Thursday, June 26, 2014

"A WELL-READ WOMAN IS A DANGEROUS CREATURE." Does literature have a gender?




“People wonder why the novel is the most popular form of literature; people wonder why it is read more than books of science or books of metaphysics. The reason is very simple; it is merely that the novel is more true than they are.”

― G.K. Chesterton

 
According to publishers, in today's world Chesterton's truism is gender-specific.

Women have cornered the market of fiction books as consumers and authors since the days of English novelist Jane Austen, while men keep piling up non-fiction tomes on their to-read shelves: according to statistics, men make up only 20% of fiction readers in America.  

Cognitive science has a reason for that: male brain is naturally more drawn to the straightforward, fact-driven nature of non-fiction, while female brains are wired for dealing with the emotional empathy, cognitive functions, and social relationships represented in novels.

Fiction allows  us to  understand real life situations through human experiences and ideas simulated in a made-up world.  When we read fictional narratives, we heavily engage those parts of our brain responsible for our cognitive abilities (thinking, feeling, perceiving our own as well as other people's mental states). Fiction requires us to keep track of social interactions between characters, guess at their hidden motivations, reading their thoughts behind their actions. As a result of both evolutionary and sociological factors, women develop these abilities before and better than men do, since a very young age (3-4 years old).

Having said that, we should all try to leave our comfort zone and gain mental strength from diversified reads: Pride And Prejudice could be anathema to a man, and Entering The Shift Age may not be any woman's perfect beach read, but  every time we pick up a book, in any genre, we mold ourselves into more socially adept men and better self-educated women.

"A well-read woman is a dangerous creature." (Lisa Kleypas)

Marilyn Monroe's library contained over 400 books on a variety of subjects: works of Literature, Art, Drama, Biography, Poetry, Politics, History, Theology, Philosophy, and Psychology covered the walls of her Beverly Carlton Hotel studio apartment. Surprisingly enough for a 'pin-up girl', her reading habit reflected both her  intelligence and her wide-ranging interests:  Marilyn owned several first editions, including her own copy of The Beat Generation classic On The Road by Jack Kerouac, Ralph Ellison’s The Invisible Man and William Styron’s  This House On Fire. From Tolstoy to Twain, many other classic works of literature were represented, including her copies of  The Great Gatsby, Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland, James Joyce’s  Dubliners, Hemingway’s  The Sun Also Rises, and  The Fall by Camus. Not just a sex-symbol, but also a well-read and inquiring mind. 
 
Mina De Caro
   
 
 
 
 
 
 

READING...IN QUOTES


“People wonder why the novel is the most popular form of literature; people wonder why it is read more than books of science or books of metaphysics. The reason is very simple; it is merely that the novel is more true than they are.”
― G.K. Chesterton
***(Photo Source: Pinterest)

"The photo of Marilyn above was taken inside of her studio apartment at the Beverly Carlton Hotel. Her library contained over 400 books on a variety of subjects, reflecting both her intelligence and her wide-ranging interests. No surprise to those familiar with Monroe, they were the books of a well-read and inquiring mind. Works of Literature, Art, Drama, Biography, Poetry, Politics, History, Theology, Philosophy, and Psychology covered the walls in her library. Among the First Editions was her own copy of The Beat Generation classic On the Road by Jack Kerouac, Ralph Ellison’s The Invisible Man and William Styron’s This House on Fire. From Tolstoy to Twain, many other classic works of literature were represented, including her copies of The Great Gatsby, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, James Joyce’s Dubliners, Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises, and The Fall by Camus." (The Marilyn Monroe Collection)
   
All volumes from Monroe’s library were sold at the 1999 Christie's auction to benefit Literacy Partners.

