Diane Chamberlain is the author of 18 novels published in more than eleven languages.  She writes complex stories about relationships between men and women, parents and children, brothers and sisters, and friends. Although the thematic focus of her books often revolves around family, love, compassion and forgiveness, her stories usually feature a combination of suspense, mystery and intrigue.  For  Diane, the real joy of writing is having the opportunity to touch readers with her words.  She hopes that her stories move you in some way and give you hours of enjoyable reading. Diane was born and raised in Plainfield, New Jersey. She also lived for many years in both San Diego and northern Virginia before making North Carolina her home.   Diane received her master's degree in clinical social work from San Diego State University. Prior to her writing career, she was a hospital social worker in both San Diego and Washington, D.C. She also was a psychotherapist in private practice in Alexandria, Virginia, working primarily with adolescents.  She reluctantly left her practice in the early nineties to focus full time on her writing. Several years ago, Diane was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, which not only changed the way she works (she sometimes uses voice recognition software) but also shifted her perspective on life for the better. As one of her Japanese readers wrote to her, "You make me believe life is beautiful even if it is also full of pain and rage." Diane lives in North Carolina with her partner, photographer John Pagliuca, and her shelties, Keeper and Jet.