A Dress of Violet Taffeta

It’s a pleasure to share with you today the recent release of author Tessa Arlen’s A DRESS OF VIOLET TAFFETA (Berkley Trade Paperback Original; July 5, 2022), a sumptuous novel based on the fascinating true story of La Belle Époque icon Lady Lucile Duff-Gordon.

Lucy shattered the boundaries of fashion with her magnificently sensual and striking designs. She launched her fashion empire in the late 1890s as a way to keep her and her five-year-old daughter financially afloat after she was abandoned by her husband.

In a time when women from good families were expected to look beautiful and be content with producing children and running their elegant houses, this woman triumphed in the competitive London world of dressmaking and became the Queen of Haute Couture.

Lady Lucile Duff-Gordon was a female fashion icon, trailblazer, and survivor of the Titanic, yet very little has been written about her life and work.

This is the second historical fiction novel from Tessa Arlen, whose debut in the genre, In Royal Service to the Queen, received rave reviews from BuzzFeed, People Magazine, Parade, and Woman’s World.

A DRESS OF VIOLET TAFFETA

By Tessa Arlen

Fiction - Biographical

Berkley Trade Paperback Original

on sale July 5, 2022

The story: Lucy Duff Gordon knows she is talented. She sees color, light, and texture in ways few people can begin to imagine. But is the male-dominated world of haute couture, who would use her art for their own gain, ready for her?

When she is deserted by her wealthy husband, Lucy is left penniless with an aging mother and her five-year-old daughter to support. Desperate to survive, Lucy turns to her one true talent to make a living. As a little girl, the dresses she made for her dolls were the envy of her group of playmates. Now, she uses her creative designs and her remarkable eye for color to take her place in the fashion world—failure is not an option.

Then, on a frigid night in 1912, Lucy’s life changes once more, when she becomes one of 706 people to survive the sinking of the Titanic. She could never have imagined the effects the disaster would have on her fashion label Lucile, her marriage to her second husband, and her legacy. But no matter what life throws at her, Lucy will live on as a trailblazing and innovative fashion icon, never letting go of what she worked so hard to earn. This is her story.

Meet the Author: Tessa Arlen

Tessa Arlen is the author of the Woman of World War II Mysteries and the novel In Royal Service to the Queen.

Born in Singapore, the daughter of a British diplomat, she has lived in Egypt, Germany, the Persian Gulf, China, and India. She now lives with her husband in historic Santa Fe, where she gardens in summer and writes in winter.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. Isn't it fascinating to read stories based on true events? Does it make it want to Google Lady Lucile Duff-Gordon to learn more about her? It does me! 

A Most Clever Girl

Author Stephanie Marie Thornton takes readers on a thrill ride inside the calculating mind of a notorious Cold War spy (Elizabeth Bentley, code name Clever Girl) in her new book out today, A MOST CLEVER GIRL.

In the spirit of John Le Carre, Stephanie brings to life the remarkable true story of a spy who worked for both Russia and the United States in the 1940s and 50s. Bentley is often credited with starting America’s Communist Red Scare, and for naming hundreds of American Communists as traitors to the state―including Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, the infamous American couple sentenced to death for treason.

Decades after Bentley’s death, Stephanie’s A MOST CLEVER GIRL (Berkley Trade Paperback; On Sale September 14, 2021) is the first historical novel to tell her story, exposing the ruthlessness of her Russian counterparts and the intense pressures she faced at every turn, ultimately illuminating the enormous emotional and psychological toll that she paid for her work.

Some of Bentley’s male counterparts provided similar espionage and informant work and were awarded high honors for their service by the American government. But Bentley’s story has largely been pushed under the rug. The truth of her court testimonies has constantly been called into question, despite a now-declassified report that has verified her statements. Stephanie’s novel aims to shed light on Bentley’s story and polish her somewhat tarnished reputation―while still leaving readers guessing at her motives and her version of the truth.

