I have to thank so many of the behind-the-scenes people who helped make this book happen: Sue Grimshaw, Gina Wachtel, and all of the folks at Penguin Random House for taking a chance on this story; Julia Maguire for her insightful editing suggestions and Crystal Velasquez for a crazy-good copyedit; Erika Seyfried, Ashleigh Heaton, and all of the people in marketing who work tirelessly to ensure that readers discover the Rebellious Brides books; and Carrie at Seductive Musings for the gorgeous covers she’s created for this series. I’m also tremendously grateful that my agent, Kevan Lyon, has been with me every step of the way.
Some books are easy to write, others are a challenge. Without my friend, Megann Yaqub, this story might have been abandoned, but she insisted on learning what happened to Elinor so I had to make it work. Joanna Shupe was incredibly generous with her time, reading this manuscript more than once. Tina Gabrielle helped make sure my plotlines stayed consistent between the related books in the series. Michele Mannon can always be depended upon to come up with the perfect name for a series or book. J. B. Schroeder, Maria K. Alexander, RoseAnn DeFranco, and Jaye Rome provide much-needed friendship and general writing support.
I love my family—my husband and two sons—for putting up with me when writing consumes so much of my time and attention. And thanks, as always, to you, the reader, for spending some time with me via my books. I’ve enjoyed it. I hope you have, too!