The International Kissing Club (54 page)

While writing this book was the most fun we’ve ever had in front of a keyboard, it was still a lot of work and there are a lot of people who helped make it what it is today.

First and foremost, our fantastic agents, Jessica Faust and Emily Sylvan Kim, who saw the potential as soon as we mentioned the fateful words, “International Kissing Club.” It’s been a long road and you have been wonderful. We couldn’t have done this without you, so thank you, thank you, thank you.

To the people at Walker Books, who gave us a chance to tell the story we wanted to tell—and also gave us the perfect cover—and especially to our fabulous editor, Stacy Cantor Abrams, whose vision for the book, infinite patience, fun-loving spirit, and attention to detail have somehow managed to make the ramblings of three very different writers into one coherent story. We’re sure at times it was like herding cats, and we appreciate you more than you will ever know. Thanks for sticking with us!

To Sherry Thomas, for throwing the delicious dumpling party where the idea for
The International Kissing Club
was born (and for all those mornings you spent at la Madeleine, feeding us a steady stream of gossip and fashion news, when we were supposed to be working).

To our husbands and children, who put up with late dinners, no
dinners, and bad dinners (not to mention dirty socks) as we struggled to give Piper, Cassidy, Izzy, and Mei their voices.

To the random teenagers we chased through Austin, Texas, with our cell phone cameras as we tried to get our vision—and our characters—just right.

To our beta readers: Abby, Rebekah, and Dakota.

And finally, to each other, because how else could we have had this much fun and learned this much about collaboration, friendship, and lip gloss?

Also by the Author

Ivy is the pseudonym for three friends and writing partners: Emily McKay, Shellee Roberts, and Tracy Deebs. Though
The International Kissing Club
is their first novel together, they have written more than thirty novels between them. They shop, gossip, and watch movies in Austin, Texas.

www.internationalkissingclub.com

Copyright © 2012 by Ivy Adams

All rights reserved. You may not copy, distribute, transmit, reproduce or otherwisemake available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means(including without limitation electronic, digital, optical, mechanical,photocopying,printing, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of thepublisher. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publicationmay be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

First published in the United States of America in January 2012 by Walker Publishing Company, Inc., a division of Bloomsbury Publishing, Inc.

Electronic edition published in January 2012

www.bloomsburyteens.com

For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to Permissions, Walker BFYR, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10010

Photograph credits: “Cassidy” © iStockphoto/Knape, “Piper” © iStockphoto/Lauri Stone, “Mei” © Shutterstock/Layland Masuda, “Izzy” © iStockphoto/Tom Fullum; author photograph © Sherry Thomas

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Adams, Ivy.

The International Kissing Club / by Ivy Adams.

p.        cm.

Summary: Best friends Piper, Mei, Izzy, and Cassidy of Paris, Texas, spend a semester studying abroad and track their romantic escapades on a Facebook fan page.

ISBN 978 0 8027 2324 6 (ebook)

[1. Foreign study—Fiction. 2. High schools—Fiction. 3. Schools—Fiction. 4. Dating

(Social customs)—Fiction. 5. Facebook (Electronic resource)—Fiction.

6. Online social networks—Fiction.] I. Title.

PZ7.A2146Int 2012     [Fic]—dc22     2011005225