The reasons for wanting to leave may have been murky, but she knew the exact moment she had decided to stay. It was Uncle Harry’s speech about making things right by destroying a building. If life at Thornthwaite Manor had taught her anything, it was that destruction could not be combatted with more destruction. The only way to progress was to acknowledge what had come before, no matter how terrible it was, then choose a different path.
Lorelli realised she was overthinking it. She thought so much her head hurt. She didn’t know what to do with all her overflowing thoughts, so she sat down at her desk and wrote. This time there was no need to research any background or create any characters. She didn’t worry about the story arc or the style. She didn’t have a plan. She didn’t even have a premise. She simply wrote everything in her head, until it began to take form on the page and then she found her beginning. She realised she was writing a book about an old manor house full of secrets and stories. There were people too, but it was the house that was the central character. Lorelli liked the story. It felt different. It felt real. She hoped she would reach the end of it this time.
The Thornthwaite Legacy
The Thornthwaite Inheritance was published by Bloomsbury in July 2009, which means that at some point in 2008 I pitched a six-word book idea to my publisher, Sarah.
‘Twins trying to kill each other,’ I said.
‘Yes, write that,’ she replied.
Since publication, The Thornthwaite Inheritance has visited many countries, made lots of friends and collected seven awards.
So why has it taken me so long to write the sequel?
The answer is called Lotta.
She has been my Swedish editor since she first bought the rights to the book, but I only met her in 2015 when I was invited to the Litteralund festival. During our day together she repeatedly asked me if I would write another Thornthwaite book. Eventually – to stop her going on – I found an outline of a sequel called The Thornthwaite Betrayal, written back in 2012. She read it very quickly then said, ‘Yes, write this.’
Thank you, Lotta. I hope you like this book.
I am also indebted to everyone at Piccadilly Press, including my fabulous editors, Georgia and Talya. The design team did a great job with the cover and I was over the moon that Adam Stower agreed to do the artwork again. Thank you to my friends at Bloomsbury for continuing to support the first book. My wife, Lisa, was, as usual, invaluable as my harshest (but fairest) critic. Sylvie and Bruce Marks provided inspiration for the glassblowing-related deaths. My Twitter friends gave support, distraction and ideas. Thanks to all the wonderful teachers who share my books with their students (a special thanks to Jon Biddle for encouraging his students to make a trailer for the first book). And finally, thank you to every reader who has bought and enjoyed my books. I have the best job in the world and am deeply grateful to everyone who makes that possible.
Gareth P. Jones
Gareth is the annoying younger brother of Adam. Adam has never tried to kill Gareth, although the thought must have crossed his mind once or twice.
These days, Gareth also spends his time annoying his wife, Lisa and their two children, Herbie and Autumn. As well as being annoying, Gareth sometimes writes books for children of all ages, visits schools, performs at music festivals and produces television. If you want to experience how annoying he can be, visit his website www.garethwrites.co.uk or follow him on Twitter: @jonesgarethp
First published in Great Britain in 2016 by
PICCADILLY PRESS
80–81 Wimpole St, London W1G 9RE
www.piccadillypress.co.uk
Copyright © Gareth P. Jones, 2016
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
The right of Gareth P. Jones to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN: 978-1-8481-2581-0
This eBook was produced using Atomik ePublisher
Piccadilly Press is an imprint of Bonnier Zaffre Ltd,
a Bonnier Publishing company
www.bonnierpublishing.co.uk
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