her hair, lifting it from her shoulders. Tom remained silent as he watched her expressionless face. She seemed lost in a sea of memories. Then she took a deep breath, and the tension left her body. She turned to Tom with lips turned upwards in valiant attempt at a smile, but her eyes were as bleak as frozen rock pools.
‘Come on. Let’s go and eat,’ she said.
Without waiting for his response, she walked down the drive towards the gate without a backward glance.
* * *
About the Author
Rachel Abbott was born and raised in Manchester, England, and trained as a systems analyst before launching her own interactive media company in the early 1980s. She sold her company in 2000 and in 2005 moved to the Le Marche region of Italy. She now divides her time between the home she shares with her husband in Italy and their home in Alderney, one of the Channel Islands where she is now writing her third novel.
Rachel Abbott’s first book – Only the Innocent – became an international bestseller, reaching the number one position in the Amazon charts and staying there for over four weeks.
Read the Prologue to Only the Innocent on your Kindle now!
I owe a debt of gratitude to many people for their help in writing this book, and I sincerely appreciate the advice so willingly given by so many people.
As always I would like to thank John Wrintmore for his insights into the workings of the police, and for answering every question – no matter how trivial. Brenda Duncan and Becky Scrivener – with many years experience between them of working in ICUs - were incredibly helpful with the details that hopefully make the hospital scenes realistic, and for explaining so much about coma patients. Any errors are entirely mine.
There were many people who offered nuggets of information – some of which didn’t quite make it into the book – but Patrick, Daniel, Claudia – thanks for taking the time to inform me about everything from teen-speak on Facebook to the maximum cash an individual can draw out of the bank without raising a red flag.
My early readers have been fantastic, providing excellent feedback and suggestions. Thank you Annie, Kath, Trevis, Janna, Sarah, Kathryn, Steven, Kenni and Lindsay – your comments were all so encouraging and positive. Particular thanks go to Judith for reading it not once, but twice.
Once again, Alan Carpenter has excelled in the design of the cover, despite being asked to go around the block more than once, ending up where we started and resisting the temptation to say “I told you so”.
I’ve had two terrific editors – Clare and Charlotte who helped so much in pulling all the threads together and making this a much better book than it might otherwise have been. I am genuinely grateful for all their hard work.
My particular gratitude goes to my agent, Lizzy Kremer who has been a constant source of support and guidance, as have the rest of the team at David Higham Associates – especially Laura and Harriet.
Finally, as always, my thanks to John for indulging me and allowing me to talk ceaselessly about the plots, the characters and the next book. Your belief in me is a source of inspiration.
Links
When writing The Back Road, I discovered a very useful document that explains the dangers of digital stalking. Even if you have never been a victim, it clearly outlines some of the risks and suggests best practices for safe use of social media. The PDF can be found here.
Throughout the novel there are various references to music – particularly when Max plays Ellie’s ‘soppy’ music. A Spotify playlist has been created here.
The Rachel Abbott website also includes recipes from the novel, which can be found here, and a selection of music videos for those of you who don’t use Spotify.
Only the Innocent
The number one bestseller
Prologue
Bright sunshine flooded through the tall windows, touching each surface with its dazzling light. Every corner of the room was bathed in a soft yellow glow, and its elegant proportions were displayed to their best advantage. It was a disaster. The one thing she hadn’t allowed for was a sunny day.
Maximum impact—that’s what she was striving for. The clothes, the hair, the jewellery; her attention to detail had been impeccable, and any false note would influence his perception of her credibility. But instead of completing the illusion by creating subtle lighting and atmospheric shadows, the room was more