Hazel Gaynor is an award-winning New York Times and internationally bestselling author of historical novels which explore the defining events of the 20th century. A recipient of the 2015 RNA Historical Novel award (The Girl Who Came Home) and the 2024 Audie award for Best Fiction Narrator (The Last Lifeboat), her work has also been shortlisted for the 2019 HWA Gold Crown, the 2020 RNA Historical Novel Award, and the Irish Book Awards in 2017, 2020 and 2023. Her most recent novel, Before Dorothy, was a USA Today bestseller and was chosen by the Washington Post as one of five noteworthy historical novels in June 2025. Her co-written historical novels with Heather Webb have all been published to critical acclaim. Hazel’s work is translated into 20 languages and she is published in twenty-seven territories to date. She lives in Ireland with her family.