Harriet Lane's debut Alys, Always was longlisted for the Authors' Club Best First Novel Award and shortlisted for the Writers' Guild Best Fiction Book Award. Her second novel Her, a Waterstones Book Club pick, … Continue Reading ››
Thanks for dropping in
More reviews for Other People’s Fun
'It’s the kind of fiction that Patricia Highsmith excelled at, or Zoë Heller in Notes on a Scandal… Desperate to be seen, Ruth’s like an Anita Brookner heroine on steroids. The clash between her resentful, sardonic intelligence and Sookie’s online self-satisfaction is deliciously uncomfortable… The fascination of Other People’s Fun is less its plot … Continue Reading ››
Early reviews for Other People’s Fun
‘Lane returns with a tense, sharply observed novel of class, social media and manipulation, simmering with quiet dread’ (the i paper)
‘Listen, if a former frenemy from your teenage years suddenly turns up in your life – which isn’t going spectacularly well – then can we suggest you run like … Continue Reading ››
Other People’s Fun
Harriet's third novel, Other People's Fun, will be published in October 2025 by W&N (UK) and Little, Brown (US).
Info from W&N:
'I look. I can't stop looking. That's the deal, isn't it? We all know that's how it works. If … Continue Reading ››
Alys, Always on stage
Lucinda Coxon’s stage adaptation of Alys, Always, directed by Nicholas Hytner, opens at London’s Bridge Theatre in February 2019. The cast includes Joanne Froggatt and Robert Glenister.
More information here
Paperbacks
Her gets a delicious new look for its US paperback release
Encore Award
Her has been shortlisted for the Encore Award for best second novel
A new generation of female suspense novelists
'A new generation of female suspense novelists — writers like Megan Abbott, Tana French, Harriet Lane and Gillian Flynn — are redefining contemporary crime fiction with character-driven narratives that defy genre conventions. Their novels dig into social issues, feature complex women who aren’t purely victims or vixens, and create suspense with subtle psychological developments and … Continue Reading ››
By Heart
'I wrote myself a purpose. I wrote myself back into the world. To find this fantastic new freedom has been an amazing surprise, one of the great true surprises of my adult life.'
For The Atlantic's By Heart slot, Harriet spoke to Joe Fassler about Larkin, the relationship between fear and fiction, and the power … Continue Reading ››
The potential for catastrophe in the domestic
'You won’t find any bodies down alleyways in Her or Alys, Always. You won’t find any bodies, come to that. No police tape strung across doors, no screwed-up detectives drinking bad coffee, no alibis that come unstuck at the eleventh hour. Just people living apparently unremarkable lives: going to the office or the supermarket, having people … Continue Reading ››
Kirkus Reviews interview
'I’m not at all interested in stitching it all up neatly for my readers. I like an engaged reader, and that’s the sort I write for: someone who wants the clues and wants to assemble their own answer.' You can find Megan Labrise's interview with Harriet here