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It takes a whole team to get a book into the reader’s hands and I’m incredibly lucky to have the support of the people at Pan Macmillan in the UK and Minotaur in the US. So, huge thanks to everyone who’s been involved in the editing and copy-editing, especially Gillian, Vicki, Catherine, Nettie, Charlotte and Lorraine. The PR and marketing teams on both sides of the Atlantic have worked tirelessly to sell novels in very difficult times, so many thanks to them all, with a special mention to Emma and Elle in the UK and Sarah and Martin in the US. My assistant Jill looks after me with a quiet efficiency, and Jean and Roger manage my website beautifully.
I couldn’t concentrate on storytelling without the support of my agent, Sara, and her co-agents. I’m hugely grateful to her, and to Moses, Rebecca, Jill, Maydo and Annelie. Indie bookshops have maintained sales, even when they’ve had to close their physical premises, and I love them all. A special shout out to Helen and James at Forum Books for their kindness and their imaginative events. Libraries too have worked hard in lockdown to supply their readers with books and virtual events, and the staff will always be heroes to me.
Thanks to Cynthia Prior and Sarah Grieve for allowing me to use their names, and to Sue Beardshall, Martin Kerby and Paul Jones for their advice on the first draft of the novel. Jenny Beardshall explained the mysteries of glass-blowing and Bob Crooks showed me how it worked in practice. Dr James Grieve shared his huge expertise so I could use glass as a weapon. Any factual mistakes are, of course, mine. Issy Wheeler continues to be a great model for Lucy Braddick, and in places I’ve quoted her exactly!
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