As a writer of historical fiction, Mark Strength is a relentless researcher and perfectionist. He loves the heroic, beautiful, and romantic stories of history. He is fascinated with Revolutionary War history, geography, genealogy, and eighteenth century living. He graduated from Auburn University where he studied geology and business in preparation for a career in jewelry retailing. His skill as a writer was put to use in corporate communications writing training materials for a Fortune 500 employer. He has been a corporate training director, a stock broker, and book publisher. He lives in Smyrna, Tennessee with his wife Lynn, and they have three sons. His first novel on the pioneer history of Tennessee, Bonny Kate; Pioneer Lady was published in July 2007. His second novel Bonny Kate's Honeymoon: Victory at King's Mountain came out in June 2009 and won the 2010 Clark Cox Historical Fiction Award given by the North Carolina Society of Historians. Song of the Shenandoah was completed in July of 2011.