John Hart

I was born in Durham, North Carolina in 1965, the son of a young surgeon and French teacher who quit teaching to raise her children. Eventually, I moved to Rowan County, where THE KING OF LIES and DOWN RIVER are both set, and on which the fictional Raven County is loosely based. My favorite memory of childhood is a five hundred acre farm that has since fallen to the sweeping tide of development that is slowly devouring much of North Carolina. I attended Davidson College, a marvelous school just north of Charlotte, where I studied French literature. Afterward, I earned graduate degrees in accounting and law. I have worked as a banker, stockbroker and attorney. I have also spent long days sanding teak on the Carolina coast, working on helicopters in Alaska and drawing pints in a London pub. I think I liked the pub job best. My only real dream has been to write well and to be published well. I admire those who are able to write at four in the morning and still function in the real world. After two failed attempts, I decided that I lacked that particular talent. So, with a young daughter and another in the works, I quit everything to take a stab at chasing the dream. I spent the better part of a year in a carrel at the Rowan County Public Library. THE KING OF LIES is the result. I used to sail, fly helicopters and play a lot of golf, but those pastimes have fallen by the wayside. My children are young and the writing demands much. Really, I have three great passions: my family, my writing, and the protection of North Carolina’s open spaces. In time, I hope to make room for more. For now, however, that’s it; and it’s enough. There is more than one author by this name on Goodreads.