Author Debbie is at her best entwining the natural world with the ever-so-slightly supernatural. In Her Sister’s Lie she allows the reader into the head of more than one narrator, scattering seeds at intervals which germinate oh so slowly until the final uprooting renders you quite speechless. Debbie Howells [is] a gifted storyteller of the dark and the unexpected.

This is an author totally at home in her crime genre as she carefully builds a picture of the two damaged sisters, plays mercilessly with our expectations, and then delivers a final knockout blow. Perfectly plotted and tingling with tension, Her Sister’s Lie is a mystery to intrigue, to enthral and to savour.

This is not a fast-paced, edge-of-the-seat crime story but a psychological thriller about the dark side of suburban England where finely pruned rose bushes hide what lies beneath [The Bones of You]

A dazzling debut from a writer who looks to me to have an exceptional future. Howells’ novel has a rare freshness and depth that set her apart [The Bones of You]

Debbie Howells has produced a book of great humanity as a battered victim appeals for help to find her daughter who may or may not exist. Can she really trust the people who come to her aid? It is a story as rugged as its Cornwall landscape with hairpin bends in the story in the most unexpected places. Sharply written with characters that keep you guessing until the very last page, this story holds you tight and then drops you like a stone [The Death of Her]

A terrific new talent. She paints with words and takes a scalpel to emotions

Haunting [The Beauty of the End]