Guest Post: Hilary Grossman on Letting Characters Take the Lead

One thing I really love about the Internet and social media is the people you meet, virtually or in real life. And it always strikes me funny how we can cross paths with a person in a single sector only to learn that you and she have multiple connections.

So it was with author Hilary Grossman, whom I met through the weekly photography meme Wordless Wednesday. For the longest time, I thought of Hilary as one of photography buddies. But a couple of years ago, I discovered that she's also an author. So naturally, we bonded over books and reading too.

This fall Hilary published her second novel, Plan Bea, and to help her celebrate the book's release, I've asked her to stop by to give us a little insight into what it's like to write a novel. I was curious about which scene in Plan Bea, was her favorite one to write, and I'm happy Hilary agreed to tell us. Before I get to that, though, here's the book summary from GoodReads:

Annabel O’Conner has the perfect husband, two adorable children, an amazing job, and the mother from hell! Annabel doesn’t like it but has come to terms with the fact that her relationship with her mother, Bea, deteriorated to the point of forced and strained communications. However, an unscheduled call from Bea turns her world around and makes Annabel question everything she believed about her life.

Despite the fact secrets, lies, and misplaced blame have destroyed the women’s relationship; Annabel reluctantly agrees to help Bea plan her wedding. Little does Annabel know the impact of her decision.

In this Women’s Contemporary Fiction novel, Hilary Grossman explores the complex relationship that exists between mothers and daughters in a light-hearted and relatable manner.

I like books that explore the mother-daughter relationship, and I bet you do too.

Now let's hear from Hilary herself:

When Your Character Writes Her Own Story
By Hilary Grossman

How many times have you heard an author say their characters surprised them?

Over the years, I have heard the line so often. I hate to admit it, but each time I did I couldn't help but roll my eyes. After all, how could characters surprise their creator?

And then it happened to me . . .

When I started writing Plan Bea, a women's fiction novel about a mother and daughter whose relationship has been destroyed by secrets, lies, and misplaced blame, I felt like I had a very good handle on the story. I was aware of all the conflict points. I had the twist ending nailed. And I felt like I knew my main character, Annabel, and her mother, Bea, intimately.

Bea is a very stubborn, cold, and headstrong woman. Annabel has spent years trying to gain her mother's love and affection. However, now that Bea seems to be coming around (ever so slightly), Annabel isn't letting her off the hook easily. More times than not, the ladies end up in a heated discussion.

One such argument took place in a diner. As their omelets turned cold, the women hashed it out but good. Annabel suddenly had so much to say. Her "voice" was screaming in my ear. My fingers struggled to keep up with her. I have never typed so fast in my life. And when Annabel finally said her piece and got out a secret that she kept to herself for years, I gasped. I pushed my laptop to the side and sighed. I cried a little too.

After I dried my tears, I muttered to myself, or to Annabel, "I didn't know that happened." Then I asked, "Why didn't you tell me about this before?" But my question wasn't answered. Annabel was once again silent. She was once again a figment of my imagination. Unfortunately, just quickly and unexpectedly as she "came to life" she was gone . . .

By far, that scene is one of my favorites in the entire book. It was the easiest and the most fun one for me to write because I didn't have to do anything but type. The words that were spoken weren't mine. My characters took over, they took the lead. And even though I was writing the book, I managed to get lost in the story. And isn't that the whole purpose of a book—to offer us an escape and transport us from our lives into someone else's?

Thanks, Hilary. I always wondered if a character could indeed take control from the author. Now I know it happens, and when it does, it's an amazing and fun phenomenon. Thanks too for dropping by today and giving me a hint of what it's like when the creativity is running high.

Learn More: If you want to know more about author Hilary Grossman, be sure to visit her website, Feeling Beachie (and don't forget to look at the photos; her cat Lucy is adorable). If you're on GoodReads (and even if you're not), you can enter a giveaway for a signed copy of Plan Bea.

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Guest Post: Why I Love Writing Dance Scenes by Ann Weisgarber (The Promise)

Sometimes you pick up a book intending to read just a couple of pages, but before you know it you're 200 pages in and haven't taken a break. That's what happened to me when I first took a look at Ann Weisgarber's The Promise, out in paperback just last week.

Set in 1900 in the months leading up to the devastating Galveston hurricane, this is a story of two women who are linked through their very different relationships to a widower and his young son.

Catherine, a pianist from Ohio, flees her home town under the taint of a scandal, accepting the marriage proposal of a childhood admirer. Although they haven't seen each other in a dozen years, Oscar, now a dairy farmer in Texas, has not forgotten Catherine's refined ways, and hopes not only for love but also for a proper mother for his boy. Nan, a Galveston native, is Oscar's housekeeper, but she was also a close friend of his first wife and is a second mother to his son.

Told from both Catherine's and Nan's points of view, The Promise explores second chances, hope, friendship, parenthood, and marriage. Weisgarber's flowing prose draws you in, and her characterizations and period details keep you invested. Just as the two women begin to find their place in Oscar's world, the storm hits, destroying much more than the up-and-coming city.

Today I'm pleased to welcome author Ann Weisgarber, who talks about how she came about writing the dance scene for The Promise. Music is one of the few bonds between the main characters--although Catherine is a classically trained pianist, and Nan plays more popular tunes on the fiddle at local events--and the scene Ann describes here was one of my favorites.

Why I Love Writing Dance Scenes

For many of us, dancing is part of our lives. When we were kids, we might have twirled around our bedrooms when no one was watching. Some of us took ballet lessons or in my case, tap lessons. (Yes, tap. I loved the shiny silver shoes with heels.) Maybe we went to dances at school and danced at parties, weddings, and other celebrations. They can be romantic opportunities to be close to someone we love.

Or a dance with the wrong person can be awkward and seem endless.

Dancing says something about who we are. The style often reflects when we were born and where we're from. Our comfort level on the dance floor reveals hints about our personalities or sometimes it shows something unexpected about us.

Dancing is loaded with possibilities and that's why I love to include dance scenes in my novels.

My latest novel, The Promise, takes place on the rural end of Galveston Island, Texas, at the time of the historic 1900 storm that killed at least 6,000 people. I wanted a dance scene, but I couldn't figure out how one would drive the plot forward. Then I read an article about the tradition of dance halls in rural Texas. The farmers and ranch families used any excuse to hold dances with their neighbors.

I went to my research books about Galveston and looked for dance halls. I didn't find any but did find open-air pavilions.

Starting with an image of a pavilion, the scene took shape. The main characters, Catherine and Oscar, have just married. Catherine is new to the island but Oscar, a dairy farmer, is known and well-liked by his neighbors. I realized the neighbors would have a dance to celebrate Oscar's marriage and to meet the bride. They wouldn't know the couple is uneasy with one another or that Catherine doesn't want to be at the dance. When she and Oscar are called to the floor, though, her pride takes over.

Catherine says, "The neighbors were watching. I put my hand on his shoulder. Fixed in position, he stood as though suddenly paralyzed, his gaze skipping from me to the people who surrounded us, Nan's waltz going on without us. 'One, two, three,' I whispered to help him find the rhythm. Oscar didn't move. He was shy, I thought. And unaccustomed to being the center of attention."

