Loretta Ellsworth grew up in Mason City, Iowa. A former teacher and a graduate of Hamline University with a Master’s Degree in Writing for Children, she is the award-winning author of four young adult novels, The Shrouding Woman, In Search of Mockingbird, In a Heartbeat, and Unforgettable. Stars Over Clear Lake, historical fiction set in Iowa, is her first novel for adults. She lives in Lakeville, Minnesota.