BBB Author Series

Holly Herrick Has a New Book

Join us Friday, May 4, at noon for lunch at Halls Signature Events with local author and chef Holly Herrick. Holly is one of our most entertaining chef/author/food writers and it's certain to be a fun time for all at the big reveal of The New Charleston Chef's Table.   Click here for tickets.   About the Book  When the original Charleston Chef's Table was published in December, 2009, Charleston's food scene was hot. In the book, author Holly Herrick referred to the period as a second culinary renaissance.   Since that time, Charleston has become an even hotter food town, indeed, one of the hottest, ranked the #1 most popular tourist destination in The United States, according to Conde Nast Traveler Magazine. The primary reason people come here is for the food.   Charleston, which hosts more than 6 million visitors annually, has matured into a world-class culinary destination. Now, this book allows locals and visitors alike to take a bit of the city's incomparable flavor home, with profiles of the city's best restaurants and a signature recipe from each.    From roadside dives to upscale eateries, Southern to Chinese, Holly Herrick leaves no stone unturned as she winnows Charleston's 1,500 restaurants down to her top picks. From fried chicken to sautéed duck livers, The Charleston Chef's Table delivers all the goods that make Charleston such an exciting place to visit, live, and dine. Complementing the text are full-color photographs, as well as sidebars that highlight this Southern gem's 300-year history.   About the Author Holly Herrick is a Cordon Bleu-trained chef, national award-winning food writer and restaurant critic, and longtime Charleston resident and booster. After stints in Paris, Minneapolis, and Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Herrick landed in Charleston, where she worked for seven years at The Post and Courier, before leaving to focus on her freelance career in 2006.   That same year she received a First Best Place Award for Newspaper Series, Special Sections, and Special Projects from the American Association of Food Journalists. Her work has appeared in Bon Appetit, Gourmet, Southern Living, and her column, Delectable Delights, appears regularly in Lowcountry Living Magazine. Herrick is the author of more than eight cookbooks, most recently Mashed: Beyond the Potato.   About the Venue Our location for the luncheon is Halls Signature Events, located at No. 5 Faber Street just behind S.N.O.B. off of East Bay Street. Halls Signature Events is a private events facility located in the heart of the French Quarter in Downtown Charleston, SC. The renovated historic space is the perfect venue for all types of events, from business lunches to weddings. Parking is available in the garage at Cumberland and Concord Streets, or at meters on the street.

Caitlyn, America's Dog, has a new book! Come to lunch at High Cotton to hear about it.

Join us Friday, April 20 for lunch at High Cotton, as we discuss and support Charleston's own Caitlyn: America's Dog. It's a story about how a national community came together to recognize and correct an extreme case of animal cruelty.   You'll support Charleston Animal Society's Caitlyn Anti-Cruelty Fund with your purchase of her book, and your kindness will be rewarded with treats from our favorite Woof Gang Bakery. Sit. Stay. Eat. Drink. Read.   Click here for tickets.   About the Book  While Caitlyn's story is still being written, this book captures the most difficult part of her life, her journey from abuse to recovery. Found in North Charleston with her muzzle taped shut with electrical tape, Caitlyn nearly died. But thanks to a community who cared, Charleston Animal Society, local veterinarians, detectives and prosecutors Caitlyn's story became an inspiring tale of triumph over adversity. This beautiful animal put a face on animal cruelty and in the process, she inspired people around the world.   The book is dedicated to everyone connected to Caitlyn's discovery, treatment and recovery, as well as those who saw justice served, those who helped spread her story, and all those who helped by donating to Charleston Animal Society to fund her recovery and new life.   When you purchase this book, you are helping future Caitlyns get the help they need through the Caitlyn Anti-Cruelty fund at Charleston Animal Society. We know you'll enjoy this book and want to share it with your friends and family as a lesson to all of us about the power of good over evil.   Swag bags and raffle sponsored and supported by Woof Gang Bakery, 341 King Street.    About the Venue Our location for this luncheon is High Cotton 199 East Bay Street, Refined eatery with daily live music and Lowcountry fare cooked using ingredients from nearby farms. Owned and operated by Hall Management Group.   Parking is available in the garage at Cumberland and Concord Streets, or at meters on the street.

Coming Up: Food, Best Sellers and Fun, Join Us!   Friday, April 27 A special event featuring Assouline Books newest luxury publication Bulova: A History of Firsts edited by luxury historian Aaron Sigmund and held at the Restoration Hotel, home of Charleston's only Assouline Library. Luncheon in the beautiful Exchange Suite at the Restoration Hotel. Click here for tickets.     Tuesday, May 15 for lunch at Halls Signature Events as Dorothea Benton Frank launches her newest book By Invitation Only. Charleston's favorite author examines what happens when a young sophisticated Chicagoan falls for the owner of a farm on Johns Island, a lush Lowcountry paradise off the coast of South Carolina--trading the bustle of a city for a small Southern town. Click here for tickets.   Thursday, May 31 Cinelle Barnes releasesMonsoon Mansion at lunch at Halls Signature Events. Told with a lyrical, almost-dreamlike voice as intoxicating as the moonflowers and orchids that inhabit this world, Monsoon Mansion is a harrowing yet triumphant coming-of-age memoir exploring the dark, troubled waters of a family's rise and fall from grace in the Philippines. It would take a young warrior to survive it. Click here for tickets.   Monday, June 11 Karen White Dreams of Falling at lunch at Halls Signature Events. On the banks of the North Santee River stands a moss-draped oak that was once entrusted with the dreams of three young girls. Into the tree's trunk, they placed their greatest hopes, written on ribbons, for safekeeping--including the most important one: Friends forever, come what may. But life can waylay the best of intentions....Click here for tickets.   Friday, June 15 Mary Alice Monroe Beach House Reunion Whisking you back to the shores of her bestselling Beach House series, Mary Alice Monroe weaves together a tale of the struggles and triumphs of the historic Rutledge family of Charleston, South Carolina. Beautifully wrought and rich with keen insight, this is an illuminating tale of new beginnings, resilience, and one family's enduring love. Click here for tickets.   6/29 Susan Jane Rivers The Second Mrs. Hockaday 7/20 Andrew Lawler The Secret Token 8/9 Kristan Higgins Good Luck With That     Less screen time, more book time and more art timemakes us healthy, wealthy and wise. Join us at Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series events this year for a perfect start, and watch how Charleston Library Society fills your cultural calendar with rich, rewarding events.

