EMMA BABBINGTON
THE GARDENS
It might look idyllic, but the secrets buried there are deadly…
Out 18 June UK & ebook/audio, 28 July AU paperback
“Everything I adore in a thriller ... mystery by the shovel load, killer twists, mounting, cut-the-air-with-a-cleaver tension
and, maybe best of all,
real heart.”
Trent Dalton
Gravity Let Me Go
I write psychological thrillers mixed with family mysteries full of twists and turns
Hello! I'm a London-born, Sydney-based author and journalist.
My debut novel THE NEIGHBOURS was released in 2025 by HQ, part of HarperCollins and my second, THE GARDENS is out soon.
My 25 year career in the UK and Australia on newspapers and magazines, has seen me interview celebrities, everyday heroes and even the occasional criminal. This gives me plenty of inspiration for writing novels.
Both THE NEIGHBOURS and THE GARDENS are part psychological thriller, part mystery - my favourite genres to read and write.
With its delicious twists and turns, The Neighbours kept me on the edge of my reading chair. A savvy, compelling debut
Hayley Scrivenor
Dirt Town & Girl Falling
THE NEIGHBOURS
Who killed Dr Richard Wellington?
The wife
The new neighbour
. . . or your daughter?
Richard is one of the country’s most recognised doctors. A morning TV regular, surgeon to the elite, and scandal-proof despite a malpractice case that should have ruined him.
But when his dead body is found sprawled in a harbourside park on a sweltering Sydney morning, the facade shatters. The normally quiet cul-de-sac he called home becomes a media circus, seething with speculation and unease.
For Liv Elliot, none of that matters – except for one detail: her daughter, Gracie, was at the park that morning.
As the investigation heats up and dark secrets surface, Liv takes steps to shield her daughter from the storm – steps that could destroy them both if the truth comes out.
Because you’re almost certain your daughter didn’t kill the neighbour. But what if she did?
Tense, compelling and oh-so-twisty this debut is perfect for anyone who has ever suspected their neighbours might not be as perfect as they seem
Pip Drysdale
The Close-Up
A complex thriller unearthing the past, with superbly clever twists
Petronella McGovern
Every Time She Wakes
THE GARDENS
What is hiding beneath the surface?
Your sister vanished thirty-two years ago...
Are you about to finally learn the truth?
When human bones are found in the garden attached to the glamorous London home where she grew up, Jess McIntyre prepares to receive the news she has dreaded for thirty-four years: that her sister, Nina, is dead and now here is the proof.
Nina disappeared without a trace in 1992, aged eighteen, the summer she fell in with a charismatic group of friends who squatted in a vacant house on the other side of Willow Gardens.
Having moved to Australia years ago, widow and single mum Jess arrives back in London to provide a DNA sample to help the investigation, with her teenage son, Ollie, in tow.
As they try and unravel the secrets of Nina's past, and her connection to a sinister cult, will they discover that some bodies are best left buried…?
Publicity and media
Stuart Henshall
HQ HarperCollins
stuart.henshall@harpercollins.com.au
Literary agent
Nicky Lovick
WGM Atlantic
nicky.lovick@wgmatlanticgroup.com
Podcasts
Listen to my episode talking to Claudine Tinellis wherever you find your podcasts or click here
Listen to my episode talking to Fiona Taylor wherever you find your podcasts or click here or to watch on YouTube, click here
Interviews
WOMAN'S DAY
Read my interview about The Neighbours here
CURTIS BROWN CREATIVE
Read my interview about my writing process here