About L.J.Ross

LJ Ross is the author of the international #1 bestselling series of  DCI Ryan mystery novels. Her debut, Holy Island, was released in January 2015 and reached number one in the Amazon Kindle UK bestsellers chart. Its sequels, Sycamore Gap,  Heavenfield, Angel and High Force are also top five UK bestsellers.

 The novels are all available to purchase in e-book, paperback and audiobook formats on the Amazon store, as well as in selected independent bookshops. Holy Island is also available in German translation.

Louise was born in Northumberland, England.  She studied undergraduate and postgraduate Law at King’s College, University of London and studied abroad in Paris and Florence. She spent much of her working life in London, where she was a regulatory lawyer for a number of years until taking the decision to change career and pursue her dream to write.

Now, she writes full time and lives with her husband and son in Bath. She enjoys reading all manner of books, travelling and spending time with family and friends.

44 thoughts on “About L.J.Ross”

  1. Hi. Just wanted to say how much I enjoyed Holy Island.
    We ‘holiday’ in Northunberland and have been to Holy Island several times, so when I saw the book title on Amazin, it became a must read..!
    I absolutely love the space and peace to be found in the north east. I’d move there tomorrow if it were possible.
    The storyline in Holy Island is gripping. I like the relatively short timeline- everything happening in just a few days. It gives the book real pace and becomes impossible to put down. The character of Ryan is just what every girl dreams of – a tall, dark, handsome man with a strong personality and just a hint of vulnerability, making him human. I was just waiting for him to fall for Anna after their first meeting – she also has that strong, independence that all women will recognise, if not in themselves, then in the person they dream of being. The ‘romance’ was perfectly pitched – not too much, not too little.
    There was an element of humour in the form of Ryan’s sidekick, Phillips. Again, just the right amount – enough to lift the storyline but not drown it.
    The plot was well considered – it took a while to realise there was more than one murdered.
    All in all a great book.
    I have never written either a review or commented on a book to the author before. It just goes to show how much I enjoyed the novel – can’t wait for the next.
    Libby x

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    • Hi Libby!
      Thank you for such a lovely comment! I’m so pleased to hear that you enjoyed reading ‘Holy Island’ and that you connected with the characters in the book. As an author, it really means a lot to me to hear the feedback, so thanks again!
      I’m working on book #2, ‘Sycamore Gap’ and hope to release that over the summer. Fingers crossed that you will enjoy that one too.
      LJ x

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  2. I love reading your books and eagerly await your next book.
    I also love reading your blog. Keep writing as you have lots of readers like me waiting to see how the story of DC Ryan continues after Heavenfield. No pressure then….
    Eve Clark

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  5. Your audiobooks have made my daily walks all the more enjoyable. They distract me from the effort of exercise, and keep me wanting to get up each morning and do it all over again.

    Just finished High Force this morning, and I only have one complaint. I do not know who made the last shot? Did I miss something?

    I hope there is more to come, Ryan, Frank, Anna, and all the other characters in Ryan’s team are full of depth in their own right, and I am sure will open up plenty of opportunities.

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  6. I have just finished ‘Cragside’ after devouring all your books in the last two weeks. I couldn’t put them down. Absolutely love them. Having spent holidays in Northumberland and visited most of the settings for the story, I thought you capture the atmosphere of the places very well. Love the characters and how their stories interlink and carry from one book to the other. Can’t wait for the new instalment, feeling a bit at a loss now.

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  8. Hello Louise, I have just finished Cragside so have now read all six, and I look forward to Dark Skies.
    As a Geordie now living in Canada, I love the friendly repartee between Ryan and Phillips, and expressions like stottie sausage sandwich with brown sauce.
    Geordieland is still close to my heart (Ashington and Forest Hall) and every time I go home, it must include a trip to Holy Island, a very special place for me.
    And Louise was my mother’s middle name, and also now with my grand-daughter.
    Thank you so much.
    Barrie Morgan, Ontario, Canada.

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  9. Hi Just wanted to say how much I have enjoyed all your books. I live in County Durham, therefore recognising all of the cities and landmarks makes the books even more relevant to me. Also my name is Lowerson and I have never seen this name in a novel before which I found really intriguing. Can’t wait for your next book in the series.

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  10. Hi you are an amazing story teller. Read all six books in a span of 4 days. Can’t wait for dark skies wAiting to know who the woman was watching anna and ryan. Lucas may be? Well you have earned a fan in me all the way from India. Pls just keep weaving your magic

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  11. Absolutely love the series and just finished Cragside last night. I find myself drawn in by the characters – even the bad ones- and I find myself visualising them in my head, feeling I’m really getting to know them. The gorgeous Ryan (he definitely is in my head) is so brilliantly written by you. You have opened all the many aspects of his personality
    for us to see thereby allowing us to understand the intricacies of his relationships past and present, work and personal.
    Many writers of crime novels/series don’t give their characters as much substance instead leaving the plot to do the talking. That’s not to say they are unreadable rather they become swiftly forgettable.
    I cannot wait to get my hands on the next in the series but in the meantime I’m away to start them all over again!

