Deborah Alcock is best known as the author of historical fiction on religious themes.

She was born in Kilkenny

Kilkenny

Kilkenny is a city and is the county town of the eponymous County Kilkenny in Ireland. It is situated on both banks of the River Nore in the province of Leinster, in the south-east of Ireland...

, where her father, the Venerable John Alcock, became Archdeacon of Waterford

Waterford

Waterford is a city in the South-East Region of Ireland. It is the oldest city in the country and fifth largest by population. Waterford City Council is the local government authority for the city and its immediate hinterland...

. She lived with her father, writing a memoir of him on his death, and stayed umarried herself. Her work The Spanish Brothers, published in 1870, was set in the 16th century and was a tale of Protestant martyrdom

Christian martyrs

A Christian martyr is one who is killed for following Christianity, through stoning, crucifixion, burning at the stake or other forms of torture and capital punishment. The word "martyr" comes from the Greek word μάρτυς, mártys, which means "witness."...

. Other work includes The Czar (1882), set during the French invasion of Russia

French invasion of Russia

The French invasion of Russia of 1812 was a turning point in the Napoleonic Wars. It reduced the French and allied invasion forces to a tiny fraction of their initial strength and triggered a major shift in European politics as it dramatically weakened French hegemony in Europe...

; Archie’s Chances (1886), and Prisoners of hope (1894).

A biography of her, The Author of Spanish Brothers, was written by Elisabeth Boyd Bayley.