Michael Donkor studied English at Wadham College, Oxford, and then undertook a Masters in Creative Writing at Royal Holloway. The Observer named him as one of 2018’s best debut authors for his novel Hold (4th Estate) and in 2019, he was longlisted for the International Dylan Thomas Prize, shortlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize and selected by Scottish poet laureate Jackie Kay as one of the ten best writers in the UK. He has judged the Society of Authors Betty Trask Prize and he reviews for the Guardian, Independent, Times and TLS. His second novel, Grow Where They Fall, was published by Penguin in March 2024.