James W. Hall was born in Kentucky, and graduated from Florida Presbyterian College with a B.A. in literature, and a deep love of Florida. He went on to earn an M.A. from Johns Hopkins University and a Ph.D. from the University of Utah, then returned to Florida to teach literature and creative writing at Florida International University for the next 36 years. During that time he published four books of poetry, a collection of short stories, a book of essays, and seventeen novels--most of which feature an enigmatic loner named Thorn. Hall was a Fulbright professor in Spain and is the winner of both the Edgar Award and the Shamus.His collection of stories, OVER EXPOSURE, is available as an ebook. His most recent Thorn novel is DEAD LAST. Coming in April is HIT LIT, a non-fiction work that focuses on twelve of the biggest bestsellers of the 20th Century and examines why we love the books we love.