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

READING...IN QUOTES

 
“Reading is the sole means by which we slip, involuntarily, often helplessly, into another's skin, another's voice, another's soul.”
― Joyce Carol Oates


***(Photo Source: Pinterest )
"Romy Schneider reading while wearing Chanel at Rue Cambon, Coco Chanel’s apartment in Paris, 1960. Schneider is pictured lounging at the French couturier’s apartment on Rue Cambon (with its velvet walls). Her purple tweed skirt, simple black top, pearl jewelry and cap toe pumps illustrate Chanel’s signature ladylike style."



Tuesday, June 24, 2014

THE COOK'S TEMPTATION by Joyce Wayne: BOOK BLAST & GIVEAWAY

HF Virtual Book Tours invites you to join Joyce Wayne as she tours the blogosphere for The Cook's Temptation! Enter the giveaway to win an eBook of The Cook's Temptation or a $10 Amazon Gift Card!

02_The Cook's Temptation
Publication Date: February 1, 2014 Mosaic Press
Formats: Ebook, Paperback

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Joyce Wayne brings to life the complexities of Victorian life, first in County Devon and then in London’s East End. The ‘big picture’ is about one woman’s life, class conflict, religious intolerance, suspicion and betrayal. The central figure is Cordelia, a strong-minded Jewish woman who is caught between her desire to be true to herself and her need to be accepted by English society. Cordelia Tilley is the daughter of a Jewish mother and an Anglican father. Her mother has groomed her for a life in English society while her father, a tough publican, has shown no tolerance for his wife’s social climbing or the conceits of their perspicacious daughter. Cordelia’s mother dies from typhoid fever, she tries to run the family‘s establishment, she falls prey to a local industrialist, she gives birth to a son, she is tormented by her husband and his family. Finally, she is rescued by suffragette friends and sets off to start a new life in London. The Cook’s Temptation is about a woman who is unpredictable, both strong and weak willed, both kind and heinous, victim and criminal. It is a genuine Victorian saga, full of detail, twists and turns, memorable scenes, full of drama and pathos.

Praise for The Cook's Temptation


“Joyce Wayne’s debut novel, The Cook's Temptation, has the stately bearing of a nineteenth century novel – the mercilessness of Thomas Hardy, the black allegory of Nathaniel Hawthorne, the tense marriages of George Eliot. It is a story of how people become what you blame them for being.” – Ian Williams, poet and fiction writer, short listed for the 2012 Griffin Poetry Prize

Buy the Book


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Amazon UK
Amazon US (Kindle)
Amazon US (Paperback)
Barnes & Noble
Book Depository
Chapters.Indigo
Kobo
Mosaic Press

JW 2About the Author


Joyce Wayne has an MA in English literature, has taught journalism at Sheridan College, Oakville, Ontario, for twenty-five years, and lives in Toronto, Ontario. She was a winner of the Diaspora Dialogues contest for fiction and the Fiona Mee Award for literary journalism. She is the co writer of the documentary film So Far From Home (2010), a film about refugee journalists persecuted for their political views, and various of her other works have been published in Parchment, Golden Horseshoe Anthology, Canadian Voices, and TOK6.

For more information please visit Joyce Wayne's website. You can also connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads. She is happy to participate in Books Clubs by phone and Skype.

Virtual Tour & Book Blast Schedule


Monday, June 9
Review at 100 Pages a Day

Tuesday, June 10
Book Blast at Bab's Book Bistro
Guest Post & Giveaway at Passages to the Past

Wednesday, June 11
Book Blast at History From a Woman's Perspective

Thursday, June 12
Book Blast at WTF Are You Reading?
Book Blast at I'd So Rather be Reading

Friday, June 13
Book Blast at Literary Chanteuse

Saturday, June 14
Book Blast at A Bookish Affair
Book Blast at Griperang's Bookmarks
Book Blast at Just One More Chapter

Sunday, June 15
Book Blast at Historical Fiction Obsession

Monday, June 16
Review at Book Nerd

Tuesday, June 17
Review at Seaside Book Corner
Book Blast at Lily Pond Reads

Wednesday, June 18
Interview at From the TBR Pile
Book Blast at Historical Tapestry

