Shilpi Somaya Gowda is the New York Times bestselling, award-winning author of four novels: Secret Daughter (2010), The Golden Son (2015), The Shape of Family (2020), and A Great Country (2024).

She is a writer of two worlds. Born in Toronto to Indian immigrants, she has spent her life straddling the cultures of East and West. Her novels, which have been translated into over 30 languages and sold more than two million copies worldwide, are an insightful exploration of the complex relationships between family, culture, and identity.

Gowda moved to the United States as a Morehead-Cain Scholar, earning a bachelor’s degree with highest honors and distinction in economics and international studies. She began her career as an investment banker in New York and later earned her MBA from Stanford University. Her non-fiction writing has been published in Harvard Business Review and Business and Society Review.

After a decade in the business world, Gowda began writing fiction, inspired by her time volunteering at an Indian orphanage. Her debut novel, Secret Daughter, tells the story of two families, one Indian and one American, who are bound by an adopted daughter. The novel was a critical and commercial success, and was optioned by Amazon Studios to be a feature film starring Priyanka Chopra and Sienna Miller.

Her most recent novel, A Great Country, explores the American dream from the perspective of different families in the aftermath of a violent encounter with the police. It was an instant #1 international bestseller, earned a starred review from Publishers’ Weekly, and has been named a top book by over 25 publications.

Gowda was awarded the San Diego Writer of the Year in 2023, and a Ragdale Foundation residency. Her novels have garnered literary recognition and bestseller status around the world, with honors that include Indie NeXT Great Read, Target Book Club Pick, Costco Buyer’s Pick, Chapters Indigo Heather’s Pick, and Amnesty International Book Club Pick.