Catherine's awareness of Oscar's shyness took me by surprise. She understood him better than I thought she did.

This scene helped me add a new layer to the relationship and when the characters reflect on what the dance means to them, another layer is added. It's all the more poignant since a week after the dance, a massive hurricane hits Galveston. The characters, though, can't see the future as they glide and sometimes stumble on the dance floor.

I loved writing this scene. Initially, I wanted the characters to have a few hours of pleasure before going through a devastating hurricane. As I wrote it, though, a complicated mishmash of emotions—embarrassment, joy, laughter, and heartbreak—bubbled to the surface and made the scene bigger than I expected.

That's the power of dance. It's loaded with possibilities as it reaches into our hearts and takes us to new and unexpected places.

Thanks so much, Ann. I know exactly what you mean about the emotional power of dance. As I said, that scene in The Promise was one of my favorites. It showed another side of Catherine and Oscar and also changed the relationship between Catherine and Nan.

To learn more about The Promise, visit Ann Weisgarber's website and be sure to follow her on Twitter.

Published by Skyhorse (paperback), 2015
ISBN-13: 9781632206459
Source: Review (see review policy)
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy)

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Guest Post: Sweet Tooth by Marion Grace Woolley (Those Rosy Hours at Mazandaran)

Opening sentences: "Those days are buried beneath the mists of time. A lake of memory, distorted by ripples of remembrance and youthful uncertainty."

From this strong beginning, Marion Grace Woolley's Those Rosy Hours at Mazandaran takes us into a world very far removed from the one most of us know. In an interview, Woolley noted that her novel, set in Iran along the Caspian Sea, can be thought of as a kind of prequel to The Phantom of the Opera. Using hints from the original story, she imagines the Phantom's youth, when he was a member of a traveling circus that performed for the Shah of Iran.

Here's the publisher's summary:

It begins with a rumour, an exciting whisper. Anything to break the tedium of the harem for the Shah’s eldest daughter. People speak of a man with a face so vile it would make a hangman faint, but a voice as sweet as an angel’s kiss. A master of illusion and stealth. A masked performer, known only as Vachon. For once, the truth will outshine the tales.

On her eleventh birthday, Afsar’s uncle tries to molest her, and her father, the Shah, gifts her a circus. With the circus comes a man who will change everything. . . . Marion Grace Woolley takes us on forbidden adventures through a time that has been written out of history books.

Sounds like a fascinating read, and it's made all the better because Woolley pays attention to the details, including the food and drink that would have been found at the shah's palace.

I'm pleased to host Marion Grace Woolley today at Beth Fish Reads. I'm extra happy because Marion tells us about some wonderful Middle East desserts. Her characters loved these treats, and so will you.

Sweet Tooth

Those Rosy Hours at Mazandaran is laden with references to sweet, seductive treats. At one point, Afsar, the main character, receives a visit from her father's chief of spies, the Darougheh of Mazandaran:

At first we had little to say to one another: a girl of almost thirteen and a man more than thrice her age. The aromatic spices in the dish slowly began to loosen our tongues, and the cardamom toffee Şelale produced for dessert sweetened his words.

There is such a sensual link between food and thought. Hot, spicy dishes to rouse our temper, wine to loosen our tongues, and sugar to sweeten our hearts.

I'd like to share three of the main desserts mentioned in the book. They are not the easiest to prepare, but if you don't have the time or the ingredients you can usually find them at your local Asian or Middle Eastern store.

Halva is found throughout much of the world, and its name simply means "sweet." When I have bought it in the UK, it has usually been made with tahini, a paste formed from crushed sesame seeds. It comes as a solid block, often with pistachios or almonds on top, and has the strange consistency of sand with none of the grit. This is also how it most commonly appears in Iran, the setting for the book. In Mazandaran they are known for a particular type of Halva called Khoshk halva, sweetened with honey. There is a simple recipe here, but it's also worth watching this video on YouTube as they say that the temperature needs to be higher (260°F rather than 240°F).

Baklava (or baghlava) is a sweet made from fine filo pastry and dripping with honey. Although widely eaten throughout the Middle East, the desert is commonly thought to be of Turkish origin, a favourite treat for the Sultan dining at the Topkapı Palace in Istanbul. There is a traditional Iranian recipe online here, and a helpful YouTube video here.

When my friend got married a couple of years ago in Edinburgh, I bought a large plate of baghlava from the Turkish cafe on London Road. If it's still there, they do make exceedingly fine sweets.

Honeyed dates: Dried fruits were a common treat for the people of 1850s Iran. Dried dates are easy to find in many shops, sticky with sweet syrup. However, I found this unusual recipe online for Honey-Fried Salted Stuffed Dates said to date (ho ho) back to the 5th-century Roman Empire! If you're truly looking for a taste of history, this would be a great place to start.

To wash it down, you might try a cup of warm milk, heated in a saucepan with a teaspoon or two of honey and a dash of ginger, cardamom, and nutmeg.

***********

Thanks so much, Marion, for this informative (and mouth-watering) post. It takes me back to my childhood because I grew up eating all three of these treats. My home town has a large Lebanese population, and we were lucky enough to have specialty stores that sold homemade versions of these fabulous desserts.

Now I can't wait to read Those Rosy Hours at Mazandaran.

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Guest Post: Getting Back What You Give by Hilary Grossman (Dangled Carat)

It's always surprising to me how often I connect with book people through non-book avenues. I met Hilary Grossman because we both consistently link up to Wordless Wednesday, a weekly photography meme. We naturally felt some affinity, seeing as I'm a book editor and she's an author.

Grossman's Dangled Carat is the true-life story of her relationship with the man who eventually became her husband. Although the two clearly loved each other, Marc was in no hurry to pop the question. What was the problem? In this open and honest memoir, Grossman talks about what it was like to wait for Marc to commit and how she coped with her mother's and her friends' opinions and advice.

Today, I'm happy to introduce you to Hilary, who stopped by to tell us about her book and why she decided to share her story with the world. She also reveals some of the rewards of becoming an author.

Getting Back What You Give

When I was a little girl I was always in awe of my mother. She could easily talk to anyone about anything. Unlike her I was shy and quiet. But over the years that changed, dramatically! I now follow in her footsteps and can easily share my life story with anyone who will listen. I am not afraid or embarrassed to share the difficult times either. After all, we all experience them. So I guess it isn’t shocking that I decided to bare my soul in my memoir, Dangled Carat.

Dangled Carat, while true, reads like a chick lit romance novel. It is the relatable and humorous story of my emotionally draining attempt to convert a commitment-phobic man into a husband with a little (okay, scratch that) a lot of help from his family and friends.

I decided to share my story in the hopes that I could assist someone else who was going through the same situation. Unfortunately, so many people experience falling in love with someone who has a fear of commitment. It is a very difficult predicament to be in. You are constantly second-guessing yourself and your decisions. You don’t know if you should listen to your heart or to your friends' advice.

While I hoped that my story could help someone else, I didn’t expect to know about it . . . I am beyond pleasantly shocked and surprised by how many people reached out to me after reading the book. So many people contacted me to share their own stories about how they too dated a commitment-phobe and how they were able to relate to my story. Others reached out to ask my advice for their dating dilemmas. They too bared their souls with me. But my favorite unexpected result after publishing my book was an email I received from a male reader.

