Title: The Violet Hour
Publication Date: April 11th 2015
Pages: 300
Summary from Goodreads
Secrets.
Allegra Teagarden, a musical prodigy, flees her father’s dominance and abuse while touring in pre-civil war Charleston, South Carolina. Plagued by depression over her mother’s suicide during their previous visit, she escapes in an effort to piece together the details behind her mother’s mysterious demise.
Secrets.
Down to her final coin, Allegra happens on Charleston’s Fancy, the first southern amusement park, which is searching for musicians for its orchestra. At first, the park seems her salvation; but she quickly realizes she has traded the dominance of her father, for the even more terrifying madness of the owner, Silas.
And more secrets.
Allegra meets the dashing Brighton LeFroy, Fancy’s engineer and pyrotechnics master. His shabby clothing cannot conceal the brilliant mind beneath. The musician’s whisper he is a witch, is obsessed with storms, and is rumored...to fly. And despite the danger, despite her own misgivings, Allegra is inexplicable drawn to him.
She ventures to his reclusive home on Fire Isle during a thunderstorm and together they seek to unravel an ancient mystery.
Inspiration
Every writer has a different take on inspiration. On story ideas.
THE VIOLET HOUR was born at Disney World.
What?
A few years prior, our family stood staring up at the night sky of
THE MAGIC KINGDOM—bursting with fireworks, set perfectly to the most
beautifully timed music.
I thought…that must’ve taken a tremendous amount of effort—with
every burst of red, the blast of a horn, or the sparkling firestorm, the
tinkling of piano keys.
I am a historical writer-so the next logical question was…when did
fireworks begin? When were they still a novelty in American history?
So what initially forces my two strong protagonists together is her
musical ability to compose on command, and his scientific mastery of
pyrotechnics.
They are forced to concoct a performance, her music, his fireworks,
with perfectly matching original compositions—by the madman in control.
For inspiration—as my character is a cellist—I recommend Cello Forte
while reading the performances in The Violet Hour.
Here they are
About the Author
Born and raised in western Pennsylvania, Brynn
Chapman is the daughter of two teachers. Her writing reflects her passions:
science, history and love—not necessarily in that order. In real life,
the geek gene runs strong in her family, as does the Asperger’s syndrome. Her
writing reflects her experience as a pediatric therapist and her interactions
with society’s downtrodden. In fiction, she’s a strong believer in underdogs
and happily-ever-afters. She also writes non-fiction and lectures on
the subjects of autism and sensory integration and is a medical contributor to
online journal The Age of Autism.
thank you for hosting! brynn
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