When the Dust Settles: The gripping behind-the-scenes story from the UK's top disaster planner -A SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

*The new book from Lucy Easthope, Come What May: Life-Changing Lessons for Coping with Crisis is coming May 2025 - available to pre-order now!* ________________ THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER AND RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK PROFILED IN THE NEW YORKER, A TELEGRAPH AND NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR 'Riveting' - Telegraph 'Enthralling' - Observer 'Gripping' - Sunday Times 'An antidote to despair' - Daily Mirror When a plane crashes, a bomb explodes, a city floods or a pandemic begins, Lucy Easthope's phone starts to ring. Lucy is a world-leading authority on recovering from disaster. She holds governments to account, supports survivors and helps communities to rebuild. She has been at the centre of the most seismic events of the last few decades, advising on everything from the 2004 tsunami and the 7/7 bombings to the Grenfell fire and the war in Ukraine. Lucy's job is to pick up the pieces and get us ready for what comes next. When the Dust Settles takes us behind the police tape to government briefing rooms and scenes of chaos, looking back at the many losses and loves of a remarkable life and career. It tells us how we can all build back after disaster. AS FEATURED ON THE HIGH PERFORMANCE PODCAST AND FULL DISCLOSURE WITH JAMES O'BRIEN 'A marvellous book' - Rev Richard Coles "Amazing book by an amazing woman" - James O'Brien

About the Author :
Lucy Easthope is the UK's leading authority on recovering from disaster. She has been an advisor for nearly every major disaster of the past two decades, including the 2004 tsunami, 9/11, the Salisbury poisonings, Grenfell, the Covid-19 pandemic and most recently the war in Ukraine. She challenges others to think differently about what comes next after tragic events, and how to plan for future ones. Lucy grew up in Liverpool and has a degree in law, a PhD in medicine and a Masters in risk, crisis and disaster management. She is a Professor in Practice of Risk and Hazard at the University of Durham, a Fellow in Mass Fatalities and Pandemics at the University of Bath and a Research Associate at the Joint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University, New Zealand.

Review :
Never less than reassuringly humane... She shows and tells and, vitally, cares. An unlikely superhero... this gripping memoir is full of compassion. A remarkable insight into the decisions involved in disaster planning. Easthope, whether she knows it or not, is that rare thing, a genuine philosopher thinking through what she is actually doing in the mitigation of human suffering. The disasters recalled here often read like short stories, each of them filled with high drama, surreal twists and mysteries to be solved. 'A remarkable account...This should be a dark and depressing read; that it isn't, that it is ultimately hopeful and uplifting, is down to the utter human decency that the author represents' An essential, uplifting read, brimming with humanity, humility and humour. An entirely unique vision of the human experience Candid, unsettling and darkly funny Poignant, funny, analytical and profoundly humane Dauntless and forthright Deeply humane, occasionally unsettling, and strangely uplifting A book of horror and hope, written with rare humanity. When the Dust Settles taught me is that all experiences are of value... Easthope shows us how perfection and imperfection are woven together. Everything is flawed. Yet there is also hope despite the flaws. Her sensitive and profoundly moral book explores how human beings can preserve their resilience and live with loss. Rewrites your perceptions of the disasters and wars of our lifetime with vivid details and vignettes... laced with humanity and decency. A literary memento which honours the messy truth of life.' An inspiring memoir. Easthope advises, supports and helps to rebuild lives. A riveting no-nonsense memoir that pulls back the curtains on your worst fears and shows you that someone, somewhere, will always truly care. Outstanding... a graphic but deeply humane account of what drew her to take on such work, and how she steels herself to tackle the worst of human scenarios.