Home
Page 38
Acknowledgements
It is no small miracle that this book has landed in your hands and I truly hope you have enjoyed it, perhaps been moved at times, and maybe even picked up the phone and called your best friend to tell them they are loved.
I wrote Home, for the most part, during 2020: the strangest and most challenging of times to attempt creativity. Without some very wonderful doctors – chiefly the fabulous Arnold – there is every chance this book wouldn’t even have been finished. And whilst we can never fully express our gratitude to the healthcare workers who continue to go the extra mile, for all of us, I nevertheless want to say a huge thank you to each and every one of you out there.
Likewise, to my amazing publishing team at S&S – an enormous vote of thanks and appreciation for your kindness, your insightfulness, and your hard work, not to mention your patience! I truly wish we could have credits rolling now, as they do in the movies, to acknowledge all the effort that goes on behind this glossy cover, but to Clare, to Sara-Jade, to Alice – my utmost appreciation for trusting in this new concept and supporting me all the way.
To Jess and Sarah, my deepest gratitude for always spreading the word and the book love.
To Laura and Jenny and Pip – thank you for polishing and creating and bringing the whole manuscript together, wrapped up in this gorgeous cover.
And then, to so many of the team whose work is so crucial in bringing a book out into the world – to Francesca and Gail, Rich, Maddie and Joe, and to Dom and Rachel – yet more thank yous to all of you for your help and your support.
Appreciation and thank yous, of course, are also due to Cathryn and Jess and the rest of the Curtis Brown team – it’s been no small thing to shepherd this book, my fifth novel, out into the world, not least during the most difficult of years. Here’s to brighter days ahead.
And there is another person who deserves a cheer and a special mention – and who will probably be bashful about the vital role she played in bringing such resonance and empathy to this book – Nicki, I could not have done this story justice without your time, your insights and your experience. Thank you!
I have always felt that, once a book leaves the author’s hands, it becomes something other – released with trust (and not a small amount of faith) to readers, bloggers, reviewers and booksellers out in the big wide world… I am incredibly grateful for each and every one of you. Your enthusiasm and support are truly invaluable. Please never forget how important you are: each thoughtful review, or rating, or hand sale makes all the difference in this industry. Not least to the author behind the words, holding their breath and hoping.
And now lastly – because such is the way of these things – yet always, of course, first in my mind, let me say one last huge and heartfelt thank you to my family and my friends, for putting up with the crazy rollercoaster ride with this book over the last year or so. To Sam, Rosie and Bertie – you are my world. To Emma and Emma – always. To Milly, Bernie and Jane for wisdom, advice and laughter. And to the wonderful AJ, Katie, Kate and Caroline for being there, even when we couldn’t actually be anywhere.
P xx
About the Author
Penny Parkes survived a convent education largely thanks to a ready supply of inappropriate novels and her passion for writing and languages.
She studied International Management in Bath and Germany, before gaining experience with the BBC. She then set up an independent film location agency and spent many happy years organising shoots for film, television and advertising – thereby ensuring that she was never short of travel opportunities, freelance writing projects or entertaining anecdotes.
Penny now lives in the Cotswolds with her husband, two children and an excitable dog with a fondness for Post-its. She will often be found plotting epic train journeys through the Alps, baking gluten-free goodies or attempting to reach an elusive state of organisation.
In 2017, Penny won the RNA Romantic Comedy Novel of the Year Award. This is her fifth novel.
Follow Penny on Twitter and Instagram: @CotswoldPenny
www.SimonandSchuster.co.uk/Authors/Penny-Parkes
ALSO BY PENNY PARKES
Out of Practice
Practice Makes Perfect
Best Practice
Snowed in at The Practice
eBook only:
Swept Away (eBook short story)
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First published in Great Britain by Simon & Schuster UK Ltd, 2021
Copyright © Wibble Creative Ltd, 2021
The right of Penny Parkes to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.
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A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Hardback ISBN: 978-1-4711-8016-3
eBook ISBN: 978-1-4711-8017-0
Audio ISBN: 978-1-4711-8194-8
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.