I am very pleased to welcome author Susanne Dunlap to my blog today with a guest post as part of the blog tour for her new book The Paris Affair, which is the third book in the Theresa Schurmann series.
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Hooray! It’s a Series!
This may not seem so exciting to many people, but I grew up reading Nancy Drew, the all-time-most-popular middle-grade mystery series. I think ever since then I’ve wanted to write a series of my own. But the world had other plans for me for a while.
When I was being published by the big 5 publishers back when the publishing world was a different place (2005–2012), it seemed my editors only wanted stand-alone historical novels. Even though I’d written the sequel to The Musician’s Daughter as my option book for Bloomsbury Children’s, my editor asked for something different. That’s when I wrote Anastasia’s Secret.
Don’t get me wrong—I’m extremely grateful for the six contracts I had for my adult and young-adult historical novels. But I’d written that first YA mystery with the intention of continuing a series, and readers asked me about it all the time.
A year ago, in a much-changed publishing landscape, I decided it was time to relaunch Theresa properly into the world. I dusted off, revised, and edited the manuscript of The Mozart Conspiracy and self-published it. All I wanted was for her to have a chance at being out there for readers.
I’d forgotten how much fun it was to be in feisty Theresa’s head. I poured my young musician self into her and relived the experiences of practicing and performing—piano, not violin. And I didn’t want to let her go. I wanted to stay in that world, and I hoped readers would too.
That led me to the idea for the next mystery in the series, and The Paris Affair came into being. OK, so it didn’t just appear like magic: I spent months writing and editing and crafting this book.
The result: I can now claim to have a series! That makes me ridiculously happy. I have no intention of leaving Theresa now. I already have an idea for her next adventure. The only difficulty is that she’s really almost an adult now, so I may have to hope my audience is willing to follow her into that new phase of life. I’m gratified that The Paris Affair has already had some wonderful reviews. I’m looking forward to hearing more from readers—and getting stuck in to writing the next book in the series!
ABOUT THE BOOK
THE PARIS AFFAIRBY SUSANNE DUNLAP
Publication Date: September 30, 2020
Paperback & eBook; 244 pages
Series: Theresa Schurmann Mystery, Book 3
Genre: YA/Historical Fiction
Apparently, false rumors about Marie Antoinette are all the fashion in 1783.
Marie Antoinette is facing hostility from the populace, inflamed by rumors circulated in pamphlets throughout Paris. The rumors claim that she has dozens of lovers, drinks the blood of poor people, holds satanic masses at Versailles, and more, when nothing could be further from the truth. On the advice of the handsome, enigmatic Captain von Bauer, Joseph II–emperor of Austria and Marie Antoinette’s brother–decides that mystery-solving violinist Theresa Schurman is the ideal candidate for a spy to discover the source of these vile slanders.
Theresa is only too glad to get away from Vienna for a while, unwilling to commit herself yet to marrying Zoltan–a Hungarian baron she met when she was fifteen–and running out of reasons to postpone her decision. She is eager, too, to explore a new musical scene and broaden her artistic education. But when the captain confounds her expectations and places her as a bookkeeper in the establishment of Rose Bertin, milliner to the queen, she begins to lose hope that she will ever achieve her musical aims–or the emperor’s goal of exposing the pamphleteers.
A chance encounter with the Chevalier de Saint-Georges, an extraordinary black violinist and expert swordsman, sets Theresa on the path to unraveling the mystery. But will the chevalier’s patron, the powerful duc de Chartres, confound her efforts and put her–and the captain’s–lives in danger?
Be prepared for music, mystery, love, and murder in this riveting tale of pre-revolutionary Paris.
“The settings and situations are enchanting and varied; Dunlap is adept at on-the-fly description and at lacing intrigue with romance…Dunlap proves an arresting tour guide through this rich milieu, summoning up the past without slowing down the storytelling. Author and protagonist alike boast an epigrammatic wit. The touch is light, but the scenery and chatter are sumptuous…Theresa stands as a fascinating protagonist, a woman whose nimble navigation of society’s expectations and several burgeoning romances are exciting and inspiring, even more so than the sleuthing that drives the novel’s plot. The people she encounters are likewise memorable, complex, and surprising, especially the chevalier…This sparkling historical mystery conjures up the salons, fashion, and gossip of Marie Antoinette’s Paris, with a winning emphasis on the power of music and the roles that society allowed women.” – The BookLife Prize
AMAZON | BARNES AND NOBLE | INDIEBOUND
About the Author
Susanne Dunlap is the author of nine works of historical fiction. A graduate of Smith College with a PhD in Music History from Yale University, Susanne grew up in Buffalo, New York and has lived in London, Brooklyn and Northampton, MA. She now lives in Northampton with her long-time partner, Charles, has two grown daughters, three granddaughters, a grandson, a stepson and a stepdaughter, five step-grandsons and one step-granddaughter—that’s a total of four children and eleven grandchildren!
In her spare time she cycles in the beautiful Pioneer Valley.
For more information, please visit Susanne Dunlap’s website. You can follow author Susanne Dunlap on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Instagram, Pinterest, and BookBub.
Blog Tour Schedule
Wednesday, September 30Excerpt at Coffee and Ink
Review at Little But Fierce Book Diary
Thursday, October 1
Review at Pursuing Stacie
Friday, October 2
Feature at I’m Into Books
Review at Gwendalyn’s Books
Monday, October 5
Review at Chicks, Rogues, and Scandals
Tuesday, October 6
Review at YA, It’s Lit
Wednesday, October 7
Review at Books and Zebras
Thursday, October 8
Excerpt at Turn The Page
Friday, October 9
Review & Excerpt at Bookworlder
Sunday, October 11
Review at Bitch Bookshelf
Monday, October 12
Review at Nursebookie
Tuesday, October 13
Review at Rajiv’s Reviews
Wednesday, October 14
Review at Book Bustle
Thursday, October 15
Guest Post at Novels Alive
Friday, October 16
Review at Passages to the Past
Guest post at The Intrepid Reader
Saturday, October 17
Review at Reading is My Remedy
Giveaway
During the Blog Tour, one lucky reader will win signed copies of all 3 books in the Theresa Schurmann Mystery series! To enter, please use the Gleam form below.
The giveaway is open to US residents only and ends on October 17th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
The Paris Affair
Direct Link: https://gleam.io/competitions/ezV8f-the-paris-affair
The giveaway is restricted! Sigh!!
ReplyDeleteI know...I couldn't enter it either.
DeleteNot my type of book, but your author notes and interview was done wonderfully!
ReplyDeleteCan't take credit for either! The guest post was all the author and the author notes were Amy from HFVBT! I just facilitated! lol
DeleteThank you so much for hosting Susanne & her blog tour today!
ReplyDeleteAmy
HF Virtual Book Tours
You are welcome Amy!
DeleteInteresting! I like the looks of these historical tales that seem to all have music to them and Therese as the protagonist. I'm sure they would teach me a thing or two about those times & historical figures. Thx for letting me know about this series.
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome! I hope you get to read it!
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