LYNNA BANNING combines a lifelong love of history and literature into a satisfying career as a writer. Born in Oregon, she has lived in Northern California most of her life. Currently she lives in Felton, near Roaring Camp in the Santa Cruz Mountains, with two cats and a very nervous canary.

The Courtship will be Lynna's sixth release from Harlequin Historicals. Her first novel, Western Rose, based on Oregon family history, was published in 1996; Wildwood followed in 1997; Lost Acres Bride in 1998, Plum Creek Bride in 1999 and The Law and Miss Hardisson in 2000. At present she is working on her next two books.

Lynna graduated from Watsonville High School, where her father taught English, and from Scripps College in Claremont, California, before embarking on her first career as an editor and technical writer for Stanford Research Institute and later for Lockheed. She also taught English and journalism at Santa Cruz High School for a number of years.

An amateur pianist and harpsichordist, Lynna performs on psaltery, harp, and recorders with two medieval music groups and coaches ensembles in her spare time.