She grew up in Edinburgh but spent her summers in Norway with maternal grandparents who did not speak English.
She graduated in Scandinavian Studies at UCL, and worked in the theatre for some time.
[1][2] Initially she worked as a commercial translator, including several years at the Norwegian central bank.
She has since shifted her focus to literature, including literary fiction and non-fiction, Norwegian noir, children's books and stage plays.
She now teaches Norwegian language, literature and translation at the University of Edinburgh.