Ken Bruen was born in Galway in 1951. He spent twenty-five years as an English teacher in Africa, Japan, South-East Asia and South America. His writing changed direction after he was tortured during a four-month stint in a Brazilian prison. His White Trilogy (A White Arrest, Taming the Alien and The McDead) has been bought for television by Deep Indigo Productions. He has a PhD in Metaphysics. In 1995 he was a finalist for the First Blood Award for Best First Crime Novel.