APRIL HENRY, WRITER
  • Home
  • Past News
  • Bio
    • In the name of research
    • Why I write scary things
    • Roald Dahl Made Me a Writer
    • Fun Facts about April
    • My Parents >
      • My Dad, Hank Henry >
        • Witnessing Nat King Cole's Greatest Hit
      • My Mom, Nora Henry >
        • My Mom and the Round Rock
    • My great-grandfather, the killer
    • I come from a long line of criminals
    • Questions teachers often assign
    • 10 Reasons I Love Martial Arts
    • Learning to Fight Back
    • Dear Teen Me
    • Goodbye, 2021
    • How my Apple watch saved my life
    • Masks for Covid-19
  • Books
    • For Teens (and Adults) >
      • In the Blood
      • When We Go Missing (May 2025)
      • Stay Dead
      • Girl Forgotten
      • Two Truths and a Lie
      • Eyes of the Forest
      • Playing with Fire
      • The Girl in the White Van
      • Run, Hide, Fight Back
      • The Lonely Dead
      • Count All Her Bones
      • The Girl I Used to Be
      • Blood Will Tell (2nd in the Point Last Seen series)
      • The Body in the Woods (1st in the Point Last Seen series)
      • The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die
      • The Night She Disappeared
      • Girl, Stolen
      • Torched
      • Shock Point
    • For Adults (and Teens) >
      • Lethal Beauty (3rd in the Mia Quinn series)
      • A Deadly Business (2nd in the Mia Quinn mystery series)
      • Matter of Trust (1st in Mia Quinn series)
      • Face of Betrayal (1st in the Triple Threat series)
      • Hand of Fate (2nd in the Triple Threat series)
      • Heart of Ice (3rd in the Triple Threat series)
      • Eyes of Justice (4th in the Triple Threat series)
      • Learning to Fly
      • Circles of Confusion (1st in Claire Montrose series)
      • Square in the Face (2nd in the Claire Montrose series)
      • Heart-Shaped Box (3rd in the Claire Montrose series)
      • Buried Diamonds (4th in the Claire Montrose series)
    • Foreign Covers
  • Events
    • Calendar
    • About My School Visits
    • A Sneak Peek at a School Visit
  • Fun
    • FAQ
    • Does Your Character Need a Job?
    • Girl, Stolen Alternative Covers
    • I Get Letters
    • Blob on the Side of the Filing Cabinet
    • Books I Like
    • JB's Cinnamon Rolls
    • Vanity Plates
    • Diary of My First Book Tour (From 2000)
    • 1999 Interview with James Lee Burke
    • 1997 Interview with Carol Shields
    • Oregon, the Writer's Toronto
    • Stealing From Myself to Create A Character
    • Panties in a Twist
    • Heteronyms
  • Write
    • How to get an agent
    • Videos with writing tips
    • Writers writing during Covid-19
    • Tips for writers
    • Story starters
    • Write what you know?
    • What if you get stuck?
    • More tips about writing
    • Need to create a fake social media profile?
    • How to start a new book
    • My daughter is 14 - how can she be published?
    • I'm a teen writer-can you give me feedback?
    • Publications for teen writers
    • Student Writing
    • How to get it right
    • Questions about writing from two teens
    • Should I pay to be published?
  • Blog
  • Contact

I kill people, but only on paper. 

"Henry has become a leading light in YA mystery." - Booklist
"April Henry’s crime dramas are consistently smart and satisfying.” - Kirkus
​"Sure to delight fans of mystery, suspense, and a little horror."
- School Library Journal 
"Legendary mystery author Henry is back at it again" - Barnes & Noble blog 
"Another one to add to the collection of Henry's fast-paced thrillers." - YALSA 
​"You can't go wrong with an April Henry book." - Teen Librarian Toolbox

One-stop shopping for signed, personalized books

If you would like one of my books signed, and personalized, my neighborhood bookstore Annie Blooms now has a dedicated page: https://www.annieblooms.com/april-henry-signed-books.  

School visits in upstate New York 

School visits in the greater St. Louis area

Booklist loves When We Go Missing

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School visits in Boston area

Ideas for promoting a school visit to students

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Stay Dead named to Maine's North Star list! 

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Stay Dead has been named to Maine's North Star list. It has also been named to Texas' Tayshas list, and is a finalist for the Oregon Book award. 

School visits outside of Houston

School visits in the Chicago area

School visits outside Nashville, Tennessee 

Stay Dead named to state award lists 

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Stay Dead is a finalist for the Oregon Book Award.

It was also named to the Texas Tayshas' list. Since Texas buys so many books, being named to the list can really make a difference. 

A visit to one of my criminal relative's graves 

When I realized I was going to be speaking in Greenwood, Arkansas but staying in Ft. Smith, I asked the school staff if there was any way we could visit my great-granduncle Shepherd Busby’s grave, which is in Ft. Smith. They not only obliged, but they also took me to the (reconstructed) gallows where he met his end in 1892.
Shepherd was married to my great-grandma’s sister, Mary Ann Bond, but he also married or lived with many other women. A former marshal who rode with Hangin’ Judge Parker, Shepherd himself ended up murdering the marshal who had been sent to arrest him for adultery. He was sentenced to death. The first hangman, George Maledon, known as “The Prince of Hangman,” refused to hang Shepherd because they had both fought in the Civil War. A second hangman was quickly found. (Maledon’s refusal was notable. He executed more men than any other executioner in U.S. history.)

School visits in Greenwood, Arkansas

School visits to Wyoming 

Behold the amazing cover for my May 2025 book

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What if you found evidence of a crime, but no one believed you?
Seventeen-year-old Willow always has a camera around her neck. She volunteers as a photographer at Finding Home animal shelter. When Willow stumbles upon a lost camera memory card, it’s filled with hundreds of photos of teenage girls. Some are smiling, others unaware, and a few seem terrified.
The police tell her taking photos in public isn’t a crime. But Willow can’t seem to let it go, especially after she finds her own photo on the card. Willow teams up with new volunteer Dare to figure out what happened to the girls. As their investigation heats up, so does the chemistry between them. But everyone around Willow has a secret: Finding Home’s owner, her own mom, and even Dare. When Willow learns that some of the girls on the camera card have gone missing, she realizes the unknown photographer might be a serial killer. Can Willow find him before he finds her?
When We Go Missing was very loosely inspired by two serial killers who preyed on girls they persuaded to "model" for them:  the Dating Game Killer and the Beauty Queen Killer.
You can add it to your Goodreads Want to Read shelf, or preorder it at Indiebound, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, or, of course, your local bookstore. 

Girl Forgotten wins an Oregon Spirt award

Girl Forgotten has been won the OCTE's Oregon Spirit Book Award! Many thanks to the Oregon Council of Teachers of English who put in long hours to read and recognize Oregon authors and illustrators.

I won an Edgar! 

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On May 1, I attended the Edgar Awards, which are like the mystery version of the Oscars. The event is hosted by the Mystery Writers of America, and the judges are your peers - other mystery writers. And my book, Girl Forgotten, won! 

What the TSA really cares about 

On my way home, my suitcase got pulled aside for further inspection by the TSA. Not because of the handcuffs in my carry-on (I demonstrated how to get out of them at a meeting with my publisher) but because of the unusual shape and size of the bust of Edgar Allan Poe. They even swabbed him for explosive residue!

Girl Forgotten named Maine's North Star Award finalist! 

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Kirkus love Stay Dead! 

