We're sweet on Lisa Scottoline...plus a book giveaway

Photo by Jeff Wojtaszek

We are pleased to have Lisa Scottoline here today. Her latest novel, and historical fiction debut, Eternal, published this past week. Thanks to Putnam, we have FIVE copies to give away!

Lisa Scottoline is the New York Times–bestselling and Edgar Award–winning author of thirty-three novels. She has thirty million copies of her books in print in the United States and has been published in thirty-five countries. Scottoline also writes a weekly column with her daughter, Francesca Serritella, for The Philadelphia Inquirer, and those critically acclaimed stories have been adapted into a series of memoirs.  She has served as President of Mystery Writers of America and has taught a course she developed, “Justice in Fiction” at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, her alma mater.  She lives in the Philadelphia area.

Visit Lisa online:

Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram

Synopsis:

What war destroys, only love can heal.

Elisabetta, Marco, and Sandro grow up as the best of friends despite their differences. Elisabetta is a feisty beauty who dreams of becoming a novelist; Marco the brash and athletic son in a family of professional cyclists; and Sandro a Jewish mathematics prodigy, kind-hearted and thoughtful, the son of a lawyer and a doctor. Their friendship blossoms to love, with both Sandro and Marco hoping to win Elisabetta's heart. But in the autumn of 1937, all of that begins to change as Mussolini asserts his power, aligning Italy's Fascists with Hitler's Nazis and altering the very laws that govern Rome. In time, everything that the three hold dear--their families, their homes, and their connection to one another--is tested in ways they never could have imagined.

As anti-Semitism takes legal root and World War II erupts, the threesome realizes that Mussolini was only the beginning. The Nazis invade Rome, and with their occupation come new atrocities against the city's Jews, culminating in a final, horrific betrayal. Against this backdrop, the intertwined fates of Elisabetta, Marco, Sandro, and their families will be decided, in a heartbreaking story of both the best and the worst that the world has to offer.

Unfolding over decades, Eternal is a tale of loyalty and loss, family and food, love and war--all set in one of the world's most beautiful cities at its darkest moment. This moving novel will be forever etched in the hearts and minds of readers. (Courtesy of Amazon.)

What was it like to go from writing thrillers to writing a historical fiction novel?
Truly, it’s the same thing only different. It’s the same thing because I have always written stories with themes of family, love, and justice, and ETERNAL is no different, just set in a different place and time. As a logical matter, that’s a distinction without a difference. But ETERNAL is different in one very profound way, in that there is a shocking true event at the core of this novel that had real victims in a world history that is still not widely known. It truly is a story that begged to be told and needed to be. I was very mindful when I was writing about that I wanted to bring justice to the victims as best as I could, however belatedly, even though they are gone and so are the perpetrators. All we can do is tell their story, and I hope I did them justice.
 
What is a favorite compliment you have received on your writing?
I must tell you, I love any and all compliments of my writing. I care about what every reader says, and I read all my email and reply to as much as possible. I read every Goodreads review, and every review I can. I am really interested in what people think of my work. If there’s a consensus about something wrong, then I would try to fix it, but luckily that doesn’t happen much. I love it when people say that they laughed and they cried during one of my books, and I think that will definitely happen to anyone who picks up a copy of ETERNAL. I like to write about emotions, and Italian culture gives permission to feel all the feels.
 
If Eternal were made into a movie, who would star in the leading roles?
Honestly, I’m going to punt here and I’ll explain why. I love to read and I love that every reader has his or her own image of what the character looks like, in their mind. And all of our images are different and all of them are true. That’s why I’m happy that Elisabetta’s back is turned on the cover, because I want to privilege the reader’s view of her. That’s the sheer joy of books, that they can spark our imagination, and I celebrate that. It’s one of the reasons I’m so lucky to have a life in books.
 
What is something you’ve learned about yourself during the pandemic?
I’ve learned that everyone I know, including me, is stronger then we thought before. I have friends who have fallen ill with Covid and they were lucky enough to recover, with the love and support of their families. I have friends who changed their life to teach their kids at home, and take care of their grandkids. I have another friend who dedicated herself to taking care of her ailing mother. I have friends in the health care profession, and they’re working around the clock to keep us all safe. Everyone I know is finding power in themselves that they never knew they had, and in this impossibly difficult time, I think we are all learning that if we act collectively, we can save the world.
 
What TV show are you currently binge watching?
I’ve been very locked down during the pandemic, so I’ve been reading like a fiend and watching everything like a fiend. Like everybody else, I’m crazy about Bridgerton right now, and there’s a wonderful show called Giri/Haji, a romantic crime thriller that got only one season, but is terrific. I’ll watch anything by Harlan Coben, and I really love some of the hard-core Italian mob series like Gomorrah, but my daughter Francesca is starting to look at me funny….
 
What is your go-to dessert?
Dessert is my go-to. If I had married dessert, I wouldn’t be divorced. I’m a big-time chocolate cake and chocolate chip cookie fan. The key word is chocolate.

Thanks to Lisa for chatting with us and to Putnam 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.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway ends March 30th at midnight EST.