Liz Nugent – författare

**Selected for BBC 2 Between the Covers 2023****WINNER Crime Novel of the Year, Irish Book Awards 2023****SHORTLISTED for The Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award****SHORTLISTED for the Goldsboro Books Glass Bell Award 2024**Sally Diamond cannot understand why what she did was so strange. She was only doing what her father told her to do, to put him out with the rubbish when he died.Now Sally is the centre of attention, not only from the hungry media and police detectives, but also a sinister voice from a past she cannot remember. As she begins to discover the horrors of her childhood, Sally steps into the world for the first time, making new friends and big decisions, and learning that people don't always mean what they say.But who is the man observing Sally from the other side of the world? And why does her neighbour seem to be obsessed with her? Sally's trust issues are about to be severely challenged . . .*****'In Sally Diamond, Nugent has given us an astounding creation with a singular voice . . . an absorbing, twisty, compulsive psychological thriller with surprising humour and pathos' Sunday Independent'Strikingly well-observed and consistently surprising' The Times'Incredible' Sara Cox'Strange indeed . . . and smart, too! Shocking, disturbing and utterly original, Strange Sally Diamond will grip you from first page to last' Paula Hawkins'Irresistibly compelling, this dark story is shocking yet endearing. A brilliant read that will suck you in' Crime Monthly'Liz Nugent has outdone herself. Twisted and twisty, dark and gripping, no one is going to forget Sally Diamond in a hurry!' Graham Norton'It creeped me out (in a good way) . . . Terrific' Ian Rankin'Dark, compelling and deeply moving' Ruth Ware'So, so good! Sally gets under your skin and worms her way into your heart. I didn't want it to end' Jane Fallon'I'm lost in admiration for Liz and her writing . . . vivid, pacy, taut but so very moving' Marian Keyes'Jaw-droppingly clever . . . One of the best books I've read in a long, long time. I can't stop thinking about it' Lucy Foley'An outstanding achievement which transforms the dark psychological thriller map with both bravura and delicacy. One for the ages' Maxim Jakubowski

WINNER - IBA Crime Fiction Book of the YearBy the author of the No. 1 Bestselling Strange Sally Diamond 'Truly excellent . . . strongly recommended' Sophie Hannah__________'I expected more of a reaction the first time I hit her.'Oliver Ryan is a handsome and charismatic success story.He lives in the suburbs with his wife, Alice, who illustrates his award-winning children's books and gives him her unstinting devotion. Their life together is one of enviable privilege and ease – enviable until, one evening after supper, Oliver attacks Alice, leaving her fighting for her life.Everyone around Oliver quickly realises that they didn't know him at all. Only he knows the lengths to which he has gone to get the life he so desired. But even he is in for a shock when the past catches up with him.A gripping page-turner, Unravelling Oliver is perfect for fans of Shari Lapena's The Couple Next Door.__________'Incredibly brilliant' Marian Keyes'Compelling, clever and dark . . . you'll gobble it up in one go' Heat Magazine'An ambitiously structured and compelling "whydunnit"' Daily Mail 'The compulsion to continue reading never wanes . . . a persistently satisfying read' Sunday Times

The No. 1 Bestseller 'It twists, it turns, its characters are utterly despicable, and it is a compulsive triumph' Stylist 'My husband did not mean to kill Annie Doyle, but the lying tramp deserved it.'____________Lydia Fitzsimons lives in the perfect house with her adoring husband and beloved son.There is just one thing Lydia yearns for to make her perfect life complete, though the last thing she expects is that pursuing it will lead to murder. However, needs must - because nothing can stop this mother from getting what she wants . . .____________'What an extraordinary novel ... crackles and snaps like a bonfire on a winter's night; you shudder even as you draw closer to it. Spellbinding.' A J Finn, bestselling author of The Woman in the Window'A stunningly talented writer' Sophie Hannah'Devastating ... exquisitely uncomfortable, utterly captivating' Publishers Weekly'The intricate plotting and jolting suspense hold you in a vice till the last page' Sunday Times'Gone Girl fans will love Liz Nugent's Lying in Wait . . . it twists, it turns, its characters are utterly despicable, and it is a compulsive triumph' Stylist 'Clear your diary if you pick up this seductively sinister story. The twists come together in a superbly scary denouncement which delivers a final sting in the tail. Brilliantly macabre' Sunday Mirror'Brilliant plotting ratchets up the tension in this chilling tale of obsessive love, madness and motherhood' Woman & Home'The wit is sharp and the plot full of punishing twists' The Times Crime Club'An unputdownable psychological thriller with an ending that lingers long after turning the final page' Irish Times'Lydia is a Gothic villain for the ages ... a page-turner chock full of lies and betrayals' Kirkus Reviews'An excellent example of "Domestic Noir" ... excitement and curiosity mount until you realise you can't put the book down. Highly recommended' Literary Review'A tense, taut, almost gothic thriller where the tension tightens to near unbearable proportions ... impossible to stop reading. A brilliantly written, stand-out novel' Marian Keyes'Deliciously twisted . . . truly chilling' Sarah Hilary'Liz Nugent's characters are as unforgettably monstrous as they are believable. A superbly crafted novel and an absorbing portrait of the purest kind of evil' Jane Casey'It spoils nothing to tell you now that Lydia and Andrew Fitzsimons have murdered a young prostitute. Read this dark, captivating psychological thriller to find out why' People Magazine'I thought it impossible to match the brilliant Unravelling Oliver, but this Liz has done. Not only is her style beautiful, but she keeps the reader on the edge of their seat from page one until the completely unexpected ending. I read Lying in Wait in one sitting. I just couldn't bear the suspense. I absolutely loved it' Amanda Redman'She writes compellingly, creates posh sociopaths like no-one else and doesn't flinch when the end demands what it demands. Lying In Wait is a story you genuinely should not miss' Rick O'Shea, RTÉ

