9 Books to Read in August

August is promising to be an exciting month for book lovers, just in time for vacations, afternoons at the pool, or warm evenings on the porch swing. Whether you like fantasy or literary fiction, I bet at least one of the following books is the perfect match for you.

Get Lost in a Good Story

• One Summer Day in Rome by Mark Lamprell (Flatiron, August 1): Three couples (two from the United States, one from London) travel to Rome for different reasons. While exploring the Eternal City, their paths crisscross during one transforming day.
• The Ready-Made Thief by Augustus Rose (Viking, August 1): A homeless teenager finds shelter in a squatters' cooperative in Philadelphia, but when fellow residents begin to go missing, she and a friend attempt to lose themselves in the city while figuring out who's behind the disappearances.
• If the Creek Don't Rise by Leah Weiss (Sourcebooks Landmark, August 22): Pregnant and newly married to a violent man, a young woman starts to question her choices, though she sees no way out of her South Carolina mountain town. The story is told from a variety of perspectives.

Give a Family Saga a Try

• The Ice-Cream Makers by Ernest van der Kwast (Atria / 37 Ink, August 1): When the heir to an Italian ice cream dynasty is called home to help rescue his family's business, he must decide between his passion to be a poet and his love for his heritage.
• The Half-Drowned King by Linnea Hartsuyker (Harper, August 1): This is the initial installment of a Viking tale of revenge, love, and family set on sea and land and based on ancient tales of the rise of Harald the Fair-Haired, the first king of Norway.

Step Back into the Past

• The Dress in the Window by Sofia Grant (William Morrow, July 25): Two talented sisters team up to create beautiful dresses suitable for postwar American woman and all the promise of the country's bright future. Their own small-town lives, however, are anything but easy.
• The Hidden Northern Fires by Daren Wang (Thomas Dunne, August 29): Few people know there was a secessionist town in upstate New York during the American Civil War. This novel explores the fate of a fugitive slave and an abolitionist in the most dangerous place north of Maryland.

Escape with an Urban Fantasy

• Rituals by Kelley Armstrong (Random House Canada, August 15): This is the final installment in the Cainsville series, which is set in the greater Chicago area, in a town that is anything but normal. Expect action, mystery, twists, and a good creep factor.
• Urban Enemies edited by Joseph Nassise (Gallery Books, August 1): A super collection of short stories from a variety of urban fantasy authors, including Jim Butcher Carrie Vaughn, Kelley Armstrong, and Seanan McGuire. The heroes of these stories are the villains we love to hate.

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5 Books to Read Right Now

No matter how many hours I devote to reading each week, I just can't seem to keep up with my book list. I really must get working on that idea of reading in my sleep. In the meantime, here are five novels, all published in June, that I'm determined to finish by month's end (or maybe in July).

• The Confusion of Languages by Siobhan Fallon (Putnam): I loved Fallon's short stories and thus have high expectations for her debut novel, set in Jordon. The lives of two American military families crisscross and intertwine through love, fear, secrets, and politics.
• The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry (Custom House): Okay, I admit it: I'd read this book for the cover alone, but I'm happy to report that the novel has earned much buzz and glowing reviews. A widow and a vicar are determined to discover the truth behind the fabled creature that locals believe has killed one of their own.
• The Lake and the Lost Girl by Jacquelyn Vincenta (Sourcebooks Landmark): It's the Michigan setting that initially called me to this debut contemporary novel. In an ill-advised effort to strengthen her marriage, a woman joins her English professor husband in the search for a late-poet's lost work.
• The Lost Letter by Jillian Cantor (Riverhead): Cantor is one of my must-read authors for historical fiction with strong Jewish elements. Her latest novel is set in German-occupied Austria and 1980s California. The themes of Nazi resistance, survival, love, and heartbreak center around the life of an Austrian stamp engraver.
• Necessary Monsters by Richard A. Kirk (Arche): Who can resist a book about a book lover? A stolen rare book, honor among thieves, sociopolitical issues, revenge, and at least one monster round out this techno-fantasy debut from a well-known visual artist and illustrator.

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Today's Read: Two Days Gone by Randall Silvis

Imagine how you'd feel if you learned that the family of a friend of yours had been brutally murdered. What if that friend, a man you admired, was nowhere to be found? Now go one more step: You're one of the state police investigators responsible for solving this crime. Sergeant Ryan DeMarco of northwest Pennsylvania, is in just that uncomfortable situation.

