[mc4wp_form id="1782"]

Guest Post from Radha Vastal, author of the Kitty Weeks Mysteries

Murder Between the Lines by Radha Vastal

One of the most enjoyable parts of researching …

Murder Between the Lines by Radha VastalDelving into the details of the past to create a realistic world and a period-appropriate mystery in which challenges and obstacles arise from the mundane realities of life in New York City during the 1910s, is for me, one of the most enjoyable parts of researching and writing the Kitty Weeks Mystery series.  So, for instance, in both A Front Page Affair and Murder Between the Lines the central mystery is connected with little-known actual events that occurred during the time, and these events feed into the plot right down to the day and date that they actually took place.

In Murder Between the Lines, the dead girl at the center of the mystery is known to be a sleepwalker and her sleepwalking is attributed to nervous tension brought on by too much schoolwork.  That was a perfectly reasonable causal explanation in the 1910s!  The schoolgirl’s death was inspired by a news story from late 1915, which I came across while scanning through the New York Times from November of 1915 to about February of 1916.  I knew that was the timeframe in which I wanted to set the second book; about 3 or 4 months would have elapsed since the events in A Front Page Affair, and I wanted to open things up with President Wilson’s second marriage.  While flipping through the papers I read about the “Girl Somnambulist Frozen to Death” and immediately knew I had found my crime/possible crime.

A Front Page Affair by Radha VatsalMost of my research is done through primary sources: newspapers, career guides, self-help books, medical books, etiquette guides, advertisements and so on… I also look at secondary sources, but then always pivot back to read the sources from the period that are referenced.  In terms of writing historical fiction, one of the most interesting things for me is not presenting events as we might understand them today, but trying to understand how the same events were perceived during their time.  So, in the case of the sleepwalker found frozen to death, in the 2010s, we would immediately question “too much schoolwork” as a cause, but in the 1910s, that opinion was backed up by doctors and medical books.  And in fact, in the course of Kitty’s investigations, she speaks to a “nerve specialist” who tells her that girls who study too hard or work too much (like herself) are prone to all sorts of diseases.  She has to get past that in order to solve the mystery.

About the Author:

Radha Vatsal is the author of the Kitty Weeks mystery series. Her latest book, Murder between the Lines (Sourcebooks), was published May 2.

 

The White House Wedding: A Solve-the-Mystery Blog Tour by Radha Vatsal

The White House Wedding: A Solve-the-Mystery Blog Tour by Radha Vatsal.

Woodrow Wilson and Edith Galt marriageAt 8:30 PM on Saturday, December 1915, President Woodrow Wilson married Mrs. Edith Bolling Galt. The new Mrs. Wilson would go on to become one of the 20th Century’s most powerful first ladies and shepherd the United States through turbulent times.  In the course of this blog tour, I describe four different aspects of their wedding plan: The Location on Jane Reads, Guest List and Attendants, Ceremony and Officiants, Dress and Flowers.  The wedding went off as arranged, except for one significant last-minute change. Your mission is to guess what changed and why.  The answer will be revealed in the final blog post.  For more on the president and Edith Bolling/Wilson’s relationship, see the Introduction on Katherine’s Chronicle.

BLOG POST #3: GUEST LIST AND ATTENDANTS

The president and Mrs. Galt planned to keep the ceremony simple and limit it to only the two families, devoted staff, Dr. Ruffin—the Bolling family physician, Dr. Grayson—President Wilson’s personal physician, and Altrude Gordon—who was staying with Edith at the time.  All three of the president’s daughters attended along with their husbands.  No friends or White House aides would be invited, not even Colonel House, heretofore the president’s most trusted friend and advisor.  There would be no attendants.  No best man, no matron of honor, bridesmaids, flower girls, or pages.  No heads of state, foreign dignitaries or cabinet members, except for William Gibbs McAdoo, the Treasury Secretary and Wilson’s son-in-law.

Did the couple stick to this plan?  Did Wilson insist that Colonel House who had been his “right-hand” man attend?  Did Edith Galt open the event to other friends or White House officials?  Was there someone who at the last minute was so offended not to be invited that the couple had to relent?

Next Up: Ceremony and Officiants

The new First Lady and Woodrow Wilson make a dramatic appearance in Murder Between the Lines, the second novel in the Kitty Weeks Mystery series, which features the adventures of bold newswoman Capability “Kitty” Weeks in World War I era New York.  For more historical surprises, sign up for the Kitty Weeks newsletter: radhavatsalauthor@gmail.com


 

Did *You* Win This Book?

A Front Page Affair by Radha VatsalNo, you did not. UNLESS your name is Linda F. and your AOL email address starts with JDC. Thank you, Linda and everyone else that entered to win A Front Page Affair.

Linda, please get in touch! I’ve tried emailing you and it appears you’re not seeing those emails (probably because I have words like “You’ve Won!” in there.)