Guest Blogger: Linnea Hartsuyker

July 31, 2017

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I am delighted to welcome Linnea Hartsuyker to the blog!

Behind The Half-Drowned King
by Linnea Hartsuyker

In D’Aulaires’ Trolls, a nine-headed troll in the Norwegian Mountains steals nine princesses from their father so each of the women can massage one of his itchy, lice-ridden heads, all of which are constantly arguing with one another and keeping the others from sleep. My father, a wonderful storyteller, scowled and scratched his own head when he got to this part, demonstrating why the troll needed these maidens. Eventually, a hero strong enough to lift the troll’s giant sword came along, killed the troll with one blow, rescued the nine princesses, and married the eldest.

Tales of Norse gods and giants formed the imaginative bedrock of my childhood. These were the legends of my ancestors and, growing up in the middle of the woods in upstate New York, it wasn’t hard to picture myself in the deep, dark Norwegian woods where giants lived in caves and battled with heroes. Scandinavian legends explained why my family was so much taller than my friends’, why I loved the cold and the snow, why my mother made pepperkaker cookies at Christmas and decorated the house with straw goats and wooden Dala horses.

The women in these stories were remarkable as well: the giantess Gefjon who turned her sons into oxen and plowed so deeply that she separated Zeeland from the Danish mainland, or Skadi who forced the Aesir gods to give her a husband, but had to choose him by looking only at his legs. There was not much difference between gods, trolls, and giants in this world; a brutal giant father could have a beautiful giant daughter desired by the handsomest gods. In the Norse heaven, warriors battled each other all day and then put their limbs and bodies back together to drink and feast all night.

Living in the country, I learned about the work it would take an ancient Norse family to stay alive through a cold winter. My family skied our frozen forest, and heated our house with stoves that required constant chopping and carrying of firewood. I learned to knit, weave, and sew at a young age, because those were my mother’s hobbies, and she saw virtue in knowing how to do things from scratch, from baking bread to making clothing.

When I was in my teens, one of my relatives decided to trace the Scandinavian side of our family, identified all of our relatives back to Alma, five generations ago in Sweden, and we met many new cousins through our explorations. What intrigued me more than the recent history, though, was the misty recesses of the family tree; Scandinavia’s church records are nearly unbroken back to the coming of Christianity in the 11th century, and beyond that, the sagas record ancestry back to the loins of gods and giants. One branch of my family can be traced to Harald Fairhair, the first king of Norway in the 9th century.

Because Harald fathered over twenty sons, most people with any northern European ancestors can trace their lineage back to him. But learning that did not put a damper on my imagination. As an undergraduate, I researched Harald in Cornell’s libraries, reading The Heimskringla, the Saga of Norwegian Kings written by Snorri Sturlusson, when I was supposed to be doing my engineering homework, and learned about the princess Gyda who said that she would only marry Harald if he conquered all of Norway, so he swore he would not cut his hair or shave his beard until he had done so, and fifteen years later, he came back and married her.

When I began trying to write novels and short stories more seriously in my early twenties, I always thought that someday I would write the story of Harald and Gyda—once I had practiced enough, and had enough confidence as a writer. But one night, after bogging down while attempting to write another novel I didn’t care enough about, I decided that if I only wrote one story in my life, it should be this, and I was wasting time working on anything else. In Harald’s story, I found a world in which I could spend years, because, in many ways, I already had.

In reading The Heimskringla again, this time as a writer, I found that Harald’s story is not a particularly compelling narrative for a novelist: Harald is the brightest and the best and he always wins. In Arthurian retellings that King Arthur is often the least interesting character; it’s the people he surrounds himself with, torn between duty and their own desires, who have far more engaging stories. At Harald’s side, I found Ragnvald of Maer, his right-hand man, who makes hard sacrifices for his attachment to Harald. The Heimskringla gives only a bare-bones account of Ragnvald’s involvement Harald’s conquest, leaving plenty of room for invention. And Ragnvald had a sister Svanhild about whom even less was known; together they provide a canvas for a tale of betrayal and hard choices, of families torn apart, and brought back together again.

The dawn of the Scandinavian kingdoms was a fascinating time. Small kingdoms sent out viking raiding parties against one another and all of Northern Europe, terrorizing monasteries, and sacking Paris—twice. Early Norse kings ruled only as far as they could walk or sail in a day. Women had a great deal of agency and independence: they could divorce their husbands, and, as widows, own property and even command armies. But they could not swear oaths or testify at trials unless a man could not be found to stand witness, and were not required to consent to marriages. Without reliable birth control, they were bound to constant childbearing, which often killed them young.

I wondered what about 9th century Norway would make some people long for the security of a king, and others rebel and strike out to found the shockingly democratic country of medieval Iceland. In The Half-Drowned King, Ragnvald and his sister Svanhild embody two sides of that conflict, and much like in fantasy or science fiction, I hope that showing how people navigate these issues in a very different world illuminates something about how we confront them now.

