Calamity

by Libbie Hawker

  Of course, that was what I’d set out to do all along. I was gratified to hear that I had found my mark.

  I have many people to thank, whose support, help, and enthusiasm for this project kept me working on it for nearly four years.

  The team at Lake Union Publishing ultimately decided not to publish this book because I wouldn’t agree to trim down its size. I simply couldn’t—there was too much story to tell, and all of it was critical. In the end, I self-published Calamity, but Lake Union’s interest in the book kept me working steadily.

  Thanks to the Historical Novel Society and all its volunteers for throwing the best conference in the genre—a conference that can inspire the creation of new novels.

  To my family—especially my mom, Cheryl Grant (who is of the opinion that this is the best book I’ve written so far) and my sister, Georgia Schlegel—for being this book’s greatest cheerleaders: thank you.

  My biggest thanks to Jackie Zebrowski, whose peerless performance of the audiobook edition left me speechless. She is the true voice of Calamity Jane; she understood this character as even I couldn’t and brought Calam to life in ways no writer ever could. I will forever regard the audiobook edition of Calamity as one of the finest products of my career as a novelist.

  Thanks to my dad for being who and what he was—for shaping my life, for making me who and what I am, for better and worse. There’s a star on the horizon. I still remember. I always will.

  And thank you to Paul, for everything.

  * * *

  -Libbie Hawker

  2019, San Juan Island, WA

  Also by Libbie Hawker

  Historical Fiction

  Mercer Girls (Available in print, audiobook, and for the Kindle only.)

  Madam

  Diana of Orchard Slope

  Tidewater (Available in print, audiobook, and for the Kindle only.)

  Daughter of Sand and Stone (Available in print, audiobook, and for the Kindle only.)

  The Sekhmet Bed

  The Crook and Flail

  Sovereign of Stars

  The Bull of Min

  House of Rejoicing

  Storm in the Sky

  Eater of Hearts

  White Lotus

  Persian Rose

  Blood Hemlock

  Hekate’s Daughter: A Novella

  * * *

  Contemporary Fiction

  Baptism for the Dead

  * * *

  Writing as Olivia Hawker:

  The Ragged Edge of Night (Available in print, audiobook, and for the Kindle only.)

  One For the Blackbird, One For the Crow October 2019 (Available in print, audiobook, and for the Kindle only.)

  About the Author

  Libbie Hawker writes historical and literary fiction featuring complex characters and rich details of time and place. She is the author of more than twenty books, including the Washington Post and two-time Amazon #1 bestseller The Ragged Edge of Night (written under her pen name, Olivia Hawker.)

  She lives in the beautiful San Juan Islands of Washington State with her husband and several naughty cats. When she’s not writing, she enjoys gardening, spinning wool, and knitting sweaters.

  Follow Libbie on Instagram for more pictures of cats and flowers than you could ever desire.