He wrote to me and explained how much he was able to relate to my commitment-phobic boyfriend, and how much of Marc he saw in himself. He revealed that by reading the book he realized the ways he had sabotaged his relationships in the past. He also shared with me that after reading the book he learned he has to go at his own pace, regardless of what the other person seems to want--it will either work or not. He also told me that he learned he has to communicate his feelings and just relax, enjoy the moment, and let nature take it’s course rather than worry about what tomorrow will bring. This new attitude has kept him in a relationship that he would have already ended in the past!

Whenever I think of his email I am so thankful that I shared my story. Matters of the heart are difficult, but we have all been there. After all, love makes the world go round.

Thanks so much, Hilary. I'm still thinking of the man who emailed you because your memoir helped him find some personal insight. Wow! I'm always in awe of people like you, who are willing and able to share their life stories with others. If even one person realizes that she is not alone, then a memoir is a true success.

To learn more about Hilary Grossman, be sure to visit her blog, Feeling Beachie, where you can find out a few fun facts about her (and the secret to her chocolate chip cookies). Don't forget to friend her on Facebook, and follow her on Twitter. You can find Dangled Carat at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

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Review and Guest Post: The Last Taxi Ride by A.X. Ahmad (The Benefits of Eavesdropping)

Last year I introduced you to A. X. Ahmad and his debut literary thriller, The Caretaker, about Ranjit Singh, an India immigrant, adapting to life in America while working off-season on Martha's Vineyard.

Ahad's second novel, The Last Taxi Ride, released on June 24, continues the story of the ex-Indian Army captain. Still struggling to find his place in the United States, Ranjit Singh has moved to New York City, joining the ranks of Indian cabbies. The Big Apple is quite the change from New England, but Singh has made friends, discovered where to eat good Indian food, and has adjusted to city life. Unfortunately, trouble seems to find Singh wherever he goes.

When the beaten body of Bollywood star Shabana Shah is discovered in her apartment, police find Singh's fingerprints all over the murder weapon, and the building's surveillance cameras caught him leaving the lobby. With just ten days until his arraignment, Singh must rely on his military training, his knowledge of the city's cab driver culture, and his friends' help to prove his innocence.

The Last Taxi Ride is an exciting thriller starring a great character that shows us a side of New York that many of us are unfamiliar with. This multilayered novel is more than a mystery though; it's also an immigrant story. Ranjit Singh is still between worlds, having moved on from India but not yet settled in America. This murder mystery-thriller combined with Singh's personal story makes The Last Taxi Ride a don't-miss summer read.

In what I hope will be a continuing tradition for all of his novels, I want to welcome back author A. X. Ahmad to Beth Fish Reads. I'm always curious about how authors get their ideas for their novels, so I'm thrilled that Amin chose that topic for today's guest post. I love that his inspiration has a foodie tie in as well.

The Benefits of Eavesdropping

One day at an Indian restaurant in Midtown Manahattan.

About five years ago, I was sitting at a window seat in Curry in A Hurry, eating kebabs and naan bread, and eavesdropping on two Indian cabbies sitting behind me.

“It was her, I’m telling you,” one was saying to the other.

“Don’t be stupid,” the other replied. “What is she doing in New York? She lives in Mumbai.”

“No, it was her, I’m sure.”

“How can you be sure? Did you see her face?”

“No, she was wearing big sunglasses.”

“So how can you be sure it was her?”

This conversation went on and on.

Intrigued, I kept listening, and soon I figured they were talking about the Bollywood Indian actress Shabana Azmi. She had once upon a time been a star, and now had been eclipsed by a younger generations of actresses.

One cabbie kept insisting that Shabana Azmi had actually been in his cab, and the other one wouldn’t believe it. They kept arguing, and never reached a conclusion, but that moment stayed with me: I became intrigued by the idea of a Bollywood star who is now living in New York, and taking cabs incognito all over town.

And I also realized that a cabbie would be a great character in a crime novel.

So I started taking cabs wherever I went in New York, and talking to the Indian drivers. I heard a lot of stories about what happens in the backseats of cabs—couples arguing, businessmen discussing million dollar deals, and of course, the occasional celebrity, hidden behind sunglasses and a baseball hat. I also started hanging around cab driver cafes in New York, and talking to the cabbies. I drank a lot of chai, ate a lot of rice and tandoori chicken, and heard a lot of stories.

Soon I began to write about an Indian cabbie in NYC who gives a ride to a has-been Bollywood actress and then is accused of her murder. From this beginning I spun out an entire novel, populated with characters based on the cab drivers I had met. It’s now a book called The Last Taxi Ride.

And to think it all started because I had a hankering for Indian food!

I too can't resist listening in on conversations when I'm in cafes, waiting in lines, or on public transportation. What a great way to find inspiration for a story. Thanks so much Amin for stopping by today. I'm not a fiction writer, but I am a cook, and I think you've inspired me to make a curry. (The photo is of a curry soup I made a few months ago.)

Although The Last Taxi Ride is the second Ranjit Singh novel, it works well as a standalone. But why miss out on Singh's first adventure? Ahmad is currently working on a third Singh book, which will put the ex-army captain in a completely different American environment.

Finally, don't miss this fun short film about how the death of Bollywood star Shabana Shah affected one budding New York reporter.

Published by Minotaur, 2014
ISBN-13: 9781250016867
Source: Review (see review policy)
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy)

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Guest Post: Alison Graylin (Author of Stay with Me) on Mothers and Daughters

Alison Gaylin's third (and maybe final) Brenna Spector book, Stay with Me, was released just last week. Apparently I've been living under a rock because I missed the first two books (And She Was and Into the Dark) in this highly praised, critically acclaimed trilogy.

Once these suspense, thriller, mysteries were brought to my attention, I knew I had to learn more. The Brenna Spector novels are now near the top of my summer reading list and here's why they should be on yours too.

I'm so intrigued by Brenna Spector, who is not your usual private investigator. She suffers from hyperthymestic syndrome, a rare condition often brought on by trauma. As a result, Brenna has an absolutely perfect memory of every day of her life since the precipitating event. She recalls, without error, every word, smell, touch, and taste.

Now stop a minute and think about it: good or bad? Yeah, she may never have to hunt for her car keys, but she also cannot ever forget the sad things, the bad things. I wonder how Brenna deals with this and how it affects her friends and family.

I find it no surprise that Brenna focuses not on solving murders but on finding missing persons. Makes sense, doesn't it? Her clients also can't forget, which gives her an empathy that other PIs might not have. In addition, Brenna's condition was brought on by the disappearance of her own sister, so she knows firsthand what it's like to be left without answers.

I'm so pleased to hand over my blog to author Alison Gaylin today, who wonders how well we know the people we think we're closest too. The topic is very near to her protagonist Brenna Spector, who in Stay with Me is forced to ask herself how well she, even with a perfect memory, knows her own daughter.

Mothers and Daughters

When my daughter was ten years old, I saw her journal. To be honest, I hadn’t even known she’d been keeping one. We’d gone on a family vacation to Mexico, and when straightening up the hotel room, my husband and I found a plain white pad covered in her careful handwriting. We read it. Not the whole thing--just enough to know that this was something we shouldn’t be reading, something she’d written away from the watchful eyes of her parents, expressing emotions and daydreams she clearly wanted to keep to herself.