The waters of Lake Wilhelm are dark and chilled. In some places the lake is deep enough to swallow a house. In others, a body could lie just beneath the surface, tangled in the morass of weeds and water plants, and remain unseen, just another shadowy form, a captive feast for the catfish and crappie and the monster bass that will nibble away at it until the bones fall asunder and bury themselves in the silty floor.

—Two Days Gone by Randall Silvis (Sourcebooks Landmark, 2017, p. 3 [ARC])

Quick Facts

• Setting: Contemporary times; northwest Pennsylvania
• Circumstances: The family of a respected professor and novelist has been brutally murdered, and the man, Tom Huston, has disappeared. Is he afraid for his own life, or is he the prime suspect? State Sergeant Ryan DeMarco, can't believe his friend is guilty, but the more he investigates, the more unsure he becomes, especially after he discovers the unfinished manuscript of Tom's latest novel. What is Tom hiding? And will the killer strike again?
• Genre: thriller, suspense, mystery
• Themes: family secrets, friendship, grief, loss
• Characters: Tom Huston, author and professor, who has just lost his entire family; Ryan DeMarco, dealing with personal grief as well as troubles at work; Kyle Bowen, who works with Ryan; Bonnie Harris and Danni Reynolds, who met Tom at a strip club; various people on campus and in town
• Why I want to read this: This book has several features that call to me: it takes place in Pennsylvania (although not near where I live), it involves a college professor, and it's the start of a new series. In addition, from reviews, I am gathering that Ryan DeMarco is a flawed and troubled man, though good at his job.
• What I've learned from reviews: This is an intense read, and the crime itself is fairly graphic (not for the squeamish). The novel deals with some tough issues beyond the murder, the story is told from more than one viewpoint, and the characters are well developed. Although all the reviews I read were generally positive, a few people mentioned that the end was not as strong as they would have liked.
• My thoughts: After reading the first couple chapters, I think I'm going to add this to my reading rotation. I'm curious and would like to come to my own conclusions about the strength of the ending.

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5 Books Set in Alaska

Last week I included the novel The Alaskan Laundry in the list of books I want to read in April. That reminded me of other titles on my list that are also set in our most northern state. Here are five books that were (will be) published in 2016 that show us a variety of perspectives of life in Alaska.

Adult Picks

• All the Winters After by Seré Prince Halverson: Two strangers--a woman hiding from her husband and a man still mourning his childhood losses--find themselves occupying the same remote cabin. The story takes place over the course of a year, with the Alaskan setting playing as much of a role as the characters. Despite their deep burdens, will the pair be able to find redemption, healing, and hope? (Sourcebooks Landmark) • Queen of the Heartbreak Trail: The Life and Times of Harriet Smith Pullen, Pioneering Woman by Eleanor Phillips Brackbill: The true story of a woman who traveled west in a covered wagon, survived the hardships of pioneering, and seemingly settled down in Washington after marrying and having four children. Determined to live life on her own terms, however, Pullen left her family in the late 1800s to head north to Alaska, where she relied on her entrepreneurial spirit to gain fame and fortune and a little bit of infamy too. (Two Dots)

For a Younger Audience

• The Skeleton Tree by Iain Lawrence: Two boys are the only survivors after a sailboat sinks off the coast of Alaska. Alone and lacking supplies, food, and radio, they must overcome not only an unforgiving land and dangerous wildlife but their mutual dislike and disagreements. Action-packed and affecting. (Delacorte Books for Young Readers) • The Smell of Other People's Houses by Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock: Four teens face hard choices when balancing their limited opportunities in Alaska against their dreams for the future. A coming-of-age story set in 1970s that reveals the less romantic side of growing up in an Alaskan city. (Wendy Lamb Books) • Sweet Home Alaska by Carole Estby Dagg: Based on true events, this novel follows a family that accepts President Roosevelt's challenge to homestead Alaska and find a new start during the Great Depression. Young Trip is inspired by Laura Ingalls Wilder, but her mother will need more encouragement to feel settled into their own little house in the northern wilderness. (Nancy Paulsen Books)

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Ten Short Takes: Catching Up with Book Reviews

Here are ten books I read or listened to in 2014 I never got around to reviewing on Beth Fish Reads (though reviews and blurbs may have appeared elsewhere). This post catches me up on books I don't plan on reviewing individually in this space.

