I must also acknowledge a huge debt to my wife Charmaine. She edits my manuscripts — often nightly as I’m writing — and suggests improvements. But on this occasion it was she, as we discussed how the ‘dark heart’ could be symbolized most effectively, who came up with the idea of the black pearls, and with that one flash of inspiration changed the nature of the book. I must also thank my brother Simon, who became editorial backstop after Charmaine on an almost daily basis. And also George Johnston, my uncle, who is tireless in his efforts to make my books better, as is Kendall Stanley, one of my oldest and dearest friends.
Beyond all this research and advice, everything from the Ghost Orchids to the Shaldag FPBs, the ill-fated corvette (whose ailments are all well-documented ‘teething problems’ of the breed), the mighty Zubr hovercraft and coltan, came from the Internet; a huge amount from the maligned but absolutely invaluable Wikipedia.
Peter Tonkin, Tunbridge Wells
and Sharm el-Sheikh, Summer 2011