Laura Freudenthaler, born 1984 in Salzburg. She studied German language and literature studies, Philosophy and Gender Studies. She lives in Vienna. Her stories Der Schädel der Madeleine were published in 2014. For her novel Die Königin schweigt she was awarded the Förderpreis zum Bremer Literaturpreis 2018 and the novel was recommended as best German debut at the Festival du Premier Roman 2018 in Chambéry. In 2019 her second novel was published, Geistergeschichte. It was awarded the European Union Prize for Literature.