Val McDermid

Val McDermid
Born	4 June 1955 (1955-06-04)
Nationality	Scottish
Genres	Crime fiction
www.valmcdermid.com

Val McDermid (born 4 June 1955) is a Scottish crime writer, best known for a series of suspense novels starring her most famous creation, Dr. Tony Hill.

Biography

McDermid comes from Kirkcaldy, Fife, and was educated at St Hilda's College, Oxford, where she was the first student from a state school in Scotland (Kirkcaldy High School), and became President of the Junior Common Room. After graduation she became a journalist, and worked briefly as a dramatist. However, her first success as a novelist, Report for Murder: The First Lindsay Gordon Mystery, did not appear until 1987.

Work

McDermid's notable characters are a lesbian journalist, Lindsay Gordon; a private investigator, Kate Brannigan; and a psychologist, Tony Hill, who suffers from sexual dysfunction. Her books mainly fall into three series: Lindsay Gordon, Kate Brannigan, and, beginning in 1995, the Tony Hill and Carol Jordan series, the first entry in which, The Mermaids Singing, won the Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger for Best Crime Novel of the Year. The Hill/Jordan series has been adapted for television under the name Wire in the Blood, starring Robson Green. McDermid states that Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird is her favourite novel.^{[citation needed]}

McDermid considers her work to be part of the "Tartan Noir" Scottish crime fiction genre. As well as her novels, McDermid contributes to several British newspapers and often broadcasts on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio Scotland.

Her novels, in particular the Tony Hill series, are known for their graphic depictions of violence and torture.

The McDermid Stand

Starks Park, the McDermid stand visible to the left.

The McDermid Stand, which she sponsors, is in Stark's Park, Raith Rovers ground in Kirkcaldy. She often invests in billboards there for her newest books. This endeavour was in honour of her father, a scout for the club. She has lately become a board member of the club, a year after sponsoring this stand.

Personal life

McDermid is lesbian. She and her former spouse share custody of their son Cameron (conceived to McDermid's ex via donor insemination). She is a Raith Rovers supporter. She lives in Manchester and Northumberland with three cats.

Bibliography

Lindsay Gordon series

• Report for Murder (1987)
• Common Murder (1989)
• Final Edition (1991) US Titles: Open and Shut, Deadline for Murder
• Union Jack (1993), US Title: Conferences are Murder
• Booked for Murder (1996)
• Hostage to Murder (2003)

Kate Brannigan series

• Dead Beat (1992)
• Kick Back (1993)
• Crack Down (1994)
• Clean Break (1995)
• Blue Genes (1996)
• Star Struck (1998)

Tony Hill and Carol Jordan series

• The Mermaids Singing (1995)
• The Wire in the Blood (1997)
• The Last Temptation (2002)
• The Torment of Others (2004)
• Beneath the Bleeding (2007)
• Fever of the Bone (2009)
• The Retribution (2011)

Other books

• A Suitable Job for a Woman (1994); non-fiction
• The Writing on the Wall (1997); short stories, limited edition of 200 copies
• A Place of Execution (1999)
• Killing the Shadows (2000)
• The Distant Echo (2003)
• Stranded (2005); short stories
• The Grave Tattoo (2006)
• A Darker Domain (2008)
• Trick of the Dark (2010)

External links

• Val McDermid's Official Site
• Val McDermid at Contemporary Writers (British Council)
• Val McDermid talks about the novels that have influenced her in the Guardian bookshop challenge