The Shadow Queen (31 page)

Kaz`prin
: bring to me

Nakhgor
: find what I seek

Ja`dat
: take and give to another

Zna`uch
: to know/learn

Hat`sja
: come together and come to me

Prosnakh
: request to find

Rast`lozh
: to grow or to levy

Kaz`ja
: command and take

Oyti
: to rise

Tvor`zhi
: to create life

Nakh`rashk
: find and scatter

Kaz`zhech
: punish with fire

Kaz`lit
: to pour punishment into

Pros`odit
: request to enter

Voshtet
: to rise and fly

Pros`rashk
: request to scatter

Tvor`grada
: create barrier

Zhech`pusk
: launch fire

First and foremost, thank you to Jesus for sacrificing everything for me.

It takes one person to write a book, but it takes a team to help it see the light of day. The most important member on my team is always my husband, Clint, who is my biggest fan and supporter and who works with me to juggle our five children and very busy schedules so that I can always treat my career like a job instead of a hobby. I love you, Clint!

To my kids—Tyler, Jordan, Zachary, Johanna, and Isabella—you inspire me, motivate me, and fill my world with so many good things. I hope you grow up knowing that you can do anything you put your minds to.

To my mom for taking over my role as “mom” over Christmas break so that I could have long writing days to meet my deadline. To my sister for beta reading and for always being a huge fan of mine.

To my fabulous agent, Holly Root, who is both fiercely intelligent and incredibly kind. I’m so glad I have you in my corner.

I couldn’t get through the drafting and revising process without the help of my writer BFFs. Thanks go out to Mandy Buehrlen for reading the beginning as I was putting the proposal together, for always encouraging me, and for being my spirit animal. To Jodi Meadows for critiquing the synopsis and beginning as I put the proposal together and for being ever ready to offer expert advice, bounce ideas around, and talk me off ledges. To Shannon Messenger for reading the beginning and finding the perfect missing ingredient to really make it shine. And to Lauren Thoman for beta reading like a BOSS. “Moment of silence for Viktor’s cravat” remains one of my favorite comments ever.

Thanks also to Kat Kennedy for a last-minute beta read and for loving Lorelai so much. To Mireyah Wolfe, who stepped in on Twitter and helped me
name Irina’s snake (you suggested Kazimir, which eventually changed to Razimir). And to Rick Lipman, who reminded me that I am an author and I can just MAKE UP NAMES.

Once a draft is ready to be turned it, the expert team at Balzer + Bray step in. Many, many thanks to my immensely talented editor, Kristin Daly Rens, who always pushes me to deliver my absolute best and who believes in me and the story with rock-solid faith. I owe you a puppy and a trip to Scotland. My appreciation also goes out to my incredible publicist, Caroline Sun; my oh-so-talented cover designer, Sarah Kaufman; my rock star marketing team of Nellie Kurtzman, Jenna Lisanti, and Megan Barlog; the fabulous team at Epic Reads for their enthusiasm; and Kristin’s insightful editorial assistant, Kelsey Murphy. I adore my team and am deeply grateful for everything you do to make my stories shine.

Finally, to Lauren White. I hope when you read this book, Gabril’s words take root in your heart and grow: “You don’t go into battle because you’re sure of victory. You go into battle because it’s the right thing to do.” May you hold your head up high and keep kicking cancer in the face.

C. J. REDWINE
loves fairy tales, Harry Potter, and any movie starring Johnny Depp. She is also the author of the Defiance trilogy. C.J. lives in Nashville with her husband and children. You can visit her online at
www.cjredwine.blogspot.com
.

Defiance

Deception

Deliverance

Balzer + Bray is an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

THE SHADOW QUEEN
. Copyright © 2016 by C. J. Redwine. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

www.epicreads.com

ISBN 978-0-06-236024-3

EPub Edition © August 2015 ISBN 9780062426536

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FIRST EDITION

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