Fiona Veitch Smith

Fiona Veitch Smith writes Golden Age mysteries and historical fiction. Her latest series, The Miss Clara Vale Mysteries, is about a lady forensic scientist who inherits a detective agency, set in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1929. The Miss Clara Vale Mysteries are published by Embla Books (Bonnier UK). There are three books in the series so far: The Picture House Murders, The Pantomime Murders and The Pyramid Murders

Fiona made her mark in the historical crime fiction world with her Poppy Denby Investigates books (Lion Fiction), set in the Roaring Twenties, which immerse readers in the culture of the time, while weaving intricate mysteries packed with whodunits and red herrings. Book 1, The Jazz Files, was shortlisted for the CWA Historical Dagger, while subsequent books have been shortlisted for the Foreword Review Mystery Novel of the Year and the People’s Book Prize.

The Poppy Denby books are now republished by Embla books under new titles. The first in the series is A Front-Page Murder, formerly The Jazz Files.

Fiona has also written for the children’s picture book market, with 14 books published by SPCK.

When not writing, Fiona mentors other novelists and was formerly the Communications Manager for the Crime Writers’ Association. She is still a member of the CWA board. Prior to that she worked as a journalist (in South Africa and the UK) and lectured in journalism at Newcastle University. She also spent seven years lecturing in creative and dramatic writing at Northumbria University. She lives in Newcastle upon Tyne with her husband and teenage daughter. She loves her dogs and has a passion for cheesecake, Pilates and playing the clarinet – preferably not at the same time!

She is represented by Sara Keane of Keane Kataria Literary Agency