Gilda O'Neill was born and brought up in the East End. She left school at fifteen but returned to education as a mature student. She is now a full-time writer and Make Us Traitors is her eleventh novel. She has also had four non-fiction books published including the highly-acclaimed Sunday Times bestseller, My East End: A History of Cockney London and Our Street: The East End at War. She lives in East London with her husband and family.