K.S. Villoso

Born in Daraga in the Bicol province of Albay, K.S. Villoso grew up in the slums at the outskirts of Taguig, Metro Manila, where books served as both shelter and shield from the harsh realities of every day life. She still remembers wading through flooded streets just to get home, the foul taste of overly chlorinated water you had to fetch from across town in plastic jugs, and the stress of watching her parents burn the midnight oil amidst death threats from corrupt politicians just to pay the bills. Overwhelmed by the social disadvantages, lack of safety nets, and economic uncertainties of living as part of the Philippine working class, her family immigrated to Vancouver in her early teens. She followed her parents’ footsteps for a little while and spent her early adult years working in the civil engineering field designing pump stations and water mains, but at some point realized life was too short and decided to burn the ships and embrace her love of storytelling.

She writes fantasy deeply rooted in themes of social inequality and class struggle, with personal narratives that seek to reclaim the triumph of the hero’s story through flawed characters, particularly complex women. Her work includes the critically acclaimed epic fantasies CHRONICLES OF THE WOLF QUEEN and THE DAGEIAN PUPPETMASTER. She now lives in Anmore, BC, on the ancestral lands of the Tsleil-Waututh nations with her husband, children, the occasional extended family, and lots of pets. When she isn't writing, she spends her days counting to when she can get lost in the mountains again.