Praise for J.T. Ellisonâs ALL THE PRETTY GIRLS
âJ.T. Ellisonâs debut novel rocks.
Darkly compelling and thoroughly chilling, with rich
characterisation and a well-layered plot, All the Pretty
Girls is everything a great crime thriller should be.â
âAllison Brennann,
New York Times best selling author of Fear No Evil
âTaylor Jackson is a fresh portrayal of a cop with a serial
killer to catch. Creepy thrills from start to finish.â
âJames O. Born, author of Burn Zone
âAn impressive debut that is rich not just in suspense but
in the details. Itâs all gritty, grisly and a great read.â
âM.J. Rose, international bestselling author of
The Reincarnationist
âAll the Pretty Girls is a spellbinding suspense novel and
Tennessee has a new dark poet. J.T. Ellisonâs fast-paced,
clever plotting yields a page-turner par excellence.
A turbocharged thrill ride of a debut.â
Julia Spencer-Fleming, Edgar Award finalist
and author of All Mortal Flesh
âEllison hits the ground running with an electrifying
debut. All the Pretty Girls is a masterful thriller, shockingly
authentic and unputdownable. Fans of Sandford,
Cornwell and Reichs will relish every page.â
âJ.A. Konrath, author of Dirty Martini
The process of writing All the Pretty Girls was without a doubt a group effort. There are many people who graciously gave their time and expertise to help me get the details straight. I would like to send my deepest thanks to the following:
My extraordinary editor, Linda McFall of MIRA Books, and all of the MIRA team, especially Margaret Marbury and Dianne Moggy. A very special thank-you to Tara Kelly for designing the perfect cover.
My incredible agent Scott Miller, of Trident Media Group, for taking a chance on a unknown, and Holly Henderson Root, for all her help and editorial advice.
Detective David Achord of the Metro Nashville Homicide Department was an invaluable resource for the law enforcement details in the book. Not only did he allow me to ride along with him, he read, edited, gave ideas and information, encouraged me to keep on track and was always there for a question, chat or dinner. In the process, heâs become a great friend and I am very thankful to have him on my side.
Officer Carl Stocks of the Metro Nashville Police Department took me on a midnight-shift ride-along that changed my life. He showed me that the horrors we write and read about are very real and I have great respect for his abilities and dedication to getting it right.
The Metro Nashville Homicide Department gave me complete support and continues to handle even the most mundane questions. Detective Mike Mann helped me understand the mind-set a homicide detective must have to keep sane and shared in ghost stories. Dr Michael Tabor, the Forensic Dentist for the state of Tennessee, was a font of detail and information and my respect and awe for his efforts following the September 11 attacks is everlasting. Kris Rinearson of Forensic Medical and the Medical Examinerâs Officer for Tennessee provided long-standing insights.
Nashville is a wonderful city to write about. Though I try my best to keep things accurate, poetic licence is sometimes needed. All mistakes, exaggerations, opinions and interpretations are mine alone.
The support and encouragement of friends and family were vital for both motivation and sanity. Many thanks to the Bodacious Music City Wordsmiths â Janet, Mary, Rai, Cecelia, Peggy, my Dutch uncle Del Tinsley and my wonderful critique partner, J.B. Thompson. This story couldnât have been told without your input! Joan Huston caught all the little errors and a couple of big ones. Linda Whaley is there for me always.
John Sandford inspired me to write and Stuart Woods gave me the rules. John Connolly taught me about faith, grace and pitch-prefect prose. Lee Childs, my ITW mentor, is just one big class act and M.J. Rose is always ready with a quip or a shoulder. Fellow authors Tasha Alexander, Brett Battles, Jason Pinter, Rob Gregory-Browne, Toni Causey, Kristy Kiernan and all the Killer Year folks have created a support net that is indispensable. My fellow Murderati bloggers keep me honest.
All my buddies at the Bellevue Post Office, who constantly cheer me on and treat every package with care.
My amazing parents, who constantly remind me that I can do whatever I set my mind to, and my brothers, whoâve always stood behind me. Jade the cat listened attentively whenever I needed a sounding board and amazed me with her ability to park her butt on each page of the manuscript as it printed.