by Crystal Caudill | Mar 5, 2024 | Author Interviews
This week’s author interview is the wonderful Danielle Grandinetti. I’ve known Danielle for quite some time now, and it’s such a pleasure to know her. I love her unique time frame of the 1930s and her mix of history with romance and suspense. AND Danielle is generously doing a giveaway for a paperback copy of Refuge for the Archaeologist AND Relying on the Enemy (paperback, US only; ebook international). So make sure to go down to the bottom to participate.
Danielle Grandinetti is an inspirational romance author fueled by tea and books, and the occasional nature walk. An award-winning author and FHLCW Reader’s Choice Finalist, her stories span from the Great Depression to present day. Originally from the Chicagoland area, she now lives along Lake Michigan’s Wisconsin shoreline with her husband and their two young sons. Find her online at daniellegrandinetti.com.
You can connect with her through: Website & Newsletter Signup | Website Store | Book Blog | Amazon | BookBub | GoodReads
Now for the fun stuff! I have to admit I am partial to my Fast Five. 🙂 So settle in as I hit Danielle with rapid-fire.
CC: Pineapple pizza or candy corn?
DG: Pineapple Pizza
CC: Test the waters or dive in the deep end?
DG: Test the waters
CC: Guacamole or salsa?
DG: Both!
CC: Silly hats or silly socks?
DG: Silly socks
CC: Passwords or secret handshakes?
DG: Passwords
I’m a huge silly socks fan. It’s the only socks I can almost guarantee my kids won’t steal. LOL So let’s dive in deep!
When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
DG: I’ve loved writing stories since I was in early grade school. I vividly remember writing my first short story in 3rd grade after hearing an author speak in Assembly. It has led me to believe that there’s nothing like the power of story to change lives, including my own.
CC: Amen. The power of stories never fails to amaze me.
What is your writing Kryptonite?
DG: Funny thing, description is my kryptonite. Though it’s one of my favorite writing skills to teach, I don’t write it naturally. Instead, I have to layer it in after I’ve set the scene. I suspect that’s because I’m a math nerd, albeit a romantic one, at heart.
CC: Ah. So you are one of the rare birds who is both a writer and a math nerd. 😉 I must admit, I like my spreadsheets. LOL
How have you seen God work on your writing journey?
DG: My characters’ spiritual struggles lead me to the Bible so I can offer them guidance in order to help them grow—whether through their own interaction with God or through the voice of another character. In turn, I am challenged as I write those scenes, and I hope those truths touch the hearts of my readers, too.
CC: I think that is one of my favorite parts of writing–seing how God uses my own story to grow me.
Now I’m excited to talk about your newest release, Relying on the Enemy.
She’s protecting her children. He’s redeeming his past. But there’s nothing convenient about saving their patchwork family.
Wisconsin, 1931—All widowed mother Marian Ward wants is to provide for her girls. However, she faces the dead of winter with no income and dwindling resources. Then she overhears a nefarious conversation, putting her life and that of her children in immediate danger.
Aiming to make amends to the Wards, Gilbert steps in when the threat to Marian escalates. It costs him dearly. Either lose his career or marry her, and be tied to his past until death do them part.
He leaves the decision to Marian, who will do anything to protect her girls, even marry the son of the man who ruined her family. How will their fledgling trust prove strong enough to fulfill their vows as winter tightens its grip and desperation stalks at the door?
Welcome to Crow’s Nest, where danger and romance meet at the water’s edge.
Purchase your copy at Danielle’s Website and other retailers.
CC: What readers will most love Relying on the Enemy?
DG: If you love marriage of convivence tropes, then I hope you’ll love this story! And, doubly so if you also love Gilbert Blythe from Anne of Green Gables.
CC: You know, I’ve never read or seen Anne of Green Gables, but I’ve heard so much about Gilbert. He must be real swoon-worthy if this story has some connections to him.
What was some of your favorite research tidbits for this story?
DG: I love scouring old newspaper archives! And I found a gem of an article that provided a major scene in the story. On January 18, 1931, the first big snowfall of the year occurred. According to local newspapers at the time, it was a twenty-four-hour snowfall dropping six inches of blinding snow followed by cold weather.
CC: Oh my! That must have been something, and definitely a challenge for those who lived through it. (And I’m a huge fan of scouring old Newspaper archives too!)
Relying on the Enemy is book four in the Harbored in Crow’s Nest series. Can this story be read as a stand-alone?
DG: Yes, with a caveat.
All the books in the Harbored in Crow’s Nest series are stand-alone romances, meaning each book focuses on just one couple and their happily ever after. However, each book’s plot does build on the events in the previous one, though I do my best to avoid spoilers.
