Elisabeth Sanxay Holding

Elizabeth Sanxay was born in 1899 in Brooklyn. She grew up in New York and later married an Englishman, George Holding, in 1913. The couple travelled around the world and eventually settled in Bermuda. They had two daughters. Sanxay Holding began writing short stories and romance novels in the 1920s. Following the 1929 stock market crash she switched to crime and mystery fiction, which brought in more money. She wrote 18 crime novels featuring police lieutenant Levy. Several of her books were adapted for the screen: The Blank Wall has had two of its own adaptations, including The Reckless Moment (1949), directed by Max Ophüls and now critically acclaimed as a film noir. Elizabeth Sanxay Holding moved with her husband to New York City after his retirement, and died in the Bronx in 1955.