Maureen Johnson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on February 16, 1973. She received an undergraduate degree in writing from the University of Delaware and a MFA in writing from Columbia University School of the Arts. After college and before graduate school, she was the literary manager of a Philadelphia theater company. Her first book, The Key to the Golden Firebird, was published in 2004. Her other works include 13 Little Blue Envelopes, Devilish, Suite Scarlett, The Last Little Blue Envelope, and the Shades of London series.