It’s the question on everyone’s lips. Who wrote The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August? Already being spoken about as one of the books of the year, with Booktopia’s John Purcell calling it ‘fascinating’ and ‘a real page turner’, the greatest question is who could have written it?

On the book itself Claire North is described as “an acclaimed author who has previously published several novels”. Our investigations, listening in to the literary grapevine, indicate it is a UK writer, likely a woman, and one who would usually write a completely different genre to the sci-fi tinged The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August.

UK newspaper The Independent recently did some sleuthing and was informed that Ms North’s identity will be revealed in two weeks, with an announcement on 22 April.

The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North

The extraordinary journey of one unforgettable character – a story of friendship and betrayal, loyalty and redemption, love and loneliness and the inevitable march of time Harry August is on his deathbed. Again. Every time Harry dies, he is reborn in exactly the same time and place, a child with all the knowledge of a life he has already lived a dozen times before. No matter what he does or the decisions he makes, when death comes, Harry always returns to where he began, and nothing ever changes. He only knows that there are others like him, living with, but apart, from the rest of us.

As Harry nears the end of his eleventh life, a little girl appears at his bedside. ‘I nearly missed you, Doctor August,’ she says. ‘I need to send a message. It has come down from child to adult, child to adult, passed back through generations from a thousand years forward in time. The message is that the world is ending, and we cannot prevent it. So now it’s up to you.’

This is the story of what Harry August does next – and what he did before – and how he tries to save a past he cannot change and a future he cannot allow.

About the Author

Claire North is a pseudonym for an acclaimed British author who has previously published several novels. This book is completely different from any of them.

Grab a copy of The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August here

This article first appeared on Booktopia.