LJ Ross Bio

Born in 1985, Louise Ross is a best selling author of the DCI Ryan, Doctor Alexander Gregory and Summer Suspense mystery series. 

Louise Ross was born in Northumberland and studied both undergraduate and postgraduate law at King’s College, University of London, and then in Paris and Florence. She was a lawyer for many years, with much of her working life spent in London, before she took the plunge into full-time writing. 

Her first novel, Holy Island, was released in 2015 and became her first international bestseller. More than thirty more of her novels have taken the #1 spot, some before general release while still on pre-order. In 2024, it was reported by Amazon that Ross was the second most read author on Kindle Unlimited in the UK in the 2014-2024 period. 

In addition to being a writer, Ross is a philanthropist, founding several non-profit initiatives and prizes supporting the arts and literacy through her publishing imprint Dark Skies Publishing. Initiatives LJ Ross has founded include the Northern Photography Prize, the Lindisfarne Prize, the LJ Ross Book Club and North East Heroes. 

In 2021, LJ Ross coordinated 55 fellow authors from various genres to produce an anthology of short stories. The proceeds from Everyday Kindness were donated to Shelter. The audiobook version featured narrations from several high-profile actors including Dame Julie Walters and Richard Armitage.

Louise Ross lives with her husband and two children in England, and in addition to her work as an author and philanthropist, Ross and her husband run a publishing imprint called Dark Skies Publishing.

LJ Ross books in order

DCI Ryan Mysteries series

   1. Holy Island (2014)

   2. Sycamore Gap (2015)

   3. Heavenfield (2016)

   4. Angel (2016)

   5. High Force (2017)

   6. Cragside (2017)

   7. Dark Skies (2017)

   8. Seven Bridges (2018)

   9. The Hermitage (2018)

   10. Longstone (2018)

   11. The Infirmary (2019)

   12. The Moor (2019)

   13. Penshaw (2019)

   14. Borderlands (2019)

   15. Ryan’s Christmas (2019)

   16. The Shrine (2020)

   17. Cuthbert’s Way (2020)

   18. The Rock (2021)

   19. Bamburgh (2022)

   20. Lady’s Well (2023)

   21. Death Rocks (2024)

   22. Poison Garden (2024)

   23. Belsay (2025)

   24. Berwick (2026)

   25. Raby (2027)

Alexander Gregory Thriller series

   1. Impostor (2019)

   2. Hysteria (2019)

   3. Bedlam (2020)

   4. Mania (2022)

   5. Panic (2022)

   6. Amnesia (2024)

   7. Obsession (2026)

   8. Alex Gregory 8 (2027)

Summer Suspense Mystery

   1. The Cove (2021)

   2. The Creek (2022)

   3. The Bay (2023)

   4. The Haven (2024)

   5. The Lizard (2026)

DCI Ryan Met Years

   1. DCI Ryan The Met Years 1 (2027)

Collections and anthologies

1. Dark Minds (2017)

2. Everyday Kindness (2021)

Audiobooks

Several of LJ Ross’ books have been recorded as audiobooks including the eleventh novel in the DCI Ryan mysteries The Infirmary. This audiobook included actors such as Kevin Whately, Tom Bateman, Hermione Norris and Alun Armstrong.

Her Doctor Gregory thrillers novels were narrated by Hugh Dancy and Richard Armitage.

Awards and honours

LJ Ross has won several awards and achieved plenty of accolades. The Rock in the DCI Ryan series was the UK’s third best-selling e-book in 2021, while in 2022, the DCI Ryan Mysteries series was the platform’s second bestselling book series of all time.

In addition, LJ Ross has been shortlisted for the British Book Awards ‘Crime and Thriller Book of the Year’ twice for Imposter (Doctor Gregory series) and Bamburgh (DCI Ryan series).

She has also been shortlisted for the Crime Writers’ Association “Dagger in the Library” award in both 2021 and 2024.