That said, this book is one that has a major spoiler. Gilbert is the son of the man who ruined Marian Ward’s family. Notice that I don’t use Gilbert’s last name. That’s because it’s a spoiler for events that happened to Marian’s brother-in-law in Refuge for the Archaeologist.
While you don’t have to read Refuge for the Archaeologist (book 2) before reading Relying on the Enemy, it is where you meet the Ward family, especially Marian’s two precocious little girls. And, it will help you understand why Gilbert could be seen as an enemy.
CC: Good to know! I have a few stories like that myself.
What do you hope readers will take away from this story?
DG: The verse I chose for the front of the book is “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.” Genesis 50:20a (KJV). That theme permeates this story. God can redeem. He can take awful circumstances and redeem them for His children. It might not always look the way we think it should, and we may not see the fruit of it as soon as we think, but I pray this story will offer hope.
CC: What a sweet and important nugget to walk away with. As always, I love to end off with a fun question.
What animal is most like you? Why?
DG: A golden retriever. Their personality seems so similar to the way other people describe me. 🙂
CC: LOL They are a man’s best friend, and you are a wonderful friend. So I definitely say that fits!
Readers, I hope you’ll check out Relying on the Enemy and then leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, and/or BookBub. You wouldn’t believe how important that is to an author.
Giveaway – A copy of A Refuge for the Archaeologist and Relying on the Enemy (print US, ebook for International) Ends at 11:59 p.m. EST on 3/12/2024.
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Reader, what animal best describes you?
by Crystal Caudill | Feb 20, 2024 | Author Interviews
Amanda Wen is a fellow Kregel author, and it is my pleasure to introduce to you this Selah and Carol award-winning and Christy finalist author. She is an amazing woman that you don’t want to miss the opportunity to get to know. Even better, make sure to read all the way to the bottom where Amanda is generously giving away a signed paperback to one lucky U.S. resident.
Amanda Wen’s novels have released to both reader and critical acclaim. Her second novel, The Songs That Could Have Been, won both the Selah and the Carol Awards, and her debut, Roots of Wood and Stone, was a finalist for the Christy Award. In addition to her writing, Amanda is an accomplished professional cellist and pianist who frequently performs with orchestras, chamber groups, and her church’s worship team, as well as serving as a choral accompanist. A lifelong denizen of the flatlands, Amanda currently lives in Kansas with her patient, loving, and hilarious husband, their three adorable Wenlets, and a snuggly Siamese cat.
You can connect with her through: Website | BookBub
Now for the fun stuff! I have to admit I am partial to my Fast Five. 🙂 So settle in as I hit Amanda with rapid-fire.
CC: Pineapple pizza or candy corn?
AW: Probably pineapple pizza because I can pretend it’s healthy.
CC: Test the waters or dive in the deep end?
AW: Test the waters. I’m generally a pretty cautious person.
CC: Guacamole or salsa?
AW: Guacamole, forever and always.
CC: Silly hats or silly socks?
AW: Socks. Despite my author photo, I’m not usually a hat person!
CC: Passwords or secret handshakes?
AW: Secret handshakes.
I am a huge guacamole fan, too, especially when it’s homemade and fresh. Oh, man. Now I’m craving some. I guess I’ll have to pick up an avocado, tomatoes, and onion. So lets dive a little deeper into getting to know you.
When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
AW: I’ve been writing stories since I was old enough to hold a pencil, and I have a vague memory of my dad paying me a penny a word in order to encourage me to write stories. (Decades later, I discovered editors don’t necessarily believe that more words = better, but hey, you gotta start somewhere!) My formal education was focused exclusively on music, resulting in two degrees in cello performance, but when I finished with school, fiction writing still called to me. I wrote a few stories for fun, but didn’t get serious about it until we moved back to my hometown in 2009 and I reconnected with my middle school BFF, who by then was a multi-published general market author. I finally got up the guts to show her my writing and she said I had promise! The rest, as they say, is history…
CC: How cool is that! I love that your dad paid you to write, and then your friend encouraged you too. (And can I admit I always wanted to play either the violin or cello but that was never offered at my school, so I got stuck with clarinet?)
What has been the biggest challenge for you on your writing journey?
AW: Making time for writing! The beginning of me getting serious about writing not-so-conveniently coincided with my beginning of Life As A Mom, so writing always came in snippets. I always wrote during my kids’ naptime, though, so most days I got 1-2 hours to focus on writing. Now that my kids are teens and tweens, my other job as a musician is what frequently gets in the way! I love love love my day job, and I can’t imagine not doing it, but balancing is sometimes incredibly challenging.
CC: I can only imagine. You frequently blow my mind with how much you perform, get to be an incredible mother, and yet still find time to write. You are a rock star.
Do you have any advice for those who want to write their own stories?
