The River House (37 page)

A sudden huge gratitude washes through me. I open the biscuit tin, and find my purse and tip out all my money. The mist has
lifted and the land has changed. But I know I can live here.

I
AM DEEPLY GRATEFUL
to Judy Clain, my editor at Little, Brown, for her wonderfully wise and perceptive response to my writing, and to my marvelous
agent, Kathleen Anderson, for her empathy and dynamism. Molly Messick has been a constant source of support. Brian Hook very
generously enlightened me about the workings of the Metropolitan Police—any errors are, of course, mine alone. My thanks also
to Lucy Floyd and Vicki Tippet for contributing contacts and insights; and, as always, to Mick, Becky, and Isabel for their
love and understanding.

In researching this story, I found these books especially valuable:
Men Who Batter Women
, by Adam Edward Jukes;
A Celtic Miscellany: Translations from the Celtic Literatures
, by Kenneth Hurlstone Jackson; and Peter Ackroyd’s
London: The Biography
.

M
ARGARET
L
EROY STUDIED MUSIC
at Oxford and has worked as a music therapist, play leader, and social worker. Her books have been published in nine languages,
and her novel
Trust
has been televised in the UK. Her novel
Postcards from Berlin
was published by Little, Brown in 2003. She is married with two daughters and lives in London.

ACCLAIM FOR MARGARET LEROY’S

POSTCARDS FROM BERLIN

“Written with a wonderfully convincing authority. … Leroy succeeded in making me care about the characters. … I dreaded the
worst and hoped for the best—and I won’t tell you which takes place.”

– MARGOT LIVESEY,
New York Times

“A harrowing new novel about a modern mother whose love for her daughter is turned against her in a nightmarish turn of events.
… The novel reads like a thriller and is brilliant at portraying the slow, steady disintegration of a seemingly ordinary life
when secrets are unearthed and dark suspicions spread.”

– MICHAEL SHELDEN,
Baltimore Sun

“As in the best thrillers, moments of doubt creep in. We know that Catriona is just like us, an innocent caught in a horrible
spiral not of her own making. Or do we?”

– WENDY FAWTHROP,
Seattle Times

“Absorbing. … Written with the intense pace of a thriller and the brooding concealment of a mystery novel,
Postcards
is ultimately the story of a mother’s over-intense love for her child.”

– ANDREA HOAG,
Minneapolis Star Tribune