Bronwyn, when we got together I was battering away at an old computer at a tiny desk with no expectations while you waited outside my door with generous hope, and I close this circle the same way. You read me, you saw me, you got me; you’ve worked through my plots with me with more love and attention than they deserve. Thank you for being my ideal reader.

Sam Greenberg and Adam Greenberg, thank you for giving me the support and hope I needed to write on, and the reason to keep seeking out meaningful ways to live.

Of course, Rosa and Houdini still sniff and scratch and woowoo their way between these lines.

For what it’s worth, this book is dedicated to you all.

* * *

Publishing is an act of collaborative magic. To everyone who’s worked to put my books in readers’ hands: Oli Munson and all at A.M. Heath; Conrad Williams at Blake Friedmann; Cat Camacho, Joanna Harwood, Dan Coxon, Julia Lloyd and the whole Titan team; and to every printer, warehouser, librarian and bookseller who’s passed this book or its metadata through your fingers – thank you.

And especially to every reader who’s spent time bringing my words alive with their minds, thank you.

* * *

The immersive theatre described and alluded to in the book was founded on descriptions and reviews of the immersions of Rotozaza, Autoteatro, Punchdrunk, Lundahl & Seitl, Adrian Howells, WildWorks and Ontroerend Goed. Many of these productions are helpfully introduced and discussed by Josephine Machon in Immersive Theatres. A masterclass in set design at Punchdrunk Studios in London offered me a valuable behind-the-scenes glimpse into their process.

The lines of conversation about Ukraine and frozen grass are remixed with kind permission from the script of the fascinating short film Skwerl by Brian and Karl.

Tricks of the Mind by Derren Brown and Sleights of Mind by Stephen Macknick and Susana Martinez-Conde were accessible, informative and smart primers on mind-control tricks, con jobs and cold reading.

The descriptions of Vincent’s photographs are inspired by the moody, misty photography of Elsa Bleda; Petra’s artwork is inspired by the lush graphics of Taozipie and Tati Moons, and by Haris Nukem’s portraits. These artists had nothing to do with the drafting of this book, and they’d probably be appalled by my misuse of their magical images.

Brook Street Studios is a gratuitous, fanciful and factually aberrant reimagination of Leamington’s Woodbine Street Studios. I lifted one of its most famous recordings, ‘Ghost Town’ by The Specials, for my story. I was planning to fictionalise the song’s title and the band’s name, but it deserved to stay intact, however mangled. The Coventry Music Museum also offered an inspiring journey into the region’s musical significance.