Humming a Tune

Wonderland by Stacey D'Erasmo is an introspective novel about Anna, a middle-aged indie rock star who goes on tour in hopes of staging a comeback. Although the audiobook (read by Xe Sands) was well done, the novel suffered from lack of cohesiveness. (Houghton Mifflin, 9780544074811). Rock-and-roll journalist Lisa Robinson has seen it all and met them all. Her memoir There Goes Gravity, is a gossipy, witty, sometimes nostalgic insider's look at the popular music scene both on the road and at home. A must-read for music fans. (Riverhead Hardcover, 9781594487149) Rebecca Rotert's Last Night at the Blue Angel is set in the 1960s and tells the story of a blues singer as she and her daughter face an uncertain future while preparing for her last gig at a rundown Chicago club. An enthralling character study and social commentary. (William Morrow, 9780062315281)

Graphic Duo

Brian K. Vaughan's Saga series continues to surprise me. I never thought I'd be so caught up in a comic series that had science fiction roots. Love, war, family, and fascinating beings and worlds give this ongoing series universal appeal. A little humor lightens the mood. The beautiful illustrations are by Fiona Staples. (Image Comics) Jeff Lemire's Sweet Tooth series is one of my favorite comics. In a dystopian world, children who have been born with animal parts are hunted out and destroyed in the name of scientific study. Your heart will go out to our hero, the young Sweet Tooth, a fantastically complex character. This series has ended, so you can now read the entire story arc in collected volumes or in individual issues. (Vertigo)

Elements of Mystery

Everyone knows by now that Robert Galbraith is really J. K. Rowling. In The Cuckoo's Calling, the first in her Cormoran Strike series, she proves her diversity as a storyteller. Strike, a London private detective, is asked to investigate an already closed high-profile suicide case because a client insists it was actually murder. Great plotting and characters. (Mulholland Books, 9780316330169) Joshua Ferris's To Rise Again at a Decent Hour is not a mystery per se, but it involves elements of identity theft and a fringe religious cult. If I hadn't been listening to it for a freelance assignment, I wouldn't have finished this disjointed story of a dentist's journey to self-discovery. Others have loved the novel. (Little, Brown, 9780316033978) Susanna Kearsley's The Splendour Falls is a little bit mystery and a little bit romance. Enjoyable escape reading, the book is set in modern-day France but involves both World War II and a 13th-century queen. (Sourcebooks Landmark, 9781402258619)

Foodie Finds

Meet Paris Oyster is Mireille Guiliano's love story to her favorite bivalve. A charming and informative look at all things oysters, including species, how to order them, how to eat them, and what to drink with them. Although she generally likes her oysters raw, the book includes a handful of classic and simple recipes. A fun resource. (Grand Central Life & Style, 9781455524082) Daniella Martin has the answer to humankind's future food supply: eat insects. In Edible, she makes a strong case for the importance of insects in the human diet throughout evolution and argues that eating insects is key to providing low-fat, high-quality protein to large numbers of people with minimal environmental cost. She may be right. (New Harvest, 9780544114357)

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Today's Read: The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure

What if you were asked to put your life in danger to help a group of people you had no love for? What if you were offered lots of money in return? How would your life be changed by becoming a savior to others? Architect Lucien Bernard cared little for the Jews in occupied France, but after he accepts a commission to design hidey-holes for people escaping the Nazis, he slowly begins to have compassion, even as he comes closer to danger.

As part of a special pre-publication blog tour, here are the opening pages of Charles Belfoure's The Paris Architect:

Just as Lucien Bernard rounded the corner at the rue la Boétie, a man running from the opposite direction almost collided with him. He came so close that Lucien could smell his cologne as he raced by.

In the very second that Lucien realized he and the man wore the same scent, L’Eau d’Aunay, he heard a loud crack. He turned around. Just two meters away the man lay face down on the sidewalk, blood streaming from the back of his bald head as though someone had turned on a faucet inside his skull. The dark crimson fluid flowed quickly in a narrow rivulet down his neck, over his crisp white collar, and then onto his well-tailored navy blue suit, changing its color to a rich deep purple.

