The Searcher

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I owe huge thanks to Darley Anderson, the most magnificent agent I can imagine, and everyone at the agency, especially Rosanna, Georgia, Mary, Kristina, and Rebeka; my amazing editors, Andrea Schulz and Katy Loftus, who in the middle of a pandemic somehow found the time, focus, and patience to make this book so much better; the wonderful Ben Petrone, Nidhi Pugalia, and everyone at Viking US; the extremely skillful and extremely sound Olivia Mead, Anna Ridley, Georgia Taylor, Ellie Hudson, and everyone at Viking UK; Susanne Halbleib and everyone at Fischer Verlage; Steve Fisher of APA; Jessica Ryan, for being my North Carolina dictionary (any mistakes are mine); Bairbre Ní Chaoimh, for filling in the gaps in my rusty Irish (ditto); Fearghas Ó Cochláin, for making sure I kill people off accurately; Ciara Considine, Clare Ferraro, and Sue Fletcher, who set all this in motion; Kristina Johansen, Alex French, Susan Collins, Noni Stapleton, Paul and Anna Nugent, Oonagh Montague, and Karen Gillece, for the usual priceless combination of laughs, talks, support, creativity, and all the other essentials; David Ryan, clinically proven to cure gout, improve broadband speed, reduce hangovers, and eliminate aphids; my mother, Elena Lombardi; my father, David French; and, as always, the finest man I know and the one I’d pick to be stuck in lockdown with any day, my husband, Anthony Breatnach.