Matthew Stover is the New York Times–bestselling author of many Star Wars novels, as well as the Acts of Caine series, which includes Heroes Die, The Blade of Tyshalle, and Caine Black Knife. He is a student of the Degerberg Blend, a Jeet Kune Do concept that is a mixture of approximately twenty-five different fighting arts from around the world. He lives outside of Chicago, Illinois with artist and writer Robyn Fielder.