Sophie Haydock is an award-winning author living in east London. The Flames, is her debut novel. She is the winner of the Impress Prize for New Writers. Sophie trained as a journalist at City University, London, and has worked at the Sunday Times Magazine, Tatler and BBC Three, as well as freelancing for publications including the Financial Times, Guardian Weekend magazine, and organisations such as the Arts Council, Royal Academy and Sotheby's. Passionate about short stories, Sophie also works for the Sunday Times Audible Short Story Award and is associate director of the Word Factory literary organisation. Her Instagram account @egonschieleswomen - dedicated to the women who posed for Egon Schiele - has a community of over 100,000 followers. For more information, visit- sophie-haydock.com.
MAGNIFICENT. Feels destined to be a classic - exquisitely crafted and so absorbing. I loved it and REFUSE to accept it is a debut. It's simply too good. * Katie Lowe, author of The Furies * Completely convincing and utterly compelling, THE FLAMES gives vivid voice to four muses who refuse to be remembered as just that. Haydock is a writer to watch. * KIRAN MILLWOOD HARGRAVE, author of THE MERCIES * Confident...urgent...illuminating: you will never again look at Schiele's vivid portraits without wondering about his subjects' lives beyond the frame. * SUNDAY TIMES * Thought provoking and illuminating and a fascinating - I so enjoyed discovering the world and the women behind works of art I adore. * Kate Sawyer, author of The Stranding * 'A reimaging of the lives of artist Egon Schiele's four female 'muses' it is both fascinating and compelling. I loved all four women...and the final scenes with Egon himself were truly extraordinary.' * Elodie Harper, author of The Wolf Den * The four women who loved Schiele come back to life, combining an exquisite sense of place and era with a passion and sensuality that transcend time altogether. * Isabel Costello, author of Scent * 'I knew nothing of Egon Schiele. I'm now obsessed, and heartbroken for all four women. An unforgettable book about wanting more for ourselves than we are told we are allowed.' * Ericka Waller, author of Dog Days * An intoxicating and evocative read full of controversy and drama. We loved it. * Woman and Home * .Readers are going to fall very hard for this one. * Sue Rainsford, author of Redder Days * Enthralling and utterly captivating! Sophie's prose is as evocative and beguiling a the stories it tells. Prepare for The Flames to become your next obsession. * Laure van Rensburg, author of Nobody But Us * A stunning story of love, art and betrayal * RED magazine * 'In The Flames, Haydock turns a forensic eye on the loves, fears, hopes, and heartbreaks of four extraordinary women who might otherwise have been swallowed by history...a beautiful and timely narrative, which focuses its lens on the closest details to reveal an understanding of the most profound human emotions and behaviour.' * Costa shortlisted novelist, Rebecca F John * We learn more about great figures in time by watching the spaces around them. The Flames paints a history so detailed and vivid that we feel we were there in the flesh. A book to get lost in, a great feat of a debut. * Booker Prize winner, DBC Pierre * 'Full of scandal, love, betrayal, and heartache ... Adele, Gertrude, Vally and Edith are given voices loud and clear' * Cosmopolitan * The untold stories of four women depicted in the paintings of artist Egon Schiele ... are brought to life in this mesmerising debut... movingly told' * Good Housekeeping * 'Exhilarating... a dynamic, vivid debut pulled off with considerable elan' * Mail on Sunday *