Porter Square Books: Boston Edition and GrubStreet are delighted to present the latest installment of the Grubbie Debut event series, featuring Emily Ross! Join us for a celebration of her debut novel, Swallowtail. Christine Murphy will join Ross in conversation, and the author talk will be followed by a signing line.

This event is co-presented by GrubStreet and Porter Square Books

In the gritty seaside town of Quincy, Massachusetts, the killing of a teenager on her daughter's dance team plunges Detective Samantha Star into the trauma of her abduction twenty years before. As clues point to a serial killer obsessed with Surrealism and Greek myth, Sam must unravel the mystery of her own kidnapping to solve the crime--before her daughter is next. At stake are not just the teenagers' lives, but also Sam's identity as a detective and an artist, and a community's chance at healing. SWALLOWTAIL is the moving story of a woman's journey to free herself from the trauma of her past, and a thought-provoking exploration of violent representations of women in myth and art.

"Set on the gritty streets of Quincy, Massachusetts, Emily Ross's SWALLOWTAIL delivers the goods, bringing rich atmosphere, deep characterization, plenty of '90s nostalgia, and a taut storyline that will keep you turning pages well into the night. Fans of Mare of Easttown will love this one " - Edwin Hill, author of WHO TO BELIEVE

Emily Ross is the author of the mystery thriller, Swallowtail (Galiot press), which Publishers Weekly says maintains plenty of “nerve-shredding tension” and of the International Thriller Writers Awards finalist, Half in Love with Death. She won the Al Blanchard best story award for her short story, “Let the Chips Fall”, which appeared in Devil’s Snare: Best New England Crime Stories 2024. She lives in Quincy, MA, with her husband and Obi-Wan Kenobi, their very playful cat.

A trained Buddhologist, Christine Murphy has a PhD in Buddhist Studies. Her debut novel, Notes On Surviving The Fire (Knopf, 2025), was praised by The New Yorker for its "anarchic spirit" and described by The Financial Times as "savage, brilliant, merciless, and mad as hell."

Celebrating over 25 years as the nation's leading and largest independent center for creative writing, GrubStreet is the place where writers develop their craft – and themselves – through the power of writing and sharing their work. GrubStreet offers hundreds of creative writing programs and events for writers from all backgrounds and ages at its Center for Creative Writing in the Seaport, in many Boston neighborhoods, and online. Scholarships are available for all offerings, and many programs are free. At its center, GrubStreet also hosts a community lounge, a podcast studio, Porter Square Books: Boston Edition, and a Writers’ Stage. Learn more at www.grubstreet.org.

Grubbie Debut: Emily Ross, author of Swallowtail, in conversation with Christine Murphy