There had been plenty of killings in Paris in the two years since the beginning of the German occupation in 1940, but Lucien had never actually seen a dead body until this moment. He was oddly mesmerized, not by the dead body, but by the new color the blood had produced on his suit. In an art class at school, he had to paint boring color wheel exercises. Here before him was bizarre proof that blue and red indeed made purple.

“Stay where you are!”

A German officer holding a steel-blue Lugar ran up alongside him, followed by two tall soldiers with submachine guns, which they immediately trained on Lucien.

“Don’t move, you bastard, or you’ll be sleeping next to your friend,” said the officer.

Lucien couldn’t have moved if he’d wanted to; he was frozen with fear.

The officer walked over to the body, then turned and strolled up to Lucien as if he were going to ask him for a light. About thirty years old, the man had a fine aquiline nose and very dark, un-Aryan brown eyes, which now stared deeply into Lucien’s gray-blue ones. Lucien was unnerved. Shortly after the Germans took over, several pamphlets had been written by Frenchmen on how to deal with the occupiers.

Maintain dignity and distance, do not talk to them, and above all, avoid eye contact. In the animal world, direct eye contact was a challenge and a form of aggression. But Lucien couldn’t avoid breaking this rule with the German’s eyes just ten centimeters from his.

“He’s not my friend,” Lucien said in a quiet voice.

The German’s face broke out into a wide grin.

“This kike is nobody’s friend anymore,” said the officer, whose uniform indicated he was a major in the Waffen-SS. The two soldiers laughed.

Though Lucien was so scared that he thought he had pissed himself, he knew he had to act quickly or he could be lying dead on the ground next. Lucien managed a shallow breath to brace himself and to think. One of the oddest aspects of the Occupation was how incredibly pleasant and polite the Germans were when dealing with their defeated French subjects. They even gave up their seats on the Metro to the elderly.

Lucien tried the same tack.

“Is that your bullet lodged in the gentleman’s skull?” he asked.

“Yes, it is. Just one shot,” the major said. “But it’s really not all that impressive. Jews aren’t very athletic. They run so damn slow it’s never much of a challenge.”

The major began to go through the man’s pockets, pulling out papers and a handsome alligator wallet, which he placed in the side pocket of his green and black tunic. He grinned up at Lucien.

“But thank you so much for admiring my marksmanship.”

A wave of relief swept over Lucien—this wasn’t his day to die.

“You’re most welcome, Major.”

The officer stood. “You may be on your way, but I suggest you visit a men’s room first,” he said in a solicitous voice. He gestured with his gray gloved hand at the right shoulder of Lucien’s gray suit.
“I’m afraid I splattered you. This filth is all over the back of your suit, which I greatly admire, by the way. Who is your tailor?”

Craning his neck to the right, Lucien could see specks of red on his shoulder. The officer produced a pen and a small brown notebook.

“Monsieur. Your tailor?”

“Millet. On the rue de Mogador.” Lucien had always heard that Germans were meticulous record keepers.

The German carefully wrote this down and pocketed his notebook in his trouser pocket.

“Thank you so much. No one in the world can surpass the artistry of French tailors, not even the British. You know, the French have us beat in all the arts, I’m afraid. Even we Germans concede that Gallic culture is vastly superior to Teutonic—in everything except fighting wars, that is.” The German laughed at his observation, as did the two soldiers.

Lucien followed suit and also laughed heartily.

After the laughter subsided, the major gave Lucien a curt salute. “I won’t keep you any longer, monsieur.”

Lucien nodded and walked away. When safely out of earshot, he muttered, “German shit,” under his breath and continued on at an almost leisurely pace. Running through the streets of Paris had become a death wish—as the poor devil lying face down in the street had found out. Seeing a man murdered had frightened him, he realized, but he really wasn’t upset that the man was dead. All that mattered was that he wasn’t dead. It bothered him that he had so little compassion for his fellow man.

But no wonder—he’d been brought up in a family where compassion didn’t exist.

His father, a university-trained geologist of some distinction, had had the same dog-eat-dog view of life as the most ignorant peasant. When it came to the misfortune of others, his philosophy had been tough shit, better him than me. The late Professor Jean-Baptiste Bernard hadn’t seemed to realize that human beings, including his wife and children, had feelings. His love and affection had been heaped upon inanimate objects—the rocks and minerals of France and her colonies—and he demanded that his two sons love them as well. Before most children could read, Lucien and his older brother, Mathieu, had been taught the names of every sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rock in every one of France’s nine geological provinces.