An Indie Next Pick for August 2017

A Barnes & Noble Discover New Writers Pick for Summer 2017

A Buzz Books Pick for 2017

ABOUT THE BOOK

THE HALF-DROWNED KING (Harper; $27.99/$34.99 Can.; Hardcover; ISBN: 9780062563699; on sale August 1, 2017), Linnea Hartsuyker’s assured and compelling debut novel, launches an epic saga drawn from her own Scandinavian lineage. This first installment in a trilogy brings to life the cold and violent ninth century when Norway’s first king, Harald the Fair-Haired, united a warring nation and ascended to the throne. Drawing on extensive research, Hartsuyker crafts a richly-veined work of historical fiction that is propelled by her natural storytelling gifts. “Steeped in legend and myth, Hartsuyker’s debut is a swashbuckling epic of family, love, and betrayal that reimagines the Norse sagas,” says Kirkus Reviews, “While Hartsuyker’s prose is straightforward, the plot is as deliciously complex as Game of Thrones. And, in an era so dominated by the tales of men, it’s nice to see a complicated, cunning heroine like Svanhild swoop in and steal the show. Hold on to your helms and grab your shields—Hartsuyker is just getting started.”

            While THE HALF-DROWNED KING is a work of fiction, it takes its inspiration from classic Norwegian texts. “In the thirteenth century the Icelander Snorri Sturluson, a historian, poet, and politician, would write down theHeimskringla, and many other sagas—roughly the equivalent of someone today writing the story of the founding of the United States with only oral tradition on which to base his narrative,” reports Hartsuyker, who has traced her own direct bloodline back 1200 years to Harald the Fair-Haired. “The Heimskringla almost certainly has gaps and inaccuracies…. In writing The Half-Drowned King, I have used the stories in the Heimskringla as a jumping-off point, and also asked myself what might have been the real events behind the stories that Snorri Sturluson and others passed on and recorded.”

            The story Hartsuyker crafts from this historical raw material is exhilarating. In an age of chaos, a hundred petty rulers are willing to kill over the smallest parcels of land. But, a prophecy has promised the rise of a high king who will unite all of Norway. While sailing home from a raiding trip to Ireland, Ragnvald Eysteinsson—the son and grandson of kings—is attacked and left for dead by a man he thought an ally. The attempted killing, he will learn was engineered by his own stepfather, Olaf, who wishes to claim Ragnvald’s land and birthright as his own. Rescued by a fisherman and nursed to health by a widow trying to survive on the land of her slaughtered husband, Ragnvald plots his return and his vengeance.

            After the death of their father in battle, Ragnvald has sworn to protect his sister, Svanhild, who, as a woman, has remained behind with their mother and the scheming Olaf. Because of her sex, Svanhild is simply expected to make an advantageous marriage and leave matters of honor to men. Without Ragnvald to protect her, Svanhild could easily be married off to the man of her stepfather’s choosing. But her independent mind and adventurous spirit drive her to take control of her fate. When the chance to leave her stepfather’s cruelty comes at the hand of her brother’s arch rival, Svanhild is forced to make the ultimate choice: family or freedom. Meanwhile, Ragnvald sees opportunity with Harald of Vestfold, the strong young Norse warrior rumored to be the prophesied king. Ragnvald pledges his sword to Harald, a choice that will hold enormous consequence in the years to come.

Critics are raving!

“Making her fiction debut, Hartsuyker, who claims descent from Norway’s first king, writes an absolutely top-notch Viking saga, and readers will eagerly await the next two volumes in this trilogy.”

 Library Journal*Starred Review*

“A terrific historical epic…Posing thoughtful questions about the nature of honor and heroism, and devoting significant attention to women’s lives, the novel takes a fresh approach to the Viking adventure genre…The action scenes will have the blood humming in your veins.”

Booklist*Starred Review*

“Steeped in legend and myth, Hartsuyker’s debut is a swashbuckling epic of family, love, and betrayal that reimagines the Norse sagas….While Hartsuyker’s prose is straightforward, the plot is as deliciously complex as Game of Thrones. And, in an era so dominated by the tales of men, it’s nice to see a complicated, cunning heroine like Svanhild swoop in and steal the show. Hold on to your helms and grab your shields—Hartsuyker is just getting started.”

— Kirkus Reviews 

“The author, who can trace her lineage back to Harald Halfdansson, recreates the half-civilized, half-primitive landscape of his time, where a dragon boat sailing up a fjord struck dread in all who saw it. Befitting its subject matter, the book is replete with exciting battles, duels, and sieges, but the author makes Svanhild’s domestic tribulations equally dramatic. In the end, this novel can stand proudly with Edison Marshall’s The Viking and Frans G. Bengtsson’s The Long Ships as an immersive fictional recreation of a bloody moment in Scandinavian history.”

Publishers Weekly 

“A spellbinding evocation of a long-lost world of magic and blood feuds, populated by characters riddled with doubt and human failing beneath their epic exteriors.” — BookPage

“Suspenseful, intriguing, gripping!… Treachery and astonishment and surprise are always right around the corner…As with all great historical fiction, there are strong similarities to actual events. Good research is very important to a believable historical novel. This book has it. If you enjoy Bernard Cornwell, do not pass this book by. It is well worth the read!”
— New York Journal of Books

“Inspired by the Icelandic sagas, this action-packed first volume in a planned trilogy will transport readers to Viking Norway, where Ragnvald battles his treacherous stepfather in order to claim his true birthright after his father’s death. Meanwhile, Ragnvald’s sister Svanhild seeks a marriage that will give her the freedom she craves despite the era’s restrictive social roles for women. An adventurous summer read, in which vivid historical detail meets a fast-moving plot.”
— Library Journal’s List of Summer Escapes

