Today we are interviewing Kathleen Shoop, author of the holiday historical fiction, Cinder Bella.
Bestselling author Kathleen Shoop, PhD writes historical fiction, women’s fiction, and romance. Shoop’s novels have garnered awards in the Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY), Eric Hoffer Book Awards, Next Generation Indie Book Awards, and more. You can find Kathleen in person at various venues. She’s on the board of the Kerr Memorial Museum, teaches at writing/reader conferences, co-coordinates Mindful Writers Retreats and writing conferences, and gives talks at various book clubs, libraries, and historical societies.
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Cinder Bella is available at Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble & Kobo.
I don't remember a time I didn't love reading. My whole family were readers and everyone always had a book in hand. I also admire oral storytelling so much. I love the way stories bring people together, mesmerize them, educate them, and entertain. Although stories live inside me I am not skilled at oral storytelling in the least. I knew if I wanted to share the tales that sparked and formed in my mind I was going to write them. So, after years and years of thinking, "Oh, that would be a great story..." I finally wrote a novel. That first one is tucked away in my files, but others have seen the light of day. Since 2011 I've published 20+ books and contributed to six anthologies and more. But essentially, even before I wrote that first novel, I'd been forming stories in my head.
Your latest book, Cinder Bella, is about Bella Darling who never had anything, Bartholomew who lost everything, and how together they created a Christmas to remember. How did you come up with this idea?
This novel grew out of a tiny tale I shared on social media about a young woman named Bella who saved the life of a wealthy man who rewarded her with permission to live in his barn. But after I'd written the tiny story the characters kept nagging and before long I knew Bella would be my next holiday story. From there, research into Pittsburgh, 1893 meant some wonderful, lucky discoveries emerged and helped shape the book. People in the late 1800s did some very odd, but spectacular things and I loved introducing these elements into the story.
Can you tell us about the main character?
Bella is a bold woman who knows herself well. That doesn't mean there isn't more to learn about love, life, friendship, and what that actually means to her. Though she had a rough upbringing and is protective of her heart, she knows there's someone out there who would be her match. When she uses very special hen eggs to hopefully lure a man her way, she unexpectedly lures a whole crew of people who are down on their luck. This found family inspires a slew of holiday activities in the home of the wealthy man who gave Bella the barn to live in. While he and his family have headed overseas to avoid a financial crisis, their absence has created the setting for a magical Christmas. Bella is a large part of bringing the wonder and excitement to the group.
Can you tell us about the other characters in the book?
Bartholomew Baines is the other main character. He's lived a rather lavish, soft life and is challenged by the loss of everything he owns including the woman he was supposed to marry. As the book opens Bartholomew is kindly housed in a boarding home that soon burns down. He is not accepting his new place in life, but soon begins to grasp what he never had before: there is more to life than money and Christmas reveals that more than any other day of the year.
What is the very first line of your book?
"Bella's breath caught."
What is the main reason people should read your book?
Cinder Bella blends the best of familiar tales with the hope and joy that Christmas brings. It's a warm, fun story that reminds us that family, even if it's found, love, and kindness are the real magic the Christmas season brings.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
Well... of course I have to complicate this because I think that goodness in the world requires at least two things. One is the opportunity to learn. Reading is at the heart of that whether you're taking an academic or trade route and so I would want to drown people in the chance to explore the world through books and with their hands. But as is similar to what happens in Cinder Bella, those with the most need to help others shape a life that is meaningful even if it's hard. Like Henry Heinz offered employees opportunity to grow and learn and work in safe, clean environments, I would want to offer people the chance to have basic needs met while they developed into the people they were meant to be.
She never had anything.
He lost everything.
Together they create a Christmas to remember.
December, 1893–Shadyside, Pennsylvania
Bella Darling lives in a cozy barn at Maple Grove, an estate owned by industrialist Archibald Westminster. The Westminster family is stranded overseas and have sent word to relieve all employees of their duties except Margaret, the pregnant maid, James the butler, and Bella. Content with borrowed books and a toasty home festooned with pine boughs and cinnamon sticks, she coaxes the old hens to lay eggs–extraordinary eggs. Bella yearns for just one thing—someone to share her life with. Always inventive, she has a plan for that. She just needs the right egg into the hands of the right man.
Bartholomew Baines, a Harvard-educated banker, is reeling in the aftermath of his bank’s collapse. With his friends and fiancé ostracizing him for what he thought was an act of generosity, he is penniless and alone. A kind woman welcomes him into her boarding house under conditions that he reluctantly accepts. Completely undone by his current, lowly position, and by the motley crew of fellow boarders who view him as one of them, Bartholomew wrestles with how to rebuild.
With the special eggs as the impetus, the first meeting between Bella and Bartholomew gives each the wrong idea about the other. And when the boarding house burns down a week before Christmas it’s Bella who is there to lend a hand. She, Margaret, and James invite the homeless group to stay at the estate through the holidays. But as Christmas draws closer, eviction papers arrive. Maple Grove is being foreclosed upon. Can Bella work her magic and save their Christmas? Is the growing attraction between Bella and Bartholomew enough for them to see past their differences?
Read a sample.
Cinder Bella is available at Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble & Kobo.