A MOST CLEVER GIRL opens in 1963, as college student Catherine Gray arrives unannounced on the doorstep of a woman named Elizabeth Bentley, gun in hand, demanding answers about a scandalous family secret that has just been revealed. But Catherine never expects all that Elizabeth is about to expose.

Elizabeth’s narrative takes readers through her recruitment to the American Communist Party in her youth, and how her unique education and experiences allowed her to successfully spy on fascists at the outbreak of World War II. Elizabeth falls deeper into the Party when she sets off on a romance with her handler, Jacob Golos, and together, they build the largest Soviet spy network in America. But when WWII ends and the U.S. becomes embroiled in the Cold War against the U.S.S.R, all Elizabeth holds to be true is called into question and she turns to the FBI for salvation.

Elizabeth is a skilled chameleon whose story changes depending on the circumstance, making her an effective spy but also an unreliable narrator, delivering a twisty, satisfying read. Extensively researched, Thornton’s novel explores the extraordinary life of a woman who has long been forgotten by history.

A MOST CLEVER GIRL is perfect for fans of Kate Quinn’s The Alice Network and Ericka Robuck’s The Invisible Woman.

Meet the Author: Stephanie Marie Thornton

I’m a writer and high school history teacher who has been obsessed with infamous women from history since I was twelve. My newest book, A Most Clever Girl: A Novel of an American Spy is a thrilling novel of love, loyalty, and espionage, based on the incredible true story of Elizabeth Bentley, a Cold War double agent spying for the Russians and the United States.

Prior to turning my attention to the Cold War, I wrote about two women closely connected to the White House. And They Called It Camelot: A Novel of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis is an intimate portrait of America’s most iconic First Lady while American Princess: A Novel of First Daughter Alice Roosevelt, tells the story of Theodore Roosevelt’s hellion of a daughter and how she became Washington’s Other Monument.

My first two novels, The Secret History: A Novel of Empress Theodora and Daughter of the Gods: A Novel of Ancient Egypt reimagine the lives of two of history’s forgotten women: Theodora of the Byzantine Empire and Pharaoh Hatshepsut.

My third and fourth books center around the women who stood behind the greatest conquerors the world has ever seen. The Tiger Queens is the story of Genghis Khan’s wife and daughters, while The Conqueror’s Wife tells of the women who both loved and hated Alexander the Great. With my love of the ancient world, I also joined the H Team to help pen a collaborative novel, Song of War: A Novel of Troy in which I put a new spin on the story of Cassandra, King Priam’s cursed seer of a daughter.

I live with my husband and daughter in Alaska, where I’m always working on my next novel.

You can find me on Twitter as @StephMThornton and I’m also on Goodreads, Facebook, and Instagram.

Thanks everyone for stopping by today. Doesn’t this sound like an intriguing bit of history that wasn’t taught when you or I were in school?

What A Happy Family

I’m delighted today to tell you about author Saumya Dave’s latest release, WHAT A HAPPY FAMILY (Berkley Trade Paperback Original; June 22, 2021), a diverse women’s fiction novel.

Saumya is an author, resident psychiatrist, and co-founder of thisisforHER. Her writing has been featured in The New York Times, Huffington Post, Refinery29, and others. Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones & the Six raves that WHAT A HAPPY FAMILY is a “full, big hearted novel.”

Nestled in the suburbs of Atlanta, a family learns the funniest punchlines can hide the hardest truths in this evocative women’s fiction novel from the author of Well-Behaved Indian Women

From the outside, the Joshi family is the quintessential Indian-American family. Decades ago, Bina and Deepak immigrated to America, where she became a pillar of their local Indian community and he, a successful psychiatrist. Their eldest daughter, Suhani, is following the footsteps of her father’s career and happily married. Natasha, their middle daughter, is about to become engaged to the son of longtime family friends. And Anuj, their son—well he’s a son and what could be better than that?
 