Game of Thrones will be back on our screens by the time this epic Viking saga comes out, and it’s a safe literary bet for those of us who enjoy a bit of Westeros action. Ragnvald Eysteinsson is betrayed by his avaricious stepfather, and in trying to gain back his rightful inheritance, he pledges his sword to a young warrior plotting to become the king. If you like your heroes noble and your struggles for power bloody, this one’s for you.”
— 24 Best books To Read This Summer from Elle.com 

“Linnea Hartsuyker brings myth and legend roaring to life in this superbly good page-turning saga of Viking-era Norway. Hartsuyker is fearless as she navigates a harsh, exacting and hair-raising world, with icy fjords and raiding seasons and ancient blood feuds. But the book’s fiercest magic shines in the characters of Ragnvald and Svanhild, as unforgettable a brother and sister duo as I can remember in recent literature. Linnea Hartsuyker is an exciting, original voice in historical fiction, and The Half-Drowned King is nothing short of mesmerizing.”
— Paula McLain, bestselling author of THE PARIS WIFE and CIRCLING THE SUN

 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Linnea Hartsuyker grew up outside Ithaca, New York, and studied Engineering at Cornell University. She received an MFA in Creative Writing from NYU. She has read extensively of Icelandic sagas, kayaked and skied the fjordland settings for this novel, and has even become proficient in lifting Husafjell stones, as the Vikings did to become stronger. She lives in New York City with her husband.  For more on Linnea and her writing, visit: http://www.linneahartsuyker.com/

A Conversation with Linnea Hartsuyker, author of THE HALF-DROWNED KING

Q.: Your debut novel, THE HALF-DROWNED KING, is set in ninth century Norway. What is your personal connection to the story?

When I was in my late teens, one of my relatives decided to trace our Scandinavian ancestry and identified all of our relatives back to Alma, five generations ago in Sweden. Scandinavian church records are nearly unbroken back to the coming of Christianity in the 11th century, and beyond that, the sagas record ancestry back to the loins of gods and giants. We found that one branch of the family descends from Harald Fairhair, the first king of Norway in the 9th century.

I was fascinated by this connection and when I went to college, I researched Harald in Cornell’s libraries, reading The Heimskringla, the Saga of Norwegian Kings written by Snorri Sturlusson, when I was supposed to be doing my engineering homework. I learned about Princess Gyda who proclaimed that she would only marry Harald if he conquered all of Norway, so he swore he would not cut his hair or shave his beard until he had done so, and fifteen years later, he returned and married her.

My mother is a geneticist, and when we found out about our ancestry, she calculated how much genetic material we would share with Harald—some fraction of a single chromosome—and in my later research, I learned that most people with Northern European ancestry are descended from Harald, but it did not dim my enthusiasm.

Q.: What inspired you to write a novel—the first in a trilogy in fact—that focuses on this long-ago period in history?

I grew up on a dirt road in the wilderness of upstate New York, where my family skied our frozen forest, and heated our house with stoves that required constant chopping and carrying of firewood. I learned to knit, weave, and sew at a young age, because those were my mother’s hobbies, and she saw a virtue in knowing how to do things from scratch, from baking bread to making clothing.

My parents both love legend and folk lore, and I grew up with books of women-centric folk tales like Tatterhood and Maid of the North, and also the tales of my Norse ancestors. I loved the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, and wanted to live in the 1850s, if not earlier.

When I got serious about writing as more than a hobby, in my late twenties, I was living in New York City, but a part of me always felt more connected to deep, dark woods and ancient legends than to the modern world. I no longer want to live then—I love modern conveniences—but I also love imagining what life was like in Viking-age Norway. A writing teacher once told me that you should write a novel about something you’re obsessed with; because you will spend so long with it, you will need that obsession to pull you through. I have always been obsessed with the borders between history and legend, between myth and reality. In telling the story of Harald, Ragnvald, and Svanhild, I am drawing on and expanding my own foundational myths.

Q.: Who are Ragnvald and Svanhild, and why did you decide to focus the story on them rather than Harald, who became the first king of Norway?

When I did decide to tackle this story, I re-read the Harald portions of The Heimskringla, and found that King Harald’s story is not a particularly compelling narrative for a novelist: Harald is the brightest and the best and he always wins. In Arthurian retellings that King Arthur is often the least interesting character; it’s the people he surrounds himself with, torn between duty and their own desires, who have far more engaging stories.

At Harald’s side, I found Ragnvald of Maer, his right-hand man, who makes hard sacrifices because of his attachment to Harald. The Heimskringla gives only a bare-bones account of Ragnvald’s involvement Harald’s conquest, leaving plenty of room for invention, but what we do know sketches a fascinating, conflicted character. And he had a sister about whom even less was known; together they provide a canvas for a tale of betrayal and hard choices, of families torn apart, and brought back together again.

Q.: How much about Ragnvald and Svanhild is based on fact and how much did you fabricate for dramatic purposes?

I have taken some liberties in order to tell the story I wanted. The primary sources only relate a few important events involving Ragnvald and his children. Nothing of Svanhild is known beyond her name and one of her husbands. I created other aspects of Ragnvald and Svanhild’s backgrounds and personalities to fit these scraps of information—adding a personal dimension to a political conflict. I noticed that Ragnvald names his son Ivar after his grandfather, but none of his sons or grandsons are named for his father Eystein, who was known as Eystein the Noisy—the implication being that he was a boaster. What kind of son would a boaster have? Perhaps a taciturn young man, uncomfortable with praise.

