Internationally bestselling and acclaimed author Gillian Slovo was born in 1952 in South Africa, the daughter of Joe Slovo, leader of the South African Communist party, and Ruth First, a journalist who was murdered in 1982. Slovo has lived in England since 1964, working as a writer, journalist and film producer. Her first novel, Morbid Symptoms (1984), began a series of crime fiction featuring female detective Kate Baeier. Other novels in the series include Death by Analysis (1986), Death Comes Staccato (1987), Catnap (1994) and Close Call (1995). Her other novels include Ties of Blood (1989), The Betrayal (1991) and Red Dust (2000), a courtroom drama set in contemporary South Africa, which explores the effects of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Her latest novel is Inheritance (2026).
Olivia is a voiceover artist and actor working across theatre, TV, radio and audiobooks. Her recent theatre credits include A Single Man, The Meeting, Ugly Lies the Bone, Wolf Hall. Her TV and film credits include Doc Martin, Call the Midwife, Grantchester and Benediction. Olivia’s recent audiobook narration credits include Hannah Peck's The River Thief, The Lyndon Sisters series by Julia Quinn, Skysong by C.A.Wright and Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace.