Elin Hilderbrand (born July 17, 1969) is an American writer of mystery and romance. Her novels are typically set on and around Nantucket, where she resides. In 2019, New York magazine called her "the queen of beach reads".
Early life and education Born and raised in Collegeville, Pennsylvania, Hildebrand spent her summers on Cape Cod, until her father died in a plane crash when she was 16. She spent the next summer working in a factory that made Halloween costumes. While working at the factory, she decided to find a way to spend every summer at the beach.
She attended Johns Hopkins University, majoring in creative writing. After graduating, she became a teaching and writing fellow at the Iowa Writers' Workshop.
Career Hilderbrand moved to Nantucket in 1993, working on classified ads at a local newspaper. During her first trip to Nantucket, she met her now ex-husband, Chip Cunningham.
Her first novel The Beach Club was published in 2000. This novel was chosen as the People magazine Beach Read of the Week. Beginning in 2000, her novels were published by St. Martin's Press. Since Barefoot in 2007, they have been published by Little, Brown and Company.
Hilderbrand's novels' locations realistic to current-day Nantucket, featuring local businesses and landmarks like the Brant Point Light and The Chicken Box. Despite many of her books not being a part of an official series, characters and locations overlap.
Her 2018 book The Perfect Couple, which was her first murder mystery, was adapted by Netflix and released as a miniseries with the same name in 2024, starring Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Eve Hewson and Dakota Fanning.
Ellen Pompeo has been working with ABC to adapt Hilderbrand's Paradise Trilogy into a TV series, in which she would star after her departure as the lead in Grey's Anatomy.
After her 30th book was published, Swan Song, Hilderbrand made the decision to retire from Nantucket-based novels. She wrote a two-part book series with her daughter, Shelby Cunningham, based on the latter's experience at St George's School in Newport, Rhode Island. The first book of the series, The Academy, released on September 16th, 2025, and its follow-up, The Thoroughbreds, is scheduled to release in September 2026.
Personal life In 1995 Hilderbrand married Chip Cunningham at The Chanticleer in the Nantucket village of Siasconset. They have three children, and were divorced in 2015.
Hilderbrand was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2014, undergoing a double mastectomy. Since 2014, she has undergone many reconstructive surgeries. Hilderbrand has been vocal about her diagnosis and empowering other women through her movement, #mamastrong. This initiative sends her books to cancer centers around the United States.
Bibliography
Novels Book Title Year Published ISBN The Beach Club 2000 Nantucket Nights 2002 Summer People 2003 The Blue Bistro 2005 The Love Season 2006 Barefoot 2007 A Summer Affair 2008 The Castaways 2009 The Island 2010 Silver Girl 2011 Summerland 2012 Beautiful Day 2013 The Matchmaker 2014 Winter Street 2014 The Rumor 2015 Winter Stroll 2015 Here's To Us 2016 Winter Storms 2016 The Identicals 2017 Winter Solstice 2017 The Perfect Couple 2018 Winter in Paradise 2018 Summer of '69 2019 What Happens in Paradise 2020 28 Summers 2020 Troubles in Paradise 2020 Golden Girl 2021 The Hotel Nantucket 2022 The Five-Star Weekend 2023 Swan Song 2024 The Academy 2025
Short stories Book Title Year Published ISBN The Surfing Lesson: An Original Short Story 2013 The Tailgate: An Original Short Story 2014 Summer of '79: A Summer of '69 Story 2020 The Sixth Wedding: A 28 Summers Story 2021 Natural Selection 2024
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