ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
First off, this book would not be possible without John Ringo and Gary Poole. When I first read Under a Graveyard Sky almost ten years ago, I never thought in a million years I’d be writing in the universe. The Smith family was just the epitome of awesome, and the right survival types for this sort of world-ending event. When the call came out to write in the first anthology (Black Tide Rising), you can probably imagine my surprise when Gary asked me to write a story, then asked me to return a second time for We Shall Rise.
Also, thank you to both Charles E. Gannon and Mike Massa for showing me the way. There are many stories still to be told in the Black Tide universe John created. I’m thrilled to be a part of it.
Toni Weisskopf has been a tremendous help and has offered a lot of guidance during the creative process. Having one of the best editors alive work with you on a novel was eye-opening, to say the least. Her endless patience in explaining why I shouldn’t do some things in the book, instead of just telling me I can’t, needs to be applauded.
Dr. Brent Roeder has been particularly helpful with coming up with research quotes and guidelines from the University of the South. His twisted sense of humor and helpfulness have been a boon during the writing process. Also, thank you to Violet Flores for both the maps drawn within, as well as modeling for the cover. The maps came out amazing and I hope the readers love them as much as I do!
A special thank-you goes out to Jamie Ibson for creating a timeline of the entire Black Tide Rising series and lining them up to make it all work. Through painstaking research, and one impressive data spreadsheet, he was able to help me line up events that occurred throughout the original four books, as well as the two spin-off series. There was no way I could have figured it all out without his assistance.
And one final “thanks!” goes out to the audience at LibertyCon 34, asking if we were going to get to see Catholic schoolgirls versus zombies in a future Black Tide novel. Here ya go.