Marianne T. Rafter is captivated by historical fiction. When she lived in California, she worked on history and literature programs for a publishing company. Intrigued by California’s pre-statehood era, she discovered the land she lived on had been part of a huge Mexican rancho in the 1800s, and before that the homeland of Miwoks, the original inhabitants. She wove her research about the era of Spanish missions, sailing ships, and ranchos into her debut novel. Rafter currently resides in Freeland, Washington.