Sirens (41 page)

Jen Bonnell, my amazing editor, you have done it again: pared my prose, focused my rambling, and helped me find the right words to build a world. It has been a true pleasure to work with you.

The luckiest day of my life was the day I met my agent, Alyssa Eisner Henkin. You are not only my agent but also my friend. Thank you always for your willingness to support me, to defend or console me, to instruct me. I love our wide-ranging chats but more importantly I value your guidance.

I have a new critique group here in Montana—how could I get so lucky again? You guys read the entire first draft of this novel (when it was huge, and all over the place) and you dissected it and advised me and set me on the true path. Sandra Brug, Kiri Jorgensen, Bailey Jorgensen, Maurene Hinds, and Linda Knox: you are all amazing
and talented and really, really,
really
smart. Thank you so much. We are missing one member of our group who also gave me great advice and insight: Elaine Alphin. We think of you all the time, Elaine. There’s a chair at the table waiting for you. And chocolate, too.

My friend Michele Corriel read an early draft of
Sirens
. Michele, you were right every step of the way (second person address—gone!), and I value your terrific feedback.

I am enormously indebted to those in Speak/Puffin/Penguin who have supported me and believed in my work: Kristin Gilson, Eileen Kreit, Greg Stadnyk, Pat Shuldiner, and Nora M. Reichard.

Finally, to my sweet and ever-patient husband Jeff and my understanding and sometimes impatient but richly imaginative son Kevin (yes, you do have the best ideas): thank you both. You are willing to be my beta readers, willing to put up with my late nights, willing always to be there for me. How lucky can one girl get?

Sixteen-year-old Maggie Bennet’s life is in tatters. Her mother has disappeared and is presumed dead. The next thing she knows, her father has dragged Maggie away from their elegant Newport home, off on some mad excursion to Yellowstone in Montana. But when she arrives, she finds herself drawn to the frustratingly stubborn, handsome Tom Rowland, the son of a park geologist, and to the wild romantic beauty of Yellowstone itself. And as Tom and the promise of freedom capture Maggie’s heart, Maggie is forced to choose between who she is and who she wants to be.

“Fox combines mystery, romance, and a young girl’s coming-of-age in this satisfying historical tale.”

—
Booklist

“Yellowstone is lovingly and beautifully depicted…. Thrilling episodes sprinkled throughout will engage readers.”

—
School Library Journa
l

Kula Baker never expected to find herself on the streets of San Francisco, alone but for a letter of introduction. Kula soon finds herself swept up in a world of art and elegance—a world she hardly dared dream of back in Montana. And then there is the handsome David Wong, whose smiling eyes and soft-spoken manner have an uncanny way of breaking through Kula’s carefully crafted reserve. Yet when disaster strikes and the wreckage threatens all she holds dear, Kula realizes that only by unlocking her heart can she begin to carve a new future for herself.

“Absorbing, exciting, and romantic.”

—Nancy Werlin,
New York Times
bestselling author of
Impossible

“Kula’s story comes to a heartbreaking, bittersweet conclusion that will leave readers satisfied.”

—
School Library Journal