Biographie de Marilyn Cohen de Villiers
I was born and raised in Johannesburg's northern suburbs, the youngest daughter of an extraordinarily ordinary, happy, stable, traditional (rather than observant) Jewish family. After matriculating at Northview High School, I went to Rhodes University in Grahamstown where I completed a B. Journalism degree. This was followed by a "totally useless" - according to my parents - English Honours degree (first class), also at Rhodes. I started my career as a reporter on a daily newspaper at the dawning of the turbulent 1980s.
During this period, I interviewed, among others, Frank Sinatra, Jeffrey Archer, Eugene Terre'blanche and Desmond Tutu. I caught crocodiles; avoided rocks and tear smoke canisters in various South African townships; stayed awake through interminable city council meetings and criminal and civil court cases - and learned to interpret balance sheets and understand economic jargon. I also married - and for 32 years and one week remained happily married to - my news editor, Poen de Villiers. After the birth of our two daughters, I 'crossed over' into Public Relations where I stayed for many years.
More recently, I turned to freelance wordsmithing to earn my daily crust. The unexpected death of a childhood friend and colleague in 2011 spurred me to take stock of my life. A few months later, I started writing A Beautiful Family. My second novel, When Times Fails, the second book of what has become the Silverman Saga trilogy, was released in October 2015. Book 3 in the trilogy, Deceive and Defend, is scheduled for release in June 2018.