With Ragnvald, I wanted to explore why a highly capable man, older than the king he serves, would do

so much for him, and never rebel even when he had reason to? From there I imagined a young man descended from kings but whose family has fallen in recent generations, whose upbringing has caused him to doubt his abilities and curtail his ambitions, and who would eventually grow into the man known as Ragnvald the Mighty.

Q.: When did Christianity reach Norway? Your characters still pay homage to the gods Ran and Odin. Did Ragnvald and Solvi learn of this new religion from their travels?

The Half-Drowned King begins around 860 or 870 CE. At that point, even Germany and England had only officially been Christian for 150 years. The Vikings were aware of Christianity, but unlike the Frankish Empire and England, their rulers had no political reasons to become Christian. The Half-Drowned King is about the consolidation of power in Norway, at a time when all of the Scandinavian kingdoms transitioning from regional rule to nations with kings.

Vikings believed their gods gave them good harvests and victory in battle, and understood that different people had different gods; they believed in the Christian God and Christ as much as in their own gods, but thought that their gods must be stronger, as long as they won in battle. They would not be interested in throwing over their own gods for a weaker god.

Once they started to lose battles to Christians, Christianity became more attractive. At the same time, in the early 11th century, Scandinavian rulers began to see the value in converting to Christianity so they could make alliances with other Christian kings. The church also provided an educated, literate class of bureaucrats—priests and other church officials—who could help them administer their larger countries.

Q.: It is rare to have a woman as a central character in fiction set in this time period, and yet that is exactly what you have done with the character of Svanhild. Was this a conscious choice, spurred by twenty-first century awareness, or simply the result of her having been an important figure?

Svanhild is only mentioned briefly in The Heimskringla and no other sources, but as Ragnvald’s sister, and a player in the era’s politics, she could be as important as her brother. I wanted to create a character who was plausible for the Viking Age—not a 21st century feminist woman in period clothing—while making her sympathetic to modern readers. The Icelandic sagas are full of women who cause trouble, and spur their reluctant husbands on to vengeance or other actions. Wealthy women, especially widows, could also accrue a great deal of power. I wanted Svanhild to be aware of the influence she can wield, while also feeling trapped by the unique pressures of womanhood in her era.

Women’s stories have always been erased from recorded history, and in fiction, are often shunted into their own genre. In writing this book, I struggled with the fact that we know much more of men’s history and actions. I tried to give my women characters unique personalities and understandable motivations, rather than making them only helpers and maintainers of the men in their lives. I wanted The Half-Drowned King to show the various ways women could wield power: through their sexuality, childrearing and housekeeping, and even occasionally in politics and warfare.

Q.: What did you do to research the novel? Did you spend time in Norway? Do you speak Norwegian?

I researched The Half-Drowned King by reading a great deal of saga literature, criticism, history, and archeology. I’ve traveled to Norway, Denmark, Iceland, and Ireland a few times, as well as the Orkney, Shetland, and Faroe Islands where some events in the subsequent novels are set. I visited museums containing Viking artifacts, and have learned some Viking crafts I did not already know, like Nailbinding, a precursor to knitting. In Roskilde, Denmark, I was even able to help row a replica Viking boat for an afternoon.

Q.: You first learned the bones of the historical details that found their way into the novel by reading The Heimskringla, or Saga of the Norwegian Kings. What other sources did you tap?

I read some other Icelandic sagas and Eddic verse, including Egil’s Saga, The Orkneyinga Saga, The Eddas including “The Havamal” which references King Harald and his sons. Another primary source is the Gesta Danorum, written by Saxo Grammaticus, a 12th century chronicler of Danish history, which notes some Norwegian history where it overlaps with the Danish.

I’ve also read a great deal of history, archeology, and anthropology of the Viking Age. Because the Vikings did not use a written language, much of what we know about them comes from archeological research.

Q.: Do you find inspiration in reading other historical fiction series? If so, which ones have influenced you?

I’ve always loved historical fiction and fantasy, because both genres draw their readers into unfamiliar worlds, where the author can explore universal problems in different settings. I read widely in many genres, including literary fiction, but my inspiration for The Half-Drowned King comes from folk tales and myth, as well as the beloved novels of my teens.

As a girl, I loved The Mists of Avalon and The Firebrand by Marion Zimmer Bradley, historical fantasy novels that used Arthurian Legends and The Illiad as their sources. I was fascinated by their depiction of cultures that existed Christianity, or as Christianization was just taking place. Evangeline Walton’s Mabinogion Cycle and Lloyd Alexander’s Chronicles of Prydain do a similar thing for Welsh mythology. I also read Sharon Kay Penman’s Welsh trilogy in my teens, and found her world, 12th century British Isles, to be as fantastical and alien as anything invented from whole-cloth.

Some other influential books include: The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco, a mystery novel set in a medieval monastery, Illusion by Paula Volsky, a novel that recreates the French Revolution in a fantastical setting; and The Lord of the Rings, which is rooted in Norse history and mythology. More recently I have enjoyed the Master and Commander series by Patrick O’Brian and the Hornblower series by C. S. Forrester. The Other Boleyn Girl did a wonderful job exploring an overlooked character in history, and provided some inspiration for me to do the same. Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset evokes medieval Sweden in a way that was very inspirational, but also quite different than the age of The Half-Drowned King, since the church has a very strong influence on Kristin.

Q.: What relevance, if any, does a story such as this one have in our own politically turbulent times?