Thursday, June 19
Review at Flashlight Commentary
Book Blast at Kelsey's Book Corner

Friday, June 20
Interview at Flashlight Commentary
Book Blast at The Mad Reviewer

Saturday, June 21
Book Blast at Bibliophilic Book Blog

Sunday, June 22
Book Blast at Book Lovers Paradise
Book Blast at Historical Fiction Connection

Monday, June 23
Book Blast at History Undressed
Book Blast at CelticLady's Reviews

Tuesday, June 24
Book Blast at Mina's Bookshelf
Book Blast at Peeking Between the Pages

Wednesday, June 25
Review at Svetlana's Reads and Views
Book Blast at Broken Teepee

Thursday, June 26
Review at Caroline Wilson Writes

Friday, June 27
Review at Historical Novel Review
Interview at Oh, For the Hook of a Book

Giveaway


Up for grabs are 3x eBooks of The Cook's Temptation and 3x $10 Amazon Gift Cards! To enter, please complete the Rafflecopter giveaway form below. Giveaway is open to US & Canada residents only.

Giveaway ends at 11:59pm on June 27th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
Winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter on June 28th and notified via email.
Winner have 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen.


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Wednesday, June 18, 2014

FACEOFF Blog Tour: Q&A With Author Ian Rankin


For the first time ever, the world's greatest thriller characters meet head-to-head in FACEOFF, an anthology of 11 electrifying stories edited by

DAVID BALDACCI





 Where else will you be able to read about Jeffery Deaver’s Lincoln Rhyme meets John Sandford’s Lucas Davenport? Fans of Steve Berry’s Cotton Malone and James Rollins’ Gray Pierce have waited for years to see those characters together.  Then there’s Lee Child’s Jack Reacher meeting up with Joseph Finder’s Nick Heller in a bar in Boston. Steve Martini’s Paul Madriani becoming entangled with Linda Fairstein’s Alex Cooper. Plus, you can’t forget the ever-odd Aloysius Pendergast coming face to face with the scary world of R.L. Stine.

In an unprecedented collaboration, twenty-three of the world’s bestselling and critically acclaimed thriller writers have paired their series characters in an eleven-story anthology curated by the International Thriller Writers (ITW).

Edited by #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci, FACEOFF (Simon & Schuster; June 3, 2014; $26.99) is a who’s who of not only the most beloved contemporary thriller writers, but also their iconic characters - putting them head-to-head with their most worthy opponents.

As worlds collide, the characters you think you know best are thrown into unpredictable situations and partnered with, pitted against, and, in some cases, romantically entangled with, characters you’d never suspect—and some that you would. With introductions to the stories that describes the writers, their characters, and a bit about the story’s creation, FACEOFF is truly a treasure trove for thriller fans.

Q&A with Ian Rankin (FACEOFF, In The Nick Of Time)

Ian Rankin and Peter James combined characters from different fictional universes in In The Nick Of Time. They both knew the challenges of arranging a meeting between their two respective heroes, Roy Grace and John Rebus: different generations, different backgrounds, England and Scotland - five hundred miles and legal regulations apart. An unresolved case from the '60s brings the two of them and their worlds together, allowing the two investigators to appreciate their differences and gaining an understanding of how the other views the criminal world. The result is a story that adds to the mythology of both Peter's and Ian's series (Roy Grace and Inspector Rebus), while remaining true to the spirit of all their books. Please welcome Ian Rankin who graciously accepted to answer a few questions.

