This series also wouldn’t exist without the constant guidance and support of ?Team Shannon! (Shhhh—they don’t know I call them that!)
Laura Rennert, can you believe this is our sixth book together? I’m running out of clever ways to thank you! So I’ll just hand you some tea and say, “Here’s hoping for many more books to come!” I also must thank everyone at Andrea Brown Literary, as well as Taryn Fagerness, for spreading the Keeper love worldwide. And to my foreign publishers, thank you for everything you do to share these stories with your readers.
Liesa Abrams, this is our sixth book together too. Somehow, I keep winning the editor lottery! Thank you for your constant, tireless energy and for helping me mold this story into the book it needed to be. sends you all the gluten-free cupcakes and cookies I also want to thank everyone at Simon & Schuster for the love they show this series, especially Mara Anastas, Mary Marotta, Katherine Devendorf, Emma Sector, Carolyn Swerdloff, Teresa Ronquillo, Jennifer Romanello, Ksenia Winnicki, Lucille Rettino, Michelle Leo, Anthony Parisi, Betsy Bloom, Matt Pantoliano, Amy Bartram, Mike Rosamilia, and the entire sales team. Plus an enormous THANK YOU to Karin Paprocki, for continuing to outdo herself with my covers, and to Jason Chan, for his jaw-droppingly gorgeous artwork.
Thank you, Sara McClung, for stepping in with a sanity-saving (and game-changing!) brainstorming session when I needed it most. I could never write a Keeper book without you. Tremendous thanks also go to Victoria Morris, for being the voice of encouragement and reason that guided me through the final push. And thanks to Kari Olson, for being the one I go to with All The Questions (even if your answers often unhelpfully involve Keefe and kissing).
Special thanks also go to Amélie Mantchev, Barbara Sutherland, and Kerry Sutherland, for being my incredible fact-checkers and helping make sure I’m keeping my details straight. Now I can blame you guys if there are any mistakes. (I kid, I kid!) You guys rock!
I also have no idea what I’d do without the amazing authors I turn to for advice, motivation, commiseration—whatever I need to survive this hectic business. Thank you, Erin Bowman, Zac Brewer, MG Buerhlen, Lisa Cannon, Christa Desir, Debra Driza, Nikki Katz, Lisa Mantchev, Ellen Oh, Andrea Ortega, Cindy Pon, CJ Redwine, James Riley, Amy Tintera, Kasie West, Natalie Whipple, and Sarah Wylie. I’m probably forgetting some of you—hazards of deadline brain—so if I have, know that I’ll forever kick myself for leaving you out!
And I will seriously never be able to properly thank the many teachers, librarians, bloggers, and booksellers who’ve helped this series grow, especially Mel Barnes, Alyson Beecher, Katie Bartow, Lynette Dodds, Maryelizabeth Hart, Faith Hochhalter, Heather Laird, Katie Laird, Kim Laird, Barbara Mena, Brandi Stewart, Kristin Trevino, Andrea Vuleta, and so many others. I could add another hundred pages if I tried to thank you all—and my publisher would probably strangle me—so if you’re not mentioned, please know I adore you and am forever grateful.
To my parents, thank you for your never-ending support, for your determination to get Keeper in the hands of every single kid and for the steady supply of home-cooked food during the crazed deadline days when the mere thought of more take-out made me want to hide.
And, saving the best for last, I absolutely must thank my husband, Miles, who truly makes all of this possible. I’m sure it’s not easy being married to someone who spends so much of their day living in an imaginary world. Thank you for always giving me a reason to come back to reality.