About the Author

Melissa Ashley is a Brisbane-based writer, poet and academic who tutors in poetry and creative writing at the University of Queensland. She has published a collection of poems, The Hospital for Dolls, articles, essays and short stories. What started out as research for a PhD dissertation on Elizabeth Gould became a labour of love and her first novel, THE BIRDMAN'S WIFE. Melissa even followed in her heroine's footsteps by learning taxidermy as a volunteer at the Queensland Museum. She's also a passionate amateur 'birder'.