Scarlet

Acknowledgments

It’s amazing how many people it takes to bring a book into the world, and this one is no exception.

First and foremost, I want to thank my four spectacular beta readers for their brilliance, patience, enthusiasm, and all-around awesomeness: Jennifer Johnson, Tamara Felsinger, Meghan Stone-Burgess, and Whitney Faulconer, you make me a better writer.

To my wonderfully supportive editor, Liz Szabla, and everyone at Feiwel and Friends, thank you for making each step of this journey so much fun. Rich Deas, Jean Feiwel, Elizabeth Fithian, Lizzie Mason, Anna Roberto, Allison Verost, Holly West, Ksenia Winnicki, Jon Yaged, and countless others who have had an impact on these books, you are rock stars and I am so proud to be a part of your publishing family.

To my agency team, Jill Grinberg, Cheryl Pientka, and Katelyn Detweiler, who have worked relentlessly to get these books into the hands of readers all over the world, thank you for continuously making me feel like the luckiest author on the planet.

I’d like to give special thanks to my editor at Pocket Jeunesse in France, Xavier D’Almeida, who agreed to look at an early draft and check for authentic setting details, helped choose the perfect location for Benoit Farms, and also saved me from poisoning the poor chickens, thank heavens.

To my 2012 debut kindred spirits, the Apocalypsies, and particularly, my local writing group: J. Anderson Coats, Megan Bostic, Marissa Burt, Daniel Marks, and Jennifer Shaw Wolf, thanks for making this year rock. I look forward to watching your writing careers flourish for many years to come.

I give all the gratitude in the world to my friends and family who have been with me every step of the way, to my brother, Jeff, for loaning me all those books on spaceships, and to my wonderful husband, Jesse—one year into our happily ever after and counting.

And last, but never least, I heartily thank all the readers, teachers, booksellers, librarians, reviewers, and bloggers who keep the love alive.