From the desk of Abraham Royal
Thank you for the outpouring of love and support for IN THE CLEAR and the entire Codex series. We got the damn book back!
These characters have been with me for more than two years now. Their voices, their thoughts, their donut preferences – all six members of the Codex team have taken up permanent residence in my heart and I hope they never budge.
When I walk around Old City, in Philadelphia, it’s easy for me to picture Henry and Delilah, strolling hand-in-hand down a cobblestone street while talking about their dreams. Or Sam and Freya on a bench outside of Federal Donuts, laughing through one of their many endless competitions. It’s extremely easy to picture Abe and Sloane, in glamorous attire, on their way to the opera – the dramatic skyline behind them as they both shine beneath the city lights.
I can see the six of them at used bookstores, at breweries and taco stands, in historic buildings and on front stoops. I feel their commitment to justice, their love of literature, and their devotion to each other. This series is as much a love letter to my hometown as it is to the magic of old books. Because all of us can attest to that feeling in your heart when you step inside a bookstore. There isn’t anything else like it in the world.
Before Codex was a series, it was a short story I’d written for KU Korner on Facebook – a short story that wouldn’t quit my imagination. A story that demanded to be told. When I look back at those old notebooks and scribbles, it’s overwhelming to understand that those scribbles became three novels, six characters and an entire world filled with secrets and code words, heroes and villains.
My final send-off for Codex fans is a wish for your days to be filled with code words and clandestine tunnels, coincidences that are really clues, and an underground auction or two.
May your bookshelves reveal mysterious passageways and your perfume bottles contain absinthe. I sincerely hope Victoria Whitney sends you a love letter and the Alexanders invite you to a secret dinner party (but don’t forget your mask).
And if Humphrey Hatcher invites you to the pub, take him up on his offer.
As always, I hope to meet all of you at Reichenbach Falls one day.
xoxo
Kathryn
