The Romance Revival(97)
We realized that after thirty-plus books and twelve years of publishing, we were burned out.
We’ve always said that some years are for roots and some years are for blooms, and in 2024, we needed to water our roots. So, first off, we want to give some love to our agent, Holly Root, who, true to form, didn’t skip a beat as she advocated for the space we needed. You are consistently both our centering and driving force, and we would be lost without you.
And thank you to our publishing team at Gallery Books, specifically the fearless leader Jen Bergstrom for hearing our need for time, quickly pivoting, and releasing the Love and Other Words special edition in 2025. The more time we spend in this business, the more we know how lucky we are to work with the same brilliant team we’ve had since the very first book.
Having that time to breathe meant that when it was time to turn to our next project and dive in, we felt energized and excited. We knew that The Romance Revival (which we still call by its working title, The Necromantics) would be different for us but, more importantly, we hoped it would be fun. And holy shit it was. From the very first word, we were in love with Luca and Emery (and Betty!). Writers well know that there is a fear always humming beneath the surface: a fear that the last book we wrote is truly the last, that we won’t be able to create the magic again, that this career has been one big fluke. So when Luca and Emery sprang from the pages as clear and three-dimensional as we’d hoped, we knew it was a year for blooms.
Thank you to our editor Ghjulia Romiti, who joined team CLo while the train was already moving, bringing energy and excitement to this project. Your edits were brilliant and your calls for more steam were most welcome. Thank you for helping us make this book shine.
Kristin Dwyer of Leo PR, our Precious, thank you for always putting us and our energy first. You are gifted at what you do and—although most importantly, your friendship is one of the greatest we’ve known—it is also true that proverbially handcuffing ourselves to you has been the best business decision of our lives.
We often gush that our freelance editor, Jen Prokop, is surgical in her feedback, identifying the precise points of weakness and helping us tighten and polish a book all the way to the finish line. But she is also good at saying the hard, big things and does so with thoughtfulness and love. We are so lucky to have you in our corner.
Our broader publishing team—with folks from Gallery Books, Leo PR, Root Lit, and Baror International—comprises a group of superstars. Thank you: Lauren Carr, Eliza Hanson, Mackenzie Hickey, Jen Long, Aimée Bell, Carrie Feron, John of the Mustache Vairo, Lisa Litwak, Fallon McKnight, Cassidy Graham, Sally Marvin, Jonathan Karp, the Gallery sales team (we heart you all), Christine Masters (never leave us), Molly Mitchell, Jessica Brock, Kat Miller, Gabrielle Greenstein, Paul O’Halloran, and Heather Baror-Shapiro. Sure, the cover has our name on it, but it wouldn’t exist without each one of you.
To our film rights team—Mary Pender and Matt Sugarman—the responsiveness you exhibit, your fierce protectiveness of our time and our IP, and your excitement at each victory feeds our energy, and we are so grateful for everything you do.
The friends and colleagues who have been supportive, excited, invested, or have published amazing works during the writing of this book deserve all of our gratitude: Kate Clayborn, Susan Lee, Ali Hazelwood, Julie Soto, Sarah MacLean, Jen Prokop, Nikki Payne, Adam Wilson, Adriana Herrera, Destinee Hodge, Zoraida Córdova, Rosie Danan, Jesse Sutanto, Tia Williams, Abby Jimenez, Regina Black, Christopher Rice, Alisha Rai, Rebekah Weatherspoon, Michelle Bucud, Alice Clayton, and Nina Bocci. We adore you.
Thank you, too, to our non-publishing besties for ensuring that we talk about more than just how stressful Publishing Threads is. Erin Service, Jess McLin, Jenn Carlson, Laura Wichems, Bianca Jimenez, Jori Mendivil, Jamie Brother-Noble, Katie Lee, Martha Henley, Mae Lopez, Amy Schuver, Brie Statham, Kian Maleki, and Erin Moore.
The two of us are blessed with the best families out there. We love you more than anything, Keith, Ryan, Carr, Owen, Violet. This CLo family we’ve brought together is amazing, but the blood and by-marriage family is pretty spectacular, too: Nonnie, Peggy, Erin, Geoff, Joey, Michelle, Aunt Kitty, Charlie, Reilly, Aunt Sharon, Amy, Kayden, Jackson, Brandi, Serenity, TJ. You bring joy to our lives. And to Unc, who passed away in 2025, you are forever beloved.
To my PQ, we’ve done this so many times, but it never gets easier to put into words what this career and friendship means to me. But luckily, you already know. There are a lot of things that you and I need to put into words, but this connection is not one of them. ILY.
To my Lo, have two people ever been more different but also perfect for each other in every way? NOPE. I might be nonstop chatter to your thoughtful silence, and chaos to your logical mind, but our complementary Virgo Sun/Leo Rising/Gemini Moon and Pisces Sun/Leo Moon/Leo Rising–ness literally means our bestiehood was written in the stars. Sorry, no take backs. I love you so much, Lolo. No wonder people think we’re married.