Zoë Ferraris moved to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in the aftermath of the first Gulf War. She lived in a conservative Muslim community with her then-husband and his family, a group of Saudi-Palestinians.

Her debut novel, Finding Nouf (published as Night of the Mi'raj in the UK) was a national and international bestseller, winner of the LA Times Book Award for First Fiction, a B&N Discover pick, an ALE Alex Award winner, and was translated and published in 45 countries. Two follow-up novels, City of Veils and Kingdom of Strangers have been published in over 35 countries. The three books have been optioned for a television series.

She has an MFA from Columbia University and currently lives in San Francisco.