Ace Atkins began his writing career as a crime reporter at The Tampa Tribune before transitioning to a full-time novelist. His debut novel, Crossroad Blues, was published when he was 27 years old. During his time at the Tribune, Atkins received a Pulitzer Prize nomination for his investigative feature series on a cold case murder from the 1950s. This series served as the inspiration for his highly praised novel, White Shadow, which received accolades from both authors and critics alike. Currently, Atkins resides with his family on a historic farm in Oxford, Mississippi.