John Follain was born in 1966. He studied at Oxford before joining Reuters, for which he worked as a correspondent in Rome and Paris. He has covered Italy for The Sunday Times since 1998. His previous books include DEATH IN PERUGIA, THE LAST GODFATHERS, which was translated into 10 languages, MUSSOLINI'S ISLAND and the international bestseller ZOYA'S STORY. He was voted runner-up for the 2006 Paul Foot Award for Campaigning Journalism, and nominated for the 2008 Magazine Journalism Awards for his interview with the Knox family.