Bloodleaf (Bloodleaf #1)(101)

I laughed with tears in my eyes, and then I kissed him with all the force I could muster. It hurt—?oh! How it hurt—?but in that moment, caught between the ruined city and our unknown future, I felt my blood begin to stir with a new kind of magic.

“How is this possible?” Zan asked fervently, twining his fingers into mine. “This?”

“Blood and sacrifice,” I said. “As it is with all power.”





Acknowledgments


With five wildly different versions written and queried over six excruciating years, I often joke that while Bloodleaf is a fairy tale, my path to publishing it was anything but. Though it might have been a long and sometimes bumpy road, I am so thankful for the people who saw me through it. The first on this list is my incredible agent, Pete Knapp. Your passion for this story and faith in my ability to tell it are the reason Bloodleaf is on the shelves instead of collecting dust in a trunk. I will be forever grateful for that query feedback giveaway that gave me just enough courage to click “send” one more time. And to the team at Park Literary, foreign rights rock stars Blair Wilson and Abby Koons, as well as Emily Sweet, Andrea Mai, Theresa Park, Alex Greene, and Emily Clagett: thank you all for your efforts on my behalf.

Huge thanks are also due to my fabulous editor, Cat Onder, whose visionary guidance brought Bloodleaf across the finish line with flying colors and rock ’n’ roll flair. You helped me shine it into something I’m truly proud to send out into the world. To everyone at HMH Teen: I am so happy my book ended up in your capable hands. I know I’ve got one hell of a team in my corner, and I’m thankful for that every single day.

To Mom and Dad: I am extremely fortunate to have been given parents like you. Your support and encouragement (and leniency when I stayed up to the wee hours reading every night) shaped me into who I am today. I’ll always be glad you read all those sci-fi novels aloud to us—even if I might have preferred princesses to brainships (sorry, Dad!). I won’t tell the others, but I know I’m your favorite daughter.

I must also thank my siblings: Carolanne, for the endless story-time phone calls and for not laughing when I said I was going to make Bloodleaf’s main deity a flying horse. Brandon, for always pushing me to think bigger and bolder . . . to make every scene a “wow” scene. Carma, for patiently reading every version of Bloodleaf (and there were SO MANY) and fangirling over it every time. Melody, for being my go-to design guru and for always having a good song to add to the inspiration playlist. Stacy, Katey, and Tiffany, for being constant, caring listeners and Bloodleaf’s best cheerleaders. Thank you all for the countless “clandestine” meetings over the years. I’d never have gotten this far without them (and you).

Stan, Paula, Logan, and Amy: I’m not sure how it happened, but I definitely hit the in-law lottery. We’ve depended on you a thousand times and you’ve come through for us in a thousand ways. I’m so proud to call you family.

Over the years, I was lucky to land in the classrooms of some extraordinary teachers who recognized my love of writing and enthusiastically encouraged me to nurture it: Mrs. Kaufman, who gave me an A+++ on a story about a girl saved from drowning by her trusty dog; Mrs. Lewis, who led the class in a round of applause when I got a five on the big state writing test; Mrs. Van Dyke, who taught me to never drop the baby; and Ms. Williams, who got special permission for me to go write novels in the computer lab each period after I went through all the creative writing courses my high school had to offer and registered for her class again anyway. Thank you all for your tireless work. It left a lasting impression on this student.

Additional thanks go to Kierstyn, who said the right thing at the right moment to get me pointed down the right path. To my early readers, Kenra, Camille, Danielle, and Jana: thank you so much for your ideas and your important feedback. To the makers and fellow fans of my favorite show, 12 Monkeys: thanks for being a source of positive energy and inspiration and for teaching me that the right ending is the one you choose. And to my fellow debut authors of the Novel Nineteens: I am continually grateful for your camaraderie and support. I’m so proud to be numbered among such an extraordinary group of writers. Thanks to Billelis for bringing this beautiful cover to magical life. Laura Sebastian, Rebecca Ross, and Sarah Holland: I’ll probably cry every time I re-read your kind words for the rest of forever. Thank you, times a million.

And lastly, to my little family . . . Jamison: your incisive mind and encyclopedic memory remind me to keep thinking deeper and building higher. Lincoln: your boundless enthusiasm and devilish charm keep me on my toes and ready for the next adventure. It’s because of you both that I know exactly what lengths a mother will go to for her kids (but I’d rather not jump off a tower if I don’t HAVE to—just saying).

And to my BFF, Keaton: thank you for the endless witticisms and word games and inside jokes and being proof that young love can last. Thanks for keeping me laughing and caffeinated and motivated to carry on writing even when it was hard and I wanted to give up. I don’t know where I’d be without you, but it probably would have 100 percent less terrible puns, and that would not be okay.

I love you all. Thank you, again, for taking this journey with me.