José C. Vales was born in 1965 in Zamora, Spain. He obtained a degree in Hispanic Philology from the University of Salamanca and later specialized in philosophy and aesthetics of romantic literature in Madrid. His professional career has always been linked to the publishing world, working as a writer, editor, and translator for various publishing houses.

Throughout his career, Vales has been involved in numerous projects involving information, documentation, correction, and editing of texts for different editorial brands. Among his significant contributions is the renewed edition of Christmas Stories by Charles Dickens (Espasa, 2011) and the classic The Barchester Towers by Anthony Trollope (Espasa, 2008).

As a translator, Vales has brought many English and American authors to Spanish readers, including such luminaries as Dickens, Trollope, Austen, Wilkie Collins, Defoe, Mary Shelley, Arnold Bennett, Eudora Welty, Stella Gibbons, E.F. Benson, and Edmund Crispin. His excellence in writing is not confined to translation; in 2015, he was awarded the prestigious Premio Nadal for his novel Cabaret Biarritz.