For those of you who missed last Tuesday’s Zoom with Tina* of the Avon Free Public Library, she, lovely person that she is, sent me an advance peek of her questions. I reproduce them here, with answers.
*Tina is an enthusiastic and informed interviewer who actually does read the book. I encourage any author to say yes when she comes knocking.
Welcome/Intro by Tina
Which, Dana sez, went on way longer than it should have because I was late to the chat. Shame. Shame. Shame.
You’re an established writer with lots of fans for your existing series. Were you nervous about starting a new series?
[laughing] The time to ask that question was back when I started, what, the Liam Campbell series? Or the two Coast Guard thrillers? or Silk and Song, my medieval trilogy? or the Eye of Isis novels?
No. I have no nervous left.
What drew you to the Wild West as a setting?
Over the past 20 years I’ve been spending the holidays with extended family in Arizona. The desert Southwest caught my imagination and never let go.
What are your favorite, iconic elements of that era in history? (I love anything involving Pinkertons)
How long have you got?
How did you discover the Harvey Girls?
My Arizona family took me to La Posada, a Harvey Hotel in Winslow, Arizona, which has a great little bookstore where I found a copy of Stephen Fried’s Appetite for America. Chapter 12 is called “Harvey Girls.”
Tell us about Clare Wright, the main character
She’s an orphan but a lucky one, whose father provided for her after her mother, a Pinkerton agent, died in childbirth. She is well educated and has natural skills that led her to become a Pinkerton agent. 22, single, headquartered with the Pinkertons in Chicago, this is her first time on the other side of the Mississippi.
What mystery is Clare charged with investigating?
Someone just held up a fourth train carrying goods to the Montaña Roja Harvey House, and this time the ramrod (or conductor) was murdered during the robbery. Fred Harvey wants the stolen goods found and the murderers caught and brought to justice.
Did you have fun creating the diner scenes? Anyone who has waitressed will identify with the aches and pains you describe–I tell us about illustrating how hard non-detective work is for Clare.
I read a lot of first-hand accounts about cooking and serving in restaurants, including Phoebe Damrosch’s Service Included and of course Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain. The physical toll on those folks is unending. I read somewhere that a full-sleeve tat comes from line cooks wanting to cover up all the scars they’ve gotten on the line.
Can you highlight one or two of the male characters for our readers? Do they help or hinder Clare’s work?
Not without giving anything away. Robert Parker and his uncle are far more charming than they deserve to be. Robert Pinkerton is turning out to be a better guy than I had first envisioned. Wash Gowan, the robber baron, I’ve was on the fence about until the first chapter of the second book. (heh) Fred Harvey is the best of good businessmen.
What can you tell us about the conspiracy at the center of the story?
The stolen goods are being stockpiled to support an American-backed insurrection in Mexico.
Follow up: Why do you think we all love (in one way or another) a great conspiracy?
Real-life conspiracies are always betrayed by someone on the inside (luckily for all of us). It’s always fun to read about a fictional one, watching and waiting for the wheels to come off the bus.
What’s next for the series?
Fred opens a lunchroom at Fort Union and puts Clare in charge to further their investigation.*
*Breaking: The book is called The Iron Trail and it will launch from the Poisoned Pen on March 6, 2027.
Still a few copies of the signed first edition hardcover here.
Available in e on
and
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