The Champagne Queen (The Century Trilogy Book 2) (44 page)

Acknowledgments

I owe a debt of gratitude to the outstanding German sommelier Natalie Lumpp, who put me in touch with a great many experts and who also took the trouble to proofread my novel. Any errors that still exist in these pages are mine alone.

My thanks also go to Alexandra Durin-Hepke from the Berlin champagne dealership Champagne&Compagnie. Without her advice, our trip to Champagne would certainly have been less fruitful. Alexandra was born in Reims, the capital of the region, and in the champagne field, she is an expert par excellence.

Perhaps you’re curious to know what becomes of Clara? Book 3 of my Century Trilogy will be appearing soon.

I wish you hours of reading pleasure.

About the Author

Photo © Privat

Petra Durst-Benning is one of Germany’s most successful and prominent authors. For more than fifteen years, her historical novels have been inviting readers to go adventuring with courageous female characters and experience their emotions for themselves. Her books and their television adaptations have enjoyed great international success. Petra Durst-Benning lives with her husband in Stuttgart.

About the Translator

Photo © 2012 Ronald Biallas

Australian-born and widely traveled, Edwin Miles has been working as a translator for fifteen years.

After studying in his hometown of Perth, Western Australia, Edwin completed an MFA in fiction writing at the University of Oregon in 1995. While there, he spent a year working as a fiction editor on the literary magazine
Northwest Review
. In 1996, he was shortlisted for the prestigious Australian/Vogel Award for young writers for a collection of short stories.

After many years living and working in Australia, Japan, and the United States, he currently resides in Cologne, Germany, with his wife, Dagmar, and two very clever children.