I began researching and writing The Half-Drowned King right after the end of George W. Bush’s presidency, when I was concerned about how many of my fellow citizens were willing to give up their civil liberties for what seemed like more of a feeling of safety than actual safety. One of the main conflicts for leaders in the Viking Age was whether to give up some personal power and freedom in exchange for a king’s protection and the greater power of a centralized government. Everyone in Norway answered this question differently: the founding legend of Iceland is that the elite who did not want to be subject to King Harald fled to there to create their own democratic society.

Historical fiction allows us to see universal human concerns play out in a world very different from our own, and, I think, see them differently, and even more clearly, because of the distance of time. I wrote my first draft of the sequel, The Sea Queen, before the most recent presidential election, but in it, Ragnvald still struggles with the question of what he is willing to put up with in a leader, even if his leader’s actions conflict with his own morality. In the final book of the trilogy, Harald will push him even farther.

With the recent rise of activism in the US, as US citizens reclaim their political power, I’ve been reminded that all governments exist only with the consent of the governed. This was true in Viking-Age Norway, when kings were elected in ting assemblies from among noble candidates, and were killed if they did not use their power well, as today when town halls serve a similar function, though we are far less violent. The question of why we have a government, what we want it to do, what we give up in exchange, and what we do if it betrays our ideals, is evergreen.

EVENTS FOR LINNEA HARTSUYKER’S THE HALF-DROWNED KING

TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017 – NEW YORK, NY
BARNES & NOBLE BOOKSELLERS – 7:00 PM
2289 Broadway at 82nd ST
New York, NY 10024
212-721-5282
*Reading/Signing

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 9, 2017 – BOSTON, MA
HARVARD COOP – 7:00 PM
1400 Mass AVE
Cambridge, MA 02238
617.499.2000
*Reading/Signing

SATURDAY, AUGUST 12, 2017 – ITHACA, NY
BARNES & NOBLE BOOKSELLERS – 1:00 PM
614 S Meadow
Ithaca, NY 14850
607-273-6784

*Reading/Signing

SUNDAY, AUGUST 13, 2017 – ELMIRA, NY
BARNES & NOBLE BOOKSELLERS – 2:00 PM
821 County Road 64
Elmira, NY 14903

(607) 796-2020
*Meet & Greet/Signing

FRIDAY, AUGUST 18, 2017 – PETALUMA, CA
COPPERFIELD’S BOOKS – 7:00 PM
140 Kentucky St
Petaluma, CA 94952

707-762-0563
*Reading/Signing

*A Brave New Worlds event!

SATURDAY, AUGUST 19, 2017 – SAN DIEGO, CA
BARNES & NOBLE BOOKSELLERS – 2:00 PM

Mira Mesa Market Center
10775 Westview Parkway
San Diego, CA 92126
(858) 684-3166

*Reading/Signing

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 23, 2017 – PORTLAND, OR
POWELL’S BOOKS AT CEDAR HILLS CROSSING – 7:00 PM
3415 SW Cedar Hills Blvd.
Beaverton, OR 97005
(503) 228-4651
*Reading/Signing

FRIDAY, AUGUST 25, 2017 – SEATTLE, WA
UNIVERSITY BOOKSTORE – 7:00 PM

Mill Creek Town Center
15311 Main ST
Mill Creek, WA 98012
(425) 385-3530

*Reading/Signing

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2017 – WINSTON SALEM, NC
BOOKMARKS FESTIVAL OF BOOKS & AUTHORS
http://www.bookmarksnc.org/festival-2017

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2017 – ARLINGTON, VA
ONE MORE PAGE BOOKS – 7:00 PM
2200 Westmoreland St
Arlington, VA 22201

703-300-9746

*Reading/Signing

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2017 – NEW YORK, NY
SCANDINAVIA HOUSE – 7:00 PM
58 Park Ave.
New York, NY 10016

(212) 779-3587

*Talk, Discussion & Signing

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2017 – ITHACA, NY
BUFFALO STREET BOOKS – 3:00 PM
215 N Cayuga St
Ithaca, NY 14850
607-273-8246

*Reading/Signing


THE CURIOUS CHARMS OF ARTHUR PEPPER by Phaedra Patrick

July 29, 2017

Click to purchase

This has been the year for charming, quirky books; at least, I’m finding them on a somewhat regular basis.

Arthur Pepper is a 69-year-old curmudgeon. He lost Miriam, his wife of forty years, just a year earlier, and has decided it is time to go through her belongings and send them off to charity. He pulls out a pair of boots and finds a charm bracelet hidden in the toe of the boot. Arthur is perplexed; he’s didn’t give her the bracelet and in fact, he’s never even seen it.

Arthur is a man of simple needs, as was his wife. They have two children, a daughter who lives nearby and a son who lives in Australia, but they are not close. In fact, neither of the children attended Miriam’s funeral. He has neighbors that he hides from, but the fact is that Arthur is lonely.

Although they were married, and happily, for all those years, Arthur realizes he really didn’t know anything about her life prior to their relationship. One of the charms has a phone number engraved on it, and that sets him off on an adventure into Miriam’s past. And she has quite a past – a stint working as a nanny in India, working as a nude model for artists, living in Paris and London for a while, and she even has a former fiance.

If you enjoy quirky family stories, then this is the book for you. I did this book with my book group and it made for a most enjoyable discussion. Arthur Pepper has the same sort of appeal as A Man Called Ove by Frederik Backman.