What was it like collaborating with Peter James on In the Nick of Time?
It was fun, as well as challenging. Peter and I have known one another for years. Our biggest problem was how to bring together two quite different cops who work 500 miles apart in different countries! Once we had nailed that, the ride got more comfortable.
The characters Roy Grace and John Rebus are like night and day. Was it difficult to create a connection between two very different people?
Rebus and Grace come from different backgrounds, have different philosophies of policing, so we knew they wouldn't exactly be best buddies when they met. But that is always interesting - as a writer you want relationships that provide sparks. Of course, they share one crucial imperative - they want to put away the perpetrators. Doesn't matter where your cops are from or in what ways they differ - they'll have that in common.
Explain why you chose Brighton as the setting for the story.
Well, we had to get Rebus to Grace's jurisdiction or vice versa. Brighton made sense because Rebus is a big fan of The Who and in their album Quadrophenia they sing about the fights that used to take place in Brighton in the early 1960s between rival gangs. That gave us the inkling of a plot, and we found a way to make it work!

About Ian Rankin
Born in the Kingdom of Fife in 1960, Ian Rankin (aka Jack Harvey) graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 1982 and then spent three years writing novels when he was supposed to be working towards a PhD in Scottish Literature. His first Rebus novel was published in 1987; the Rebus books are now translated into 22 languages and are bestsellers on several continents. A contributor to BBC2's Newsnight Review, he also presented his own TV series, Ian Rankin's Evil Thoughts, on Channel 4 in 2002. He recently received the OBE for services to literature, and opted to receive the prize in his home city of Edinburgh, where he lives with his partner and two sons.

About Peter James
Peter James has been a screenwriter and film producer, and is now the author of best selling crime novels. James has written 25 books, the most recent of which feature Brighton-based Detective Superintendent Roy Grace. His books have been translated into 29 languages. In England they are published by Pan Books and in the US by Carroll & Graf Publishers. James has written supernatural thrillers, spy fiction, Michael Crichton-style science-based thrillers, and a children's novel, as well as the introductions for Graham Masterton's collection 'Manitou Man' and Joe Rattigan's collection 'Ghosts Far From Subtle'. He also wrote, as 'a labour of love' the children's novelisation for the 1986 movie 'Biggles', which he also produced. James is a lifelong fan of the Biggles franchise, at one time owning the rights to the books, and having translated some foreign editions.
About ITW
The International Thriller Writers is an honorary society of authors, both fiction and nonfiction, who write books broadly classified as “thrillers.” This would include (but isn’t limited to) such subjects as murder mystery, detective, suspense, horror, supernatural, action, espionage, true crime, war, adventure, and myriad similar subject areas. One of the main purposes of the organization is to provide a way for successful, bestselling authors to help debut and midlist authors advance their careers. In addition, ITW promotes literacy, gives money to worthy organizations, supports libraries, and advances the genre. For more information, visit: www.thrillerwriters.org.
The ThrillerFest is a five-day celebration of thriller books, the authors who write them, and the fans who read them. Held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan (New York City) from July 8th to July 12th, 2014, the annual conference celebrates this year the 10th anniversary of the ITW (International Thriller Writers). Guests of honor: 2014 ThrillerMaster Scott Turow, 2014 Silver Bullet Award recipient Brenda Novak, 2013 ThrillerMaster Anne Rice, and 2013 Silver Bullet Award recipient Steve Berry. Aspiring authors, fans, industry professionals can register here .
  

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

SUCCESSIO by Alison Morton: BOOK BLAST & GIVEAWAY (International)

Follow Alison Morton's Book Blast for SUCCESSIO, the third book in her Roma Nova Series, from June 16-27 for a chance to win your own autographed copy and bookmark! The contest is open to all countries.

Successio

Publication Date: June 4, 2014
SilverWood Books
Formats: eBook, Paperback

Genre: Alternative Historical Thriller

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Roma Nova – the last remnant of the Roman Empire that has survived into the 21st century – is at peace. Carina Mitela, the heir of a leading family, but choosing the life of an officer in the Praetorian Guard Special Forces, is not so sure.

She senses danger crawling towards her when she encounters a strangely self-possessed member of the unit hosting their exchange exercise in Britain. When a blackmailing letter arrives from a woman claiming to be her husband Conrad’s lost daughter and Conrad tries to shut Carina out, she knows the threat is real.

