When Brenda Novak caught her day-care provider drugging her young children with cough medicine to get them to sleep all day while Brenda was away at work, she quit her job as a loan officer to stay home with them. She felt she could no longer trust others with their care, but she still had to find some way to make a living. That was when she picked up one of her favorite books. She was looking for a brief escape from stress and worry-and found the inspiration to become a novelist. Since her first sale to HarperCollins in 1998 (Of Noble Birth), Brenda has written fifty books in a variety of genres. Now a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, she still juggles her writing career with the demands of her large family and interests such as cycling, traveling, and reading. A three-time RITA nominee, Brenda has won many awards for her books, including the National Readers' Choice Award, the Booksellers' Best Award, the Book Buyer's Best Award, and the HOLT Medallion. She also runs an annual online auction for diabetes research every May at www.brendanovak.com. (Her youngest son suffers from the disease.) To date, she's raised more than $2 million.