Born in Kuala Lumpur, Chan Ling Yap was educated in Malaysia and subsequently in England where she obtained a PhD in Economics. She lectured at the University of Malaya before joining the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome, where she worked for nearly two decades. She now lives in the UK with her husband and two children. A widely published author of various textbooks and journals, her foray into fiction, Sweet Offerings, was highly praised for its beautiful evocation of Asia. Bitter-Sweet Harvest is her second novel.