The Sinner by Emma Scott
Acknowledgments
A huge thank you to my Gal Friday, Melissa Panio-Petersen, still retaining her title as Most Thoughtful Person Ever. I thought of you many times as Lucy came to life on the page. She has a lot of your kindness and generous heart. Love you.
To my amazing husband, Bill, my partner in all things, who saw this book when it was a spark of an idea and wouldn’t let me blow it out. Thank you, my love, for everything you put into it and everything you give to me every day as we journey through this lifetime together. All my love.
To my beta reader, Marissa D’Onofrio. You slogged through a version of this book that was a pale shadow of its true self, but your sweet encouragement and love for the rough collection of words helped see me through to the end. Thank you.
To Lori Jackson for hitting it out of the park in one try (and reminding me with your artistry why I’m an author and not a graphic designer). Thank you for bringing my sweet Casziel, in all his winged glory, to life.
To Mary Ann Martinez. Thank you for bringing Cole’s drawings of Lucy to life and for sharing your incredible talent with me and this book.
To Nina and her team at Valentine PR. Thank you for sticking with me through the hard times, for granting me the space when I needed it, and for being there for me when I was ready. Love you!
To Teresa Reif. Your love and friendship through my hardest moments is really astonishing to me. Thank you for standing in the heart of my worst storms and holding my hand through them until they passed. All my love.
A very special thanks to James Barrett Morison and his Tumblr blog on the Sumerian language. Without this valuable resource, I wouldn’t have been able to give Casziel his voice. (Although all mistakes and liberties taken are mine.)
Every demon in this book is “real” thanks to Theresa Bane and her Encyclopedia of Demons, from which I was able to cast this motley crew of infernal bad boys and girls. I’m grateful not only for her extensive research into the underworld, but for every new or crazy idea for the book that came with it.
To the members of the Entourage. I cannot convey how many times you give me the strength, love, and energy to keep going when I feel like I can’t. I get so tired of posting about my hard times, not wanting to let you all down, and every single time you share your love with me and lift me right back up. Thank you for that. It means more than I can say.
And to Robin Hill. You truly never fail to amaze me with your generosity and friendship that I cherish so much. The time you give me, and the love and support, feel like a bottomless well. But I never want to take for granted all you do. You touch my heart every day. Love you.
And to the readers, bloggers, and members of this romance community. This book is for you. It’s my entire heart on the page, it’s my journey with Izzy, it’s what grief can look like in dark moments, it’s my father’s despair and ultimate peace. It’s me being as authentic as I can for you. Because you deserve no less. But it’s also for us,the romance lovers who constantly find our genre maligned and belittled. Time and again, we are called to defend books that celebrate love in all its forms, and that, to me, is just plain crazy. This book is a testament to what I’ve survived and continue to survive, but it’s also every bit my thank you to this romance community that has lifted me up time and again and who doesn’t need to defend a thing. We know that the most powerful experiences in life are told in this genre better than any other.
And that love always wins.