She's Not There (37 page)

Y
ou'd think I'd get tired of saying the same thing. But I don't.

As always, a huge debt of gratitude to my great friends Larry Mirkin and Beverley Slopen, who read early drafts of all my manuscripts and offer their comments and insights, most of which make it into the final product in one way or another. I also want to thank my husband, Warren, and my daughter, Shannon, for their help in this regard. It's never easy to accept criticism from one's family, but either I'm getting mellower or they're getting better at it. At any rate, I took their comments into account and this novel is the better for it. Thanks also to my wonderful agent, Tracy Fisher, with WME Entertainment, who has been a tireless and brilliant supporter, as well as a good and reliable critic, and to her former assistant James Munro and her current one, Alli Dyer, for all their hard work on my behalf. Then there's my terrific editor, Linda Marrow, who is able to look at the material I submit and pinpoint the exact areas requiring special attention. Just as important, she's able to tell me why. A nod also to Dana Isaacson for his careful attention to detail and suggested line edits, as well as to Elana Seplow-Jolley for her patience and hard work. And to Steve Messina, the production editor, for doing such a great job.

To Lindsey Kennedy and Allison Schuster, who work in publicity and marketing—thank you for all your efforts in getting my book out there. And to Scott Biel for his wonderful cover design. You're amazing.

A special thank-you to all the people at Penguin Random House in Canada, although I really wish the newly merged company had chosen the name Random Penguin, simply because it's such a wonderful image. To Brad Martin, Kristin Cochrane, Adria Iwasutiak, Val Gow, Constance McKenzie, Martha Leonard, Amy Black, Erin Kelly, and everyone else involved in the publishing of my books, thank you for your continuing support and hard work. You had a vision for making my novels a success and it worked, and for that I'm beyond grateful. I'm also grateful to Nita Pronovost. Even though she is no longer with PRH, I felt her hand guiding mine as I pruned and trimmed the manuscript, ridding the prose of unnecessary clutter and repetition. I wish her all the best in her new position.

Heartfelt thanks to Corinne Assayag at World Exposure, the company she founded while putting herself through law school, and which grew to be such a success that she never got around to practicing law. She recently redesigned my website (
joyfielding.com
) to make it a more interactive and state-of-the-art experience, and I think she succeeded brilliantly. Let me know if you agree.

Again, my thanks to my various publishers around the world and their wonderful translators. Please keep doing what you've been doing all these years. However my words are being refigured and expressed, it's obviously working.

A special shout-out to Helga Mahmoud-Trainer in Germany, as well as an admonishment to stay well.

To my publishers who've only recently joined the fold, welcome aboard. I hope you'll enjoy the ride.

Thank you to Annie, Courtney, Renee, and Aurora for all the love and help you give me on a daily basis. I love you, too. And to my beautiful grandchildren, to whom I've dedicated this book, I wish for you the happiness in your lives that you've given me in mine. You're the best.

These acknowledgments would be incomplete without mentioning my very own long-deceased grandmother Mary, my father's mother and as miserable a woman as ever walked this earth. She was the inspiration for Grandma Mary, and while this novel is unquestionably a work of fiction, many of the quotes attributed to her came straight from her mouth. There are times, as Caroline observes, when “you can't make this stuff up.”

She's Not There

Someone Is Watching

Shadow Creek

Now You See Her

The Wild Zone

Still Life

Charley's Web

Heartstopper

Mad River Road

Puppet

Lost

Whispers and Lies

Grand Avenue

The First Time

Missing Pieces

Don't Cry Now

Tell Me No Secrets

See Jane Run

Good Intentions

The Deep End

Life Penalty

The Other Woman

Kiss Mommy Goodbye

Trance

The Transformation

The Best of Friends

Home Invasion
—a special project designed to encourage adult literacy

J
OY
F
IELDING
is the
New York Times
bestselling author of
Someone Is Watching, Now You See Her, Still Life, Mad River Road, See Jane Run,
and other acclaimed novels. She divides her time between Toronto and Palm Beach, Florida.

JoyFielding.com

@JoyFielding