Trying to resolve a young man’s indiscretion twenty-five years before turns into a nightmare that not only threatens to destroy all the Mitelae but also attacks the core of the imperial family itself. With her enemy holding a gun at the head of the heir to the imperial throne, Carina has to make the hardest decision of her life…

Praise for Successio


“If there is a world where fiction becomes more believable than reality, then Alison Morton’s ingenious thrillers must be the portal through which to travel. Following in Caesar’s footsteps, she came with INCEPTIO, saw with PERFIDITAS – and has well and truly conquered with SUCCESSIO!” – Helen Hollick, author and Managing Editor Historical Novel Society Indie Reviews

“Alison Morton has done it again. SUCCESSIO is the latest in her series of powerful tales of family betrayals and shifting allegiances in Roma Nova. Once again, I was gripped from start to finish.” – Sue Cook, writer and broadcaster

Watch the Book Trailer




Roma Nova Series


Book One: Inceptio
Book Two: Perfiditas
Book Three: Successio

Buy the Book


Amazon US
Amazon UK
Barnes & Noble
Book Depository
IndieBound

 Alison Morton

About the Author
Alison Morton writes Roman-themed alternate history thrillers with strong heroines. She holds a bachelor’s degree in French, German and Economics, a masters’ in history and lives in France with her husband.

A ‘Roman nut’ since age 11, she has visited sites throughout Europe including the alma mater, Rome. But it was the mosaics at Ampurias (Spain) that started her wondering what a modern Roman society would be like if run by women…

INCEPTIO, the first in the Roma Nova series, was shortlisted for the 2013 International Rubery Book Award and awarded a B.R.A.G. Medallion® in September 2013. The next in series, PERFIDITAS, published October 2013, has also just been honoured with the B.R.A.G. Medallion®. Alison is currently working on the fourth book.

Connect with Alison Morton


Website
Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
Amazon UK Author Page
Amazon US Author Page
INCEPTIO Facebook Page
PERFIDITAS Facebook Page

Follow the Successio Book Blast


June 16: Flashlight Commentary & Princess of Eboli
June 17: Kincavel Korner, Mina's Bookshelf, & Literary Chanteuse
June 18: Kinx's Book Nook & Svetlana's Reads and Views
June 19: So Many Books, So Little Time, The Lit Bitch, & West Metro Mommy
June 20: Historical Fiction Obsession
June 21: A Bookish Affair & Broken Teepee
June 22: Just One More Chapter
June 23: The Little Reader Library & The True Book Addict
June 24: A Bibliotaph's Reviews & Historical Fiction Connection
June 25: Historical Tapestry & The Maiden's Court
June 26: Book Nerd & Passages to the Past
June 27: CelticLady's Reviews

Giveaway


To win an Autographed copy of SUCCESSIO & Bookmark please complete the Rafflecopter giveaway form below. Giveaway is open to US residents only.

Giveaway ends at 11:59pm on June 27th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
Winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter on June 28th and notified via email.
Winner have 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Monday, June 16, 2014

Interview With Victoria Dougherty, Author Of THE BONE CHURCH


THE BONE CHURCH (Pier's Court Press, April 2014) by debut author Victoria Dougherty is possibly one of the darkest and most sophisticated historical novels you'll be able to put your hands on this summer. Just take a look at the synopsis:

"In the surreal and paranoid underworld of wartime Prague, fugitive lovers Felix Andel and Magdalena Ruza make some dubious alliances – with a mysterious Roman Catholic cardinal, a reckless sculptor intent on making a big political statement, and a gypsy with a risky sex life. As one by one their chances for fleeing the country collapse, the two join a plot to assassinate Hitler’s nefarious Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, Josef Goebbels. But the assassination attempt goes wildly wrong, propelling the lovers in separate directions.
Felix’s destiny is sealed at the Bone Church, a mystical pilgrimage site on the outskirts of Prague, while Magdalena is thrust even deeper into the bowels of a city that betrayed her and a homeland soon to be swallowed by the Soviets. As they emerge from the shadowy fog of World War II, and stagger into the foul haze of the Cold War, Felix and Magdalena must confront the past, and a dangerous, uncertain future."

