Elly Griffiths is the

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

of Domenica de Rosa (born 17 August 1963, in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

), a British crime novelist. She has written three series as Griffiths, one featuring Ruth Galloway, one featuring Detective Inspector Edgar Stephens and Max Mephisto, and the Harbinder Kaur series.

Early life

After reading English at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

, Griffiths worked in publishing for many years.

Writing career

Griffiths' first series features as a main character forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway, who lives in a remote seaside cottage near

King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located north of London, north-east of Peterborough, no ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

and teaches at the University of North Norfolk. This character was inspired by Griffiths' husband, who gave up a city job to train as an archaeologist, and her aunt, "who lives on the Norfolk coast and filled her niece's head with the myths and legends of that area". Griffiths released the first book in this series, ''The Crossing Places'' (Ruth Galloway, #1), in 2009. Griffiths' second series, set in 1950s

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

, focuses on the duo of Detective Inspector Edgar Stephens and magician Max Mephisto. Griffiths released the first book in this series, ''The Zig Zag Girl'', in 2014. In 2017 Griffiths was the Programming Chair for the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, part of the

Harrogate International Festivals Harrogate International Festivals (HIF) is a registered charity and one of the UK's longest running arts festivals, having been established in 1966. Based in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. Festivals include the Harrogate Music Festival, Theakston Ol ...

portfolio. Griffiths won the 2020

Edgar Allan Poe Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America, based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards honor the bes ...

for best novel for ''The Stranger Diaries.'' In 2021, ''The Postscript Murders'' was shortlisted in the

Gold Dagger The Gold Dagger is an award given annually by the Crime Writers' Association of the United Kingdom since 1960 for the best crime novel of the year. From 1955 to 1959, the organization named their top honor as the Crossed Red Herring Award. From ...

category at the

Crime Writer's Association The Crime Writers' Association (CWA) is a specialist authors’ organisation in the United Kingdom, most notable for its Dagger awards for the best crime writing of the year, and the Diamond Dagger awarded to an author for lifetime achievement. T ...

Awards, with the result to be announced in July 2021.

Personal life

Griffiths lives near

. She is married, and has two children and a cat.

Bibliography

As Elly Griffiths

Ruth Galloway series

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Stephens and Mephisto Mystery series

# ''The Zig Zag Girl'' (2014) # ''Smoke and Mirrors'' (2015) # ''The Blood Card'' (2016) # ''The Vanishing Box'' (2017) # ''Now You See Them'' (2019) # ''The Midnight Hour'' (2021)

''Harbinder Kaur'' series

* '' The Stranger Diaries'' (2018) * ''The Postscript Murders'' (2020) * '' Bleeding Heart Yard'' (2022)

For Children

*''A Girl Called Justice'' (2019) *''The Smugglers' Secret'' (2020) *''A Ghost in the Garden'' (2021)

As Domenica de Rosa

*''The Eternal City'' (2005) *''One Summer in Tuscany'' (2008) *''The Italian Quarter'' (2004) *''The Secret of Villa Serena'' (2007) *''Return to the Italian Quarter'' (2018)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Griffiths, Elly 1963 births Living people Alumni of King's College London 21st-century British novelists British women novelists 21st-century British women writers Women crime writers Writers from London 21st-century pseudonymous writers Pseudonymous women writers British crime fiction writers