Janet
Dawson has published three books in the California Zephyr historical mystery
series featuring Zephyrette Jill McLeod. She has also written twelve books in
her Jeri Howard series featuring the Oakland PI, a suspense novel, and many
short stories. Learn more about Janet and her books at her website.
The
California Zephyr historical mystery
series comprises three books—Death Rides
the Zephyr, Death Deals a Hand,
and the just-released The Ghost in
Roomette Four. The first book takes place in December 1952, the others in April
and July of 1953.
As
Kirkus says in its review of The Ghost in
Roomette Four, the book is “a nostalgic, wonderfully detailed look at
an era when trains were still a major mode of transportation and life.”
The
old California Zephyr ran from 1949
to 1970, a 21-year run. During World War II, the movement of troops and
supplies took precedence over civilian travel. The years immediately following
the war were a heyday for the streamliners, as the sleek passenger trains were called.
Postwar prosperity meant that people could go places. Trains were very popular,
giving people the opportunity to travel in comfort and see the country.
The
train era didn’t last, though. Passenger rail fell victim to the increase in
air travel and rapidly booming automobile ownership. People were seeing the USA
in their Chevrolets, not from the Vista-Dome of the California Zephyr.
In
Death Rides the Zephyr, readers learn
that my protagonist, Jill McLeod, became a Zephyrette after the death of her
fiancé, who died in the Korean War, which began in 1950 and ended in the summer
of 1953. A number of plot points in all three of the CZ books hark back to the past—Prohibition and the Great Depression
of the 1920s and 1930s, and World War II, which dominated the first half of the
1940s. These events are recent history for my characters and find their way
into the plots.
What
are some of the difficulties of writing about the early Fifties? I must admit,
I was alive then, but much younger and I can’t remember that much. This is
where the Internet comes in handy. While writing the most recent book, I found
myself on Google doing a search to find out when dishwashers first came into
common usage. I was surprised to learn it was the Thirties. Jill lives at home
with her parents when she’s not riding the rails and I had a scene where she
and her sister are cleaning up after dinner. Would the McLeods have a dishwasher?
Indeed, they would.
Another
way of conveying the times are through fashions, whether hairstyles or clothes.
I wound up buying a book titled EverydayFashions of the Fifties as Pictured in Sears Catalogs, which proved
invaluable as I wrote about the clothing worn by Jill and the other characters.
There are also plenty of websites dedicated to clothing of the era.
As
for hairstyles, for the Fifties it was the poodle cut, like the short stylish hairdo
worn by Lucille Ball, and the Italian cut—think Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday.
Speaking
of movies, film and music are another way I bring the flavor of the Fifties
into the CZ books. The Ghost in Roomette Four takes place
in July 1953, when Gentlemen Prefer
Blondes had just been released. Jill and her friend Mike are making plans
to see the movie, which features a memorable scene of Marilyn Monroe performing“Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend.”
And
cars! The snazzy red Dodge Coronet convertible driven by Jill’s friend Tidsy in
the latest book is another symbol of the era.
Writing
about the Fifties has been a lot of fun and I hope readers enjoy the California Zephyr books and their excursions
into the not-so-distant past.
The Ghost in Roomette Four
Zephyrette
Jill McLeod is returning to her quarters on the California Zephyr. Suddenly she sees a shimmering light outside
what she knows to be an empty roomette. When she goes inside to check, she
feels a chill and hears strange sounds. Jill tells herself she doesn’t believe
in ghosts, but she can’t explain what she saw. Two months earlier, she found a
man’s body in this very same roomette. Was the death murder? Jill is starting
to wonder if there really is a ghost traveling in roomette four.
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