THIS STORY AND book have taught me so much about myself as a writer, as an artist, and as a person. I am proud of the final product, but I am just as proud of pursuing that final product in incredibly difficult times. Thank you to everyone who supported this second-book journey and the evolution of this series now known as the Legendborn Cycle.

Thank you, eternally, to my parents. I hear you more clearly every day. I miss you both and I know you’re watching and cheering.

Gratitude always to the ancestors who laid the path for me to travel.

To the readers: whether you are on your second (third, or fourth!?) reread or you are just joining the Legendborn world, thank you for your support and love for these characters. They love you right back.

I will run out of pages if I try to capture all of the gratitude and appreciation I have for my agent, Joanna Volpe. Jo, your massive support and advocacy for my books is incredible, affirming, unwavering. But throughout this process, you never let me forget that I am a creative human being worthy of support and advocacy, as well… and that impact is impossible to measure. Thank you times everything, raised to infinity.

Endless thanks to my editor, Kendra Levin, who always dives into the Legendborn world ready to tackle it in every direction. Our calls are story structure and magic, emotional arcs and romance, and everything in between. Thank you so much for all you have done for me as an author, for the series, by always asking the absolute best questions.

Huge thanks to Laura Eckes and Hillary Wilson for returning to make a wonderful cover and tackling our boy Selwyn for the first time. His hair is perfection.

Enduring thanks to everyone at Simon & Schuster, and especially the teams at Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers and Margaret K. McElderry Books. In particular, I am thankful for these folks for working so hard to get this book and series into the hands of readers: Justin Chanda, Anne Zafian, Jenica Nasworthy, Kaitlyn San Miguel, Kathleen Smith, Olivia Ritchie, Chel Morgan, Emma Saska, Hilary Zarycky, Elizabeth Blake-Linn, Caitlin Sweeny, Alissa Nigro, Ashley Mitchell, Emily Ritter, Michelle Leo, Nicole Benevento, Amy Beaudoin, and the education and library team. Special thanks to Tara Shanahan, Morgan Maple, Nicole Russo, and the publicity team. Thanks also to Lauren Carr.

Thank you also to the team at New Leaf Literary & Media who have supported my work, including but not limited to: Jenniea Carter, Abigail Donoghue, Jordan Hill, Veronica Grijalva, Victoria Hendersen, Pouya Shahbazian, Katherine Curtis, Hilary Pecheone, and Eileen Lalley.

Special thanks to additional folks in the industry and in the “Team Legendborn” community: Andrea Barzvi, Cassie Malmo, and Liesa Abrams.