1–What is the title of your latest release? WHERE THE ROAD BENDS 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? Norah King is weeks away from marrying a man who can save her family farm, when she discovers an injured man on her property. Nursing him back to health is the right thing to do, but will her altruistic act prove the thwarting of her own plans? 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I went with Iowa for the specific reason of wanting to have some secondary characters from my past novels make cameos. It’s totally a stand-alone book, but fans of my previous books will have fun spotting these “easter eggs”. 4–Would you hang out with your heroine in real life? For some of my books the answer would be maybe, but for this book I for sure would. Norah is optimistic, hard working and has a depth to her that would make spending time with her rich and enjoyable. 5–What are three words that describe your hero? Optimistic, resilient, lovable 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? I spent a bit of time digging into contracts in the 1880’s and how…

When most people think of asylums, they think of a horror movie like Gothika or one of the various ghost hunting reality shows. Perhaps they also think of a horror novel like ASYLUM by Madeline Roux or one of the D.C. comic book villains being sent to the ridiculously easy to escape Arkham Asylum. Fear has permeated many of our perceptions about mental health treatment due to the harshness and cruelty of the past. Like many others, I have someone I loved who spent time in an asylum back in the earlier part of the 1900s. She rarely spoke of her repeated trips for “treatment” that included involuntary incarceration, electroshock therapy, and even a forced abortion. Richer families would send their loved ones for a visit to a home for “convalescent care” where they lived with other women and helped with the chores around the home until they were “better”. My curiosity about how mental health treatment has evolved (and thankfully it HAS greatly evolved and improved!) led me to a phenomenal nonfiction book entitled DAMNATION ISLAND by Stacy Horn. DAMNATION ISLAND is a horrifying yet, unfortunately, true chronicle of Blackwell’s Island – a dumping ground for anyone the city…

As our world continues to face global uncertainties, new COVID variants, war, supply disruptions and escalating living costs, we escape the present to delve into turbulent times of the past.   The first several selections illuminate different aspects of one of the most shocking events of 1912—the sinking of the supposedly “unsinkable” luxury cruise liner, the Titanic, lost on her maiden voyage after striking an iceberg in the North Atlantic in the middle of the night. LAST PORT OF CALL: THE QUEENSTOWN SERIES Book 1 by Jean Grainger focuses on the people gathered at a newly opened boarding house in the Irish town where the Titanic made her last landfall before setting out on her fatal Atlantic crossing. The story takes place at Cliff House, an estate turned into a boarding house when it was inherited by Harp Delaney Deveraux and her mother, former housekeeper at the estate owned by Henry Deveraux—who, Harp learned after his death, was her father.  Some of their first guests are passengers slated to board the Titanic during her stop in Queenstown; some are friends or relatives come to see them off, and others are people curious to have a first-hand look at the brand-new…

Your new historical novel, GIRLS OF FLIGHT CITY, is set in the 1940s. What inspired you to write a story set in this time and this particular place? My mom grew up outside of London when the bombs were falling. Listening to her tales growing up, I’ve always been fascinated by this time period. When I read an article about a woman tending to the British cemetery in Terrell, TX – the town where my dad graduated from high school – I became intrigued by the history of British pilots coming to Terrell to learn how to fly. It was one of 6 schools across the south that trained pilots for Britain. When I discovered women played a large role in training the pilots, I saw the potential for sharing this remarkable part of our history.   How much research went into this book? Extensive research went into writing this book. In addition to brushing up on my WWII history, I read books about the history of the schools and how the U.S. got involved in training British pilots. I researched the history of women pilots and the bias they faced. Then I needed a general understanding of aircraft used…

1–What is the title of your latest release? THE MASTER CRAFTSMAN   2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? “The Master Craftsman is a fascinating treasure hunt, an atmospheric tale of the Russian Revolution, and a heart-thumping generational story.” Patti Callahan, New York Times bestselling author of Becoming Mrs. Lewis   3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I have long had a passion for the former Soviet Union. After reading a news article about a missing Imperial Easter Egg created by Peter Karl Faberge, I chased down a rabbit trail of research into the world of Faberge. This led me to the opulence of pre-Revolution Russia, and I knew the story needed to find a home there. But to make it a little more interesting, I decided to make it split time so that we could marry modern day Russia with the Russia of Faberge’s day.   4–Would you hang out with your heroine in real life? Absolutely! The modern-day heroine, Ava Laine, is a girl on a mission on a heart-thumping adventure. I like her spunk. The historical heroine, Alma Pihl, was wildly creative, one of only three master craftsmen in The House of Faberge, and designed…

