Iris Johansen

Iris Johansen (born 1938) is an American novelist who moved from category romance to bestselling suspense, and is best known for her Eve Duncan forensic sculptor series. She was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on 7 April 1938.

While working as a reservations clerk for Eastern Airlines she wrote four novels she showed to no one. Her fifth, Stormy Vows, sat in Bantam's slush pile for six months until an editorial reader, Nita Taublib, picked it out; it was published in 1983 as number 14 in Bantam's Loveswept romance line. By January 1994 she had 46 published books, and The Beloved Scoundrel had become her first New York Times bestseller. In 1991 she turned to historical romantic suspense with The Wind Dancer, and The Ugly Duckling (1996), her breakout book, made suspense her main genre.

The Eve Duncan series began with The Face of Deception (1998); its second book, The Killing Game, became a Lifetime television film in 2011. With her son Roy Johansen, an Edgar Award-winning writer, she co-writes the Kendra Michaels series. Her awards include Romantic Times honours in 1996 and 1999 and a career achievement award in 2016. She lives in Georgia.

For collectors, Stormy Vows (Bantam Loveswept, 1983) is her first published book, and The Ugly Duckling (1996) marks her breakthrough in suspense. The Face of Deception (1998) is the first Eve Duncan novel.