Barbara Hambly attended the University of California, Riverside, specializing in medieval history. To further her studies, she spent a year at the University of Bordeaux in the south of France and worked as a teaching and research assistant at UC Riverside, eventually earning a master's degree in the subject. Her interest in fantasy began with reading The Wizard of Oz at an early age and has continued ever since. She now lives in Los Angeles.

Ranging from fantasy to historical fiction, Barbara Hambly has a masterful way of spinning a story. Her twisty plots involve memorable characters, lavish descriptions, scads of novel words, and interesting devices. Her work spans the Star Wars universe, antebellum New Orleans, and various fantasy worlds, sometimes linked with our own.