A page-turning cat-and-mouse survival story.
A teenager’s survival skills are put to the test—along with her relationships with the people she relies on the most. 
First, Milan’s senator father died in a tragic car accident; Milan escaped with a broken leg. Later, the private plane Milan and her mother were in went down after a bomb exploded in the cargo hold, leaving the 16-year-old stranded in the Cascade Mountains in Oregon. While her mother lay dying in the snow following the crash, she told Milan that whoever killed her father and blew up the plane would now be hunting for her, and that the only person she should trust is Brent Kirkby, Milan’s godfather and the founder of the renewable power company where Milan’s dad was CEO. Milan ends up being thrown into a deadly plot she never could have imagined. Alongside Milan’s third-person perspective, Henry provides two additional views of the events: one from Lenny, the killer assigned to silence Milan’s parents and anyone in their vicinity, and Janie, a dairy farmer who’s allowed fracking on her land in exchange for the money she needs to support her family. The three plotlines blend seamlessly, with the dramatic initial setup drawing readers into this fast-paced thriller.
​—Kirkus

Ideas for school visits (one tongue-in-cheek)

TV interview in Washington State

First review for Stay Dead

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Sometimes, the only way to live is to make sure the world thinks you’re dead . . .

In the aftermath of a car accident that claimed the life of her senator father, sixteen-year-old Milan finds herself adrift, expelled from her third boarding school. Milan’s mother, who has assumed the senate seat, diverts her private plane to pick up her daughter. But on their way home, a bomb rips off a wing and the plane crashes in the mountains. In her final moments, Milan’s mother entrusts her with a key. She reveals it will unlock the evidence that so many people have already died for—including Milan’s father. The only way Milan can survive, her mom tells her, is to let everyone believe she died with the other passengers.

​Milan is forced to navigate a perilous descent in freezing conditions while outwitting everything from a drone to wild animals. With relentless assassins on her trail, she must untangle the web of deceit and save herself and countless others. Will she piece together the truth in time?\
​

"When the senator’s plane goes down, Milan miraculously escapes, going on a multiday survival trek through snowy, dangerous woods…. Milan is in a race against time and terror to get to her parents’ one trusted friend before she ends up dead, too. Milan’s trek through the freezing woods shows she’s clever, and readers will be intrigued and thrilled to see how it all turns out."
​—Booklist

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Girl Forgotten is racking up wards

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My 2023 release, Girl Forgotten, has already appeared on some award lists:
  • ​JLG Gold Standard Selection 
  • 2023-2024 Tome Student Literacy Society It List
  • Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award list 
  • ​Delaware Diamonds Award finalist 
  • Oregon Book Award finalist 

I love to do school visits 

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I have already visited two dozen schools this school year, and would love to add your school to the list! School visits are a great way to get students interested in reading and writing. For the 2022-23 school year, I visited 39 schools and spoke to thousands of students (and dozens of teachers and librarians).  

 I love to visit schools and share with students the joys of reading, writing, and research. I also talk about the vital importance of tenacity. 

To learn more, check out my school visit page.  I book all my speaking engagements through TheBookingBiz.com.  

I also love to go to teen book cons, literacy conferences, and to programs at libraries and for librarians.  

How to feel like a rock star

School visits in Quad Cities, Iowa

School visits in Nashua, New Hampshire 

Celebrating my 29th and 30th books!

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This summer I finished final edits on my May 2024 book, Stay Dead. It's about Milan, who is the only survivor of a plane crash meant to hide evidence of bigger crimes. The only way she can stay alive is to stay dead.  

A few weeks later, I turned the first draft of my 2025 book, When We Were Missing, into my editor. That book, which will be my 30th, is about a girl who finds a camera card filled with photos of hundreds of teen girls. 

Wanting to do something fun to celebrate, I dyed my hair purple with Overtone, which will eventually wash out.  I'm also thinking of trying blue. And it certainly beats the last time I finished a project, when I "treated" myself by deep-cleaning the kitchen. 

School visits in El Paso, Texas

School visits in Arkansas

School visits in Beaverton, Oregon

School visits in Orland Park, Illinois

Six District Compact Reading & Writing Festival ​

Ohio school visits

Texas Library Association Conference

School visits in St. Louis

Missouri Association of School Librarians (MASL) Conference

Library and school events in the greater Omaha area

Signed books make great gifts! 