His father tested them at suppertime, setting rocks on the table for them to name. He was merciless if they made even one mistake, like the time Lucien couldn’t identify bertrandite, a member of the silicate family, and his father had ordered him to put the rock in his mouth so he would never forget it. To this day, he remembered bertrandite’s bitter taste.

He had hated his father, but now he wondered if he was more like his father than he wanted to admit. [To be continued tomorrow at Erica Robuck's Muse.]

—The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure (Sourcebooks / Landmark, 2013, pp. 1-4)

Quick Facts

• Setting: 1942, German-occupied Paris
• Circumstances: Lucien Bernard is asked by a wealthy client to build hiding places for escaping Jews
• Characters: Lucien, the architect; Manet, the wealthy client, Lucien's wife and mistresses, various Jews, the Gestapos
• Genre: historical fiction
• Book club themes: greed; ethics; marriage and fidelity; turning points in one's life; humanity; compassion; costs of obeying an oppressor; costs of rebelling
• Miscellaneous: based on the idea of priest holes, common in Elizabethan England; the author is an architect and made sure all the hidey-holes he wrote about would actually work; excellent period details of life in wartime Paris and the horrors of the Nazi occupation
• Pre-publication praise: October Indie Next Pick; Library Journal starred review; National Reading Group Month Selection

To follow the rest of tour and to finish reading the pre-publication preview, visit Erica Robuck's Muse tomorrow, Devourer of Books on Thursday, and Linus's Blanket on Friday.

ISBN-13: 9781402284311
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy).

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BEA Book Group Speed Dating Session: Part 2

**NB: Imprint Friday will return next with the results of my survey (there is still time to answer the 7 questions) and hints of what's to come.

Yesterday I mentioned that my favorite panel at BEA each year is the one geared to book clubs. Here is Part 2 of my recap of that event, covering four of the eight publishers that stopped by my table to present their hottest book club titles for the coming seasons. (Be sure to check out BEA Book Group Speed Dating Session: Part 1, which I posted yesterday.)

Here are the books I learned about at the session, plus my top pick from each publisher. Titles in boldface are books that made it to my wish list.

Random House Publishing Group

• The Boleyn Deceit by Laura Andersen: alternate history in which Anne has a son who becomes king; second in a series
• The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin: historical novel focusing on the life and accomplishments of Anne Morrow Lindbergh
• Defending Jacob by William Landay: contemporary novel; a lawyer must defend his young son who has been accused of murder
• A Thousand Pardons by Jonathan Dee: contemporary novel; can a family survive a man's poor choices?
• Perfect by Rachel Joyce: contemporary novel; how much does a young teen really know about his perfect mother? [This is my real top pick, but the publisher's summary and book cover are currently unavailable.]

Once a privileged and loving couple, the Armsteads have now reached a breaking point. Ben, a partner in a prestigious law firm, has become unpredictable at work and withdrawn at home—a change that weighs heavily on his wife, Helen, and their preteen daughter, Sara. Then, in one afternoon, Ben’s recklessness takes an alarming turn, and everything the Armsteads have built together unravels, swiftly and spectacularly.

Thrust back into the working world, Helen finds a job in public relations and relocates with Sara from their home in upstate New York to an apartment in Manhattan. There, Helen discovers she has a rare gift, indispensable in the world of image control: She can convince arrogant men to admit their mistakes, spinning crises into second chances. Yet redemption is more easily granted in her professional life than in her personal one.

As she is confronted with the biggest case of her career, the fallout from her marriage, and Sara’s increasingly distant behavior, Helen must face the limits of accountability and her own capacity for forgiveness.

What will book clubs talk about? Marriage, trust, forgiveness, how far can a family bend without breaking, moving on, second chances. On sale August 6; ISBN 13: 9780812983388

Sourcebooks / Landmark

• Book of Someday by Dianne Dixon: contemporary novel; three women unexpectedly connected and forever changed over the course of a summer
• Lies You Wanted to Hear by James Whitfield Thomson: contemporary novel; two points of view; how a couple tears apart their family
• Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure: historical fiction; how an architect creates hiding places for Jews during the German occupation

Like most gentiles in Nazi-occupied Paris, architect Lucien Bernard has little empathy for the Jews. So when a wealthy industrialist offers him a large sum of money to devise secret hiding places for Jews, Lucien struggles with the choice of risking his life for a cause he doesn't really believe in. Ultimately he can't resist the challenge and begins designing expertly concealed hiding spaces--behind a painting, within a column, or inside a drainpipe--detecting possibilities invisible to the average eye. But when one of his clever hiding spaces fails horribly and the immense suffering of Jews becomes incredibly personal, he can no longer deny reality.

