A couple of people made generous contributions to charities in exchange for the naming rights to some of my characters: Pamela Daut, who donated to California State University at Fullerton on behalf of her son, Peter Daut; and Deborah Yen Fecher, who contributed to the Center for Women and Enterprise on behalf of her son, Ryan Fecher.
I've come to consider my publisher, St. Martin's Press, my publishing family, and I'm grateful to everyone there for their constant support, from Paranoia on. Sally Richardson, president and publisher, has been the greatest cheerleader and advocate, as have Holtzbrinck CEO John Sargent; Matthew Shear, vice president and publisher of the paperback division; Matt Baldacci, VP and marketing director, editor in chief George Witte; and executive editor Jen Enderlin. And Publicity Director John Murphy, Alison Lazarus, Steve Kleckner, Merrill Bergenfeld, Jeff Capshew, Dori Weintraub, Andy LeCount, Brian Heller. Ken Holland, Tom Siino, Rob Renzler, Christina Harcar, Nancy Trypuc, Bob Williams, Anne Marie Tallberg, Sofrina Hinton, Ronni Stolzenberg, Esther Robinson, Steve Troha, Harriet Seltzer, Chris Holder, Craig Libman, and Gregory Gestner. At Audio Renaissance, publisher Mary Beth Roche and Laura Wilson. And the artists who come up with such great covers: Michael Storrings, Jerry Todd, and creative director Steve Snider.
I'm fortunate to have a couple of wonderful assistants: Sarah Blodgett, who runs my office and lets me write my books, and my web goddess, Ellen Clair Lamb.
My wife, Michele Souda, endured my long absences during the writing of this book with patience and constant encouragement. Our daughter, Emma, always knows how to cheer me up and restore my perspective. Special thanks to my brother Henry Finder, a brilliant editor, who gave generously of his limited time (since he does, after all, have a day job) and whose editorial advice I always value. Molly Friedrich is not just a terrific agent but also a trusted editor; her input on this book at a crucial point really got me back on track.
And what can I say about my editor, Keith Kahla, that I haven't said before? I lucked out, getting an editor like Keith. He really worked overtime on this book, completely transforming an early draft. There isn't an aspect of my publishing career that he doesn't care about. What success I've had in publishing I owe largely to him-for which I'm eternally grateful.
Joseph Finder
