And the Hollow Men raised their arms to him and welcomed him into their number.
Acknowledgments
This book could not have been written without the patience and kindness of a great many people who gave me the benefit of their knowledge and experience without a murmur of complaint. I am particularly grateful to Dr. Larry Ricci, Director of the Spurwink Child Abuse Program in Portland, Maine; Vickie Jacobs Fisher of the Maine Committee to Prevent Child Abuse; and Stephen Herman, M.D., forensic psychiatrist and fountain pen aficionado, of New York City. Without the assistance of these three most generous of souls, this would be a much poorer book, if it existed at all.
The following individuals also provided valuable information at crucial moments in the writing of the novel, and to them I am very gratefuclass="underline" Matt Mayberry (real estate); Tom Hyland (Vietnam and matters military); Philip Isaacson (matters of law); Vladimir Doudka and Mark Dunne (matters Russian); and Luis Urrea, my fellow, infinitely more gifted, author, who kindly corrected my very poor attempts at Spanish. Officer Joe Giacomantonio of the Scarborough Police Department was, once again, decent enough to answer my questions about matters of procedure. Finally, Ms. Jeanette Holden, of the Jackman Moose River Valley Historical Society, provided me with great material and an afternoon of good company. I am also indebted to the Jackman Chamber of Commerce for its assistance, and the help of the staff at the research library of the Maine Historical Society in Portland. As always, the mistakes that undoubtedly crept through are all my own.
A number of books and articles proved particularly useful for research purposes, including The Yard by Michael S. Sanders (Perennial, 1999); History of the Moose River Valley (The Jackman Moose River Valley Historical Society, 1994); and “Arnold’s Expedition up the Kennebec to Quebec in 1775” by H. N. Fairbanks (archive of the Maine Historical Society); South Portland: A Nostalgic Look At Our Neighborhood Stores, by Kathryn Onos Di Phillipo (Barren Hill Books, 2006); and the Portland Phoenix’s award-winning reporting on the use of the “choir” in the Maine Supermax facility, particularly “Torture in Maine’s Prison” by Lance Tapley (Nov. 11, 2005).
On a personal note, I remain immensely fortunate in my editors, Sue Fletcher at Hodder and Stoughton, and Emily Bestler at Atria Books, who have the patience of saints and the skills of literary surgeons. Thanks also to Jamie Hodder-Williams, Martin Neild, Lucy Hale, Kerry Hood, Swati Gamble, Auriol Bishop, Toni Lance, and all at Hodder and Stoughton; and to Judith Curr, Louise Burke, David Brown, Sarah Branham, Laura Stern, and everyone at Atria. My agent, Darley Anderson, remains a rock of common sense and friendship, and to him and to Emma, Lucie, Elizabeth, Julia, Rosi, Ella, Emma, and Zoe, I am indebted for my career. Finally, to Jennie, Cam, and Alistair, thanks for putting up with me.
Finally, a word on Dave “the Guesser” Glovsky. Dave really did exist, and he did ply his trade at Old Orchard Beach, although it is my fervent hope that he never encountered a man like Frank Merrick. At one point, I had considered including a thinly disguised version of the Guesser in this novel, but that seemed unfair on this most unusual of men, so he appears as himself, and should any of his relatives encounter him in these pages, I hope that they will recognize it as the tribute to him that it is meant to be.
John Connolly, January 2007
