Burn After Reading
Published on 12. March 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
432 pages
978-1-80499-117-6 (ISBN)
Description
A ghostwriter is locked in an interview room with a man who might be a murderer, in this gripping new mystery thriller from the #1 bestselling author of 56 Days and The Trap.
'A masterclass in suspense, utterly addictive, intelligently crafted, and impossible to put down' --Clemence Michallon, internationally bestselling author of The Quiet Tenant
'The perfect thriller' -- L. V. Matthews, author of the Richard and Judy Book Club pick The Twins
The night Jack Smyth ran into flames in a desperate attempt to save his wife from their burning home, he was, tragically, too late - but hailed a hero. Until it emerged that Kate was dead long before the fire began.
Suspicion has stalked him ever since. After all, there's no smoke without fire.
A year on, he's signed a book deal. He wants to tell his side of the story, to prove his own innocence in print. He just needs someone to help him write it.
Emily has never ghostwritten anything before, but she knows what it's like to live with a guilty secret. And she's about to learn that there are some stories that should never be told . . .
'This is one red hot thriller that boasts a vivid, true-crime authenticity at its molten core' --Janice Hallett, bestselling author of The Appeal
Rated five stars by readers!
'I love novels about authors writing and there's just the right level of detail . . . A very compelling, original and entertaining thriller'
'Captivating, original and perfectly plotted. Another brilliant book from this first class author'
'This story is compelling and haunting in places and kept me gripped to the page'
Praise for Catherine Ryan Howard
'Dark, creepy and very clever . . . Catherine Ryan Howard is the Queen of the Unguessable Twist!' - C L TAYLOR, author of The Guilty Couple
Whip smart, utterly absorbing, and unputdownable. - ANDREA MARA, author of Someone in the Attic
'Topical, twisty, and with a real heart stopper of a moment halfway in that'll make you turn the lights back on' - GILLIAN MCALLISTER, author of Wrong Place, Wrong Time
** Don't miss Catherine Ryan Howard's 56 DAYS, coming soon to Amazon Prime Video! **
'A masterclass in suspense, utterly addictive, intelligently crafted, and impossible to put down' --Clemence Michallon, internationally bestselling author of The Quiet Tenant
'The perfect thriller' -- L. V. Matthews, author of the Richard and Judy Book Club pick The Twins
The night Jack Smyth ran into flames in a desperate attempt to save his wife from their burning home, he was, tragically, too late - but hailed a hero. Until it emerged that Kate was dead long before the fire began.
Suspicion has stalked him ever since. After all, there's no smoke without fire.
A year on, he's signed a book deal. He wants to tell his side of the story, to prove his own innocence in print. He just needs someone to help him write it.
Emily has never ghostwritten anything before, but she knows what it's like to live with a guilty secret. And she's about to learn that there are some stories that should never be told . . .
'This is one red hot thriller that boasts a vivid, true-crime authenticity at its molten core' --Janice Hallett, bestselling author of The Appeal
Rated five stars by readers!
'I love novels about authors writing and there's just the right level of detail . . . A very compelling, original and entertaining thriller'
'Captivating, original and perfectly plotted. Another brilliant book from this first class author'
'This story is compelling and haunting in places and kept me gripped to the page'
Praise for Catherine Ryan Howard
'Dark, creepy and very clever . . . Catherine Ryan Howard is the Queen of the Unguessable Twist!' - C L TAYLOR, author of The Guilty Couple
Whip smart, utterly absorbing, and unputdownable. - ANDREA MARA, author of Someone in the Attic
'Topical, twisty, and with a real heart stopper of a moment halfway in that'll make you turn the lights back on' - GILLIAN MCALLISTER, author of Wrong Place, Wrong Time
** Don't miss Catherine Ryan Howard's 56 DAYS, coming soon to Amazon Prime Video! **
Reviews / Votes
Once again, CRH has upped her game and come up with the most devious plot yet. The relationship between a ghost writer and her subject is separated by the thinnest of veils, especially when he is a murder subject, in this ingeniously twisted, intriguing and entertaining mystery. Bravo! * Liz Nugent, bestselling author of Strange Sally Diamond * Catherine Ryan Howard will glue your eyes to the page with Burn After Reading! This is one red hot thriller that boasts a vivid, true-crime authenticity at its molten core. A psychological cat-and-mouse game between a potential wife-killer and his reluctant ghost-writer is played out with a host of brilliant twists, all delivered in Ryan Howard's lively, effortless style. Five sizzling stars. * Janice Hallett, bestselling author of The Appeal * Catherine Ryan Howard has once again delivered the perfect thriller. Superbly paced, effortlessly elegant writing, and complex characters who keep you on your toes throughout the narrative. I loved it! * L. V. Matthews, author of the Richard and Judy Book Club pick The Twins * Claustrophobic and menacing, Burn After Reading is a taut thriller that makes for breathless reading as Ryan Howard masterfully takes us from the picture postcard Sanctuary into an ever-tightening knot of scorching hot lies. From the first page to the last satisfying twist, don't pick this book up if you have an early start the next morning! * Sam Blake, bestselling author of Little Bones * In Burn After Reading, Catherine Ryan Howard delivers yet another pulse-racing, nerve-jangling masterpiece that grips tight and never lets go. Ingeniously plotted, daring and darkly original * Amanda Cassidy, Irish Times Bestselling author of The Perfect Place * Burn After Reading is a scorcher . . . It. Has. Everything. The setting, the characters, the inside-publishing chit-chat, the echoes of real-life cases, the athlete mentality and most of all the heart-stopping tension. I will always drop everything to read a new Catherine Ryan Howard novel and you should too * Jane Casey, bestselling author of A STRANGER IN THE FAMILY * Catherine Ryan Howard is one of the most exciting writers working today. In Burn After Reading, she delivers another fascinating, thrilling and truly unputdownable book. I devoured it in a single sitting * Catherine Kirwan, author of A LESSON IN MALICE * I've been turning the pages like mad on Catherine Ryan Howard's book Burn After Reading, which will be out in the new year. It's a cracking story... I was lucky to get a preview copy and it was perfect for the morning train journey * Ryan Tubridy, Irish Mail on Sunday * Tense, atmospheric . . . A couldn't-put-it-down psychological thriller * Andrea Carter, author of DEATH WRITES * In Burn After Reading, Catherine Ryan Howard uses her mastery of perspective to craft a brilliant jigsaw puzzle of a story. Sea-soaked and eerily perfect, small-town Florida never felt more claustrophobic * Ande Pliego, author of You Are Fatally Invited *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Transworld Publishers Ltd
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 192 mm
Width: 129 mm
Thickness: 40 mm
Weight
299 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-80499-117-6 (9781804991176)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Catherine Ryan Howard
Burn After Reading
The bestselling new mystery thriller from the author of The Trap and 56 Days
E-Book
04/2025
Transworld Digital
€8.99
Available for download
Catherine Ryan Howard
Burn After Reading
Book
04/2025
Bantam Books
€19.00
No shipping information available
Person
Catherine Ryan Howard is the author of eight novels including the no. 1 bestsellers The Nothing Man, 56 Days and The Trap. Her work has been shortlisted for the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award for Best Novel, the Crime Writers Association New Blood and Steel Daggers, and Irish Crime Fiction Book of the Year multiple times. The screen adaptation of her lockdown thriller, 56 Days, is currently in production and will debut on Amazon Prime Video this year. She lives in Dublin.