Kate Foster (born 1974 or 1975) is a Scottish writer. She was a journalist for 25 years before publishing her first novel at the age of 48. [1]
Foster won the Bloody Scotland Pitch Perfect award in 2020 (when the festival took place online).[2][3] Her first novel, The Maiden, won her the 2023 Scottish Crime Debut of the Year [4] and was longlisted for the 2024 Women's Prize for Fiction.[5] Foster describes it as "a feminist retelling of a 17th century Edinburgh murder",[1] and it concerns the murder of Lord James Forrester by Lady Christian Nimmo in Corstorphine in 1679.[6]
Her second novel, The King's Witches, was included by The Herald in "the 10 best new historical fictions" in May 2024.[7] It is set in the context of Anne of Denmark's betrothal to James VI and the North Berwick witch trials of 1590.[8][9]
In January 2024 the publisher Mantle signed a deal for The King's Witches and Foster's next two novels, to be published in 2025 and 2026.[8] It was reported that the 2025 title was to be The Reawakening, but Foster said in June 2024 that it will be The Mourning Necklace.[9] It will tell the story of Maggie Dickson, known as "hauf-hingit Maggie", who survived a botched execution by hanging in 1724.[10]
I became a debut author at the age of 48
2020 Pitch Perfect winner Kate Foster
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