Anne Perry

Anne Perry’s original birth name is Juliet Marion Hulme. She was born in Blackheath, London in 1938. Anne has the distinction of writing the longest ongoing series produced by a living author. The books she is well known for are of the historical detective fiction genre.

Anne has a very gruesome and dark past that follows her to this day. As a teenager she had a kindred connection with her friend Pauline Parker. Both girls were drawn to mystery and fantasy. Together, the girls planned and carried out the malicious murder of Pauline’s mother. Convicted of murder, the girls were spared the death penalty due to their age. They were detained for 5 years and, upon release, forbidden to ever see or contact each other again. In 1994 a film called “Heavenly Creatures” was made about this tragic story.

The first novel Anne published, written under her pen name “Anne Perry,” was "The Cater Street Hangman." It was the first mystery she had ever written and it was also the first to be published. The book features a main character, Thomas Pitt, who is a Victorian policeman. Thomas is a continual main character throughout this series. The latest book in the series is “Buckingham Palace Gardens,” which appeared in the New York Times Bestsellers list in 2008.

In 1990, Anne published the first book in a second series, “The Face of a Stanger.” This series also features a recurrent character, Victorian Detective William Monk. The setting for this series begins 35 years earlier than the first. The latest book in this series, “The Dark Assassin,” also appeared in the New York Times Bestsellers list in 2006.

Perry is not well known in her home country, the United Kingdom, yet in North America her popularity grows steadily. She has written two books a year since 1990, along with a few short stories. All of her books are still in print, she is on the best seller’s lists, and receives excellent reviews.