L. A. Starks was born in Boston, Massachusetts, grew up in northern Oklahoma, and now lives in Texas. Awarded a full-tuition college scholarship, she earned a chemical engineering bachelor's degree, magna cum laude, from New Orleans' Tulane University, followed by a finance MBA from the University of Chicago. While at Chicago she made time to play for a celebrated women's intramural basketball team, the Efficient Mockettes.

Working more than a decade for well-known energy companies in engineering, marketing, and finance from refineries to corporate offices prepared Starks to write global energy thrillers. She continues to research and consult on energy economics and investing, often speaking to professional groups for their members' continuing education credit.

14 books (2 non fiction) by acclaimed North Texas authors make for wonderful winter reading. $30 Barnes and Noble gift card also included.

Envy By Sandra Brown

To Dwell in Darkness by Deborah Crombie

Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain

The Malice of Forturne By Michael Ennis

This Land of Strangers by Robert Hall

Struck by Living by Julie Hersh

Patriot's Blood by Richard Holcroft

Shadow Boys by Harry Hunsicker

The Outcasts by Kathleen Kent

Strike Price (Lynn Dayton Thriller #2) by L.A. Starks

13 Days: The Pythagoras Conspiracy (Lynn Dayton Thriller #1) by L. A. Starks

The Informationist by Taylor Stevens

The Grave on Peckerwood Hill by Gary Vineyard

The Hospitalist by Michael Weisberg, MD