Mark Troy is a native of St. Louis, Missouri. He and his wife served as Peace Corps Volunteers in Thailand where they taught English and supervised student teachers. After the Peace Corps, the Troys moved to Hawaii for graduate school. They now live in Texas where Mark is an administrator and researcher at Texas A&M University. Mark has degrees from Quincy University, Washington University and the University of Hawaii. The Troys have two sons a daughter-in-law, one granddaughter and one grandson. Pilikia Is My Business is Mark's first novel. He is the author of numerous short stories, some of which feature Val Lyon. One story, "Teed Off" was named one of the 50 best American mystery stories of 2001 by Otto Penzler and James Ellroy. When not writing, Mark runs marathons. He has completed 18 to date.