Sarah Jollien-Fardel was born in 1971, she grew up in a village in the Hérens district of Valais (Switzerland). She lived in Lausanne for several years before moving back home with her husband and two sons. She became a journalist in her thirties, and has written for numerous local and national newspapers. The places she knows and loves are the focal points of her debut novel, Sa Préférée.

Holly James is a British literary translator based in Paris.