Tess Gerritsen is a highly acclaimed American author, best known for her chilling medical thrillers and crime novels. Born in San Diego, California, Gerritsen is a graduate of Stanford University and pursued her medical education at the University of California, San Francisco, where she received her M.D.
Before becoming a full-time writer, Gerritsen worked as a physician. Her career in literature began while she was on maternity leave, during which she started writing fiction. In 1987, she published her first novel, Call After Midnight, a romantic thriller. She continued to write romantic suspense novels and even penned a screenplay for a CBS Movie of the Week. However, it was her medical thriller, Harvest, published in 1996, that propelled her to the New York Times bestseller list and established her reputation as a master of the medical thriller genre.
Gerritsen has written over 30 suspense novels, including the popular Rizzoli & Isles series, which features Detective Jane Rizzoli and Medical Examiner Dr. Maura Isles. The series has been a significant part of her work since 2001 and has been adapted into a successful television show on TNT, "Rizzoli & Isles."
Known for her intricate plots, astounding technical elements, and exceptional attention to detail, Gerritsen's novels have been translated into 40 languages and have sold more than 40 million copies worldwide. She has won several awards, including the Nero Wolfe Award for Vanish and the Rita Award for The Surgeon. Critics have praised her works as "pulse-pounding fun," "scary and brilliant," and "polished, riveting prose." Gerritsen, now retired from medicine, focuses her time on writing and resides in Maine.