Born in Manchester in 1960, R.N. Morris now lives in North London with his wife and two young children. His series of St. Petersburg novels revolving around the character of Porfiry Petrovich include A Gentle Axe, A Vengeful Longing, which was shortlisted for the 2008 CWA Duncan Lawrie Dagger for Best Novel and was Highly Commended in the CWA Ellis Peters Prize for Best Historical Crime Novelin 2008. The third book A Razor Wrapped in Silk was publsihed in 2010. He also wrote Taking Comfort which was published by Macmillan under the name Roger Morris in 2006.