Ethel M. (Ethel May) Dell

Born Ethel May Dell in Streatham, London, in 1881, she began writing stories at a young age. Her first novel, The Way of an Eagle, was published in 1911 after being rejected by several publishers and went through thirty printings by 1915.

Writing under the name Ethel M. Dell, she produced more than thirty romance novels and several collections of short stories. Many of her books were set in the British Raj and other former British colonies, and although critics were often unfavorable, her novels attracted a large and loyal readership.

Dell married Lieutenant-Colonel Gerald Tahourdin Savage in 1922 and continued writing until her death from cancer in 1939, aged 58. Photographs of her are rare, and she was known for guarding her privacy.