Ever since she started at Hectate "Hex" Hall a school for "gifted" students Sophie Mercer's life has been a whirlwind of disasters. But now Sophie is facing her biggest crisis so far, and this time it's her life, and the lives of everyone she loves that are at stake.

Rachel Hawkins is a 20-something former teacher who left teaching to take a chance and get serious about finishing that book she'd always wanted to write. Her first book, Hex Hall, was the result of that leap of faith. She's a graduate of Auburn University in Alabama and lives with her husband and three-year-old son.