Dakota Banks has worn a number of hats, including those of corporate analyst, independent computer consultant, and pet store employee (the one who cleans the cages). When she tried on a writer's hat, something magical happened: It stuck to her head, no matter how hard she tried to shake it off and get back to something that paid the mortgage.Growing up in a converted 1890s funeral home, complete with blood gutters in the basement floor, fueled Dakota's interest in the paranormal. Fascinated with archaeology since childhood, she found a way to blend her background with her passion in the story line for her Mortal Path series of urban fantasies.Dark Time: Mortal Path Book 1 is a suspenseful paranormal thriller laced with ancient legends and a quest for redemption, a frightening scenario that could be tomorrow's headlines, and a heady dollop of romance. Maliha Crayne an action-oriented and sensual heroine. She walks among us, but lives a far different life as she risks her own in protection of the innocent. Sacrifice, book 2, and Deliverance, book 3 (March 2012), continue Maliha's adventures.Dakota is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis and lives in a St. Louis suburb with her husband, two sons adopted from Peru and Ethiopia, and two cats Snickers and Marble, who sometimes ghostwrite her books. Good stuff, too, if you speak Cat.Visit her website at http://www.dakota-banks.com.