APPROBATIONS & REPUDIATIONS First of all, thank you to my best belovèd, Danellyn, for continuing to support my writerly aspirations even after finding out that self-publishing doesn’t pay big bucks and he probably won’t get to retire early. I remain indebted to my Alpha Readers: Whitney Vendt, Logan Rose, Bryan Wilkerson, Royce Shockley, Kim Ellis, Danellyn, and Dad (thanks for saying you actually liked it!); to my Beta Readers; and to the members of my Writing Group past and present for being a constant bright spot in These Benighted Times. Thanks to Jeannette Spohn for copyediting services rendered. Thank you to my eagle-eyed proofreaders Madison, Logan, Sayre, and Caitlin for helping me catch every wayward typo and misspelling. Once again, thank you to Joey Peebles and Ben Stone for

