Cara Black was born in Chicago, Illinois on November 14, 1951. She was educated at Cañada College in California, Sophia University in Yotsuya, Tokyo in Japan, and finished her degree at San Francisco State University with a BA and an MA in education. She has worked as a preschool teacher and as director of a preschool. She lives in San Francisco with her husband, a bookseller, and their teenage son. Black is a bestselling American mystery writer. She is best known for her Aimée Léduc mystery novels featuring a female Paris-based private investigator.