It was an eye-opener--not so much for the journal’s content, but for the idea that, already, our daughter had secrets.

It’s been said that no one ever fully knows anyone else, and it’s true. We’re all complicated, multi-layered organisms with thoughts and desires we never express to anyone, even ourselves. It’s a concept that’s liberating and isolating and, yes, frightening: How well do really know your spouse, your best friend, that guy sitting across from you on the subway?

But to find out that my child was one such organism--an individual with a rich, full and secret-laden life in which I was just a supporting player--it was a shock to the system in ways I still don’t understand and don’t want to think too hard about.

You get complacent with kids. You see them first as a sonogram image inside your body and then as a baby whose cry signals hunger, discomfort--a simple need, easily met. You teach them the words for things and they use those words and so of course, you can't help but see them as an extension of yourself. But here’s the thing: They keep growing. They pull away. They become the central players in their own lives and you slip into the periphery. They meet their own needs, they learn words you never taught them. They make their own mistakes.

That’s natural. It's the way it’s supposed to be. I just didn’t expect it to happen so fast.

My daughter is thirteen now. The idea that I can’t read her thoughts is no longer so shocking. She is honest and forthright, but she doesn’t tell me everything that crosses her mind and I don’t expect her to. I trust her enough to let her have secrets. I don’t read her journal.

But still the idea scares me a little. Okay, maybe more than a little. In my new book, Stay with Me, Brenna Spector’s thirteen-year-old daughter goes missing, and in her absence, Brenna finds drawings and email exchanges and discovers that she never knew her daughter at all. I don’t keep a journal, but I channel a lot of my feelings into the fiction I write. And Stay with Me is all about that fear, however irrational, of this person I raised and love so much being out on her own, beyond my reach . . . so many of her fears and hurts and disappointments, secret things I will never hear about and, therefore, can’t protect her from.

How well do I know my daughter? As well as I know anyone. And I guess that will have to be enough.

Thanks so much, Alison. You've certainly touched on one of the scariest parts of parenthood. We want our kids to grow up and become resourceful and independent but we will never stop worrying about them and wanting to know every little thing.

I'm curious how her daughter's disappearance will affect Brenna--not just because she's hyperthymestic but because of all the additional emotions motherhood will add to the mix.

Published by Harper, 2014
ISBN-13:9780061878268
Source: Will be buying soon (see review policy)
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy)

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Guest Post: Pam Ripling on Research, Travel, & Writing

Do you like lighthouses, photography, and/or a little romance and mystery? Of course you do! And so does one of my kindred spirits in the book world, author Pam Ripling. I'm so pleased to welcome her back to Beth Fish Reads for her third visit.

In case you missed Pam's previous posts, be sure to click through to read her thoughts on Writing and Photography and on Setting and Storytelling. Today she is talking about research and travel and how they come together in her new novel, Angel's Gate. Sometimes the journey takes an author into the past and sometimes it grounds her very much in the present.

Here's a little bit about Angel's Gate: At first glance Jack McKenzie, Nathanial Sinquah, and Emelie Marin have nothing in common. But when Nate leaves his northern Arizona home for Los Angeles to search for the secrets of his mother's past, the three cross paths and together discover more than they were seeking. From World War II to the present, "Angel's Gate Lighthouse has remained steadfast and silent, guarding more than just the City of Angels."

Now, I'll turn my blog over to Pam.

Research & Writing: “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”

Of course you recognize my blatant theft of the popular Dr. Seuss book title. It just seemed so fitting, because after having completed my most recent novel, I’d been so many “places” it felt like I’d just returned from a trip around the world and back in time.

Researching the time, place, culture, and even the context for a book is a necessary to evil. Evil to some, that is, but not me. I was born with an encyclopedia in my hand. Today I use more updated tools, such as a variety of search engines, YouTube, Google Earth, and vast library databases. It’s critical that I absorb as much as possible about my story’s background and my characters’ lives and surroundings. Absorbing all that information, however, doesn’t mean I’ll include everything. In fact, I may actually only “use” 10 percent of what I’ve learned, and here’s why.

Readers want a picture. They want to be led, shown, immersed into a story’s setting. There is a difference between creating a complete “mise-en-scene”—to borrow a term from the movie industry—and unloading an “info-dump” on the reader. There are simply facts the writer needs to know in order to create the scene, details that affect but don’t need to be included in the text.

Angel's Gate offered interesting challenges to me. A portion of the story takes place during World War II, both in Los Angeles and in Burma. In order to write the scenes, I had to know where (in L.A.) the characters might have stopped for coffee; where the soldiers might have been the night of the famous “Battle of Los Angeles.” What facts would bring realism to the story? What aspects of real history would be important? Most importantly, was my placement of military personnel inside the Angel’s Gate Lighthouse on the night of February 24, 1942, feasible? To go a step further, I had to know what the weather was like that night; in what phase was the moon; how would the city’s “blackout” affect my characters’ motivations?

After many hours of reading testimonials and historical recounts, I wrote the following scene, wherein an inebriated young soldier experiences what he thinks is an attack by the Japanese. He is in a nightclub dancing . . .

The din was deafening, with war-weary young adults clinking glasses, singing aloud, desperate to forget and grasping at a sense of normalcy in the midst of near hysteria. That frenzy became real when, just before 2:30 A.M., the lights at Shanghai Red’s winked out and the air raid sirens began.

The band members ceased to play in varying degrees, a lone tenor sax the last to fade away. Alarmed patrons stumbled to the doors and windows to look outside, spilling out onto the street where searchlights scanned the skies overhead.

“What’s happening?” the girl beside him shrieked. “It’s the Japs! They’re bombing L.A.!” She flung herself onto Joe and held him tightly around the neck.

Suddenly sobered, Joe shoved the girl aside and pushed his way through the panicky dancers toward the door. Once outside, he peered up at the bright cones of light traversing the night in search of some threat. He started walking, slowly at first, then quickening his pace, eyes never leaving the sky. If Los Angeles was going to be bombed, he didn’t want to die on the street outside a dive like Red’s.

The sirens screamed. It wasn’t like he’d never heard them before; but the previous drills were expected, and he was always with his division. Never in the middle of the night with a head full of booze and dark thoughts. This time, the shrill sounds seemed to be coming at him from all directions, as if he were caught up in some kind of vortex. Over and over they sounded, warning, threatening. Danger, they called. You are about to die.

***

His thoughts, and his feet, came to a stuttering halt as the first anti-aircraft shells launched from Fort MacArthur, bursting overhead in an intense, fiery display. Wide-eyed and agape, Joe took a timid step backward and to the side, pressing his back against a brick building. He stared, chest heaving with excitement as more bombs flew skyward, adding to the pandemonium of the sirens and the peoples’ screams.

This is it. This is the war, come here, to Los Angeles.

Fascination overcame him. It was like he’d never actually believed the war was real. The big war, double-ya double-ya two, was something like a myth, something in the newsreels at the afternoon cinema. Front page stills on the Herald and the Times. FDR on the radio. Guys getting their heads shaved and putting on olive drabs, khakis and white caps. Women crying at the airport, at the train station, at the dock.