'Pure genius. Absolutely brilliant' Shari Lapena'A twisted thriller, reminiscent of Patricia Highsmith' Ian RankinIBA Crime Fiction Book of the Year Winner 2018___________WINNER of the Dead Good Books Award for the Book That You Can't Put Down!She's not who you think she is . . . 'I could probably have been an actress.It is not difficult to pretend to be somebody else.Isn't that what I've been doing for most of my life?'Cordelia Russell has been living on the French Riviera for twenty-five years, passing herself off as an English socialite. But her luck, and the kindness of strangers, have run out.The arrival of a visitor from her distant past shocks Cordelia. She reacts violently to the intrusion and flees her flat to spend a drunken night at a glittering party. As dawn breaks she stumbles home through the back streets. Even before she opens her door she can hear the flies buzzing. She did not expect the corpse inside to start decomposing quite so quickly . . .___________'Bloody brilliant!' Denise Mina'Extraordinary' A.J. Finn 'The finest psychological thriller writer currently at work' Tammy Cohen'Dark, brutal and brilliant' Colette McBeth'Absorbing, beautifully written' The Times, Crime Books of the Year'Every bit as amazing as her first two [novels]' Lisa Jewell 'Dazzling . . . chilling, mesmerising and, ultimately, devastating. Pure storytelling genius' Mark Edwards

'Liz Nugent is a force to be reckoned with' Lisa Jewell'Brilliantly observed family life and a plot that is part rollercoaster, part maze. Loved it!' Graham Norton'MAGNIFICENT. Her best yet, and that's really saying something' Marian Keyes ______________Three brothers are at the funeral. One lies in the coffin.Will, Brian and Luke grow up competing for their mother's unequal love. As men, the competition continues - for status, money, fame, women . . .They each betray each other, over and over, until one of them is dead.But which brother killed him?______________'Dark, beautiful, devastating – pure genius' Lucy Foley'A sizzling thriller' Heat 'A dark jewel of a novel - finely observed, swift and exciting' AJ Finn'[An] incredible achievement . . . Genius' Sebastian Barry'Liz Nugent has a gift for filling us with a terrible fascination for truly horrible people' Val McDermid'Her best book yet' Irish Times'Creepy, compelling and totally addictive' Erin Kelly'An uncanny ability to get under the skin of characters . . . nobody is a mere cliché in Nugent's clear, propulsive writing' Sunday Times'A whodunit and a Greek tragedy all in one . . . absolutely riveting' Irish Independent

