The Mermaids Singing

Val McDermid (born June 4, 1955) is a Scottish crime writer best known for her Tartan Noir novels, including series featuring Dr. Tony Hill and DCI Carol Jordan (adapted as Wire in the Blood)) and cold case detective Karen Pirie (adapted for ITV). From a working-class family in Fife, she was the first student from a Scottish state school to study English at St Hilda's College, Oxford, worked as an award-winning journalist for 16 years, and published her debut novel Report for Murder in 1987 before writing full-time. Read more →