Bombs were for places like France and England. Pearl. Wake. Not L.A. These were his streets!

Those hours of research gave me a sense of the night that Los Angeles hurled over 1,400 shells at some unknown craft flying over the Southern California coastal region. Seen from the eyes of Coast Guard Ensign Joe Halleran, a man already planning to go AWOL the next day, the war comes home in a big way.

For Angel's Gate, my virtual travels took me to 1942 Burma where I marched with retreating foot soldiers trying to stay ahead of Japanese fighters, all while dealing with dysentery and malaria. I traveled to the present day Third Mesa on Arizona’s Hopi Reservation, where I learned about this culture’s beliefs and spiritualism. I discovered whether or not a human skull could remain recognizable after seventy years in L.A. Harbor. I found out that certain American coins, minted in 1933 and worth millions each, are now illegal to own. A wealth of information, all gently tucked into the pages of a (hopefully) entertaining romantic mystery.

Readers, don’t look for the research, but know it exists. Details and facts should never take you away from the story itself. If they do, perhaps the book belongs on the non-fiction shelves.

Many thanks to Candace for hosting me today on one of my favorite blogs!

__________

No, no, thank you, Pam for another informative post. Readers don't often realize how much research is hidden behind the words of a novel, from the phases of the moon to the names of the streets.

Pam Ripling, who also writes as Anne Carter, is a self-proclaimed lighthouse nut and the author of nine published novels, including mystery, romance, paranormal, alternative romance and even a middle grade reader. ANGEL’S GATE is the third in the Beacon Point Series, all romantic mysteries centering around lighthouses and with a touch of the paranormal. Each book includes an intriguing historical aspect and reads as a standalone. Visit Pam at her website or her Amazon Author Page.

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Guest Post: Beth Hoffman on Women and the Power of Friendship

What can I tell you about Beth Hoffman? She is not only an amazing author but a warm and generous woman whom I proud to call a friend. I loved and have written about both her novels and even hosted a guest post in honor of Oletta Jones, one of my favorite characters in Saving CeeCee Honeycutt.

Today I'm celebrating the recent paperback release of Beth's second novel, Looking for Me, which I reviewed when it first came out. I concluded my review by saying that Beth "writes from the heart and with such an authentic voice, we come by our love for her work as naturally as if we were reading about our own kin."

I'm so pleased to welcome Beth back to Beth Fish Reads and am thrilled that her post is about women and friendship, which are strong themes in her work.

Women and the Power of Friendship

by Beth Hoffman

The formative years of my childhood were lived on my grandparents' farm. It was a rural area, and there weren't any kids to play with. I was raised among the easy, unhurried ways of older women. From my garden-loving grandma, to the elderly widow who lived up the road and created handmade paper dolls, each woman made a powerful impression upon me.

I was exposed to the simple yet remarkable words of wisdom that came from interacting with women who had lived through decades that encompassed everything from the unspeakable hardships of the Great Depression to the unexpected joy of learning to drive a car at the age of 72. Those daily observations and interactions gave me a foundation that has held me up ever since. Never have I heard more profound truths than those that were spoken in my grandmother's kitchen during the hot, humid days of canning season.

Then came the day that I entered first grade. From the moment I took my seat in that tiny classroom, I felt uncomfortable and awkward. Who were these squealing little people in lace-topped socks and crisp gingham dresses, and what on earth did I have in common with them? I was so accustomed to interacting with older women that the giggling language of girls my own age left me tongue-tied. It took me a long while to adjust to my classmates, and even after I did, I was always glad to return to my grandmother's kitchen where, as far as I could tell, things just made a whole lot more sense.

When I left my career in interior design and set out to write a novel, it never occurred to me that I would draw so heavily on the simple but rich experiences I had with my grandmother and her friends.

An e-mail was forwarded to me not long ago, and as I read it, I kept nodding in agreement. I have no idea who wrote it, but it sums up so much of what I feel about friendship, and I'd like to share it.

Time passes.
Life happens.
Distance separates.
Love waxes and wanes.
Hearts break.
Careers end.
Parents die.
Colleagues forget favors.
Marriages collapse.

But . . .

Girlfriends are there no matter how many miles are between them. A girlfriend is never farther away than needing her can reach.

When you walk that lonesome valley and you have to walk it for yourself, your girlfriends will be standing on the rim, cheering for you, praying for you, and waiting with open arms at the valley's end. Sometimes, they'll even break the rules and walk beside you. Or, they'll come in and carry you out.

The world wouldn't be the same without them, and neither would I.

When we began this adventure called womanhood, we had no idea of the incredible happiness and sorrows that lay ahead. Nor did we know how much we would need each other.

Every day, we need each other still.

Thank you so much for stopping by today, Beth. Where we all be without our women friends? I too was blessed to know my grandmothers well, and some of my fondest memories are the hours I spent in their kitchens.

Beth Hoffman is the internationally bestselling author of Looking for Me and Saving CeeCee Honeycutt. Before beginning her writing career, she was president and co-owner of an interior design studio. Beth lives, along with her husband and their four-legged fur-kids, in a historic Queen Anne home in Kentucky. Her interests include the rescue of abandoned and abused animals, nature conservancy, birding, historic preservation, and antiquing. To learn more about Beth, visit her website and like her on Facebook. You'll also find her on Twitter as @wordrunner.

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Today's Read & Guest Post: The Moon Sisters by Therese Walsh

What if you didn't know whether your mother's death was suicide or accident? For sheltered, unanchored Olivia and her down-to-earth sister, Jazz, grappling with that question is complicated by their father's downward spiral and their own very different ways of interpreting the world. Told in the sisters' alternating voices, the novel opens with Olivia's words:

The night before the worst day of my life, I dreamed the sun went dark and ice cracked every mirror in the house, but I didn't take it as a warning.

—The Moon Sisters by Therese Walsh (Random House / Crown, 2014, p. 3)

Quick Facts

• Setting: small-town West Virgina, and beyond
• Circumstances: two sisters coming to terms with their mother's death and a future without her take a journey to a place that may be hold some answers
• Characters: Olivia and Jazz Moon, their parents, various characters they meet on their trip
• Themes: grief, family, sisters, disabilities, being different, having dreams
• Genres: contemporary fiction; coming-of-age; magical realism
• Extras: synesthesia, growing up sheltered

Guest Post: I've only just started The Moon Sisters, but I am already feeling drawn into the world of these two very different sisters. This is a unique novel, with many elements that you don't often find in contemporary fiction. I'm so pleased Therese Walsh has stopped by to tell us about the inspiration for this moving story.

The Development of an Idea by Therese Walsh

The origins of The Moon Sisters was a mix of something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue.

Something Old: I first learned about will-o'-the-wisp lights years ago via a word-of-the-day email. I was so fascinated with the idea of these drifting lights—which sometimes appear over bogs and are thought to lead those who follow to treasure or over a cliff’s edge, depending on the whim of the wisp—that I included them in the draft of a different story. Though I eventually abandoned that half-finished manuscript, the scene I’d written, involving a blind girl and wisp lights over a bog in West Virginia, stuck with me. Some of my critique partners nudged me over that scene, too, and said they hoped that I’d revisit it. While I never evolved the creepy scene they remembered, I did fall back in love with the concept of writing about a blind girl and beckoning lights over a bog.