The deliciously dark new suspense novel from the international bestselling author of Strange Sally DiamondTHE NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER‘I couldn't stop reading! Absolutely a triumph!’ Freida McFadden‘What a read! A brilliantly dark and tangled web that every reader will be completely ensnared by’ Graham Norton‘A terrifyingly incisive exploration of how one snowball can turn into an unstoppable dark avalanche, how one unthinking crime can send out ripples of destruction across families, continents, and decades - and the sting in the tail is fantastic.' Tana French---If my sister hadn’t been beautiful, none of it would have happened.Ruby Cooper and her sister, Erin, live an idyllic life in their close-knit church community in Boston. But when Ruby is sixteen, she is involved in an incident that causes her family’s world to implode.Across decades, the fallout leaves a wake of destruction behind Ruby in Dublin and Erin in Boston.Not that Ruby wants to think about the past.But it can’t stay a secret forever.---‘An utterly gripping story about how one incident reverberates across time, damaging and destroying lives. I read it as if in a fever’ Shari Lapena‘Liz Nugent at the top of her game … a proper work of art – nuanced, messy and complicated, just like real-life.’ Irish Independent‘Absolutely gripping. Another utterly compelling, dark and unsettling piece of work that’s going to give me a book hangover for weeks.’ John Marrs‘Utterly compelling and brilliantly imagined … all the way to the last dark twist.’ Anthony Horowitz‘Once again, the incomparable Liz Nugent invites us into the darkest parts of the human psyche. I'm certain her legions of fans will agree: Ruby is her most unforgettable creation yet’ Catherine Ryan Howard‘Only Liz Nugent can create characters like these … this is a maestro at work. Another sensational read - clear your diary and prepare to be hooked!’ Sam Blake'Dark, fearless and compelling - unforgettable work from an outstanding and brilliant crime writer.' Jane Casey‘An absolute belter of a book. Liz Nugent at her dark and twisty best.’ Louise Kennedy‘Twisted and brilliantly observed’ Irish Examiner Culture Magazine'Addictive and awe-inspiring, from the first page to the last.’ Diane Jeffrey‘Essential reading’ Crime Time'Unputdownable, acid-sharp, and emotionally brutal — Liz Nugent at her most compulsive.' Dearbhla McTiernan‘An intense and gripping novel about a lie that destroys lives and unravels a family over decades. Liz Nugent gets deep into the heads of her characters and lays bare their most human impulses, no matter how dark. A must-read author at the top of her game’ Gilly Macmillan'Only Liz Nugent could have written this book ... an unflinching, darkly funny, sometimes disconcerting and always gripping story' Sinéad Crowley‘A novel that you will want to avoid life in order to read’ Belfast Telegraph‘Liz Nugent is fearless in the places she will go to uncover our basest, darkest impulses. Utterly compelling.’ Tammy Cohen‘Unputdownable’ Kathryn Thomas, Q102'I bloody loved it. Sublime ... dark and hooky.' Louise Swanson‘Another triumphant addition to her impressive catalogue’ Irish Examiner‘Layered, gripping, darker than dark (a LN trademark), and psychologically complex. Beautifully real, flawed, human characters. SUPERB.’ Will Dean'Nugent is one of my favourite all-time writers, and her latest is not just a crime novel, it's a study in humanity. Deserves to be massive’ Gillian McAllister‘Lands blow after emotional blow … a novel that insists upon being read in breathless gulps’ Heat‘Terrific’ Brendan O’Connor, RTÉ Radio 1‘Quietly dazzling … beautifully written and structured, and full of emotional intelligence … deserves to be talked about’ The Mature Times‘Ruby Cooper is captivating and infuriating and tragic . . . brilliant storytelling’ Michael Robotham ‘I absolutely devoured this one. It’s an incredibly brave but really nuanced and layered book. It’s an absolute triumph – carried off by Liz Nugent only because she so skilled and humane a writer’ Imran Mahmood‘An intense and gripping novel about a lie that destroys lives and unravels a family over decades. Liz Nugent gets deep into the heads of her characters and lays bare their most human impulses, no matter how dark. A must-read author at the top of her game’ Gilly Macmillan‘So absorbing I forgot I was reading a novel and thought I was being told a twisted real-life story, full of shocking confessions and jaw-dropping revelations. Another masterclass in psychological suspense from one of my favourite writers’ Mark Edwards‘Another gem … a psychological thriller that stands with Nugent's best work’ Sunday Independent‘I LOVED The Truth About Ruby Cooper . . . it’s so thought-provoking and surprising’ Claire Coughlan'Another perfectly fiendish and twisty thriller … an utterly gripping story’ Irish Country Living‘Absolutely fantastic’ In My Good Books podcast‘Liz Nugent at her best’ Irish Farmers Journal‘Blends psychological tension with masterful storytelling’ Woman & Home‘Nugent has created a character so layered, dark and utterly compelling they’ll leave you gobsmacked at every turn. It’s a story to devour greedily – pausing only to gasp at the shocking twists before eagerly turning the page for more’ My Weekly‘Another distinctive and unique novel from this outstanding writer!’ The Afterword‘Propulsive, gripping and immersive’ TripFiction‘A twisted and twisty, dark and gripping tale’ Crime Fiction Lover‘This dark domestic thriller with a shocking, twisty plot and compelling protagonists is unputdownable!’ Candis magazine‘Ruby Cooper is probably Nugent's most toxic anti-heroine yet’ Sunday Independent‘Page-turner’ The Times‘A bona fide page-turner … eye-opening, wise and moving, Nugent is a master storyteller’ The Express‘Nugent’s best work to date and will stay with you long after you’ve finished it’ Go! Media‘A dark and twisted page-turner about jealousy’ The Sun‘A psychological thriller that is disturbing, gripping, horrifying, and shocking, and is hard to put down, even at its darkest moments.’ Irish Examiner