Holy Fools

Joanne Harris is the internationally renowned and award-winning author of over twenty novels. Her Whitbread-shortlisted novel Chocolat was adapted to the screen, starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp. She is the author of several other bestsellers, including The Lollipop Shoes, Peaches for Monsieur Le Curé and The Strawberry Thief. She has also written acclaimed novels in such diverse genres as fantasy based on Norse myth (Runemarks, Runelight, The Gospel of Loki), and the Malbry cycle of dark psychological thrillers (Gentlemen & Players, Blueeyedboy, and Different Class). Born in Barnsley, of an English father and a French mother, she spent fifteen years as a teacher before (somewhat reluctantly) becoming a full-time writer. In 2013, she was awarded an MBE, and in 2022 an OBE. She lives in Yorkshire, plays bass and flute in a band first formed when she was sixteen, and works in a shed in her garden. She is an honorary Fellow of St Catharine's College, Cambridge, and served for four years as Chair of the Society of Authors. She also has a form of synaesthesia which enables her to smell colours. Red, she says, smells of chocolate.

"Truly sensational... This is a wonderful novel. It draws you in from the very first page" Sunday Express "A weird and hugely enjoyable blend of Aldous Huxley's The Devils of Loudon and Angela Carter's Nights at the Circus" New Statesman "With this bold, inventive book, Harris confirms her position as one of Britain's most popular novelists... Fans will be delighted by the way this novel complements her earlier works. At the same time, the author's experiments with structure and voice ensure this story is fresh and compelling" Daily Mail "Hugely enjoyable... Both consoling and wise" -- Amanda Craig New Statesman "With this bold, inventive book, Harris confirms her position as one of Britain's most popular novellists... Fresh and compelling" Daily Mail