Something New: After I finished writing my debut novel, I was on high lookout for fresh story ideas. I was a science major in college (I have an M.S. in psychology), and I remain fascinated with unique human behaviors and experiences. As soon as I learned about synesthesia, I knew I wanted to incorporate it into a new book. Synesthesia is a condition characterized by sensory areas that are connected in unique ways; so a person might taste music or see sound, for example.

Something old and something new merged when I realized that will-o'-the-wisp lights are also called "foolish fires." Right away, I imagined a girl with synesthesia staring at the sun, because the sun smelled like her mother, and losing her central vision (becoming legally blind) because of that act.

Something Borrowed: I borrowed heavily from what I know of sisterhood for this novel. I have two beloved sisters, and we are each very different from one another. The complexity of the sister bond and the chemistry we share when we come together—the good, the bad, the ugly, the beautiful—is reflected in The Moon Sisters.

Something Blue: This book is also about recovery following the death of a parent. My sisters and I felt a crash and burn of stability after our father died at the age of fifty-six, and we coped with his death in different ways. Death of a parent, especially when you’re relatively young—and my youngest sister was just sixteen when our father died—can cause you to question a lot of things, including the very meaning of life.

A Marriage of Ideas: How do these ideas meld? Two sisters—one practical, the other a sun-staring synesthete—travel to find a fabled will-o'-the-wisp light because finding one was their recently deceased mother’s unfulfilled wish. Along the way, they struggle to come to terms with each other and their memories of their mother, as they grapple with hope, dreams, and even the meaning of life, in their strange new world.

Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue became, over the course of four-plus years, The Moon Sisters. It was the hardest and is the truest thing I’ve ever written.

I sincerely hope that you enjoy The Moon Sisters, and that if you do, you’ll share it with a sister or two.

Thank you so much, Therese. The sister bond is always interesting to me because I have only brothers. I've heard stories about the will-o'-the-wisp and I'm intrigued that you've incorporated the legends into your contemporary novel. Can't wait to get further along in The Moon Sisters.

ISBN-13: 978030746160
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy).

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Review & Author Guest Post: Fallen Beauty by Erika Robuck

Fallen Beauty is Erika Robuck's third novel about a writer from the 1920s. This time she takes us to upstate New York, where the poet Edna St. Vincent Millay meets Laura Kelley, a small-town seamstress.

Laura is living with the results of one night of recklessness with an unavailable man. She has bravely decided to raise their daughter alone, despite being the subject of her neighbors' gossip. Meanwhile, the scandalous poet Edna St. Vincent Millay, who has a house nearby, has her own reputation to flaunt or repair, as the situation warrants. Do the two women have more in common than it seems?

The novel switches seamlessly and quickly between the voices of Laura and Vincent (as the poet is called), so we are made aware of their thoughts as well as their actions. Robuck infuses the novel with great Jazz Age details and explores what happens to two very different women when they dare to defy social expectations.

Because Fallen Beauty gives us so much to think about, I think it'd be terrific book club pick. Themes and discussion topics include love, independence, social norms, marriage, morals, small-town life, being true to oneself, sisters, and facing the realities of the choices we make. I didn't know much about Edna St. Vincent Millay, but now that I have a better idea of the kind of person she was, I want to reread her poetry.

Guest Post. Way back when Erika Robuck's first book, Hemingway's Girl, was just coming out, I met her in the green room at BEA. We were both waiting to be called to the stage for different panels. We had only a couple of minutes to introduce ourselves and exchange a few words, but I haven't forgotten how friendly and approachable Erika is. Please help me welcome her to Beth Fish Reads; I'm sure you'll enjoy her fun and informative guest post. What do you know about one of the most popular drinks of the Roaring Twenties?

Absinthe by Erika Robuck

After the first glass, you see things as you wish they were. After the second, you see things as they are not. Finally, you see things as they really are, and that is the most horrible thing in the world.

—Oscar Wilde

Absinthe. Wormwood. The Green Fairy.

Rumors of hallucination and poisoning have surrounded this emerald drink since Oscar Wilde said it made him see flowers growing in cafés, but in truth, it is simply very strong alcohol—over one hundred proof—and has been legal in the United States since 2007.

While many debate whether or not the absinthe one may now procure is authentic, I can tell you from experience that it is quite potent and delightful.

As a writer writing about writers from the 1920s, I made it my business to find out what all the fuss was about. One evening, I met a fellow writer for dinner at a café on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, which we did not know before our arrival had a Hemingway theme, but felt certain afterward that he had led us there. (That is how we think.)

Imagine my delight when the menu boasted an extensive collection of absinthe drinks. I had written a detailed scene in Hemingway’s Girl about absinthe consumption, but had not yet partaken myself. I knew Hemingway would want me to authenticate my scene.

I ordered the Green Fairy—the type of absinthe in my book. I watched the waiter light the sugar cube on fire and dissolve it into the alcohol with a shot of water; then I proceeded to sip my cocktail with a salad at dinner.

Absinthe has a distinct flavor, that of anise and herbs. It is not unpleasant, though I cannot imagine drinking it often, and after only a few sips, one can feel the effects in a pronounced way. It didn’t take long for me to look like this [click image to see it full size]:

Needless to say, I switched to water after only one glass, and had someone drive me home.

It is good I experienced absinthe, because now I understand my characters better, and the drink has shown up in my subsequent novels, Call Me Zelda and Fallen Beauty. The creatives of the Lost Generation drank it plentifully, and while it may not have led them to madness, alcoholism, or suicide directly, what it represented at the time—a break from convention, pushing the limits, a gateway drug—certainly set them on a path.

Absinthe is called the Green Fairy for good reason, and a little goes a long way. If you want to dip a toe in the waters, I encourage the experience in isolation. Just make sure you have a ride home.

Thanks so much, Erika. I love this story. I'm sure I would be quite fallen after that Green Fairy. And I can see how it became a symbol of the Lost Generation. Now I need to find a designated driver and go out and sample my own absinthe cocktail.

ISBN-13: 9780451418906
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy).

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Today's Read & Guest Post: A Tale of Two Biddies by Kylie Logan

What if you were court-ordered to be part of a book club? Sounds nice, doesn't it? But what if the other members were the very women you were always bickering with? That's what happened to four very different small-town woman. Fortunately, not only do they manage to bond over books but they band together to solve local murders.

"It was the best of thymes, it was the worst of thymes."

I was mid-munch, a shrimp dripping cocktail sauce on its way to mouth, and I needed one second to grab a napkin to keep the spicy sauce from landing on my new yellow T-shirt. While I was at it, I focused my eyes from the bunch of gloriously green herbs that had just been thrust in front of my nose to the other bunch of dried-out herbs next to it, and beyond to the ear-to-ear grin of Chandra Morrisey.

—A Tale of Two Biddies by Kylie Logan (Penguin USA / Berkley Prime Crime, 2014, p. 1)

Normally on a Tuesday, I'd share my "Quick Facts," which give you a snapshot view of my current read or a book I recently finished. I lucked out this week because author Kylie Logan is going to do the honors herself! Before we get to her guest post, I want to give you a short introduction.

