The Shelf

Helly Acton is a copywriter from London with past lives in the Middle East, Africa and Australia. Born in Zimbabwe, Helly and her family emigrated to the East Sussex coast when she was fifteen years old. Here, she finished school and spent her holidays in Saudi Arabia, where her father was working. She studied Law at King's College London before following a more creative path into advertising.

In her mid-twenties, Helly escaped the rat race and took a three-month career break to travel in Africa, India and Asia before landing in Australia. What was supposed to last one year ended up lasting six, and after a life-affirming break up in Sydney, she returned home to find herself the last of her single friends. Helly threw herself into the deep end of online dating in the city and uses this experience as a single woman in her early thirties, torn between settling down and savouring her independence, as a source of inspiration for her stories.

Helly currently lives in London with her husband, Chris, and their dog child Milo.

***A Radio 2 Book Club Pick***

'Utter PERFECTION!' Marian Keyes
'Fun, fresh and thought-provoking' Lindsey Kelk
'A witty, life-affirming page-turner' Woman & Home
'Fun, thought-provoking and unapologetically feminist' Daisy Edgar-Jones
'This brilliant novel is a really fun read. Very entertaining!' Jo Whiley

She can't believe she didn't see this coming. Well, not this. How could anyone anticipate being dumped on TV?

Everyone in Amy's life seems to be getting married, having children and settling down (or so Instagram tells her), and she feels like she's falling behind. So, when her long-term boyfriend surprises her with a dream holiday, she thinks he's going to finally pop the Big Question. But the dream turns into a nightmare when, instead, she finds herself on the set of a Big Brother-style reality television show, The Shelf.

Along with five other women, Amy is heartlessly dumped live on TV and must compete in a series of humiliating and obnoxious tasks in the hope of being crowned 'The Keeper'.

While inside the house, will Amy learn that there are worse things than being 'left on the shelf'?

***Look out for Helly Acton's next novel, The Couple, out summer 2021. Search 9781838773847***