Phoebe Luckhurst

Phoebe Luckhurst is a Senior Commissioning Editor at The Sunday Times Magazine, and has been a journalist for a decade, writing for newspapers and magazines including The Evening Standard, ES Magazine, Style, The Guardian, The Telegraph, ELLE, Grazia and HUNGER. She is the author of two novels. Born in London and raised in Glasgow, she read English at St Catharine's College, Cambridge, and now lives in Southeast London.

Current publication:

THE BACK UP MAN   (Michael Joseph, 2023)

They made a deal to marry at thirty. But Euan's nowhere to be found . . . Can Anya track down her back up man?

Twenty-nine, single, jobless and in a nightmare house share, things could be going better for Anya Mackie.

Then she stumbles across a pact she wrote with her school crush, Euan Carrick - to marry at thirty if they're still single . . .

But Euan hasn't been seen for a decade.

Reluctantly enlisting the help of Euan's emotionally unavailable best friend Jamie Kildare, Anya sets off across the country to find her Back Up Man.

But will Euan remember her?

And should Anya really be betting her future on her past?

The Back Up Man is a hilariously romantic tale of mishaps and matrimony, love and long shots, foibles and friendship, that may make you text that old school boyfriend of yours . . .

Praise: 

'I adored The Back Up Man! Phoebe is so funny, with such a brilliant observational eye and a perfect ear for dialogue. An absolute delight' EMMA HUGHES
'A romcom with depth and substance and also, refreshingly, set in Glasgow' RED
'You'll have a lot of fun' HEAT
'A charming romance' WOMAN'S OWN
'Funny and uplifting'  - SUN
'Entertaining, endearing, and truly unique. Found myself wincing and laughing with familiarity' Emma Gannon
'The year's most original rom-com' - ELLE
'Hilarious' - EVENING STANDARD
'Nostalgic, pitch perfect' Cressida McLaughlin
'Funny and compelling from page one' Lucy Vine

THE LOCK IN   (Michael Joseph, 2021)

SHORTLISTED for the 2022 Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction
SHORTLISTED for the Comedy Women in Print Prize

AN OLD LOVE. A STUCK DOOR. AND THE MORNING AFTER THE NIGHT BEFORE . . .

They'd like to be going out.

Instead they're stuck in . . .

Best friends Ellen and Alexa have always been close.

Until one fateful morning when they get locked in their attic with hapless housemate Jack and Alexa's date from the night before, Ben.

With no way out, hangovers and the hours crawling by, it seems best friends can get too close for comfort.

Especially when Ellen realises she already knows Ben - perhaps rather better than Alexa does . . .

Fans of Dolly Alderton, Beth O'Leary and Mhairi McFarlane will LOVE this oh-so relatable tale of love, landlords and what can happen behind locked doors

Praise: 

'This will have you both cringing and crying with laughter' WOMAN'S WEEKLY
'A funny, joyful hug of a book! ' Cressida McLaughlin
'An immaculately plotted romcom' i
'A hilarious debut' EVENING STANDARD
'I LOVED this book . . . I highly recommend The Lock In' CARRIE HOPE FLETCHER
'Funny and compelling from page one' LUCY VINE, author of Hot Mess
'Beautifully written, warm and fun' Laura Kay, author of The Split
'I cannot recommend this book enough!' 5***** READER REVIEW
'Made me smile, laugh, cringe and inwardly cheer' 5***** READER REVIEW