A Tale of Two Biddies is Kylie's seventh cozy mystery, although it is only the second one featuring the League of Literary Ladies. If you like characters you can warm up to and you want your cozies mixed with a fun sense of humor, then Kylie Logan's books are for you. If her name sounds familiar, it might be because I've already featured two of her novels Chili con Carnage and Hot Button on my blog.

Now let's find out more about Kylie Logan's love of books and the premise of A Tale of Two Biddies.

Nose in Book Just Naturally Leads to Murder

Back in the day (and I do mean back!) our local grocery store ran a promotion that, these days, sounds pretty odd.

For every purchase you made, you could choose a framed print of an art masterpiece.

I don’t know how many of the pictures my mother ended up with, but I do clearly remember one of them, A Young Girl Reading, painted by Jean-Honoré Fragonard, a French artist, in 1776. Aside from the fact that it’s a pleasant picture, that the colors are warm and easy on the eyes and that the girl looks so content and so downright comfortable, there is a reason this particular picture stays in my mind—my mother always said it reminded her of me.

Nose in book.

When I was a kid, I always had my nose in a book.

At the time, I wasn’t much for contemporary authors. Maybe that’s because back then (there’s that phrase again!) there weren’t many authors who catered to the young adult market. That left me at my favorite place—the library—with a whole host of possibilities, most of them classics of literature.

I read Lorna Doone (I don’t recommend it) and Scaramouche (all because of the movie, of course, and the crush I had on Stewart Granger). I devoured Prisoner of Zenda (see the last comment) and The Scarlet Pimpernel and all of Jane Austen and Conan Doyle and Dumas (pere and fils). When I went to college, I majored in English. How else could I justify my nose constantly being in one of those books?

All that being said, I guess it’s only natural that when I was looking for a hook for a new mystery series, the idea of classical literature popped into my head. Books . . . ah, there was something I was comfortable with, something I knew readers loved to learn more about, something that would surely get my creative juices flowing.

It worked! From that idea grew the concept for the League of Literary Ladies mysteries. The League is based on South Bass Island off the Ohio mainland in Lake Erie and consists of four members: Bea Cartwright is new to the island and owns a B&B. Chandra Morrisey is the island kook, a tarot and crystal reader. Kate Wilder is all business; because she owns the island’s biggest winery, it’s no wonder. Elderly Luella Zak has taken over her late-husband’s fishing charter business. She’s as tough as any Great Lakes skipper ever was.

Four different women, with four different tastes. Brought together by one thing—books.

Well, that and the fact that they’re always feuding and the judge gets so tired of them taking each other to court, he orders them to get to know each other better by sentencing them to become a book discussion group.

The results are anything but predictable, especially when in the first installment of the series, Mayhem at the Orient Express, the ladies discover a body and must use the Christie classic they’re reading as a blueprint for finding the killer.

This month, the League of Literary Ladies is back in action with A Tale of Two Biddies. It’s summer, and the islanders are marking Bastille Day with a week-long celebration. What better choice for reading than Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities, with its French Revolution background and its story of secrets, lies, and people who might—or might not—be what they seem.

In the confusion, somebody’s bound to lose their head!

To indulge my inner book geek I also added a Charles Dickens lookalike and trivia contest. It’s only natural; this time, the league must turn to Dickens as a guide to solving the murder of the island nobody, who might not be as much of a nobody as everyone thought.

I don’t know about where you are, but here in Ohio, it’s gray, gloomy, and cold. I can’t promise summer weather to go along with my summer story, but I can say an adventure with the League of Literary Ladies is bound to be a Dickens of a good time!
_________
Thanks so much, Kylie. The Literary Ladies seem like an interesting quartet and I can't wait to see what kind of trouble they get into over the latest murder. I also absolutely love that these books are set in Put-in-Bay. It's a place I know well. I've sailed there from the western reaches of the lake, and I've taken the ferry over from the southern shores. It's a wonderful spot to spend some time eating, drinking, fishing, shopping, and—of course—reading.

ISBN-13: 9780425257760
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy).

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Review (& Recipe): The Irresistible Blueberry Bakeshop & Cafe by Mary Simses

Summertime is my time for lighter reading. There's something about relaxing on the deck that calls for escape. On the other hand, I need a little something extra in my books to keep me on my toes.

If you're like me, then Mary Simses's The Irresistible Blueberry Bakeshop & Cafe is just the ticket for your August entertainment.

Ellen Branford is a high-powered partner in a Manhattan law firm engaged to a handsome guy from an old-money, political family. Their wedding is the talk of the town, and Ellen should be floating in happiness. Unfortunately, her grandmother's recent death has put a damper on her plans.

Her grandmother's dying wish was for Ellen to deliver a letter to an old friend from Beacon, Maine. Instead of mailing it, Ellen decides to make the drive, wishing to see her grandmother's home town and hoping to learn something about her family's roots. What she discovers changes her life.

Although The Irresistible Blueberry Bakeshop & Cafe is a little predictable, it's a delightful story. Ellen gets herself into trouble right from the start and can't quite figure out what to do about the handsome man who comes to her rescue. There are some expected big-city-girl-in-small-town moments and many mouth-watering descriptions of food. There's also a bit of competition between two cute guys.

As I said, I need a little something more than romance in my books, and Simses delivers on a few fronts. I loved her characterizations and the fact that Ellen's transformation had some subsistence and didn't come easily. I found her descriptions of coastal Maine to be realistic and very tantalizing; in fact, I'm already planning our next trip. Finally, there was an underlying tension between city and town, which gave me something to think about . . . and to laugh about.

To help celebrate last month's release of The Irresistible Blueberry Bakeshop & Cafe, Mary Simses has kindly shared Ellen's grandmother's famous blueberry muffin recipe. I can't wait to get baking! Click on the image to enlarge it or save it to print out.

I listened to the unabridged audiobook edition (Hachette Audio; 10 hr, 15 min) read by Erin Bennett, whose characterizations and regional accents helped bring the book alive. Her expressive reading draws us into the story, making it easy for us to connect with Ellen and the people of Beacon, Maine.

The Irresistible Blueberry Bakeshop & Cafe
Hachette Book Group / Little, Brown, 2013
ISBN-13: 99780316225854
Source: Review (both print and audio) (see review policy)
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy).

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Guest Post: Author Eli Brown (Cinnamon and Gunpowder) Talks Taste

A few weeks ago I gave you a bare-bones tease of Eli Brown's Cinnamon and Gunpowder and shared the opening paragraph. Here's the premise in a nutshell: Owen Wedgwood was been captured by Mad Hannah Mabbot, a fearsome pirate. In return for his life, Mabbot makes the following proposal:

You will, of a Sunday, cook for me, and me alone, the finest supper. You will neither repeat a dish nor serve foods that are in the slightest degree mundane. In return I will continue to keep you alive and well. . . . Should you balk in any fashion you will find yourself swimming home, whole or in pieces, depending upon the severity of my disappointment. (p. 13)

What follows is an action- and food-packed account of Owen's meals, his developing relationship with Hannah and her pirate crew, and his many failed attempts at escape. Side plots include historical information about British trade in the Far East and what life was like aboard a pirate ship. I found Cinnamon and Gunpowder to be a fun summer read, and I often thought how I'd manage to cook my way off the gangplank if I were in Owen's shoes.

