Juliet Marillier was born and educated in Dunedin, New Zealand, a town with strong Scottish roots. She is a graduate of the University of Otago and has had a varied career, which included teaching and performing music. Juliet now lives in a historic cottage in Perth, Western Australia, where she writes full-time. She is a member of the druid order OBOD. When not writing, she looks after a small crew of rescue dogs. Juliet's historical fantasy novels and short stories are published internationally and have won numerous awards.