7/17 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

THE CURIOUS CHARMS OF ARTHUR PEPPER by Phaedra Patrick. MIRA; Reprint edition (January 31, 2017).  ISBN 978-0778319801.  336p.

Kindle

 


DANIEL’S TRUE DESIRE by Grace Burrowes

July 27, 2017

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True Gentlemen, Book 2

I loved the first book in this series, the second one not quite as much, but it’s still a really good read. I just had a harder time getting into it for some reason.

Daniel Banks has just started his new position as vicar in the small town of Haddondale, where the Earl of Bellefonte rules. Daniel has had some complications in his life – his sister had a baby, Danny, out of wedlock, who Daniel has been raising. She’s recently married a man of title, and they want to raise her son. But Danny is not happy without his papa, AKA Uncle Daniel.

Daniel is also married, to Olivia, who is a conniving bitch of the highest order. She wants nothing to do with sweet little Danny save for what she can use him for – blackmail, for a starter. Daniel and Olivia separate, he to his new post, her supposedly to family in the north. In reality, she is having an affair with a cousin and plotting and scheming against her husband.

While settling in to his new job, Daniel meets Lady Kirsten who runs the household. There is an immediate attraction and she is saddened to learn that he is married, and he is too ‘good’ to pursue anything while he is.

Eventually things conspire their way, but not without lots of hurdles and some behind closed doors sex. A happy ending is reached, and I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

5/17 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

DANIEL’S TRUE DESIRE by Grace Burrowes. Sourcebooks Casablanca (November 3, 2015). ISBN: 978-1492621027. 448p.

Kindle


ALL OR NOTHING AT ALL by Jennifer Probst

July 26, 2017

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The Billionaire Builders, Book 3

I am so sad to say that this is the final book, I really loved this HGTV style romance series.

The Pierce brothers are the stars of the series. In the first book, Everywhere and Every Way,  the eldest brother, Caleb Pierce, meets his match. The second book, Any Time, Any Place, features Dalton Pierce, and he, too, finds his soulmate. Now it’s Tristan’s turn.

Sydney Greene pretty much grew up in the Pierce household. Raised by her grandparents, the boys mom, Diana, is as close to a mother as Sydney has. And even though she was only eight years old the first time she set eyes on Tristan, she knew she would always love him.

Tristan is a few years older than Sydney and for most of his childhood, he thinks of her as a baby sister, someone to protect when needed. Eventually she grows up into a beautiful young woman, and she makes her desire for him apparent. He can’t resist and they have a secretive affair for quite a while before the family finds out. But by that point, Tristan is having some major issues with his family and wants to move to New York City to pursue a real estate career. On their last night together, Sydney tries to get up the courage to tell him she’s pregnant, but she never gets the chance. He leaves her, and she quickly rebounds and marries a man who is willing to take on a pregnant wife.

Fast forward several years and Sydney is long divorced after her brief marriage, and an essential employee in the family business that Tristan has returned to. He tries to ignore her, and she him, but their connection is too strong. Whether it is strong enough to survive him finding out her daughter is also his, is the biggest hurdle they will have to face. Sydney’s daughter is a wonderful addition to the story and often steals her scenes.

Probst writes really great stories with well-developed characters and lots of hot, explicit sex. Although it seems like there is a bit of repetition with some of the descriptions – his snowy white shirt, his whiskey eyes, and so forth, this was still a one night read for me and I really enjoyed it. I can’t wait to see what Probst has coming up next.

7/17 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

ALL OR NOTHING AT ALL by Jennifer Probst. Gallery Books (July 25, 2017). ISBN 978-1501124297. 384p.

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Win WHAT SHE ATE by Laura Shapiro!

July 25, 2017

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Win a copy of WHAT SHE ATE: Six Remarkable Women and the Food That Tells Their Stories by Laura Shapiro

Recommended Summer Reading
by ELLE, Bon Appétit, and Eater.

“A unique and delectable work that sheds new light on the lives of women, food, and men. .”—Kirkus Reviews

“…six crisply written, ardently researched, and entertainingly revelatory portraits of very different women with complicated relationships with eating and cooking…. A bounteous and elegant feast for hungry minds.”BookList, Starred Review

“Establishes Laura Shapiro as the founder of a delectable new literary genre: the culinary biography.”—Megan Marshall, Pulitzer-prize winning biographer

“The idea that eating habits reveal aspects of character is ever-intriguing, and it’s presented here with charm and insight.”—Mimi Sheraton, former restaurant critic for the New York Times and author of 1000 Foods to Eat Before You Die
 
“Laura Shapiro has done it again! She’s given us a fascinating and wonderfully entertaining history of six women of the last two centuries you might never have thought of as foodies, yet here they are, distinguished by how differently they dealt with the overwhelming importance of food in their lives.”—Marion Nestle, author of Soda Politics

A beloved culinary historian’s short takes on six famous women through the lens of food and cooking—what they ate and how their attitudes toward food offer surprising new insights into their lives.

“Establishes Laura Shapiro as the founder of a delectable new literary genre:  the culinary biography.”–Megan Marshall, Pulitzer-prize winning biographer

Everyone eats, and food touches on every aspect of our lives—social and cultural, personal and political. Yet most biographers pay little attention to people’s attitudes toward food, as if the great and notable never bothered to think about what was on the plate in front of them. Once we ask how somebody relates to food, we find a whole world of different and provocative ways to understand her. Food stories can be as intimate and revealing as stories of love, work, or coming-of-age. Each of the six women in this entertaining group portrait was famous in her time, and most are still famous in ours; but until now, nobody has told their lives from the point of view of the kitchen and the table.

