RJ Ellory is married and lives in the West Midlands with his wife and son. Prior to becoming an established author, he was employed by a freight company. He cites some of his fiction writing influences as Arthur Conan Doyle, Michael Moorcock, JRR Tolkien, and Stephen King and is an avid fan of Bookcrossing.

His first novel, Candlemoth, was published in 2003 and was shortlisted for the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award in the same year. Ghostheart was published in 2004 and A Quiet Vendetta was published in 2005.

In August 2006, Ellory's fourth novel was released, entitled City of Lies, and in the early part of 2007 it was shortlisted for the CWA Steel Dagger for Best Thriller.

Ellory's fifth novel A Quiet Belief In Angels was released on 22 August 2007. Hailed as an epic accomplishment, it garnered the following quote from fellow crime fiction author Michael Connelly: "A Quiet Belief In Angels is a beautiful and haunting book. This is a tour-de-force from RJ Ellory."

A Quiet Belief In Angels was selected as one of the titles in the Richard & Judy Bookclub 2008. This was officially announced on 27 December 2007, and Ellory's book was reviewed on the Channel 4 Richard & Judy Show on 30 January 2008. The additional advertising and promotion associated with the Richard & Judy shortlist introduced Ellory's work to a far wider audience.

A Quiet Belief In Angels has sold in excess of 300,000 copies since its release, and has also been purchased for translation into a total of twenty-three languages including French, Japanese, Norwegian, Lithuanian and Brazilian. It was ranked third in the Sunday Times bestselling book list in the week of its review on TV. It was shortlisted for the Barry Award for Best British Crime Fiction 2008, the 7th Prix Du Polar Européen 2008 of the weekly French magazine Le Point, Le Nouvel Observateur Crime Writing Prize 2008 and the Quebec Booksellers' Prize 2008.

It was also selected for the final shortlist for the Inaugural Prix Du Roman Noir Du Nouvel Observateur 2009, alongside Dennis Lehane, Don Winslow, Carl Hiaasen and James Lee Burke. On 31 March 2009, RJ Ellory won the award for the French publication of A Quiet Belief In Angels, entitled Seul Le Silence.

Ellory's sixth book was released in October 2008, entitled A Simple Act of Violence, and his seventh book, The Anniversary Man was released on 3 September 2009. He has recently completed the screenplay for 'A Quiet Belief In Angels', commissioned by Olivier Dahan, Oscar-winning writer/director of 'La Vie En Rose'.

His eighth UK publication, 'Saints of New York' was released in September 2010, and the ninth, 'Bad Signs' is scheduled for release in June 2011.

In 2003, Ellory's debut novel Candlemoth was shortlisted for the CWA Steel Dagger for Best Thriller. This followed with his fourth book City of Lies being shortlisted for the same award in 2006.

A Quiet Belief in Angels, his fifth title, was shortlisted for the Barry Award for Best British Crime Fiction 2008. The novel was also shortlisted for the Association 813 Trophy, the 7th Prix Du Polar Europeen Du Point, the Mystery Booksellers of America Dilys Award, the Southern Independent Booksellers' Award 2010 and the Prix des Libraires Du Quebec Laureat 2009.

It went on to win the Inaugural Roman Noir Nouvel Observateur Prize in 2008, the Best Thriller 2009 by New York's Strand Magazine, along with the Livre De Poche Award and the USA National Indie Excellence Award for Best Mystery, both in 2010.

In the same year, A Quiet Vendetta won the Prix Des Libraires Du Quebec Laureat. Additionally, it won the Villenueve les Avignon Literary Festival Readers' Prize 2010.

A Simple Act of Violence was shortlisted for the Barry Award for Best British Crime Fiction 2009 and longlisted for the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year 2010.

A SIMPLE ACT OF VIOLENCE won the Theakston's Crime Novel of the Year Award at the Harrogate Crime Festival 2010.