Marion McKinnon Crook received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Seattle University (although a Canadian from the Fraser Valley) and worked as a public health nurse in the Cariboo until 1986 and in the Fraser Valley until 1989. Those were the days of treacherous roads, severe and dangerous weather and wide-spread populations. Her original nursing district encompassed 3600 square miles. During her nursing career in the Cariboo, she wrote and published with trade publishers: ten novels for young adult and middle grade readers. She also researched, wrote and published non-fiction around teen problems such as suicide, eating disorders and adoption. She achieved a Masters degree in Liberal Studies from Simon Fraser University and a PhD in Education from UBC. She taught nursing at university for eleven years but is now back writing full time. Writing as Emma Dakin, her latest adult mystery with Camel Press is Storms in the Costwolds, the sixth in The British Book Tour Mysteries.  

Her memoir Always Pack a Candle: A Nurse in the Cariboo Chilcotin (Heritage House Publishing) was a finalist for the lieutenant Governors History Award and won the BC Historical Federations Community History Award. Her second memoir Always on Call: Adventures in Nursing, Ranching, and Rural Living Heritage House Publishing) is a finalist for the BC and Yukon Book Prizes Bill Duthie Booksellers’ Choice Award. Both books were regularly on the BC Bestsellers list for the year following publication.

She lives in Gibsons, BC. She plays fiddle with a group and violin with a chamber group. Regular outrigger paddling in the beautiful Howe Sound and Georgia Strait keeps her engaged with real people and not just the characters in her books. She is an active member of The Writers Union of Canada, Sisters in Crime and Crime Writers of Canada.

 More details on her website:  marioncrookauthor.com