Alison Love is a novelist and short story writer. Her debut novel, Mallingford, published in the UK and Germany, was described in The Times as 'the kind of book that reminds one why people still like reading novels', while her second, Serafina, is set amidst the political intrigues of 13th century Amalfi. Her latest novel, The Girl from the Paradise Ballroom, has appeared in the UK and Germany (as Das Lied, das uns trägt) and will be published in the USA in April 2016. Alison's short stories have appeared in several magazines and anthologies, including the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Volume 6. (Author photograph copyright Richard Sena Ltd.)