Alex Aster

Alex Aster (born Alexandra Pierson in 1995) is a Colombian-American author of young adult fantasy, raised in Jacksonville, Florida, and a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania. She had written several unpublished novels before her breakout book, Lightlark (2022), a fantasy romance about rulers of six realms bound by a centuries-old curse; a viral TikTok campaign helped drive it onto bestseller lists and led to a film deal with Universal Pictures. She continued the story in Nightbane, Skyshade, and Crowntide, and is also the author of the middle-grade Emblem Island series, beginning with Curse of the Night Witch, which draws on Colombian folklore. Aster was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in 2023 and has since expanded into adult fantasy romance and licensed fiction, including a Barbie tie-in novel.