Kerry Hudson was born in Aberdeen. Growing up in a succession of council estates, B&Bs and caravan parks provided her with a keen eye for idiosyncratic behaviour and plenty of material for her first novel, Tony Hogan Bought Me an Ice-cream Float Before He Stole My Ma, which won the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust First Book Award and was shortlisted for an array of prizes including the Guardian First Book Award and the Sky Arts Awards. Thirst is her second novel. She currently lives, works and writes in London.