Want to buy a signed book with a personal dedication for yourself or someone else?  Just contact my local bookstore: AnnieBlooms.com.  They'll contact me and I'll come down to sign. They have a a special page just for ordering my books: ​https://www.annieblooms.com/april-henry-signed-books

Taking my Brazilian jiujitsu on the road

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I love to do Brazilian jujitsu (think wrestling plus chokes plus joint locks) and try to roll at a local school whenever I do school visits. Every school has its own special way of doing things - and with luck I can pick up a trick or two to try at my regular schools in Portland.  
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The things I do for research! 

Best Note Ever from a Middle School Teacher

Just wanted to let you know for a 3rd year in a row you are making my life easy – and creating a bunch of new readers.  I am still lucky enough to teach an advanced reading class along with my Intensive class and across the board your books are the motivators.  Here is one of the book projects done by one of my 7th graders!  I can’t keep enough copies of your books on my shelf.  ​
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Fan art

My life as a mystery writer

  • Home
  • Past News
  • Bio
    • In the name of research
    • Why I write scary things
    • Roald Dahl Made Me a Writer
    • Fun Facts about April
    • My Parents >
      • My Dad, Hank Henry >
        • Witnessing Nat King Cole's Greatest Hit
      • My Mom, Nora Henry >
        • My Mom and the Round Rock
    • My great-grandfather, the killer
    • I come from a long line of criminals
    • Questions teachers often assign
    • 10 Reasons I Love Martial Arts
    • Learning to Fight Back
    • Dear Teen Me
    • Goodbye, 2021
    • How my Apple watch saved my life
    • Masks for Covid-19
  • Books
    • For Teens (and Adults) >
      • In the Blood
      • When We Go Missing (May 2025)
      • Stay Dead
      • Girl Forgotten
      • Two Truths and a Lie
      • Eyes of the Forest
      • Playing with Fire
      • The Girl in the White Van
      • Run, Hide, Fight Back
      • The Lonely Dead
      • Count All Her Bones
      • The Girl I Used to Be
      • Blood Will Tell (2nd in the Point Last Seen series)
      • The Body in the Woods (1st in the Point Last Seen series)
      • The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die
      • The Night She Disappeared
      • Girl, Stolen
      • Torched
      • Shock Point
    • For Adults (and Teens) >
      • Lethal Beauty (3rd in the Mia Quinn series)
      • A Deadly Business (2nd in the Mia Quinn mystery series)
      • Matter of Trust (1st in Mia Quinn series)
      • Face of Betrayal (1st in the Triple Threat series)
      • Hand of Fate (2nd in the Triple Threat series)
      • Heart of Ice (3rd in the Triple Threat series)
      • Eyes of Justice (4th in the Triple Threat series)
      • Learning to Fly
      • Circles of Confusion (1st in Claire Montrose series)
      • Square in the Face (2nd in the Claire Montrose series)
      • Heart-Shaped Box (3rd in the Claire Montrose series)
      • Buried Diamonds (4th in the Claire Montrose series)
    • Foreign Covers
  • Events
    • Calendar
    • About My School Visits
    • A Sneak Peek at a School Visit
  • Fun
    • FAQ
    • Does Your Character Need a Job?
    • Girl, Stolen Alternative Covers
    • I Get Letters
    • Blob on the Side of the Filing Cabinet
    • Books I Like
    • JB's Cinnamon Rolls
    • Vanity Plates
    • Diary of My First Book Tour (From 2000)
    • 1999 Interview with James Lee Burke
    • 1997 Interview with Carol Shields
    • Oregon, the Writer's Toronto
    • Stealing From Myself to Create A Character
    • Panties in a Twist
    • Heteronyms
  • Write
    • How to get an agent
    • Videos with writing tips
    • Writers writing during Covid-19
    • Tips for writers
    • Story starters
    • Write what you know?
    • What if you get stuck?
    • More tips about writing
    • Need to create a fake social media profile?
    • How to start a new book
    • My daughter is 14 - how can she be published?
    • I'm a teen writer-can you give me feedback?
    • Publications for teen writers
    • Student Writing
    • How to get it right
    • Questions about writing from two teens
    • Should I pay to be published?
  • Blog
  • Contact