Book two was always going to be tough, writing under contract for the first time in my life. It proved to be tougher than I anticipated, and a vast number of people are responsible for helping me over the finish line. In no particular order, these are my most sincere thanks.
To all those at Headline, both past and present. Emily Griffin, Kate Stephenson, and Toby Jones, three wonderful editors who all played their part. Sara Adams, thank you for the consistency and support, including your input when it came to the title, and the reminder that my acknowledgements were due prior to printing. Thank you also to Millie Seaward, Jo Liddiard, and the rest of the team who have helped make this book the very best it can be. To everybody at the Madeleine Milburn Literary, TV, and Film Agency for your constant belief and editorial support. I am so lucky to have so many great minds and such expertise in my corner.
To my family, as always, those near and far, thank you for the constant encouragement and photographs of supermarket bookshelves. I am indebted and incredibly lucky. To Theo and Themis, you are growing into such wonderful people, and I’m thankful to have you in my life. You make me so proud to be a small part of it. Stasinos, my best friend, my lover, my husband, and now my child’s father. You mean more to me today than you ever have before. Tap tap, more than yesterday, less than tomorrow.
And to Lelia. You were nothing more than a dream when I began writing this book, and by the time my edits came back my constant companion nestled into my chest, sleeping across one arm. You were the thing I dared to dream of and yet never truly believed would happen. This book, and everything since the day you came into my life, is for you.