Karen Swan Bio

With a Scottish heritage and a strong personal affinity with the area (her father is Scottish, she was christened there, married there and her eldest was christened there), the Scottish Highlands are like an attachment that leave author Karen Swan feeling free, happy and connected to the world. 

It is this affinity with the country that sees several of her books set in Scotland, including her four-book historical series The Wild Isle series, which centres around the 1930 evacuation of the remote Scottish island, St Kilda. 

When she first began writing books, Swan had a hideaway in the trees, much like a treehouse. Today, however, she lives in Sussex and has set herself up a wonderful study where she gets into twisting plots, city streets and summer visitors.

Life as a fashion journalist

In her twenties, Karen Swan spent many years as a fashion journalist and editor for publications such as Tatler, YouMagazine and Vogue. After getting married, and with her first child on the way, Karen Swan decided to make the move into novels, looking for good or more purer things in her life. 

Karen Swan had never considered writing fiction prior, but realised as she moved from the styling side of fashion to the writing of fashion features that it wasn’t actually the fashion side she liked – it was the process of writing. 

After her son was born, she wrote and published Gentle First Year, with Dr G Motha, an obstetrician in London often associated with the gentle birth method. It was her agent for this project who encouraged her to give fiction a try. It took just one afternoon trip to the library and some time writing a scene for Swan to realise that fiction writing was exactly what she was meant to be doing. 

Sunday Times bestselling author

A Sunday Times Top Three and international best-selling author, Karen Swan has sold over five million books. She is published in more than twenty-five languages worldwide and writes extensively, publishing two books a year – one for the summer season and one for the winter season.

In interviews, she has said that she never had the intention to write a Christmas novel however but after the success of Christmas at Tiffany’s she discovered there was an appetite for books in the winter season. 

Known for their evocative locations, Karen Swan often travels widely for research to ensure her stories are accurate and brought to life. Her novels feature complex love stories, often combined with a mystery, and are written in both modern and historical times. 

Writing in quick succession 

Writing two books a year comes with its own sacrifices. To write a book of typically 400 pages, it takes Swan around 10-12 weeks, however this follows months of research and planning. Because of her schedule for two books a year, there isn’t a lot of room for extending this time frame. She then spends another three weeks in the edit stage after her editor has been given a copy. 

Strong female characters

Karen Swan’s books are known for their strong female characters, but she tries to ensure that these characters don’t sacrifice their careers or strengths for the love of another character. She has said previously that she doesn’t truly believe in women constraining themselves or becoming less than to keep a relationship alive. 

Some of her strongest female characters, according to readers, are Effie Gillies in The Last Summer, Clover in Midnight in the Snow), Alex in The Christmas Secret, Pia Sato in Prima Donna, Flora MacQueen in The Lost Lover and Willow in The Christmas Party. 

What’s next in line for Karen Swan fans?

Karen Swan’s next book The Winter Guest is due for release in October 2026. With a dual plotline, set in present-day Switzerland, on the banks of Lake Geneva, and Paris in the summer of 1962, Dulcie is sitting with her grandmother as she nears the end of her life, when a knock on the door makes Dulcie realise that her grandmother may not be the person she thought she was. Set in the Swiss Alps, this looks to be another captivating tale.

This is set to be another bestselling Karen Swan novel and the perfect winter read.

Karen Swan’s books in order

At Tiffany’s series

Christmas at Tiffany’s (2011)

Summer at Tiffany’s (2015)

Wild Isle Series

The Last Summer (2022)

The Stolen Hours (2023)

The Lost Lover (2024)

The Midnight Secret (2025)

Wild Isle Girls

Three Summers (2026)

Novels in publication order

Players (2010)

Prima Donna (2011)

The Perfect Present (2012)

Christmas at Claridge’s (2013)

The Summer Without You (2014)

Christmas in the Snow (2014)

Christmas on Primrose Hill (2015)

The Paris Secret (2016)

Christmas Under the Stars (2016)

The Rome Affair (2017)

The Christmas SecreT (2017)

The Greek Escape (2018)

The Christmas Lights (2018)

The Hidden Beach (2020)

Together by Christmas (2020

The Secret Path (2021)

Midnight in the Snow (2021)

The Christmas Postcards (2022)

Christmas by Candlelight (2023)

All I Want for Christmas (2024)

The Winter Guest (coming October 2026)