Written by an expert whose knowledge imbues every page, this story becomes more gripping with every life the architect tries to save.

What will book clubs talk about? Morality, ethical dilemmas, selflessness, religion, tolerance. On sale October 1; ISBN 13: 9781402284311

William Morrow

• Swimming in the Moon by Pamela Schoenewaldt: historical fiction about a mother and daughter in the early 1900s during a time of social change
• Someone Else's Love Story by Joshilyn Jackson: southern fiction; messy love story
• The Tilted World by Tom Franklin and Beth Ann Fennelly: historical fiction about the 1927 Mississippi flood
• The Whole Golden World by Kristina Riggle: contemporary fiction; a happy, successful family is torn apart when the parents discover that their teenage daughter is having an affair with a married teacher
• Help for the Haunted by John Searles: contemporary novel; the deeper a young girl looks into the death of her parents the more she realizes she cannot trust anyone
• The House Girl by Tara Conklin: contemporary and historical; intertwined stories of two women: one a New York lawyer and one a runaway slave

It begins with a call in the middle of the snowy February evening. Lying in her bed, young Sylvie Mason overhears her parents on the phone across the hall. This is not the first late-night call they have received, since her mother and father have an uncommon occupation, helping "haunted souls" find peace. And yet, something in Sylvie senses that this call is differnt than the rest, especially when they are lured to the old church on the outskirts of town. Once there, her parents disappear, one after the other, behnd the church's red door, leaving Sylvie alone in the car. Not long after, she drifts off to sleep only to wake to the sound of gunfire.

Nearly a year later, we meed Sylvie again, struggling with the loss of her parents, and living in the care of her older sister, Rose, who may be to blame for what happened the previous winter. As the story moves back and forth in time, through the years leading up to the crime and the months following, the ever inquisitive and tender-hearted Sylvie pursues the mystery, moving closer to the knowledge of what occurred that night, as she comes to terms with her family's past and uncovers secrets that have haunted them for years. (Note: copy from publicity memo; no summary available.)

What will book clubs talk about? Family secrets, sisters, spirituality, truth, ghosts, loss, death. On sale September 17; ISBN 13: 9780060779634

Norton

• The Obituary Writer by Ann Hood: historical fiction (1919 and 1961); two women living in different time periods that were marked by great changes in women's rights
• Dirty Love by Andre Dubus III: contemporary; stories about finding fulfillment via food, sex, work, and love
• A Guide for the Perplexed by Dara Horn: contemporary and historical novel involving twin sisters; about jealousy, memory, and secrets from the historic past
• Brewster by Mark Slouka: historical fiction about two teens and their dreams for a better life beyond the confines of their small town

The year is 1968, a year after the summer of love and the peak of the Vietnam War. The world is changing, and sixteen-year-old Jon Mosher is determined to change with it. Racked by guilt over his older brother's childhood death, Jon turns his rage into victories running track. When he meets Ray Cappicciano, a local legend in the making, a rebel as gifted with his fists as Jon is with his feet, he recognizes a friendship with the potential to save him. Realizing that Ray needs saving too, Jon sets off on the race of his life--a race to redeem his past and save them both. Reverberating with compassion, heartache, and grace, Brewster is sure to remind readers of Andre Dubus III and Richard Russo.

What will book clubs talk about? Redemption, forgiveness, hopes, dreams, friendship, life before modern technology, social change On sale August 5; ISBN 13: 9780393239751

Don't forget that discussion guides will be available for all these titles. Check ReadingGroupGuides.com and the publishers' websites for more information about book club resources, the books, and the authors.

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Guest Post: From Food Writer to Novelist by Megan Mulry

Bronte Talbott is a modern woman who is decidedly career oriented. Getting married would be nice, but not if it means sacrificing her own ambitions. Of course, she's not all that no-nonsense feminist. She'd still like to date Mr. Right, and she's not giving up her obsession with reading the gossip columns about the British titled gentry and royalty.

