First of all, I owe a massive debt of gratitude to Betsy Reavley and Fred Freeman, of Bloodhound Books, for believing in the DI Yates series; and to Tara Lyons and Hannah Deuce for their unstinting guidance and support and very hard work.
The Yates novels would be nothing without their readers. From the bottom of my heart I’d like to thank all of you, including those whom I’ve met in person, those of you who have taken the trouble to ‘meet’ me or review my books with such generosity on blogs and social networks, and everyone who has bought or borrowed my books to read. You are a constant source of inspiration to me.
Equally important is the growing list of booksellers and librarians who support my novels. You are too many to name, so please don’t be offended if I have missed you out. Among booksellers I owe very special thanks to Sam and Sarah and their reading groups at Bookmark in Spalding; Tim Walker and Jenny Pugh of Walker Books in Stamford; and the legendary crime buff Richard Reynolds, of Heffer’s Bookshop in Cambridge and his colleague Kate Fleet, whose knowledge of crime writing and support of crime fiction writers is second to none.
Among librarians, Jane Barber at Stamford Library, Alison Cassels at Wakefield One, Lynne Cook at Gainsborough Library, Jude Hall at Woodhall Spa Library, Sharman Morriss at Spalding Library and Nicola Swann, who works for Cambridgeshire Libraries, have been particularly outstanding.
I’d also like to thank Judith Heneghan, who was for several years the distinguished director of the Winchester Literary Festival, for inviting me to speak and take part in author ‘surgeries’ several years running; Carla Green of BBC Radio Lincolnshire and Chris Ilsley of Lincoln City Radio, who continue to provide generous air time whenever a new Yates is published; and Yusef Sayed, editor of Lincolnshire Life, whose enthusiasm for Yates and South Lincs police has influenced many new readers.
There are many other people whom I ought to thank here. As always, it’s impossible to mention everyone, but I must pay tribute to those staunch friends who wait impatiently for the next book to come out and always promote it with enthusiasm, especially Madelaine and Marc, my chief champions in Lincolnshire and their friend Anthony; Pamela and Robert, who provided invaluable advice on cesspits and tanker lorries (as well as excellent rhubarb gin); and to long-suffering Sally, who has never failed to offer a bed and wit and wisdom over a bottle of wine when I’ve needed to stay in London. (Sadly, Covid has made this impossible for the past two years, but I hope it is a tradition we shall start again shortly.)
The members of my family continue to overwhelm with their unique style of support. James and Annika have once again checked the final draft and picked up inaccuracies and inconsistencies with hawklike precision, assiduously checking on my behalf the details of such matters as how the road systems operate around Cambridge, how long a bicycle wheel can keep turning when the bike is lying on the ground and how much work anyone, even Tim Yates, can be expected to fit into one day. Emma continues to surprise and delight with her mastery of language and her impeccable approach to logic. Chris wins a line to himself for bestowing the occasional word of praise, appreciated not only for its rarity but because he always ‘gets’ what each book is really about.
My very sincere thanks to you all.
Christina James