About Michelle

Michelle was born in Malawi, central Africa, to a Belgian mother and a South African father, who published the Nyasaland Times. Her family relocated to Wimbledon, England, when she was three.

Educated at Wimbledon High School, she went on to read biochemistry at Lady Margaret Hall, University of Oxford, where she attained a first-class degree.

After university, she became a partner in a City of London law firm, specializing in big-ticket litigation – drugs, tobacco and even disposable nappies!  “In the end,” she says, “I couldn’t see the point of all that pressure, when I was only earning money that I’d never have the time or energy to enjoy.

Her father’s death prompted her to take a one-year sabbatical, during which she traveled around France and America and wrote her first book, Without Charity. She resigned from legal practice soon after her return, to concentrate solely on writing.

Coming In October 2025 – Pre-Order Now

RAINFOREST

A Truly Terrifying Supernatural Tale

“If you liked DARK MATTER and THIN AIR” writes Michelle, “you’ll know that I love telling supernatural stories set in the wildest and most remote places on earth.

With my next book, RAINFOREST, I want to take you into the dark, unforgiving heart of the jungle. For my hero it's a refuge from the tragedy that nearly wrecked his career.

But he soon discovers that the rainforest is haunted: both by spirits of its own, and by the ghosts he's brought with him…”

Rainforest-IS-COMING
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Also Coming In October 2025

THE WITCHING HOUR

An Anthology Of The Gothic & The Ghostly, With A New Short Story By Michelle

“THE WITCHING HOUR follows Sphere's previous wildly successful supernatural short story collections, THE HAUNTING SEASON and THE WINTER SPIRITS.

It will feature new tales by masters of the macabre such as Andrew Michael Hurley, Stacey Halls, Catriona Ward and many more, and each story will be loosely based on the tradition that the hour after midnight is the time when dark things walk the earth.

I'm honoured to be the thirteenth contributor to THE WITCHING HOUR, with an original ghost story of my own.”

Acclaim

5star

“Paced like summer blockbusters, these novels [the Wolf Brother series] open with a bang and pick up speed from there… hugely entertaining!”

The New York Times
5star

“Heart-stoppingly real – the finale is as intense as Tolkien’s fall of Mordor”

The Independent, London
5star

“The story grips you like a wolf’s jaws and won’t let go!”

The Times, London
5star

“Outclasses Jack London’s Call Of The Wild and Kipling’s The Jungle Book

The Independent, London
5star

“Dark Matter is terrifying. The only novel to really get under my skin and infiltrate my nightmares.”

Juno Dawson, The Guardian
5star

“The ultimate test of a good ghost story is, surely, whether you feel panicked reading it in bed at midnight.  Two-thirds through, I found myself suddenly afraid to look out of the windows, so I’ll call it a success!”

Emma John, The Observer
5star

“Like other great children’s books which also entrance adults, Wolf Brother conjures up an utterly believable, yet original world where the story grips you to the very last page.”

Sir Ian McKellen : Narrator of all nine audiobooks in the Wolf Brother series
5star

“This dark, gothic tale [Wakenhyrst] with hook you in with its atmospheric setting of a house on the edge of the Suffolk fens, and its themes of superstition, witchcraft and religion”

The Sun
5star

“Months after reading it, I remain obsessed with Michelle Paver’s Wakenhyrst… Spooky, twisted and unforgettable”

The Observer – Best Thrillers of the Year
5star

“Paced like summer blockbusters, these novels [the Wolf Brother series] open with a bang and pick up speed from there… hugely entertaining!”

The New York Times
5star

“Heart-stoppingly real – the finale is as intense as Tolkien’s fall of Mordor”

The Independent, London
5star

“The story grips you like a wolf’s jaws and won’t let go!”

The Times, London
5star

“Outclasses Jack London’s Call Of The Wild and Kipling’s The Jungle Book

The Independent, London
5star

“Dark Matter is terrifying. The only novel to really get under my skin and infiltrate my nightmares.”

Juno Dawson, The Guardian
5star

“The ultimate test of a good ghost story is, surely, whether you feel panicked reading it in bed at midnight.  Two-thirds through, I found myself suddenly afraid to look out of the windows, so I’ll call it a success!”

Emma John, The Observer
5star

“Like other great children’s books which also entrance adults, Wolf Brother conjures up an utterly believable, yet original world where the story grips you to the very last page.”

Sir Ian McKellen : Narrator of all nine audiobooks in the Wolf Brother series
5star

“This dark, gothic tale [Wakenhyrst] with hook you in with its atmospheric setting of a house on the edge of the Suffolk fens, and its themes of superstition, witchcraft and religion”

The Sun
5star

“Months after reading it, I remain obsessed with Michelle Paver’s Wakenhyrst… Spooky, twisted and unforgettable”

The Observer – Best Thrillers of the Year

Bibliography

YouTube

Contact

Please only use this form for media or publishing enquiries.

If you’re a reader and want to ask Michelle a question, you’ll be happy to know that you can do that on Michelle’s website, MichellePaver.Com. Michelle loves to hear from her readers and answers every message personally – although depending on her writing commitments, it can sometimes take a while.

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