Chapter 1
To begin, although surely some readers have already noticed this, I took inspiration for this tale from Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Snow Queen,” a story that has stayed with me since I first read it as a child.
This book has taken me longer to write than any other work. Ten years. And so, of course, there are many people to thank.
First, I’d like to thank Sister Rita Woehlcke, who encouraged me to go and sit by the ocean for a while and allow my soul to heal after the suicide of my brother, Ronnie. It was there, in 2008, that the first glimmers of this book appeared. Sister Rita continues to be an anam cara if ever there was one.
Hat tip to Kate and Joe Zuhusky, who allowed us to rent their beautiful house by the sea time and time again. So much inspiration has come from that place. Ron and I feel you are family.
And a tip of the teacup to Paul W. Meyers for that story about the Korean sea slug. Just can’t make this stuff up. You and Debbie must come for dinner. Tell me more stories!
I would also like to thank early readers Maria DiBattista, Susan Applewhaite and John Foster for taking the time to give me their excellent feedback. Much appreciated.
Many a dark night of the soul has been part of the writing of this book, birthed as it was by the suicide of my brother, Ronnie. I would be remiss, indeed, if I didn’t offer love and thanks and deep respect to my parents, Bill and Carmen Seguin. Their ability to survive yet another loss and to keep their love intact has been a miracle in my life.
Also, I would like to thank Lily and Elliot Kraus, Lynne and Van Davis, Mary and Paul Gerard, Jill and Felix Aguayo, Angie Abdou, Michael Straw, Chantal Cartier, Bernard Applewhaite, Lynn Robinson and so many more friends for their patience, kindness, humour and understanding as I wrestled with this angel.
I bow to Natalee Caple for introducing me to Noelle Allen.
My agent, David Forrer, has been my constant champion and guide for a long time, and my affection for him only grows.
Most exuberantly, my gratitude to Noelle Allen, for giving this book a home at Wolsak & Wynn, and of course to my editor there, Paul Vermeersch, of the Buckrider imprint, who made the editing of this book such a unique pleasure. Paul, your gentle hand, your keen instincts, your humour and your knowledge of the craft have been a revelation. I hope we work together for a long time. A mighty hat tip to Kate Hargreaves for the wonderful cover design. I adore it! And finally, many thanks to Ashley Hisson, copy editor extraordinaire, who made sure my spelling mistakes and grammatical stumbles didn’t make it into the public arena. Whew.