If that didn't intrigue you, I don't know what does! I've had the immense pleasure to interview Victoria Dougherty - grab your coffee, get comfortable, and read on.

Interview
 
I am delighted to have you on the blog, Victoria! If we could conduct this interview face to face, in a place other than the virtuality of the blogosphere, where would we meet?
In a medieval beer hall. We could chat over a fabulous Czech beer and eat stinky cheese with mustard, chopped onions and fresh rye bread. We should refrain from breathing on anyone after that, though.
I have never met you before; how do I recognize you? The three adjectives that better describe your look and your personality...
Tall, quirky and jokey (despite my writing style, I love a good laugh)
 Your debut novel, THE BONE CHURCH, was recently published by Pier's Court Press (April 2014). We would love to learn more about your background and what led you to become a fiction writer.
 I’ve kind of always been a writer. I started our writing comedy sketches and short plays, then began translating plays (when I was partner in Black Box Theater in Prague, CZ), then migrated towards essays and novels (I’m in the process of edits for my second and third novels). Content-wise, I come from what my husband calls “The Ultimate Cold War Family.” There was no shortage of storytelling around my dinner table growing up – and those stories were all true! Tales of spies, gulags, murders, political prisons, love, adventure, danger…it was all there. And it was amazing to hear it coming from my own family. Made it very real. I grew up understanding what big stakes were.
Let's bring our readers up to speed with setting, conflicts, and characters you brought to life in your historical novel, THE BONE CHURCH. Can you briefly introduce the plot?
The Bone Church follows a Czech couple – Felix and Magdalena – through the harrowing events surrounding the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia during World War II and the subsequent Soviet invasion, which happened under the auspices of “liberation.” It takes the reader through the shadowy fog that descended during the war years and into the polluted haze of the Cold War without missing a beat. While The Bone Church most certainly has some strong thriller elements – how could it not? The characters are running from Nazis and Soviet spies and are making alliances with all sorts of dangerous characters – for me, it ultimately tackles the meaning of faith and love and how tremendous historical forces can affect us at our core. So, despite the running and risks and the specter of death, it is a love story for me and I wrote it as such.
 All writing has an intended readership: did you write THE BONE CHURCH with a specific audience in mind?
That’s an oddly difficult question for me to answer. I know I wrote a book that I would want to read, and I’m one of those readers who enjoy both “male” and “female” books.  I’ve had two literary agents in my career (both male) and even with them, one thought I wrote for women (Historical Fiction) and the other felt my work skewed towards male readers (Thrillers). I must fall somewhere in between, but I don’t write for one or the other.
Why did you decide to portray Prague during two of its thorniest times in history?
My family is from Prague and I lived there for several years. It is one of the most interesting cities I’ve ever come across both culturally and historically. Prague is a place of contradictions and has brought the world bawdy intellectuals, literary janitors, scientist priests and philosopher politicians. I wanted to bring that to life.
I could probably spend a career writing about Prague, but I won’t. The Bone Church will undoubtedly be it.
Intricate plot, great attention to historical details, a rich and complex cast of characters: which layer of the book was the most exciting to build?
As a writer, I thrive on building the connective tissue between friends and lovers and enemies and colleagues. Or a priest and his congregation and a hero and those who worship her.
It’s all about the relationships between the characters. For me, that is the spine for every story. There are some great plot-driven books out there that rely mostly on action and I can enjoy them immensely – but they rarely stay with me. I strive to create characters that stay with a reader like a scent. I want people to think about the book long after they’ve finished it. It’s a huge challenge and I’m not always successful – certainly not with every reader – but I love that process, and it’s always what I start and end with. All the action stuff is there to get the characters from A to B and flesh out how they really feel – about each other, about life.
Is any of the characters inspired by real historical figures? Some of them are 'uniquely' drawn - how did they come into being?
Some are based on real people – Lida Baarova was Nazi Propaganda Minister Josef Goebbels’ Czech mistress. She was a famous actress at the time and my grandparents actually knew her. They weren’t particularly fond of her for obvious reasons, but they had met her. My grandfather was an Olympic athlete, so before the war, he would run into her at parties. And yes, some of my characters are loosely based on people in my family – their experiences, not their actual personalities. The personalities are entirely invented.
 What is the most fascinating thing you have learned about Eastern Europe and that particular time in history while researching/writing your novel?
What is most fascinating to me is how fierce historical winds change lives so irrevocably and completely. And being on the losing side is so compelling and something with which we Americans have little experience. As a writer, I love having to answer the question, “What would you do if the worst possible thing happened to you.” A lot of people have had to answer that question in Eastern Europe, and the answer is not always as depressing as one would think. There’s actually tremendous hope and meaning in pain and struggle.
 Investigative journalist and writer Michael Schmicker defined your book as "erudite" and "neoclassic", comparing it to some of the most prominent Cold War thrillers of all times (The Spy Who Came In From The Cold by John Le Carre, The Third Man by Graham Greene, James Bond by Ian Fleming). Did you mold and refine your writing style on any of these master storytellers?
Wow. I was so honored and grateful for that review. It meant a lot to me. Did I model my story or writing after Graham Greene, Fleming, Le Carre – and let’s add Alan Furst and Daniel Silva to that list – not specifically, but having read them all extensively, how could they not influence my style? Honestly, to be mentioned – by anyone – in the same breath as those authors (especially by an experienced reader and writer like Michael Schmicker) kind of makes me hyperventilate.
Like the masterpieces your book has been compared to, THE BONE CHURCH would be a great fit for the big screen...any ambitions to see your novel translated into a motion picture? If so, do you have a director and dream cast in mind?
I’ve watched my plays being performed and it’s just an amazing feeling – even when only five people show up in the audience. It’s one of those things that feel like an out of body experience. Is it an ambition – oh, yeah, but more accurately, it’s a fantasy. As for my dream cast, they’re all pretty much dead. Or too old to play the parts. I love actors like Ian Richardson (from the original British House of Cards), Steve McQueen, Lena Olin. James McAvoy would make a great Felix and he’s the right age cohort.
 
