John Lathrop has been an expatriate for much of his life. Born in Michigan, as a child his family moved to Australia for three years. Following a four year enlistment in the Air Force, he attended university in Los Angeles, and then spent time in the southern Philippines in the U. S. Peace Corps. This was followed by almost a decade and-a-half in the Middle East, primarily Saudi Arabia. Usually involved in training operations, he worked for government ministries, military contractors, government-owned industry and private business. He now calls Calgary, Canada, home.

Writers generally write about what they know. The expatriate life and foreign environments form the settings of Lathrop’s work. His themes and characters are contemporary. He prefers suspenseful plots, and sees no incompatibility between a strong story line and literary quality.

THE DESERT CONTRACT is his first published novel. His next novel will be set in Cambodia.

Besides an interest in politics and foreign affairs, Lathrop is a keen amateur musician. Although at one time an unabashed Elgarian, he now concentrates on Bach. He looks forward to playing his clavichord in Cambodia, if the instrument survives the climate of Phnom Penh.