Kate Mahony

Kate Mahony is a former journalist in both the UK and New Zealand, and also worked in communication roles. Her short fiction has been regularly shortlisted and longlisted in national and international competitions. Her story The Journey was shortlisted for the international Fish Competition in 2015, Parallel Events was shortlisted for the Bridport Prize in 2015, and Respect was longlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Competition in 2022. Other stories have appeared in numerous literary magazines and anthologies.

Kate has a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from the International Institute of Modern Letters at Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.

The inspiration for Secrets of the Land was Kate's great-grandmother's brother, an Irishman who joined the militia in Taranaki, New Zealand during the battles with Māori over land. The novel explores themes of injustice, reconciliation and reparation. It takes the reader into both the past and present on the same piece of land, through the eyes of three characters: Michael, Imogen and Aoife.

Kate grew up on a farm in Taranaki where the novel is set. She now lives in Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand.