Berta Ruck

Amy Roberta (Berta) Ruck, Mrs. Oliver Onions (2 August 1878 – 11 August 1978) was a British writer of several short stories and over 90 romance novels from 1905 to 1972. She also wrote an autobiography and two memoir-style works.

Personal life

Born Amy Roberta Ruck on 2 August 1878 in Murree, Punjab, British India, one of eight children by Eleanor D'Arcy and Colonel Arthur Ashley Ruck, a British army officer. The family moved to Wales where Ruck went to school in Bangor.

Bernard Darwin, the golf writer, was her cousin. Many of her letters and manuscripts are archived in the National Library of Wales.

On 1909, she married a fellow novelist (George) Oliver Onions (1873–1961), and they had two sons, Arthur (b. 1912) and William (b. 1913). Her husband legally changed his name to George Oliver in 1918, but continued to publish under the name Oliver Onions.

She was widowed in 1961, and died in Aberdyfi on 11 August 1978, just nine days after her 100th birthday.

Writing career

As Berta Ruck began to contribute short stories and serials to magazines from 1905. She published her first novel, His Official Fiancée in 1914, which was the subject of two films: His Official Fiancée (1919), silent film directed by Robert G. Vignola and Hans officiella fästmö (1944), Swedish movie directed by Nils Jerring.