Santa Montefiore, born Santa Palmer-Tomkinson, (born 2 February 1970) is a British author.

Santa is the sister of Tara Palmer-Tomkinson

Tara Palmer-Tomkinson

Tara Palmer-Tomkinson also known as T P-T, is an English socialite, "it girl", television presenter, columnist and model...

. Her parents are Charles Palmer-Tomkinson

Charles Palmer-Tomkinson

Charles Anthony Palmer-Tomkinson is an English landowner, a former English skier, and a close friend of Prince Charles.-Olympian:...

 and Patricia Palmer-Tomkinson, of Anglo-Argentine background. Her father represented his country in skiing at Olympic level. Her family have been close friends of The Prince of Wales for over 30 years.

Montefiore was born in Winchester

Winchester

Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...

, and attended Hanford School

Hanford School

Hanford School is a girls' boarding preparatory school located in Hanford, near Shillingstone, Child Okeford, Dorset, England, established in 1947 and located in a grade II* listed house built in 1604 by Sir Robert Seymer.-Background:...

 from the age of eight to twelve. She then finished her education at Sherborne School for Girls in Dorset.

Before reading Spanish and Italian at Exeter University, Montefiore worked for a year on an Argentine estancia

Estância

Estância is a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Sergipe. Its population was 62,218 and its area is 642 km². The city is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Estância....

. She lived for much of the 1990s in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

, Argentina, where she befriended Princess Máxima of the Netherlands

Princess Máxima of the Netherlands

Princess Máxima of the Netherlands is the wife of Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange, heir apparent to the throne of the Netherlands.-Early life and education:...

, before returning to the UK. Four of her books are set in Argentina. She is married to writer and historian Simon Sebag Montefiore

Simon Sebag Montefiore

Simon Jonathan Sebag Montefiore is a British historian and writer.-Family history:Simon's father, a doctor, is descended from a famous line of wealthy Sephardic Jews who became diplomats and bankers all over Europe...

and has two children, Lily and Sasha; she converted to Judaism before the marriage. 
She is a socialite often featured in the gossip columns of upmarket magazines.

Works

• The Butterfly Box (2002) ISBN 0-7089-9402-4
• Meet Me Under the Ombu Tree (2002) ISBN 0-7089-9333-8
• The Forget-me-not Sonata (2003) ISBN 0-340-83171-5
• The Swallow and the Hummingbird (2004) ISBN 0-340-83260-6
• The Last Voyage of the Valentina (2005) ISBN 0-340-83087-5
• The Gypsy Madonna (2006)
• Sea of Lost Love (2007)
• The French Gardener (2008)
• The Italian Matchmaker (2009)
• The Affair (2010)
• The House by the Sea (2011)