British born author Catherine Banner began writing at the age of fourteen, and gained international attention with The Last Descendants, a riveting trilogy of young adult novels. She studied English at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, before moving to County Durham where she worked as a secondary school teacher. She lives with her husband in Turin, Italy and her second adult novel will be published in 2023. Her debut adult novel, The House at the Edge of Night, tells the story of the 2008 financial crisis and 95 years of European history through one family and their bar on a tiny Mediterranean island. It has been published in 22 languages and was listed as a Kirkus Reviews and NPR best book of 2016, and won the 2018 St Maur Prize.