Valentine (40 page)

I would like to thank the following people for their assistance in the preparation of this novel:

My colleagues at Murder Ink, my friends, and my family, for their unflagging encouragement and support.

Judith Albert, Renée Cyr, Terry Hall, Jennifer Jaffee, Steve Miller, Dr. Arlene Pack, Larry Pontillo, Sharon Ragan, Ann Romeo, and Elizabeth Ubell, who
answered certain questions and provided legal and medical information. Any errors are my own, not theirs.

My agent, Stuart Krichevsky, for getting my work out there, and just for being my most enthusiastic fan.

My friends at Little, Brown and Company, particularly my editor, Fredrica Friedman, for her brilliant guidance.

Most of all, I thank the people—friends, acquaintances, and even strangers—who have told their personal stories regarding the topic of this novel. Katie Couric’s recent television documentary on the subject was most enlightening, as was the testimony of the people who came forward and talked to her. I have the greatest admiration and respect for Theresa Saldana, actress and survivor, and Victims for Victims, the organization she founded in the wake of her own ordeal.

All of the characters and events in this novel are fictitious, but Jill Talbot’s peril is, unfortunately, entirely plausible. I have seen the statistics, and they are unacceptable: stalking is one of the most prevalent—and potentially avoidable—major crimes in the world today. With newer, stronger laws than those we presently have, we may be able to do something about it.

TOM SAVAGE is the author of four suspense novels:
Precipice, Valentine, The Inheritance,
and
Scavenger
. He wrote two detective novels under the name T. J. Phillips,
Dance of the Mongoose
and
Woman in the Dark
. His short stories have appeared in
Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine,
and anthologies edited by Lawrence Block, Harlan Coben, and Michael Connelly. His bestselling novel,
Valentine,
was made into a Warner Bros. film. Raised in the Virgin Islands, he lives in New York City, where he worked for many years at Murder Ink, the world’s first mystery bookstore.
www.tomsavagebooks.com
.

Copyright © Tom Savage 1997, 2012

All Rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or part in any form. For information, address Writers House LLC at 21 West 26th Street, New York, NY 10010.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

First Onyx Printing, February, 1997

eISBN 9780786753734

Distributed by Argo Navis Author Services.