Thomas Perry was born in Tonawanda, New York, in 1947. He worked many different jobs, from laborer to television writer, while he pursued his writing career. His first novel, "The Butcher's Boy," won an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America in 1983. Since then he has written a total of 16 books, with a 17th on the way.
Perry's most famous work is the five-book Jane Whitefield series. Perry had originally retired the series, but due to fan demand, he has decided to bring it back. "Runner," his upcoming book, will be the sixth in the series.
Perry says that he gets many of his ideas just through everyday conversation and occasional eavesdropping. He's won over many readers and also many other authors with his storytelling. Stephen King said about him: "There are probably only half a dozen suspense writers now alive who can be depended upon to deliver high-voltage shock; vivid, sympathetic characters and compelling narratives each time they publish. Thomas Perry is one of them.”
Nowadays Thomas lives in Southern California with his wife and two daughters. He has always been very modest about his abilities, never concerning himself with whether or not he was thought of as a "good" writer. He only started referring to himself as a writer when it became his full time occupation. Perry has said he wants to write until he dies, and on that day, he wants to have a story nearly done, and all his wife needs to do is write “The End.”
