In 1987 Sheila Shand was given a suspended sentence for murdering her father. At her trial, it emerged that she and her mother and sister had been forced to shield brutal sadist Leslie Shand while he subjected them to a reign of terror, daily beatings and sexual abuse. Years later, investigative journalist Amy Vaughan discovers letters and a newspaper cutting about the Shand case while clearing out her late mother's flat. Concluding that she must be related to the Shands, she decides to visit Sheila's mother who is in a care home. Amy is curious about the elderly Iris Shand who pores over an album of family photos, for Amy knows that photographs tell lies. Her own mother had subjected her to a different form of abuse - Munchausen By Proxy, using snaps of the daughter she'd made sick to try to keep the affections of Amy's father George, a charismatic con-man. Then George appears on Amy's doorstep after a long absence and tells her that he is dying of cancer. Soon she discovers that he may be lying about far more than his health.As she pursues her investigation of the Shand case, Amy realises that there is more to the murder of Leslie than the police ever unearthed, including two long-buried skeletons in woods near the family's home . ..

Prizes

Shortlisted for CWA Duncan Lawrie Dagger 2006.

'Desolate but compelling novel of child abuse which grabs the readers attention and hangs on to it ... I'm sure this was a hard book to write. It is not an easy one to read. But it is triumphantly worthwhile.' LITERARY REVIEW 'Prepare to be chilled by this tale of long-buried murder and mystery.' RED magazine 'Laura Wilson has written a thoroughly captivating and very intelligent thriller that further cements her reputation as an acclaimed writer.' REFRESH magazine 'Laura Wilson is a class act who just gets better and better ... A Thousand Lies is superb - creepy, moving and surprising.' -- Peter Guttridge THE OBSERVER 'Laura Wilson has written a mean, compulsive thriller, where violence, child abuse, murder, incest, cruelty, and long hidden family secrets mix together in a stew of passion and guilt. Heavy stuff. And already hotly tipped as a prize winner.' -- Mark Timlin INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY 'Laura Wilson goes from strength to strength.' THE MIRROR 'A powerful study of dysfunctional families ... it makes disturbing reading.' -- Susanna Yager SUNDAY TELEGRAPH 'A Thousand Lies secures [Laura Wilson's] place near the top of the crime writing Premiership.' -- Mike Ripley BIRMINGHAM POST 'Wilson is expert at turning the screws slowly and malevolently, and her uncomfortable stories of families in turmoil hit all the right buttons.' -- Maxim Jakubowski THE GUARDIAN

Laura Wilson was brought up in London and has degrees in English Literature from Somerville College, Oxford and UCL, London.