The Night Stairs

Had me hooked from page one… a twisty, confounding mystery – Jennie Godfrey, author of THE LIST OF SUSPICIOUS THINGS
Erin Kelly has huge fun stirring lashings of snobbery, religion, teenage bitchiness and a hot priest into her gothic take on Malory Towers-style school stories * The Times *
Kelly brilliantly evokes the hothouse atmosphere of the school, and the dangerously intense feelings it fosters * Mail on Sunday *
Erin Kelly is the utter queen of dark and twisty…an absolute joy – Joanna Cannon, author of AN UNLIKELY VISITOR
I’ve loved each of Erin Kelly’s novels – but The Night Stairs is my new favourite. The richly evoked setting of St Cordula’s convent school becomes a playground for malaise and madness, in this relentlessly gripping psychological thriller. Original, atmospheric, and deliciously dark – Lucy Clarke, author of THE HIKE
A spine-chilling read * Good Housekeeping *
Hysteria, secrets, faith… and murder? This gothic boarding school mystery had all of my favourite things, and gripped me until the very last twist. Erin Kelly is a cut above – Juno Dawson, author of HER MAJESTY’S ROYAL COVEN
Nobody builds a world quite as believable as Erin Kelly. And no one can tear it down quite so deliberately too. The Night Stairs is another captivating, fiendishly clever thriller with blindsiding twists – John Marrs, author of DEAD IN THE WATER
Outstanding…peeling back the layers of respectability and tradition in a Catholic girls’ school to reveal incense-bitter truths. Atmospheric and expertly crafted, this is as much an insightful novel about female friendship and betrayal as it is a compelling mystery…Erin Kelly is one of the absolute best in the business. – Jane Casey, author of THE SECRET ROOM
This elegantly written gothic thriller has a twist for the ages * i *
I was utterly absorbed by this chilling and immersive thriller. The plot is intricate, the twists are head-spinning, the setting is so vivid I can still walk around it in my mind, but what I loved most of all were the perfectly painfully rendered characters. – Holly Seddon, author of 59 MINUTES
A beautifully written, gothic thriller with dark twists. Deeply atmospheric, with insight in spades * Platinum *
Erin is so brilliant at world-building. I was totally absorbed by the claustrophobia and Gothic dread of St Cordula’s… All those secrets and repression - It’s like a gruesome combination of its own references, Enid Blyton and Virginia Andrews. Clever, ingenious and gripping – Sabine Durrant, author of SUN DAMAGE
A brilliant psychological thriller, with all of Kelly’s customary fierceness and focus. – Lucy Mangan, author of BOOKISH
A brilliantly dark thriller * The Sun *
Wonderful and original novel… intelligent, nuanced and immersive, as well as intricately plotted, with a deeply convincing cast of characters and an extraordinary depiction and understanding of teenage girls. The twists are powerful… – Claire Kendal, author of MAKE YOU MINE
Narrative pacing is one of the hardest arts to master, but it’s long been second nature to Erin Kelly, as The Night Stairs once again proves * Financial Times *
The Night Stairs is a stunning gothic thriller: beautifully-written, wise, moving, and utterly compelling. Erin Kelly is one of our very best writers, and her latest novel is an absolute triumph – Alex North, author of THE MAN MADE OF SMOKE
An addictive thriller… Fans will love this story * Best *
I’d be very surprised if I read a better novel this year. A slow-burn mystery set at a Catholic girls’ boarding school…proves that Kelly really is the queen of psychological suspense – Clare Coughlan * Sunday Independent *
The gothic thriller Erin Kelly was born to write. Ferociously clever, witty, and immersive, it perfectly captures the pain of being a bullied outsider, the intensity of female friendships, and the nastiness of teenage girls. All while serving devilish twists. Her best yet.’ – Sarah Vaughan, author of BASED ON A TRUE STORY
Conjuring the style of the Brontes and the British gothic, this is a page turner par excellence * Crime Time *
A bewitching slow-burn thriller – Eithne Farry * The Simple Things *
Erin Kelly is in her element. Compulsively creepy and genuinely thrilling. Old legends twist together with teenaged trauma in this superbly atmospheric and cleverly-structured convent school thriller. Warning: this will keep you up all night. – Anna Mazzola, author of THE BOOK OF SECRETS
Erin Kelly is the master of the immersive thriller and The Night Stairs is a wonderful example of her ability to weave multiple timelines, characters and mysteries together to tease, challenge and ultimately entertain the reader…Writing with wit and devastating accuracy Kelly reminds us of how a tension filled adolescence can so easily tip into horror – Sinead Crowley, author of THE BELLADONNA MAZE

Erin Kelly is the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Poison Tree, The Sick Rose, The Burning Air, The Ties That Bind, He Said/She Said, Stone Mothers, We Know You Know, Watch Her Fall, The Skeleton Key, and The House of Mirrors, as well as Broadchurch: The Novel, inspired by the award-winning TV series.

The Poison Tree became a major ITV drama and was a Richard & Judy Summer Read. He Said/She Said spent six weeks in the top ten in both hardback and paperback, was longlisted for the Theakston’s Old Peculier crime novel of the year award and selected for both the Simon Mayo Radio 2 and Richard & Judy Book Clubs. The Skeleton Key was a Sunday Times top ten bestseller and was selected as a Waterstones Thriller of the Month.

Born in London in 1976, Erin lives in north London with her husband and daughters.

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