An inconvenient wife, p.27
An Inconvenient Wife, page 27
A woman bumped into her, and she stumbled, dropping her bag, oranges rolling across the cobblestones.
“I’m so sorry,” the woman said.
She wasn’t going to engage, just wanted to let it go. She stooped down to gather the fruit.
“Let me help you,” the woman said, handing her one of the oranges.
She took it, forced a small smile. “Thank you.”
“Oh, you speak English.”
“Yes.”
“Such a relief. I’m still trying to learn the language.”
She continued to pick up the oranges. When they were all back in her sack, the woman didn’t move on. She stood awkwardly, uncertain what the woman wanted from her.
“I’ve just arrived here,” the woman said. “I’m renting a vacation home in town. Maybe you could show me around? It would be wonderful to have a local guide.”
The woman’s smile was kind, reaching her eyes, which were a soft shade of green.
What harm could come of it? It would take a few days to make arrangements, and then they’d be gone.
The woman held out her hand.
“I’m Joan.”
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This book wouldn’t exist if I hadn’t read Mary M. Luke’s A Crown for Elizabeth when I was fourteen. That book was the catalyst for my lifelong obsession with everything Tudor. The only fiction about that era that I’ve read is Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall trilogy and Elizabeth Fremantle’s Queen’s Gambit, preferring the multitude of biographies by historians such as Alison Weir, Antonia Fraser, David Starkey, Joanna Denny, Gareth Russell, Giles Tremlett, Linda Porter, Karen Lindsey, and Hayley Nolan.
I have always wanted to write about the Tudors, but I’m not a historian, and I don’t write historical fiction. I wondered what Henry VIII and his wives would be like if they lived today, in the twenty-first century without royal trappings. As I began to sketch out Henry and his wives, I realized it might not be too difficult to bring them into the modern day. All of his wives were, in their individual ways, strong, intelligent, and progressive. I do believe he loved them all—until he didn’t. My interpretations of who they would be in the present are, I believe, consistent with who they were in the past.
I’ve spent a long time with this, trying to strike a perfect balance—and weaving in what I am most familiar with writing: a central crime.
My agent, Josh Getzler, fellow Tudorphile and all-around cheerleader, has been on this book’s journey with me almost from the beginning. He’s been hearing me talk for years about it—even as I was stalled by a concussion and then Covid and long Covid—reading every version and giving me notes at every turn, each time strengthening the story and the characters. I owe so much to him.
I am grateful to Claiborne Hancock and Jessica Case at Pegasus Crime for taking on my modern version of the Tudors. I am so thrilled to be part of the Pegasus list. My editor, Victoria Wenzel, looked at the manuscript with an eagle eye, and it is better for her careful attention. I’m excited to be working with publicist Meghan Jusczak, and a big thank-you to Maria Fernandez for interior design and Lisa Gilliam for her excellent copy editing. Amanda Hudson at Faceout Studios designed the amazing book cover that perfectly captures the pages inside.
Even before I had a completed draft, Cheryl Violante was encouraging, so I moved forward. Clair Lamb was the first to point out that Catherine had a much larger role to play than I’d even realized. Dorothea Halliday and Danielle D’Orlando gave me a lot to think about—and a lot to work on. I owe more than she might believe to Kristen Weber. She forced me to rethink the book’s structure, and it is a lot tighter and more focused than it was before she read it.
Dr. Dave Hart and Jim Born offered their expertise, patiently explaining what might happen if a person is shot in the head with a small-caliber bullet. John Halliday and Ray Tartaglione were invaluable with their suggestions of twisty roads in Westchester County.
Ultimately, this is a book about women. Strong, intelligent women and their relationships with men and with each other. A huge shoutout to those women whose friendship I cherish and with whom I’ve shared hours of conversation about books, writing, politics, and life in general: Nancy Lyon, Patty Smiley, Kerri Pedersen, Liz Medcalf, Dorothea Halliday, Theresa Braine, Alison Gaylin, Cheryl Violante, Laura Benedict, Eleanor Kohlsaat, Clea Simon, and Clair Lamb. I am also so proud of my daughter, Julia, and the woman she’s become.
This book is dedicated to my mother-in-law, Edith Hoffman, an art historian and academic in a profession dominated by men. She was a trailblazer, and I know she would toast this book with her signature Manhattan.
And finally, thank you to my husband, Chris Hoffman, for his support and love. There’s no one I’d rather go through life with, and we’ve been married long enough so I feel fairly confident that I will never be inconvenient.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
KAREN E. OLSON is the winner of the Sara Ann Freed Memorial Award and a Shamus Award finalist. She is the author of the Annie Seymour Mysteries, the Tattoo Shop Mysteries, and the Black Hat Thrillers. Karen was a longtime editor, both in newspapers and at Yale. She lives in North Haven, Connecticut.
AN INCONVENIENT WIFE
Pegasus Crime is an imprint of
Pegasus Books, Ltd.
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New York, NY 10018
Copyright © 2024 by Karen E. Olson
First Pegasus Books cloth edition April 2024
Interior design by Maria Fernandez
Jacket design: Faceout Studio, Amanda Hudson
Imagery: Getty Images & Shutterstock
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher, except by reviewers who may quote brief excerpts in connection with a review in a newspaper, magazine, or electronic publication; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other, without written permission from the publisher.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.
ISBN: 978-1-63936-565-4
Ebook ISBN: 978-1-63936-566-1
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Karen E. Olson, An Inconvenient Wife