But a family scandal shows that nothing is as it seems. Bina’s oldest friendship starts to unravel and she finds herself as an outsider in the community she helped build. Suhani discovers that her perfect marriage isn’t as solid as she thought. Natasha faces a series of rejections that send her into a downward spiral. 
 
As they encounter public humiliation, gossiping aunties, and self-doubt, the Joshi family must rely on each other like never before. But sometimes, family has to fall apart in order to come back stronger than before.

Meet the Author: Saumya Dave

Saumya Dave is a writer, psychiatrist, and mental health advocate.

As a writer, she enjoys exploring the unique dynamics that exist in immigrant families. Her second novel, What a Happy Family, was published in June 2021. Her debut novel, Well-Behaved Indian Women, was featured in The New York Times Book Review, ELLE, Bustle, Buzzfeed, and more. Saumya's essays, articles, and poetry have been in outlets including The New York Times, ABC News, Refinery29, and HuffPost, among others.

Saumya has a passion for women’s mental health and wellness. She and her husband, Samir Sheth, founded thisisforHER, a nonprofit which uses art therapy to improve mental health awareness and education for women and girls in low- and middle-income countries. She is a practicing therapist, as well as an Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai, where she teaches Narrative Medicine. 

Saumya was born in India and grew up in Atlanta. In her seventh-grade journal, she wrote: "I will be a psychiatrist and writer someday". She is a graduate of Georgia Tech and the Medical College of Georgia, where she was an inductee into the Gold Humanism Honor Society. She completed her Psychiatry Residency at Mount Sinai Beth Israel, where she was a Chief Resident and an inductee into the AΩA Medical Honors Society. She completed a Psychoanalytic Fellowship with the New York Psychoanalytic Society and Institute. 

Thanks so much for stopping by today. While this book may sound a bit complex, don’t you think it sounds fascinating?

Love Scenes

It’s a pleasure today to tell you about acclaimed Young Adult novelist Bridget Morrissey’s adult debut, LOVE SCENES (Berkley Trade Paperback; on sale June 22, 2021), an enemies-to-lovers romance that sparkles once the cameras have stopped rolling.

According to Berkley, LOVE SCENES gives readers a taste of Hollywood magic, but also offers compelling family dynamics, witty dialogue, and a romance you won’t soon forget.

Sloane Ford was raised by Hollywood―with A-list celebrity parents, she was quite literally born to be a star. Now an out-of-work actress in her 30s, Sloane’s next gig lands her on the set of a film written and produced by her own family. But what her darling relatives don’t tell her until day one of filming is that the male lead is none other than Sloane’s worst nightmare: Joseph Donovan, Irish heartthrob and horrible former co-star.

Joseph Donovan may be a Hollywood sweetheart, but he’s no dream to work with, judging from past experience. His impressive good looks and sexy Irish accent don’t earn him redemption in Sloane’s book. But, the show must go on, and so Sloane rolls her eyes and gets on with production. But everything that can possibly go wrong on this project, does―and it’s not long before the film finds itself without its leading lady.

As Sloane steps up to take on the starring role, she’s forced to confront her long-standing hatred for Joseph Donovan. But as sparks begin to fly on set, it’s not long before an off-script romance develops….

Now please join me in giving a warm welcome to Bridget as she stops by to answers some questions about her book. Welcome, Bridget.

Tell us about LOVE SCENES! What inspired you to write this novel?

Bridget:

One of the most pivotal moments in LOVE SCENES came to me in a dream. Without giving away too much, I woke up obsessing over the idea of two actors with a complicated past starring in a romantic drama together. That premise propelled me forward. Along the way, I pulled in elements I love to write about, namely large, messy groups of people. In this case, it’s a famous family full of witty, guarded, creative types all working on a movie. I love thinking about who we are to each other and exploring the dynamics within complicated relationships. I also wanted to challenge myself to really examine redemption. What does it take to move forward with someone who has hurt you?

