Lia Habel was born in Western NY - as far as it's physically possible to get from New York City and still be in the same state, and official spooky abandoned farmhouse territory. As an only child of good geek stock, young Lia was lovingly reared on horror movies, video games, and Victorian novels. She developed an affection for horror movie monsters early on, often challenging her weary mother with lists of reasons why Jason Voorhees might yet be saved or excuses for Darkman's cackling insanity. As she grew older and her natural sympathy extended to ever more serial killers, swamp monsters, sentient fanged beasts, and reanimated gents, her mother began to worry what her daughter might one day bring home.Despite this promising start, Lia went on to live an unremarkable life. Although she entertained vague thoughts of one day writing (comic books, specifically), it was only her love of literature that compelled her to pursue her B.A. in English Lit from SUNY Buffalo. Afterwards, ever the generalist and lover of Old Things, Lia moved to the UK to attend the University of Leicester and get her M.A. in Museum Studies. Several scattered internships and jobs followed, but Lia was never able to obtain long-term, serious work in her chosen field. She wrote the first draft of Dearly, Departed while unemployed, because it seemed like more fun than filling out job applications. Ultimately, she ended up procrastinating herself into a wonderful career.Now, Lia operates by a very simple rule-monsters need love, too. Handsome human heroes are celebrated everywhere else, but in her works you'll find gentleman zombies, beautiful beasts, delicate clockwork girls, and titans with hearts of gold. She writes emotionally driven romances where the couples are outlandish, weird, and magical. Because "normal" is just so... boring.Miss Habel currently lives with her beloved Boyfriend and their utterly spoilt furchild, an inky black cat named Struensee. She enjoys attending anachronistic and steampunk events, crafting all manner of pretty things, watching horror movies, and collecting Victorian and Edwardian books. Things she fans over include Pacific Rim, Hannibal, and Transformers.