Louise Black was born in England in 1977, to an English mother and Iranian father, and spent her childhood in Africa, Bangladesh, Iran, and Indonesia due to her father's work with UNICEF. She has a First Class Honors Degree in Law from University College London and practiced law in the City for seven years. Her debut novel, Pomegranate Sky, won the inaugural Virginia Prize in 2009 and was reviewed in The Guardian and The Times.