Arsenic with Austen (36 page)
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Authors: Katherine Bolger Hyde
He dropped his hands and stared at her through bloodshot eyes. “You'd do that for me? After I let that harpy talk me into ⦠what I did?”
“I would. I forgive you, Brock. It gives me no pleasure to see you suffer.” She turned to Trimble. “The offer extends to you as well. I don't think I have anything to apologize to you about, do I?”
A shadow of Trimble's old bluster returned to him. He waved his hands. “All forgotten, all forgotten. A lawyer, nowâthat'd be swell. No harm meant, get it, no harm meant. Put it all behind us.” He gave her a nervous smile, then subsided like a leaky balloon.
Outside, Emily filled her lungs with cool, slightly cow-scented air. On the exhale, she let go all the fear, anger, anxiety, and pain of the last two weeks. She felt empty, but clean.
She turned to Luke, who regarded her with a line between his brows. She put up her thumb and smoothed the line away. “It's over,” she said. “Now we can begin.”
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Upon publication of one's first novel, it is virtually impossible to thank every person who has materially contributed to the work of many years coming at last to fruition. I have had more friends, encouragers, teachers, mentors, colleagues, critique partners, beta readers, and budding fans than I can count or mention. But if you have stood in any of these relations to me, please know that I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I would not have made it this far without you.
Particular thanks must go, first, to my husband, John Hyde; my children, Lena and Nicholas Cooper and Elizabeth and John Hyde; and my sister, Anne Ramirez, all of whom have supported me in every way along this journey. Next, to the first friends in whom I confided my aspirations to write, Susan Shisler and Monk Ignatius; to my longtime critique partner, ego-bolsterer, mutual commiserator, and general great friend, Charise Olson; to my dear friend Molly King, who has spared me many hours of carpool driving and been a second mother to my son; to the Santa Cruz writers' lunch bunch, who have encouraged me in disappointment and cheered for me in success; to my parish, St. Lawrence Orthodox Christian Church in Felton, California, where artists of all stripes are not merely tolerated but encouraged; to beta readers Bev. Cooke and Carrie Padgett, who made invaluable suggestions for improving the manuscript; to my fabulous agent, Kimberley Cameron, who believed in Crime with the Classics from the moment she saw the concept; and to everyone at Thomas Dunne/Minotaur, especially my excellent editor, Marcia Markland, and her efficient assistant, Quressa Robinson.
My gratitude also goes to the Rockaway gang (you know who you are), a group of friends who meet annually at Colonyhouse in Rockaway Beach, Oregon, to write, encourage, critique, drink wine, and laugh uproariously far into the night. Not only did Rockaway Beach inspire the setting of this series, but my time there has been crucial to keeping me sane during the years of struggle and learning. As for the rest, well, what happens in Rockaway stays in Rockaway.
Last but greatest, I will say with the immortal J. S. Bachâ
soli deo gloria
.
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K
ATHERINE
B
OLGER
H
YDE
has lived her life surrounded by books, from teaching herself to read at age four to majoring in Russian literature to making her career as an editor. She lives in California with her husband.
Arsenic with Austen
is her first novel. You can sign up for email updates
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Contents
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This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously.
A THOMAS DUNNE BOOK FOR MINOTAUR BOOKS.
An imprint of St. Martin's Publishing Group.
ARSENIC WITH AUSTEN.
Copyright © 2016 by Katherine Bolger Hyde. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin's Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
Cover design by David Baldeosingh Rotstein
Cover photo-illustration by Anthony Hearsay
Cover photographs: bookshelf © Angie Milam / Arcangel Images; poison © Wolfilser / Shutterstock
The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Names: Hyde, Katherine Bolger, author.
Title: Arsenic with Austen / Katherine Bolger Hyde.
Description: First edition.|New York: Minotaur Books, 2016.|Series: Crime with the classics; 1|“A Thomas Dunne book.”
Identifiers: LCCN 2016001444|ISBN 978-1-250-06547-6 (hardcover)|ISBN 978-1-4668-7242-4 (e-book)
Subjects: LCSH: City and town lifeâOregonâFiction.|Inheritance and successionâFiction.|Man-woman relationshipsâFiction.|MurderâInvestigationâFiction.|GSAFD: Romantic suspense fiction.|Mystery fiction.
Classification: LCC PS3608.Y367 A89 2016|DDC 813/.6âdc23
LC record available at
http://lccn.loc.gov/2016001444
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e-ISBN 9781466872424
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First Edition: July 2016