It’s a lively and unpredictable array of women; what they have in common with one another (and us) is a powerful relationship with food. They include Dorothy Wordsworth, whose food story transforms our picture of the life she shared with her famous poet brother; Rosa Lewis, the Edwardian-era Cockney caterer who cooked her way up the social ladder; Eleanor Roosevelt,  First Lady and rigorous protector of the worst cook in White House history; Eva Braun, Hitler’s mistress, who challenges our warm associations of food, family, and table; Barbara Pym, whose witty books upend a host of stereotypes about postwar British cuisine; and Helen Gurley Brown, the editor of Cosmopolitan, whose commitment to “having it all” meant having almost nothing on the plate except a supersized portion of diet gelatin.

To win a copy of WHAT SHE ATE by Laura Shapiro, please send an email to contest@gmail.com with “WHAT SHE ATE” as the subject.

You must include your U.S. street address in your email.

All entries must be received by August 10, 2017. One (1) name will be drawn from all qualified entries and notified via email. This contest is open to all adults over 18 years of age in the United States only. Your books will be sent by the publicist.

One entry per email address. Subscribers to the monthly newsletter earn an extra entry into every contest. Follow this blog to earn another entry into every contest. Winners may win only one time per year (365 days) for contests with prizes of more than one book. Your email address will not be shared or sold to anyone.


Sarah Jessica Parker | What I’m Reading

July 23, 2017

I’m a long time fan of Andy Cohen, and through reading his books learned that SJP, as she is affectionately known, is a big reader. So I was not surprised when the American Library Association launched “Book Club Central with Sarah Jessica Parker.”

Here Sarah Jessica Parker recommends four books she’s recently read – enjoy!


BEACH HOUSE FOR RENT by Mary Alice Monroe

July 22, 2017

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The Beach House, Book 4

Take a vacation to the Lowcountry of South Carolina with this delightful summer read.

Cara Rutledge inherited her Isle of Palm beach house, Primrose Cottage, when her mother passed away several years earlier. She and her husband rent out the cottage every summer, and this time she got lucky and found one tenant for the whole summer, instead of the usual week by week rentals. Her tenant is Heather, a young woman with some serious mental health issues.

Heather lost her mother in a car accident when she was very young, and she bears the scars of that loss. She has severe anxiety disorder, is extremely shy and nonconfrontational. Her father has recently remarried, and decided he needs to spend time alone with his new wife so arranges for the rental. Heather is an artist and has won a prestigious commission to paint shorebirds for stamps for the U.S. Post Office. Staying on the beach is sure to inspire her art. While moving someplace new is stressful, she draws comfort from her canaries.

Bo Stanton is a local carpenter who is building a deck onto the beach house. He is entranced with Heather and her canaries, and she quickly falls for the very patient young man. Together they explore the area, and Heather learns about sea turtles and shore birds and life.

When tragedy befalls Cara, she begs to move back into the cottage, as she has always found solace in her mother’s place. Heather can’t say no to her, and Cara moves in with Heather. The women both work through their troubles, finding strength in one another.

This is a beautiful story that deals with love, grief, and especially friendship, all within the confines of the beach community. The descriptions of the area made me feel like I was there, so this was a nice little getaway of a read for me.

7/17 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

BEACH HOUSE FOR RENT by Mary Alice Monroe. Gallery Books (June 20, 2017).  ISBN 978-1501125461.  416p.

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ThrillerFest XII

July 20, 2017

I couldn’t be there but hope to go next year! Here are the winners of the 2017 Thriller Awards!

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BEST HARDCOVER NOVEL
Noah Hawley — BEFORE THE FALL (Grand Central Publishing)
The stories of 10 wealthy victims of a boat sinking intertwine with those of a down-on-his-luck painter and a 4-year-old boy, the tragedy’s only survivors. By the Emmy-, Golden Globe- and Peabody Award-winning writer of Fargo.

 

 

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BEST FIRST NOVEL
Nicholas Petrie — THE DRIFTER (G.P. Putnam’s Sons)
Forcing himself to manage his PTSD when a fellow Marine commits suicide, Iraq and Afghanistan veteran Peter Ash helps his friend’s widow and discovers a cache of money and explosives that place him at the center of a wide-scale plot with ties to the world he tried to leave behind.

 

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BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL NOVEL
Anne Frasier — THE BODY READER (Thomas & Mercer)
For three years, Detective Jude Fontaine was kept from the outside world. Held in an underground cell, her only contact was with her sadistic captor, and reading his face was her entire existence. After her experience with isolation and torture, she is left with a fierce desire for justice—and a heightened ability to interpret the body language of both the living and the dead.

 

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BEST YOUNG ADULT NOVEL
A.J. Hartley — STEEPLEJACK (TOR Teen)
Repairing roof fixtures in her ethnically diverse industrial city in an alternate world resembling Victorian South Africa, 17-year-old Anglet Sutonga investigates the death of a young apprentice while caring for her sister’s baby against a backdrop of racial tensions, political secrets and a stolen historical icon.

 

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BEST E-BOOK ORIGINAL NOVEL
James Scott Bell — ROMEO’S WAY (Compendium Press)
Mike Romeo, the former cage fighter living low in L.A., doesn’t look for trouble. He doesn’t have to. It comes after him. So when he’s hired by a California senatorial campaign to do undercover work, Romeo doesn’t have any illusions. If there’s one thing Romeo wants, it’s justice. And he’s going to get it––his way.
 

