ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would be deeply remiss if I didn’t thank the people whose support, encouragement, and effort contributed to the making of this book. My heartfelt thanks and appreciation go out to:

My spectacular agent, Joanna Volpe, whose tireless hard work allows me to keep playing around in my imagination. I am so, so grateful to have you on my side. Gigantic thanks also to Danielle Barthel, Kathleen Ortiz, Pouya Shahbazian, and the rest of the awesome team at New Leaf Literary.

My wonderfully supportive editor, Liz Szabla, and my publisher, Jean Feiwel, for their enthusiasm for this book, as well as Anna Roberto, Allison Verost, Mary Van Akin, and everyone else at Macmillan/Feiwel and Friends who worked on the words, design, artwork, production, marketing, and promotion. I’m so thrilled to be working with all of you, sometimes I have to pinch myself.

My reader numero uno, accomplice, and dear friend, Elizabeth Briggs, for keeping me sane and never sugarcoating. I’m fairly certain none of this would have happened if I hadn’t met you.

Fabulous beta readers Karen Akins and Cortney Pearson, and the rest of my indisputably awesome support system: Jessica Love, Dana Elmendorf, Kathryn Rose, and Amaris Glass.

My dearly disbanded DFWs, Avi DeTurenne, Kelly Boston, and Deborah Blum, the critique group that kept me going and helped me wrangle my earliest draft.

My parents, Ken and Ruth Searles, who patiently let me keep them in the dark about my closet writing until things really started to pick up. Thank you for making our visits to the Bayliss Public Library a frequent and beloved part of my childhood, and for letting me grow up with the support and love that made me believe there wasn’t anything I couldn’t do.

And finally, my husband, Bülent Altan, for his unwavering and enthusiastic support, and for transitioning with good grace when his wife’s creative side suddenly came out of hibernation.