Special shout-out to copy editor extraordinaire Anna Leuchtenberger. It is such a pleasure to work with you! Thank you for catching all of my crazy mixed metaphors and making me look so good!
To Merrilee Heifetz and the whole gang at Writers House, you are the cream of the crop. I’m so lucky to work with all of you—thank you for taking such incredible care of me and my little books.
I owe a huge debt to my amazing friends, all of whom gave me the confidence and feedback I needed to shape the characters and the direction of the story. Thank you to the inimitable Sarah J. Maas for reading the very first draft of this, back when it was a half-baked mess, and not only giving me the fix that saved the book, but, as always, requesting that there be more kissing. The brilliant Erin Bowman and Susan Dennard both gave me such wise advice about the beginning and helped me reshape it after months of frustration. Wendy Higgins, you are the crown jewel of ladies—thank you so much for reading an early draft of this book and for all of your support! Kevin Dua, I owe you big-time for reading this and giving it your thoughts. And, as always, many, many, many thanks to Anna Jarzab—not only for believing in me and this book, but for always being game to read, brainstorm, and help me untangle the time-travel paradoxes that seemed to pop up daily.
Finally, I’m overflowing with love and gratitude for my family. Not to get too cheesy with this, but I’d be nowhere without you guys. Mom, while you aren’t a ruthless time-traveling mama willing to do whatever’s necessary to guard the future, you are, in fact, my hero. Thank you for reading so many versions of this story and giving me your notes and feedback—this one’s for you!
ALEXANDRA BRACKEN is the New York Times best-selling author of the Darkest Minds series. Born and raised in Arizona, she moved east to study history and English at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. After working in publishing for several years, Alex now writes full-time and can be found hard at work on her next novel in a charming little apartment that’s perpetually overflowing with books. Visit her online at www.alexandrabracken.com and on Twitter @alexbracken
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