Tracy Ryan was born in Western Australia and grew up there as part of a large family. She has taught literature, creative writing and film at various universities in Australia and in England, and worked as a bookseller, editor and translator. Her poetry has won many awards. Her most recent collection is Rose Interior (Giramondo 2022). She is the author of six critically acclaimed novels. Tracy was the Western Australian Premier’s Book Awards Fellowship winner in 2023. Tracy speaks German, French and Italian as well as English. The War Within Me is the second in a series of three novels focused on the Queens of Navarre. The Queen’s Apprenticeship, the first novel, was published in Australia in 2023 by Transit Lounge and in Spain as Aprendizaje De Una Reina by Maeva in 2024.