Kristan's writing has received numerous awards and praise, which her mother usually prints out and hangs on the fridge. She has won two RITAs from the Romance Writers of America-the first in 2008 for her second book, Catch of the Day, and the second in 2010 for Too Good To Be True. Booklist named The Next Best Thing one of the best books of 2010, and My One and Only one of the best books of 2011. All I Ever Wanted was named one of the best 20 romances of 2010 by Kirkus Reviews, and Until There Was You was named one of the six best romances of the year by Barnes & Noble in 2011.

Here in Australia, Kristan has been nominated twice for the ARRA Favourite Contemporary Romance award (both in 2010) for All I Ever Wanted and The Next Best Thing.

Kristan lives in her hometown with her brave and heroic firefighter husband of 20 years and two lovely children who sport long eyelashes and advanced vocabularies. The family shares their home with a hyperactive mutt named Willow and an erratically affectionate feline named Huck. When she is not writing or baking cookies, Kristan can be found watching the New York Yankees and Googling her latest celebrity crush. Visit her website or find her on Facebook.

We are thrilled to have Kristan as a keynote for ARRC2013, and hope to have more keynote news for you very soon.

Best-selling contemporary romance author Kristan Higgins will be winging her way Down Under from the United States to join us in March for all the fun!

Kristan Higgins is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author and two-time winner of the Romance Writers of America RITA Award. Romantic Times have called her 'the master of small-town romance'. Her contemporary romances feature big-hearted, memorable love stories about regular people with quirky families, real-life issues and a cute dog or two. She has been called 'a rising superstar in contemporary romance' by USA TODAY, who went on to praise Kristan's 'genius-level EQ, whippet-fast, funny dialogue and sweet plots with a deliciously tart edge'.