But what happens when she discovers her new boyfriend is really a duke? Reading about royalty and fairy tale romances is one thing, living in the limelight is quite another. Bronte has some soul-searching decisions to make about what she really wants her future to be like.

Megan Mulry's A Royal Pain has been described as a fun (and very adult) story that's a cross between romance and woman's fiction. I'm getting the impression Bronte has her feet on the ground and isn't going to be too quick to turn her life upside down for the duke.

I'm thrilled to welcome author Megan Mulry to my blog today. It likely comes as no surprise that I encouraged her to write something foodie. What will come as a surprise is just how perfect that topic turned out to be. Take a look.

From Food Writer to Novelist

Cultivation to the mind is as necessary as food to the body. —Cicero

I was so excited when I heard you enjoy blogs about food and food research! My daughter recently asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up (what I imagined I wanted to be when I was her age), and I told her I wanted to be an architect and then I wanted to be a food writer. At first, I wanted to be an architect so I could design my own house to include little hydraulic chutes like they have at the drive-up teller of the bank, so I could have holes in the wall—near my desk or where I sat watching television—where those Plexiglas cylinders could come flying out with that satisfying whoosh and inside would be a can of Coke or a Pop-Tart. Those were my childhood food fantasies; today the chute would provide a glass of micro-brewed beer and a plate of butternut squash ravioli in sage butter.

When I realized architecture school would force me to learn lots of other Very Important Things before I would ever get around to building Barbie's Gastronomic Dream House, I tried to figure out a simpler way to get paid to eat.

When I was in Italy for the summer between my junior and senior years of university (ostensibly learning about the Italian Renaissance, but really eating and drinking), one of my classmates suggested the idea of becoming a food writer. Genius! It has caché! It has style! I would do it! It took a while, but eventually I became a lifestyle editor at Boston Magazine and was able to go to restaurants and write about them. It was a great gig, but like all good things, it came to an end. My husband's company offered him the opportunity to work in their London office. Did I want to go? Uh. Yes!

Upon our arrival there, I discovered magazine jobs were *cough* rather low paying. ("But you'll be able to say you work at fill-in-prestigious-intellectual-British-magazine-name-here . . ." one kind interviewer explained when I gasped at the paltry salary. To which I replied, "But I won't be able to afford my dry cleaning!") I ended up getting an entry-level (higher-paying) job in banking. And eating. And looking.

Being an expatriate is really the ideal way to do book research without appearing to be a fool or a snoop. "I've never had a summer pudding . . . please enlighten me!" "Squab? Really? Yes, thank you!" Being American meant my ignorance was easily passed off as an eager desire to become culturally literate in my new home. If I was caught staring at the window of Allen & Co. butchers—their website proudly declares that from the day they opened in 1887: "carcases have been hung at 117 Mount Street ever since"—I merely explained that I was an ever-curious American.

I didn't know it at the time, but it turns out all those episodes of looking and snooping and foolishness were percolating into lots and lots of stories. I love that scene in Out of Africa where Karin Blixen offers to tell a story if someone else will provide an opening line. I figure every little snippet of my British experience is an opening line. That startlingly handsome man working at the car repair shop with the pain in his crystal blue eyes; the former army engineer who described the isolation of his occupation; the friend of a friend who died in the plane crash. Now that I'm writing full-time, I feel like I finally know what to do with all of this particulate information. All of those conversations and experiences and observations were feeding my mind all these years. I just didn't know it.

I don't write about actual people I know, but as a dowager duchess might say, one hears things, especially while sitting adjacent to a quarrelling couple at a table for two in Mayfair.

Some of my favorite restaurants in London are

• Bar Boulud
• Clarke's
• Comptoir Libanais
• Le Caprice
• Nobu
• The Guinea Grill
• The Wolseley

Thank you so much for having me to your blog!

No, thank you for such a terrific post. Now you have me dreaming of those hydraulic chutes so my coffee could be delivered to me in the morning and my wine at night. What fun that would be! By the way, I have a particular obsession for the movie Out of Africa, so I know exactly which scene you mean. And I love your restaurant recommendations; when I get back to London, I'll give one or two a try.

Buy A Royal Pain at an Indie or at a bookstore near you (link leads to an affiliate program).
Sourcebooks / Sourcebooks Landmark, 2012
ISBN-13: 9781402269974
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy).

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