Cynthia Swanson, Super Sleuth....plus a book giveaway

We're glad to have Cynthia Swanson back at CLC to celebrate the recent publication of her latest novel, The Glass Forest. She has TWO copies for some lucky readers!

Cynthia Swanson is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Bookseller, which is soon to be a motion picture starring Julia Roberts. An Indie Next selection and the winner of the 2016 WILLA Award for Historical Fiction, The Bookseller is being translated into more than a dozen languages. It was nominated for the Goodreads Choice Award and the MPIBA Reading the West Award. Cynthia lives with her family in Denver, Colorado. Her other major interest outside of writing is home design, as she was originally an architecture major in college. Visit Cynthia at her website and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Synopsis:
In the autumn of 1960, Angie Glass is living an idyllic life in her Wisconsin hometown. At twenty-one, she’s married to charming, handsome Paul, and has just given birth to a baby boy. But one phone call changes her life forever.

When Paul’s niece, Ruby, reports that her father, Henry, has committed suicide, and that her mother, Silja, is missing, Angie and Paul drop everything and fly to the small upstate town of Stonekill, New York to be by Ruby’s side.

Angie thinks they’re coming to the rescue of Paul’s grief-stricken young niece, but Ruby is a composed and enigmatic seventeen-year-old who resists Angie’s attempts to nurture her. As Angie learns more about the complicated Glass family, staying in Henry and Silja’s eerie and ultra-modern house on the edge of the woods, she begins to question the very fabric of her own marriage.

Through Silja’s flashbacks, Angie’s discovery of astonishing truths, and Ruby’s strategic dissection of her parents’ state of affairs, a story of love, secrets, and ultimate betrayal is revealed. (Courtesy of Amazon.)

What was the inspiration behind The Glass Forest?
I thought about The Glass Forest for a long time before I started writing it – in fact, I had the idea for The Glass Forest long before I started writing my debut, The Bookseller. What I thought about was what it might be like to occupy the home of someone who had abruptly gone missing. The story grew from that seed, with the particulars coming to me over a number of years.

Do you base any of your characters on yourself or someone you know?
I personally relate to elements in each of the three main female characters. I’m fairly driven but also a romantic at heart, as is Silja. Like Angie, I’m generally optimistic and I’m fiercely loyal to those I love. Ruby has trouble fitting in until she finds the right place for her—an experience I also had as a teen and young adult.

If The Glass Forest were to become a movie, who would you cast in the lead roles?
For Angie, I’d cast Emma Watson – she’d be the perfect girl-next-door type. For Silja, I would cast Reese Witherspoon – she’s so versatile and lovely, and I think she would do justice to Silja, who changes and grows over the years. For Ruby, I’d cast Morgan Saylor, who played Dana Brody, the daughter character on Homeland – she has a contemplative quality that I think would be perfect for Ruby.

For Paul and Henry, it would be difficult, since they look exactly alike. Maybe one leading man to play both roles…? Now that would be a Hollywood feat!

Where would you like to travel, and why?
South Korea – partly because of the Olympics and partly because my family has a connection to this beautiful and remarkable country. I’ve been there once, but it was a whirlwind trip and I didn’t get to see as much as I would have liked. My husband and kids want to go there, too. We talk about it a lot – we’ll see if we can make it a reality someday.

Tell us the funniest thing that has happened to you recently.
Not funny as much as charming: at a recent event for The Glass Forest, a 13-year-old boy raised his hand about five times. And he had excellent questions! He wanted to know about the writing process and what inspires my work. Our exchanges were the highlight of my evening.

Which TV show were you too young to appreciate in the past, but would totally watch if it were around now?
Perry Mason, so I could be an amateur sleuth like some of my characters are!

Thanks to Cynthia for chatting with us and for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here. 

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Giveaway ends February 25th at midnight EST.