The Witch of Tin Mountain(97)

Many thanks to the marvelous Melissa Valentine, who took me under her wing after Jodi’s departure, and reassured me that this book would receive her enthusiastic support and guidance. I look forward to seeing what we might create together in the future! Special thanks as well to Danielle Marshall, who managed the production of this novel in the interim period between editors and patiently addressed all my questions and concerns.

To the Lake Union author relations and production teams, especially Gabe Dumpit and Jen Bentham, bringing a book to the world is a team effort, and you all make me look good while enduring my incorrect comma usage and emails about pesky internet pirates! Thanks as well to the copyeditor, Kristin Carlsen; the proofreader, Valerie Paquin; and the cover designer, Amanda Hudson, for the gorgeous cover art.

Thanks as always to my steadfast critique partner, Thuy Nguyen, and her unflagging confidence in my abilities. I wouldn’t be able to draft a darn thing if I didn’t know you were on the other side of the internet, patiently waiting for my pages. We’re a dream team, and together, we persevere.

To Maria Tureaud, who reviewed this manuscript and critiqued it with her characteristic honesty and humor. You are matchless. Thanks for shoring up my decisions concerning complex villains and making them even more . . . appealing. wicked cackle

I had a brilliant group of beta readers, including Megan Van Dyke, S. Kaeth, and Alex Gotay. Thank you all for taking the time to read this manuscript in its early stages. You’ll see many of your recommendations reflected in the finished work. Megan and Alex, special love and thanks for commiserating with me over weird southern colloquialisms, the tendency to use an abundance of superfluous words to convey a simple thought, and the strange naming conventions of our kinfolk. Also, cicadas. A book can’t be set anywhere in the South without cicadas.

To my WiM family: You held me up during a very difficult year. Your cards and letters brought smiles and tears, and I can’t thank you enough for the gift of your friendship. I love you all.

Special thanks to Jeni Chappelle and the #RevPit editors for continuing to nurture writers and to educate them about the publishing industry and writing craft. You elevate us.

To my “APub debut” family: Jennifer Bardsley, Mansi Shah, Elissa Grossell Dickey, Kate Myles, Eden Appiah-Kubi, and Sara Goodman Confino—thanks for all the support, advice, and encouragement during our debut year and onward. I love you all so much! I hope to meet over a bucket of champagne someday soon. Thanks also to the 2021 Debuts group on Facebook. Wishing you all much success and longevity in art as well as in life.

Thanks to friends and authors Libbie Grant, Aimie K. Runyan Piper Huguley, Jane Healey, and Kris Waldherr, as well as Hester Fox, Lydia Kang, Dawn Kurtagich, Kim Taylor Blakemore, Stacie Murphy, Nicole Eigener, Elle Marr, Barbara Davis, Rachel McMillan, Georgina Cross, Clarissa Harwood, Jessica Lewis, Laura McHugh, Jo Kaplan, Olesya Salnikova Gilmore, Alyssa Palombo, Megan Chance, and Elizabeth Blackwell—all tremendously talented authors who have demonstrated a willingness to give of their time, support, and knowledge. You exemplify humility and gratitude in action. I’ll be happily paying your kindness forward for the rest of my career.

A wealth of gratitude to my street team: Desirée Niccoli, Amalie Frederiksen, Harlequin and Astrid Grim (who also reviewed this manuscript for Swedish authenticity), Megan Van Dyke, T. C. Kemper, Ashley McAnelly, J. M. Jinks, R. Singer, Shyla Shank, Alex Gotay, Gabby Barone, Jolie Christine, Pamela Hernandez, Erin Litteken, Thuy Nguyen, Maria Tureaud (your ongoing support is my linchpin!), and Belinda Grant. You shouted Parting the Veil into the ether and, therefore, were a huge part of the success that paved my path as a writer.

Most of all, a huge thank you to every reader, reviewer, blogger, bookstagram influencer, and podcast host who read and reviewed my debut and expressed their excitement for this book as well as any others I might write in the future. From the moment of publication, my words belong to you.

And finally, to my family:

Mom, this season of uncertainty has brought us closer than ever. Your bravery, your strength, and your will to survive in the face of astonishing odds has been a beautiful thing to witness. This is a book about home, and you have always shown me what that word truly means. I hope you can see your reflection in the words and relationships herein. I love you.

Dad, this book wouldn’t ever have existed without your scary stories and tall tales. Perhaps a few of those stories were inappropriate for little ears, but all the same, I’m grateful to you for my lifelong interest in the paranormal and the weird. You were always a little bit quirky and a whole lot of fun. I miss you every single day.

Lula, you’ll never know just how much all those frozen toffee lattes helped my mental health over the past few months. Truly. Sisterly love is played out in the little things.

Avery, you are my sunshine. The reason behind everything I do. Your enthusiastic quoting of uncomfortable animal facts helped me to smile and carry on when I felt like crying from overwhelm. Your humor and wit are a gift to this world. You are a gift. Don’t ever doubt it.

Ryan, I don’t know where to begin. There’s nothing I could ever say to convey the depths of my gratitude for being the kind of partner who quietly supports me in every way, and who asks “What can I do to help?” without hesitation. You are the Carl Dean to my Dolly. I love you, I love you, I love you. Thank you for being you.





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