Today I'm happy to welcome author Eli Brown to Beth Fish Reads. When I met Eli in New York during BEA, we chatted about food and writing and editing, but we didn't talk about biology. What does science have to with Owen Wedgwood? Read on to find out.

The Taste Map

The first time I saw the taste map chart in a biology textbook I was around eight years old. It showed up again and again as I grew, and it was still there when I entered college. You've probably seen it too, the graphic that delineates where on the tongue we experience different tastes: sweet is perceived on the tip, salt flanks sweet, sour sits like saddle bags on the sides near the rear, and bitter squats near the hole in the back. It's compelling in its simplicity, and there's something comforting about seeing our senses organized in bright colors.

In Cinnamon and Gunpowder, the chef, Owen Wedgwood muses about taste, assigning each one a color. It's a kind of earned synesthesia that was inspired by my own explorations into this sense. For me it all started with that drawing of the tongue.

Of course, the taste map is wrong—very wrong. Scientists now tell us that none of the tastes is so clearly confined to any region of the tongue. Some tastes even wander to the roof of the mouth.

And where on the chart was umami, the savory fifth taste? It hadn't been "discovered" by Western palates yet, and so, for much of my life I couldn't distinguish it. I grew up in a culture that was limited to only four tastes. I was umami-blind.

We were told a number of whoppers as children. It turns out that the brontosaurus, that benign behemoth, was a pastiche of different animals. Franklin didn't fly a kite in a storm. Newton didn't sit under apple trees. But the taste map holds a special place in my internal museum of misinformation. It was the one lie that I could easily have disproved. I had a tongue, and it worked just fine. Still, I believed the chart. We all did.

But there are revelations hidden inside the shadows of ignorance. We now "know" that sweetness will brighten the whole tongue, not just the tip. I'm thrilled to have my tongue unshackled from the numbing chart, thrilled to have five tastes instead of four.

Now I can't help but wonder what dark age I still wander. What undiscovered continents of pleasure await naming? 

Thanks, Eli, you certainly gave me some things to think about. I clearly remember that taste chart from the many, many biology classes I took over the years. I'm particularly fascinated by the different perceptions between East and West and the idea that it took us Westerners so long to figure out that there was a fifth taste. How did that effect Eutopean culinary masters throughout the centuries?

________

Don't forget to pick up a copy of Cinnamon and Gunpowder; you'll love getting to know Owen and the crew. And if you're an audiobook fan, consider listening to the unabridged audio edition (Macmillan Audio; 11 hr, 50 min), which is nicely read by James Langton, even if he doesn't know how to pronounce mole (the Mexican sauce). Langton captures the characters' personalities beautifully and kept my attention throughout.

Published by Farrar, Straus, & Giroux, 2013
ISBN-13: 9780374123666
Source: review (print); bought (audio) (see review policy)
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy).

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Guest Post and Giveaway: Three Truths and a Lie about Antoine de Saint-Exupéry by Ania Szado

If you're like me, you loved the illustrated book The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Perhaps you even read it in French, as I did, when you were in school. This year readers the world over are celebrating the seventieth anniversary of the book's publication by rereading The Little Prince and by learning more about Saint-Ex.

Ania Szado's new novel, Studio Saint-Ex gives us an inside look at the French author's life in New York and the writing of his famous story. Here's a short description from the publicist:

Set in Manhattan and Quebec City in 1943, Studio Saint-Ex is a fictionalized account of the love triangle among Antoine de Saint-Exupéry; his mercurial wife, Consuelo; and a young fashion designer. Mignonne Lachapelle leaves Montreal for New York to make her name but is swept away by the charms of France's greatest living writer. Nothing about their relationship is simple—not Antoine's estranged wife who entangles Mig in her schemes to reclaim her husband, not his turmoil, and certainly not their tempestuous trysts or the blurring boundaries of their artistic pursuits. Yet the greatest complication comes in the form of a deceptively simple manuscript: Antoine's work-in-progress, The Little Prince, a tender tale of loneliness, friendship, love, and loss in the form of a young prince fallen to earth.

Studio Saint-Ex is a deeply evocative love story of a literary giant caught between two talented and mesmerizing women, set in the glittering world of French expatriates in Manhattan during World War II. Reminiscent of The Paris Wife, Loving Frank, and The Rules of Civility, Studio Saint-Ex explores themes of love, passion, and creativity in sophisticated, literary prose.

I have always been fascinated with how a French Air Force pilot came to write such a charming story about a little boy. There is so much I don't know about Saint-Ex and his world, and Szado's novel is calling to me.

To tide me over until I read the book, I asked Ania Szado to tell me a few little-known facts about Saint-Ex's life.

Studio Saint-Ex and WWII New York: Three Surprising Truths and a Lie

True: The Little Prince—the phenomenally best-selling tale of a boy who relates the story of his beloved rose and planet to a pilot on Earth, a mainstay of high school French courses, written by the French author–aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, was written entirely in New York. It was published in English first, in 1943.

True: World War II Manhattan was home to the world's largest wealthy, culturally elite group of French expatriates. Artists, filmmakers, and writers . . . and among them, Saint-Ex. Decommissioned from the French Air Force when the Nazis took over, he came to the United States to advise the military on their mission to liberate Europe and to persuade them to take him back into combat. His fiery estranged wife, Consuelo, followed, determined to regain his heart and share his spotlight—for Saint-Ex was a celebrity in America, a winner of the National Book Award, the man the Times relied on to explain the French to WWII America.

True: Early 1940s Manhattan was the cradle of American haute couture. Until this time, all high fashion came from Paris. If you were wealthy, you went to the Continent to shop. And if not? Copies of Parisian fashions filled the local department store racks. There was no homegrown fashion design scene. Then Paris fell, and Mayor LaGuardia and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt announced that New York would become the new fashion center of the world. Contests were launched. Designers were lauded. The first Fashion Week—then called Press Week—got under way.

Which leads to the lie: In Studio Saint-Ex, Saint-Exupéry is immersed in New York's glittering expat community, scrapping with his wife, aching to return to the war, and writing The Little Prince in friends' studios, including that of an ambitious young fashion designer, the entirely fabricated Mignonne.

In real life, Saint-Ex's girlfriends aspired mainly to save the author from himself. But a woman like Mig could do much more. She could identify with his creative struggles. She could illuminate the complex connection between love and art. Saint-Ex had artistic friends and devoted lovers, but none that came together in one person: There was no real Mig.

To me, that is the most surprising fact of all. She is such an agent of revelation and connection in Studio Saint-Ex. It's through her that we discover the greatest truths.

_________

Thanks so much, Ania. All three truths were new to me. Now I'm more excited that ever to read Studio Saint-Ex so I can learn more about New York, the fashion world, and the circumstances in which Saint-Exupéry wrote his famous book.

The Giveaway: Thanks to the publicist and publisher, I'm able to offer one of my readers with a U.S. or Canada mailing address a chance to win a copy of Ania Szado's Studio Saint-Ex. All you have to do to enter for a chance to win is to fill out the following form. I'll pick a winner, using a random number generator, on June 24. After the winner has been confirmed, I'll delete all personal information from my computer.



Good luck!

Random House / Knopf, 2013
ISBN-13: 9780307962799
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy).

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