked as a paramedic for fifteen years while completing her Bachelor and Masters degrees in creative writing. Her first novel, Frantic, was published in 2007 by Pan Macmillan and set a paramedic alongside Sydney police detective Ella Marconi in ‘an adrenaline rush of a thriller’ (Sydney Morning Herald). It won the 2008 Davitt award for best crime fiction. Her second book, The Darkest Hour, continued the pattern with Ella and another paramedic in ‘a finely paced and engrossing novel’ (Guardian UK). The third in the series, Cold Justice, made the Australian bestseller list, saw Katherine travelling on a P&O cruise as guest author, and was described by NYT bestselling author Tess Gerritsen as ‘one of my favourite books of the year’. It also won the 2011 Davitt award for best crime fiction, making Katherine the only author to have won twice. Her fourth book, Violent Exposure, was described by Bookseller & Publisher as ‘arguably her best yet – four stars’, while the fifth, Silent Fear, was chosen as a ‘Guaranteed Book You Can’t Put Down’ by the national Get Reading! programme. The sixth, Web Of Deceit, is garnering rave reviews such as “This is a ripper. It’s well written, entertaining and attention grabbing from go to whoa, and I honestly couldn’t wait to get back to it every night” (Daily Telegraph) and “action aplenty, snappy dialogue, vivid paramedical detail and insight into the female heart… Howell will lose no fans with this one” (West Australian).

Katherine’s books are published in multiple countries, languages, and formats, and have been likened to the work of Karin Slaughter and Patricia Cornwell. Katherine teaches writing and editing, and she lives in Queensland with her partner, who owns a bookshop.