Emylia Hall lives in Bristol with her husband and son where she writes from a hut in the garden and dreams of the sea. The Shell House Detectives is the first novel in her new crime series, following the exploits of sleuthing duo Ally and Jayden and the people in and around the fictional village of Porthpella. On release it was a Kindle Top 10 bestseller, and the rights have been optioned for TV by Playground Entertainment. The Harbour Lights Mystery – the second book in The Shell House Mystery series – was published in October 2023, with The Rockpool Murder to follow in Spring 2024. Described as Contemporary Cosy Crime, the series is inspired by her love of Cornwall’s wild landscape.

Emylia’s writing career began in 2012 with the coming-of-age story The Book of Summers. It was one of the bestselling debuts of the year and a Richard and Judy Book Club selection. A Heart Bent Out of Shape followed in 2013 and The Sea Between Us in 2015. The Thousand Lights Hotel was published in 2017 and was chosen by Fearne Cotton for her Happy Place Book Club. Altogether, Emylia’s novels have been translated into 10 different languages.

With books set in Cornwall’s wild and wonderful west, the Tuscan isle of Elba, the Swiss Riviera, and rural Hungary, Emylia’s work – whether crime or women’s fiction – is strongly influenced by place. Her writing and short fiction have appeared in a wide range of publications, including The Guardian, Elle, The Simple Things and broadcast on BBC Radio 6 Music.

Emylia is a coach at The Novelry, where she takes great pleasure in mentoring writers and encouraging people’s creativity. She has also taught writing workshops in Kigali, Zurich, at the University of Lausanne, and as a tutor for Arvon. In 2019 she founded Mothership Writers, a groundbreaking programme for new mums to explore their motherhood experience through expressive and creative writing. Through Mothership Emylia has published three books: the Arts Council funded anthology Dispatches from New Motherhood, collaborative writing project Born in Lockdown and, most recently, the Mothership Writers Notebook. In 2018–20 she was a Fellow for the Royal Literary Fund, based at the University of the West of England.

When Emylia isn’t at her desk you’re likely to find her pursuing her new passion for surfskating or planning her next trip to the Cornish coast. As much as she loves her family, happiness is a solo retreat in midwinter, writing to the sound of the sea.