AW: Just do it! You’ll never know until you try. And hardly anyone is good at it when they first start–I know I wasn’t! Study the craft, dig into books you love and find out WHY you love them, then figure out how to incorporate those elements into your own stories. Finally, connect with the writing community. Those who are further along the path than you are will usually be eager to help you, and as you progress on your own journey you get to extend a hand to those further behind you. It is so rich and rewarding and one of the best parts of being a writer.
CC: I 100% agree. And I adore helping other writers. It truly is one of the best parts of being a writer.
Now I’m excited to talk about your newest release, The Rhythm of Fractured Grace.
The Rhythm of Fractured Grace by Amanda Wen
When a new customer brings a badly damaged violin into Siobhan Walsh’s shop, it is exactly the sort of challenge she craves. The man who brought it in is not. He’s too close to the painful past that left her heart and her faith in shambles.
Matt Buchanan has had a rough start as the new worship pastor. A car accident on his way into town left him with a nearly totaled truck, and an heirloom violin in pieces. When he takes it to a repair shop, he’s fascinated with the restoration process–and with the edgy, closed-off woman doing the work.
As their friendship deepens and turns into more, they both discover secrets that force them to face past wounds. And the history of the violin reveals more about their current problems than they could have ever expected.
On the nineteenth-century frontier, a gruesome tomahawk attack wiped out most of Deborah Caldwell’s family. Her greatest solace after the tragedy is the music from her father’s prized violin. Given her horrendous scars, she’d resigned herself to a spinster’s life. But Levi Martinson’s gentle love starts to chip away at her hardened heart, until devastating details about the attack are revealed, putting their love–and Deborah’s shaky faith–to the ultimate test.
Full of forgiveness and the message that no one is too damaged for God’s healing touch, the final book in the split-time Sedgwick County Chronicles will thrill fans of Rachel Hauck, Lisa Wingate, and Kristy Cambron.
Purchase your copy at Amazon
CC: Where did you get the idea for The Rhythm of Fractured Grace?
AW: The historical story comes directly from my own family tree, which my mom has been researching for the last 50 years or so. In 1782, my 6x-great grandmother, Delilah Corbly, then 7 years old, survived a tomahawk attack that wiped out her mother and three of her siblings and left her and her sister, Elizabeth, maimed and scarred. Despite her injuries, Delilah lived to adulthood, got married, birthed and raised ten children, and died at the age of 64, which back then was quite the achievement for anyone, let alone someone who’d been scalped! The idea that someone could survive something so traumatic has always been an inspiration to me, so when I started writing novels, I knew I wanted to explore that issue in fiction.
CC: Wow! That is both incredibly horrifying and intriguing. I can see why you would write a story around that.
What readers do you think will enjoy this book?
AW: Readers who like deep fiction that deals with tough issues, split-time fiction, the friends-to-lovers trope, and pioneer-era stories. Also, to anyone who enjoyed Jack and Annabelle in the historical timeline of my debut, Roots of Wood and Stone…they just might show up in this book, too. 😉
CC: Oh! How fun! I love it when characters from other books show up!
How did this story affect you as you wrote it? Did God teach you anything through it?
AW: The contemporary storyline deals with toxic churches, and narcissistic abuse. What I didn’t realize when I wrote the book was that I was trapped in a web of manipulation and gaslighting courtesy of a narcissist in my own life. It wasn’t until I’d submitted the manuscript and was in the final stages of editing that I realized how closely some aspects of what my heroine, Siobhan, went through mirrored my own experience. And just as Siobhan was able–by God’s grace–to forgive her abuser, you guessed it, God called me to forgive mine. And– by His grace–I am thrilled to report that I have.
CC: Praise the Lord for your obedience in forgiveness, and oh my, how my heart hurts that you had to endure it.
What do you hope readers will take away from your story?
AW: The idea that no one is too far gone, too broken, or too damaged for God to redeem and restore.
CC: Amen. Such a powerful thing. To wrap this interview up, I always like to ask a fun question.
If you were stuck on an island, what three items would you have with you? Why?
AW: Sunscreen so I don’t burn, food so I don’t get hangry, and my cell phone (with battery pack) so I could get off the island and get back to Kansas where I belong. (There might not be a big hurry, though; we Kansans don’t get to see islands very often!)
CC: Wise decisions, and I laughed out loud about the cellphone. LOL That is a wise woman, if I do say so myself!
Readers, I hope you’ll check out The Rhythm of Fractured Grace and then leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, and/or BookBub. You wouldn’t believe how important that is to an author.
GIVEAWAY – U.S. Residents only, ends 11:59 p.m. EST on 2/27/24.
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Reader, have you ever played an instrument? Or did you ever dream of playing one? Which one?