 

BEST SHORT STORY
Joyce Carol Oates — “Big Momma” (Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine)

Also receiving special recognition during the ThrillerFest XII Awards Banquet:

Lee Child, ThrillerMaster
In recognition of his legendary career and outstanding contributions to the thriller genre.

Lisa Gardner, Literary Silver Bullet Award
Tom Doherty, Thriller Legend Award


THE LATE SHOW by Michael Connelly

July 19, 2017

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Detective Renée Ballard works the “late show”, the overnight shift, in Hollywood, California. It is considered a punishment shift, and it’s where she was moved after filing a complaint about Olivas, her boss in Homicide. He tried to kiss her at a party in front of her partner, but her partner wouldn’t back up her claim so Olivas got away with it and her partner got a promotion. Yes, workplace politics are alive and well on the Los Angeles police force.

Her partner on the late show is Jenkins, who has a sick wife at home and volunteered to work the shift so he could be home with his wife during the day. He has no interest in overtime, just wants to put in his time and go home. The night shift doesn’t usually handle cases, they just gather information and turn it over to the day shift detectives, but Ballard finagles her time management to keep the cases she wants – like the transgender prostitute that was beaten and tortured and left for dead, and an old lady’s stolen credit card. She gets a real thrill out of solving cases and is willing work her butt off to get the job done.

The big case at the center of the story is a shootout at a strip club. Four men are killed, as well as a waitress. When Ballard’s ex-partner is killed, she decides to do a little investigating on the side, as Olivas won’t allow her anywhere near his investigation. She soon figures out that the killer was probably a cop, which doesn’t play well with her brethren. All the storylines are tied up at the end, with one surprise after another.

This is the start of a new series for Connelly, and his first with a woman as the lead. Ballard is a terrific character, with enough backstory and trauma to make her really interesting, and enough guts and ingenuity to make her a terrific cop. The supporting cast is also well developed, and the multiple story lines are handled with Connelly’s usual finesse. And I loved the reference to the Amazon Prime series, Bosch – a nice Easter egg.

I was shocked to realize this book was over 400 pages, it was a very fast read for me. Connelly has a way of drawing me into his stories that make it almost impossible to put down the book. If you’re a Harry Bosch and/or Lincoln Lawyer fan, you will love this new one, too. This is an excellent series debut from the finest crime fiction writer out there. Don’t miss it.

7/17 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

THE LATE SHOW by Michael Connelly. Little, Brown and Company (July 18, 2017).  ISBN 978-0316225984. 448p.

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KISS MY BOOTS by Harper Sloan

July 18, 2017

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Coming Home Series, Book 2

I loved the first book in this series, Lost Rider, so I am super excited to be kicking off the blog tour for this new book! Plus, one lucky reader will win a copy of Lost Rider!

This book centers on Quinn Davis. The first book was a romance between Quinn’s brother and her best friend. This romance is between Quinn and Tate, the boy she loved as a teenager. Tate spent every summer in this small Texas town where his grandparents lived. But he left for Emory University and never came back. He finished medical school, practiced in Atlanta and spent time with a woman who he thought was also only interested in a physical relationship.

Eventually, circumstances changed. His grandparents died and he bought their house, including his grandfather’s medical offices, and he moved back, hoping to find the girl he left behind.

Quinn has some serious abandonment issues, between her mother leaving her as a very young child, and Tate leaving, too. But even those she’s dated, she’s never felt about anyone the way she feels about Tate. So when he comes home, they decide to start over.

There are some sweet moments, especially with her family, and some sexy moments with Tate, and a really funny scene with one of Tate’s exes. While it didn’t have the depth of the first book in the series with all that back story and drama, it was a fast, fun read.

7/17 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

KISS MY BOOTS by Harper Sloan. Pocket Books (July 18, 2017). ISBN 978-1501155215. 368p.

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To win a copy of the new paperback of LOST RIDER by Harper Sloanplease send an email to contest@gmail.com with “LOST RIDER” as the subject.

You must include your U.S. street address in your email.

All entries must be received by August 5, 2017. One (1) name will be drawn from all qualified entries and notified via email. This contest is open to all adults over 18 years of age in the United States only. Your books will be sent by SIMON & SCHUSTER|POCKET BOOKS.

One entry per email address. Subscribers to the monthly newsletter earn an extra entry into every contest. Follow this blog to earn another entry into every contest. Winners may win only one time per year (365 days) for contests with prizes of more than one book. Your email address will not be shared or sold to anyone.

Praise for Lost Rider, Book 1:

“Sloan hits it out of the park with her first Coming Home contemporary western romance…Maverick is a perfect hero: multilayered, complicated, deeply damaged, yet blooming with the new promise of love. Leighton is appealing and real, as are a strong supporting cast of characters whom readers will be glad to follow into sequels. Sloan enhances the gripping story with country songs that open each chapter. This absolutely spectacular effort catapults Sloan to the top of her genre.” —Publishers Weekly (STARRED REVIEW)

About the author:

Harper Sloan is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Corps Security and Hope Town series. She started writing as a way to unwind when the house went to sleep at night. Harper lives in Georgia with her family. Visit her at AuthorHarperSloan.com or Facebook.com/HarperSloanBooks.