A Colonial Tavern (The one in the story would have been more rustic.)
Today we sit down for a chat with Antoinetta (Etta) Rutledge from author A.M. Reade’s historical mystery A Traitor Among Us: A Mystery of the American Revolution, Book 2 in the Cape May Historical Mysteries.
What was your life like before your author started pulling your strings?
Before Amy started pulling my strings, my life was very much like that of other young women my age in 1777. Most of us help with the household and farm chores. I have added work to do, too, because our house is also an inn for travelers, and my father runs a tavern attached to the house. My mother and sister and I do almost all the work in the inn, and we work every night in the tavern.
What’s the one trait you like most about yourself?
I am devoted to my family. My younger sister, Prissy, has never spoken, and I’m good at sensing and knowing what she is trying to communicate.
What do you like least about yourself?
Once I grievously misunderstood something Prissy was trying to say, and I wish that had never happened.
And one thing that I don’t like (though it has little to do with me and much to do with my community in 1777) is this: I wish I could join the men in the tavern when they discuss all kinds of things, like the war and local goings-on and other stories in the broadside (that’s our newspaper.) I think they might be surprised to learn that I have strong and articulate opinions about many issues.
What is the strangest thing your author has had you do or had happen to you?
Can you believe she made me go to the barn by myself one morning and find a body? The least she could have done was have one of my brothers go with me, but I suppose that would have changed the story.
Do you argue with your author? If so, what do you argue about?
I try not to argue with Amy. At least, not out loud. But I can be crafty, so sometimes I wriggle into her thoughts and make suggestions about other characters’ actions and words. I’m pleased to report she almost always listens to the thoughts I put in her head.
What is your greatest fear?
My greatest fear is that one of my brothers will leave our home and join the fight against the British in the War for Independence.
What makes you happy?
It makes me happy when my sister and brothers and I are all together in one place, be it the tavern or the house or the farm. We four are very close.
If you could rewrite a part of your story, what would it be? Why?
I need to think about that.
I suppose it would be the time my mother … but wait a moment. If I tell you that, I’ll be giving away part of the story. Amy might not appreciate it and I like to stay on her good side.
Let me just say this: in my story, just as in every story, bad things happen. There are times I wish they didn’t, but then there would be no story. Isn’t that correct?
Of the other characters in your book, which one bugs you the most? Why?
That is an easy question: Elijah Webber. He is infuriating, rude, and insufferable. There is something that draws me to him, though, and try as I might, I cannot dislodge thoughts of him from my head.
Of the other characters in your book, which one would you love to trade places with? Why?
I would never trade places with anyone, but if I could be someone else for just one day, I would choose Thaddeus Marshall. He often plays the fiddle at our tavern, and I can tell from watching him how much fun he has. He loves playing music because it makes him happy, and it makes everyone else happy. Well, almost everyone. My father disapproves of music and dancing, so my brothers and sister and I are not permitted to join in the fun. Just once, I would love to make music like that.
Tell us a little something about your author. Where can readers find her website/blog?
Amy lives in New Jersey. In fact, she lives just a quarter mile from where my story is set—there has been an inn, tavern, hostelry, or other place of hospitality standing on that site since 1736, years before I was born.
She likes to travel, which is something I’ve never done. And, of course, she loves to read. She even fancies herself a gardener, but to be frank, she’s not. I am a far better gardener than she is.
Readers can find her at www.amymreade.com. (I, of course, have no idea what that means, but she told me to write it down for you.)
What's next for you?
Alas, though Amy is writing more books set in Cape May County, the next novel has nothing to do with me or my family. It will take place at the Cape May Lighthouse in 1821, forty-four years after my own story.
However, I’m told she may write a short story about me. I hope so because I like talking to her readers. Amy says they are the best readers anywhere in the world.
A Cape May Historical Mystery, Book 2
September, 1777
The war for American independence rages just seventy miles away from the country inn and tavern owned by the Rutledge family in southern New Jersey. Tensions are running high between those who support the Continental Army and those who remain loyal to the English crown.
When Etta Rutledge stumbles upon the body of a ne’er-do-well British sympathizer on her family’s property, unsettling questions regarding her older brother, Jesse, begin to arise. What was his connection to the victim and why was he keen to keep it hidden?
Another shocking death, this time much closer to the heart of the family, draws Etta ever closer to unlocking the secrets swirling around her—secrets that someone will go to any length to protect...
Will Etta survive the discovery of the traitor in their midst?
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Thanks so much for hosting Etta today, Lois! I hope your readers enjoy her company as much as I do.
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Amy. Come back any time.
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