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  13. Hi, thank you for writing these wonderful books, I’ve loved them all, i think more so because I go up to Northumberland every year with my husband and of course our dog.It’s magic. I can’t wait for your next DCI Ryan book. Best wishes Jill Woods xx

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  14. Can I just say a big THANK YOU to DCI Ryan, Dr Taylor-Ryan, DI Makenzie, DS Phillips, Trainee DC Yates and DC Lowerson. You have been my saviours while I have suffered two weeks plus of flu and chest infection. I read and listened to all the books as I suffered – womanfully – to recover. Although I have to admit that by the time I got to Dark Skies I was skiving and thoroughly enjoying my self imposed suffering. The characters and story lines are compelling and the books have that – I can’t put it down quality. Setting the books in the north east is inspired. I live 3 miles outside Durham City and have pictured the cottage where Ryan and Anna lived. I followed google maps and checked out where Ryan was pushed in the river, wandered around Newcastle -online – and even figured out where they are going to build that house. Every setting you have used brought great memories flooding back – from holidays where the visit to Holy Island was an annual ritual to walking the Wall when the kids were younger.
    Your villains are unpleasant and deserve all that justice has coming for them. I like the way that they interact e.g. How Arthur knows that the new DS -that nauseating bitch Lucas – likes to keep control of her men. That sentence slipped in and opened new imaginary thought pathways for me to travel. Please, please can she come to a very unpleasant end having underestimated how strong Anna is, and how strong Ryan and Anna’s relationship is.
    I have only one query – if Ryan is such a competent detective why hasn’t he checked her background? – if only briefly I know how the story related to confronting Lucas might damage her relationship with her ? husband and possible children – but it’s out of character for Ryan not to find out as much as he can about an enemy.
    I am really looking forward to the next book/books in the series. Get typing, I can feel a cold coming on.
    Hope you enjoying the Beast from the East on your return home.

    Best wishes,

    Barbara Lodge

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    • Thank you, Barbara! I’m so pleased you’re enjoying the stories 🙂 Without wishing to give too much away for others, I would say that Ryan has deliberately avoided looking into her recent history as she holds such frightening memories for him and, I agree, it’s out of character and perhaps adds to the menace! xx

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  15. Just finished Dark Skies, I actually finished all the books in the last week as I couldn’t put them down. When is the next instalment? What will I read now?

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  16. I first discovered you via a link advert on Facebook and to be fair, was drawn to read more by the striking book cover of the first book, Holy Island. Being between books I downloaded it and was immediately drawn to the characters. I’ve gone on to read all seven titles in the series and enjoyed them immensely. I’m hoping the wait for the next one won’t be long as I can’t wait to see what Ryan will get up to in Italy!

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  18. Have thoroughly enjoyed all your DCI Ryan books so far – absolutely brilliant! I have started reading The Hermitage, in-between children and grandchildren! I would love to come and explore Northumbria. Please don’t let anything dreadful happen to Ryan, Anna and crew!

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  19. Have just finished The Hermitage – another superb chapter in the DCI Ryan series. Stroll on the next…
    I must ask if Charron the ferryman has his roots in Charon the ferryman to Hades?

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  20. I’ve just finished Longstone – another fab read. I spent many holidays on Holy Island /Bamburgh / Seahouses with my children – and lived in the NE for many years. I now live in the South, but my children also have a love for the area. I just need the LJRoss dramas to reawaken my memories – always so vividly written and described. Brilliant characters Interacting together. Can’t wait for the next one!

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  21. Hi loving the books, I drive for a living and the audio books have been a god send, I note your last two books are not yet available as audio books, do you have plans to fix this as I really want to continue the story?

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    • Hi Jane,
      Thanks for your message and I’m so pleased you’re enjoying the audiobooks! Audible are in charge of the production and release dates depend on things like scheduling the narrator etc., so I’m told The Hermitage and Longstone will be out sometime mid-February.
      All best,
      Louise

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  22. Just read “Ryan’s Christmas” and it did not disappoint. I have read and look forward to all your books. I love the way you create convincing characters in deeply felt and beautifully described locations. This reminds me ( and I hope you regard this as a compliment) of Susan Hill. The claustrophobic setting of Chillingham Castle and the threatening wasteland of snowy Northumberland was awesome.

    An additional delight was that I lived and worked in Durham foe many years and my daughter lives in Whickham. Keep them coming, please. Also just discovered Alexander Gregory.

    Thanks so much.

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