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Stuart Neville

スチュアート・ネヴィル

Sutiyāto Nebiru

Pen Names: Haylen Beck（Pen name used for some works (thriller pseudonym)）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1972-01-01 （Armagh, Northern Ireland）
Nationality
Northern Irish
Languages
English
Residence History
Born and raised in Armagh, Northern Ireland

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Short story writer, Critic / Reviewer
Active Years
2009-

Awards

Los Angeles Times Book Prize (Mystery/Thriller)
2010
Work: The Ghosts of Belfast (US title of The Twelve)
Category: ミステリ／スリラー
Organization: Los Angeles Times
Result: winner
Spinetingler Awards (New Voice)
2010
Work: The Ghosts of Belfast (The Twelve)
Category: New Voice
Organization: Spinetingler Magazine
Result: winner
Dilys Award
2010
Work: The Ghosts of Belfast (The Twelve)
Organization: Independent Mystery Booksellers Association
Result: nominated
Anthony Award
2010
Work: The Ghosts of Belfast (The Twelve)
Organization: Bouchercon
Result: nominated
Barry Award
2010
Work: The Ghosts of Belfast (The Twelve)
Organization: Deadly Pleasures
Result: nominated
Macavity Award
2010
Work: The Ghosts of Belfast (The Twelve)
Organization: Mystery Readers International
Result: nominated

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Twelve (US title: The Ghosts of Belfast)

2009 Mystery / Thriller

A crime thriller set in Belfast dealing with past violence and atonement; former paramilitaries and hitmen find their past actions resurfacing into the present.

atonementpast violenceNorthern Ireland history

Collusion

2010 Mystery / Thriller

A sequel to The Twelve, continuing themes of crime and the search for truth.

chain of crimequest for truth

Stolen Souls

2012 Mystery / Thriller

A suspense about disappearance and betrayal where characters' pasts are gradually revealed.

betrayalsecrets of the past

Ratlines

2013 Thriller

A crime thriller centered on organized crime and escape routes (ratlines).

escapeorganized crime

The Final Silence

2014 Mystery / Suspense

A novel about characters confronting secrets tied to silence.

silenceexposure of secrets

Those We Left Behind

2015 Thriller / Fiction

A story about those abandoned in the past and the consequences that follow.

abandoned peopleirretrievable past

So Say the Fallen

2016 Mystery / Thriller

Deals with themes of the dead and how past deeds affect the present.

impact of deathpast and present

Here and Gone (as Haylen Beck)

2017 Suspense / Thriller

Published under a pen name; a tense city-set thriller.

urban crimepersonal loss

Lost You (as Haylen Beck)

2019 Thriller

A suspense novel about relationships and disappearance.

disappearancebreakdown of relationships

The House of Ashes

2021 Fiction / Thriller

A story involving family and events from the past.

familyconsequences of the past

Blood Like Mine

2024 Thriller

A recent thriller exploring themes of blood ties and culpability.

blood tiesguilt and responsibility

Bibliography

  • The Twelve (2009; published in the US as The Ghosts of Belfast)
  • Collusion (2010)
  • Stolen Souls (2012)
  • Ratlines (2013)
  • The Final Silence (2014)
  • Those We Left Behind (2015)
  • So Say the Fallen (2016)
  • Here and Gone (as Haylen Beck) (2017)
  • Lost You (as Haylen Beck) (2019)
  • The House of Ashes (2021)
  • Blood Like Mine (2024)
  • The Traveller and Other Stories (short story collection) (2020)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Hard-boiled narrative toneCinematic, tension-driven descriptionRealism exploring moral ambiguity
Recurring Motifs
past crimes and atonementcycle of violencesocial context of Northern Ireland

Legacy

Stuart Neville, a Northern Irish writer of mystery and thrillers, has received international recognition; his novel The Twelve (published in the US as The Ghosts of Belfast) won and was nominated for multiple awards. His body of work, exploring Northern Ireland's violent history and themes of guilt and atonement, has been well received by critics and covered in major UK and US media.

Trivia

  • Born Stuart Neville in 1972 in Armagh.
  • The Twelve (published in the US as The Ghosts of Belfast) was published in 2009 and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller.
  • He has written under the pen name Haylen Beck (Here and Gone, Lost You).
  • Has contributed reviews and essays to the Irish Times and Irish Independent.