The description says that your book SISTERS OF NIGHT AND FOG is “based on the extraordinary true stories of an American socialite and a British secret agent”. Were the names kept the same? What can you tell readers about any research you did for this historical novel? Are you a history buff? I’m a huge history buff, and all my novels are an excuse to keeping writing the research papers I always loved in school. In SISTERS OF NIGHT AND FOG, the names of the women were kept the same, and I tried to keep as close to the true, findable history as possible. (I disclose any deviations in the Author’s Note.) From memoir, to biography, to online archives, including the US Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Violette Szabo Museum, there was a wealth from which to draw. I already had a strong base in the research of the time because of my previous novel, THE INVISIBLE WOMAN – about SOE/OSS agent, Virginia Hall – but I had to go deeper. One of the most valuable components of my process is talking to living family members or friends of my protagonists, when possible. I was able to do so, and…

A trio of real-life personages followed by fictional characters who illumine a dramatic period of British history – the abdication of King Edward VI – make up this month’s selection of historical fiction.   We begin with THE GOLDEN PRINCE by Rebecca Dean. Seventeen-year-old Prince Edward is already chafing at the stifling role he’s being pressed into, feeling unloved by the disciplinarian father he can never please and his cool and unsympathetic mother.  When a car accident makes him an unexpected house guest at Snowberry Manor, he is brought into the “ordinary,” less complicated world of the Houghton sisters, granddaughters of Lord May of Snowberry.  Free for once to just be himself, he’s particularly drawn to Lilly, the talented and artistic youngest daughter, who is equally drawn to him.  Soon the two fall headlong into love.  Dean adds layers to her story by including the lives of Lilly’s sisters: Rose, the suffragette and journalist who wants to avoid romantic entanglements; Marigold, a “fast” girl interested in men, parties and high society, and Iris, who longs only for a home and family of her own with the man she loves.  But much as Lilly brings out the best in Edward, can…

Jennifer Vido: How did your admiration for The Great Gatsby inspire your new release, BEAUTIFUL LITTLE FOOLS?    Jillian Cantor: I’ve long been a fan of The Great Gatsby as a reader, but I’ve also always felt there was more to the women’s stories beneath the surface. Daisy says in the original that the best thing a girl can be is “a beautiful little fool.” But I always felt certain she was so much more than that! My novel explores Daisy’s story, as well as Jordan’s, Myrtle’s, and Myrtle’s sister, Catherine’s. What happens during the investigation of Jay Gatsby’s death that sends the police in a tailspin? In the original novel, Jay Gatsby is murdered, and George Wilson is found shot dead nearby, and the police wrap up the case as a murder-suicide. In my novel, one detective finds a diamond hairpin in the bushes by Jay Gatsby’s pool, and that leads him to start looking closer at the women in Gatsby’s orbit. Let’s talk about the three suspects, starting with Daisy Buchanan. How is she connected to the murder victim? Well, as we know from the original novel, Daisy and Jay met and dated in 1917 in Louisville, where…

1–What is the title of your latest release? THE PRINCE AND THE PRODIGAL 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? I don’t usually create an elevator pitch, but my publisher came up with this, which I like: Two brothers among twelve. One pampered. One petulant. After a stunning betrayal, Judah struggles to forget what he’s done while Joseph attempts to move on from what’s been done to him. Is there hope for reconciliation for one of Egypt’s most powerful men and his wayward brother or will vengeance win the day? 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? The Bible picked the locations and approximate time frame. 4–What are three words that describe your main character? Integrity, Honest, Trusting 5–Which side character stole your attention the most from the main storyline? Judah gets almost as much page time as Joseph does because this story is really a tale of two brothers, One a prince. One a prodigal. 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? God often takes many years and uses the most unlikely circumstances to mold us into the person He wants us to be. 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait…

In February 1987, I was thriving. I was performing in local Seattle clubs to promote my new album and researching a historical fiction novel based on the life of Joan of Arc. I was in love. But then I got a headache that wouldn’t go away. Throbbing pain made me nauseous. Over the course of a week, my vision morphed from tones of sepia brown to black nothingness, and I became blind in one eye. There were blood tests, spinal taps, and visits with doctors tapping my joints with rubber mallets. How many fingers do you see? And then the final, fateful test with an ophthalmologist who didn’t mince words. See those white spots? I squinted with my good eye at the black and white Seurat image of my brain. You definitely have Multiple Sclerosis. I took a sobbing breath, already knowing my world would never be the same. The headache morphed and moved throughout my body, a wolf chewing my arm, a knife stabbing my back. But, eventually, I discovered a hidden secret. Extreme pain left me with the most significant, most liberating gift the universe could ever give –the realization that I had nothing left to lose. I…