James McAvoy (X--Men, Atonement, The Last Station, Penelope, Wanted, Becoming Jane)
 
 James McAvoy? In that case, I would be the first in line at the movie theater! You have one of the most intriguing Facebook pages: great focus on visual, lots of black and white photos, strong images. Do you find inspiration for your writing in visual arts? Any other form of art you would like to explore, other than writing?
I love surrealism and black and white photos – sometimes combined, but not necessarily. My Facebook page and other social media pages and outlets are all similarly themed. I’m just crazy about the stuff. My blog, Cold (www.victoriadougherty.wordpress.com), mostly features short essays and fiction, but every story uses black and white photography as an anchor. On occasion a color shot or two makes its way in. I wish I could use more photography in my novels as well, but that’s pretty expensive at this point.
Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions, Victoria! It was a great pleasure to have you.
You’re welcome – and thank you for having me. I love your blog.

*****
  
About the Author

  
 
Victoria Dougherty writes fiction, drama, and essays that often revolve around spies, killers, curses and destinies. Her work has been published or profiled in The New York Times, USA Today, International Herald Tribune and elsewhere. Earlier in her career, while living in Prague, she co-founded Black Box Theater, translating, producing and acting in several Czech plays. She lives with her husband and children in Charlottesville, Virginia.
For more information, please visit Victoria Dougherty’s website. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, and Pinterest.
 
 
About the book
 
 
THE BONE CHURCH
by
VICTORIA DOUGHERTY
Pier's Court Press; April, 15, 2014
Paperback, ebook, 308 pages
Historical Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Espionage, WWII
 
 
Buy it