Most of you know that I rely on beta readers to help me hone the content of my books. After all, more eyes and more opinions often means fewer mistakes and a better balance to writing. My friend Eva Beattie has been a beta reader for longer than any other beta reader at over 25 years. That’s right, for the past 25+ years she has reviewed every one of the books I’ve written and never asked for anything more than a thank you, making her one of the most selfless people I’ve ever known.
Over the years we developed a friendship and would send cards and gifts to each other. I visited her with my wife during our 30th anniversary trip to Washington state in 2010. Our weekly emails kept each other informed and we’d often discuss matters too private for others to hear. On the holidays we’d take time out for a long gab session on the phone. So, it was with deep regret that I heard of her passing this past week.
I’m glad that I was able to provide her with a well-deserved dedication in Machine Learning Security Principles and that we did have some nice email exchanges prior to her passing. However, I wanted to take this one last opportunity to present a public thank you to her for all of her hard work over all of those years. She really was quite extraordinary and I’ll greatly miss her.
