Acknowledgments

Writing seems like such a solitary endeavor sometimes, but it truly takes a bustling, smart, supportive village to bring a book to life. Thank you to my editor, Heather Howland, whose creativity and encouragement shaped this story. You are incredibly talented, and I’m so lucky to be working with you. Thanks always to Danielle Chiotti, my awesome agent who is so on the ball and always there to shore me up in a million ways. Thank you to the entire team at Entangled. I love all of you and so admire your dedication to your authors and to good books. Thanks also to all the teachers, librarians and book bloggers who champion reading. You make all the difference.

I’d be lost without my writer friends—WWFCers (are we working for custard now?), LODers, Class of 2k11ers, the empresses of Empire, Amy Dominy, Kristin Rae, and all others who have helped, cheered, read, or critiqued. Thanks to friends and family who put up with my crazy writing moods—happy one minute, harried the next—especially Jill Holliday and my sister Jeanne Durr. Special thanks to Hannah Boyd, Abby Ferguson, Jenna Gorup, and Jack Hyler, whose brainstorming was priceless. I’ll miss you hanging around, but I can’t wait to see how you leave your mark on the world. Thanks to Heather Holliday for your amazing copyediting skills. You’re going to kill it at OU! Thank you, Mom and Dad, for believing in me since the literal beginning. Thanks to my girls—Lily, whose sweet nature and determination inspire me every day. I’m so proud of you. And to Cate for your humor and affection—congratulations on your graduation. Go forth and tell your stories in your own unique way, but yikes, I’m going to miss you like crazy. To my absolute rock and life-long romantic lead, Michael—thank you for absolutely everything. I love you forever. And finally, thank you God for all my blessings and that I get to do exactly what I love.