LOVE SCENES is your first adult novel after writing YA. Tell us about your experience writing a new genre. What did you find most challenging or exciting?

Bridget:

Writing YA was really fulfilling, but with LOVE SCENES, I had so much fun creating this world. When the idea first came to me, I immediately started drafting extensive character charts and backstories for both Sloane and Joseph. The story idea latched onto me in a powerful way. It all felt very sweeping and urgent. Almost everything I came up with in that initial brainstorm session ended up staying. Somehow, this book arrived in my brain as a fully-cooked idea. The challenge was making it as satisfying on paper as it was in my head.

Sloane, the book’s heroine, takes a job acting alongside her least favorite co-star of all time. Why did you choose to set this story against a Hollywood backdrop?

Bridget:

Acting is such a grind. Most that are lucky enough to break through have very little control over the people they work with or the projects they represent. It’s really interesting to me, because we always associate bad movies with the actors that starred in them. For the most part, those actors had no way to prevent that project from being “bad.” With few exceptions, they don’t write the scripts or direct the scenes or cast their costars. So I wanted to plant my book in the heart of that world, but also give my protagonist more access than normal. Her entire family works in all aspects of show business, and she still doesn’t have much power or control. That was a really exciting, dynamic setup for me.

What research was required to write this book? How did your own experience as an actor inform parts of the story?

Bridget:

Living in Los Angeles, the majority of my friends are actors. They were all a huge help to me as I drafted this book. I also absolutely love watching behind-the-scenes featurettes, as well as listening to commentary on various movies and TV shows. All of that played very heavily into how I constructed this world. I watched interviews, read memoirs, and took in whatever other content I could get my hands on from various Hollywood families. Particularly famous children who’ve gone on to have their own acting careers.

As for my own experience as an actor, I know what it is to put on a costume and step into another life. I also know what it’s like to stand around for a long time waiting for the camera crew to reset a shot. So much of this book takes place in the real life moments between cut and action. It helped to know the technical side, but ultimately, my past life as an actor informed the emotional beats most of all. The highs and the heartaches that come from opening yourself up to be viewed by others.

If LOVE SCENES became a movie, who would you cast in its leading roles?

Bridget:

I never want to directly inform what other readers picture, because I think a lot of the fun of a book like this is inserting whoever you want into the leading roles! Sloane should be played by someone who can strike that perfect balance between accessible and guarded. Joseph has to have a rugged charm and a palpable tenderness. Together, they need to spark off of each other. There has to be a playfulness between them. They should be two people you can tell really trust each other. While directing a scene in the book, Sloane’s sibling, Tyler, says, “Play it with the love, not the anger.” That’s the spirit I’d want to see on screen. Two actors who are finding the love as they work through the pain of their characters’ pasts.

What do you hope readers will take away from LOVE SCENES?

Bridget:

A lot of LOVE SCENES is about messy, complicated people figuring how to love each other as best they can. I hope that resonates with readers, and they put the book down remembering that we all have a right to ask for better from the people we are closest to in life. We can also ask for better from ourselves! Amazing things happen when we make room for that kind of personal growth, and we let our relationships evolve. That’s ultimately the heartbeat of this story. Giving yourself permission to forgive and to change.  

Bridget, thanks for stopping by today and sharing this insight into your writing.

 About the Author: Bridget Morrissey

Photo By Provvidenza Catalano

Bridget Morrissey lives in Los Angeles, California, where the novel is set. A former actor who has appeared in a number of commercials, Morrissey offers readers a vivid and realistic behind-the-scenes look at the makings of a film―and all the backstage happenings that take place when the camera’s not around. With careful research and insight from other actors, Morrissey delivers readers a meticulous look at the set of a Hollywood production.

For more on Bridget, visit her website at https://bridgetjmorrissey.com/

Thanks so much for stopping by today during Bridget’s visit. Do you have any suggestions who would be the perfect actors for the leading roles if LOVE SCENES were made into a movie?