Hannah Richell inherited her love for the written word from her parents, who read to her and her siblings as young children and took them on frequent trips to their local library and bookshop. Her career has been grounded in storytelling since university, initially in book publishing in London & Sydney, and later transitioning to visual stories in the film industry in Australia.

Hannah wrote her debut novel, Secrets of the Tides, around the time her first child was born. Since then, she’s published several novels, including her latest, One Dark Night, with Simon & Schuster in 2025. Her work is available in twenty-four territories and has been translated into nineteen languages. Her books have been selected for the WHSmith Richard & Judy Book Club twice, the Waterstones Book Club, WHSmith Book of the Week, and other prestigious accolades.

Her fascination with families and secrets, and her desire to explore the darker recesses of the human experience, the weight of grief, and the light and resilience found in unexpected places, connects all her stand-alone stories. She has also written fiction and non-fiction pieces for various media outlets in the UK and Australia.

In memory of her late husband, Matt Richell, she co-founded and judges the annual Richell Prize, established in 2014 by Hachette and the Emerging Writers’ Festival. She is a dual citizen of the UK and Australia, currently residing just outside Bath in England with her family.