Don't Miss These Author Series Luncheons!

 

Upcoming Book Events for You     Food, Best Sellers and Fun, Join Us!   Friday, April 6 for lunch at Halls Signature Events as Charleston's own Holly Herrick presents The New Charleston Chefs Table Cookbook. Holly is an accomplished and endearing speaker, and if you attended her Mashed: Beyond the Potato luncheon last year, you can attest to the wonderful appeal of this event. Click here for tickets. Part of Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series.   Friday, April 20 for lunch at High Cotton for Caitlyn, America's Dog, a book and event to benefit Caitlyn Anti-Cruelty Fund at Charleston Animal Society. Yes, Caitlyn has a book! Join us for a fun luncheon with CAS, Woof Gang Bakery Swag and more. Click here for tickets. Part of Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series.   Wednesday May 2, for lunch at Halls Signature Events with Denise Kiernan The Last Castle:The Epic Story of Love, Loss, and American Royalty in the Nation’s Largest Home, A fascinating saga of unimaginable excess, devastating tragedy, inspiring generosity, and unlikely endurance at The Biltmore. Tickets on sale Friday. Presented by Blue Bicycle Books.   Tuesday, May 15 for lunch at Halls Signature Events as Dorothea Benton Frank launches her newest book By Invitation Only. Charleston's most beloved author examines what happens when a young sophisticated Chicagoan falls for the owner of a farm on Johns Island, a lush Lowcountry paradise off the coast of South Carolina--trading the bustle of a city for a small Southern town. Click here for tickets.   Thursday, May 31 Cinelle Barnes Monsoon Mansion. Told with a lyrical, almost-dreamlike voice as intoxicating as the moonflowers and orchids that inhabit this world, Monsoon Mansion is a harrowing yet triumphant coming-of-age memoir exploring the dark, troubled waters of a family's rise and fall from grace in the Philippines. It would take a young warrior to survive it. Click here for tickets.   Monday, June 11 Karen White Dreams of Falling. On the banks of the North Santee River stands a moss-draped oak that was once entrusted with the dreams of three young girls. Into the tree's trunk, they placed their greatest hopes, written on ribbons, for safekeeping--including the most important one: Friends forever, come what may. But life can waylay the best of intentions.... Click here for tickets.   6/15 Mary Alice Monroe Beach House Reunion 6/29 Susan Jane Rivers The Second Mrs. Hockaday 7/20 Andrew Lawler The Secret Token 8/9 Kristan Higgins Good Luck With That     Less screen time, more book time and more art time makes us healthy, wealthy and wise. Join us at Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series events this year for a perfect start, and watch how Charleston Library Society fills your cultural calendar with rich, rewarding events. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

 

Meet Bestselling Author Caitlin Macy Discussing Her Just-Released Novel "Mrs." March 12

--- Named one of the "Most Anticipated Books of 2018" by Entertainment Weekly. "Mrs. could be the next Big Little Lies." ---EW

Join us at noon Monday, March 12, at Halls Signature Events for Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series luncheon with bestselling author Caitlin Macy who will discuss her newest novel Mrs.   Tickets for this fun event are $31 for the luncheon with Caitlin Macy or $58 for lunch and a signed, hardcover copy of Mrs.   In addition to three creative courses by Halls executive chefs, the bar will feature specialty cocktails and wines.  Click here to purchase tickets.   About the Book: In the well-heeled milieu of New York's Upper East Side, coolly elegant Philippa Lye is the woman no one can stop talking about. Despite a shadowy past, Philippa has somehow married the scion of the last family-held investment bank in the city. And although her wealth and connections put her in the center of this world, she refuses to conform to its gossip-fueled culture.   Then, into her precariously balanced life, come two women: Gwen Hogan, a childhood acquaintance who uncovers an explosive secret about Philippa's single days, and Minnie Curtis, a newcomer whose vast fortune and frank revelations about a penurious upbringing in Spanish Harlem put everyone on alert.   When Gwen's husband, a heavy-drinking, obsessive prosecutor in the US Attorney's Office, stumbles over the connection between Philippa's past and the criminal investigation he is pursuing at all costs, this insulated society is forced to confront the rot at its core and the price it has paid to survive into the new millennium.    Macy has written a modern-day House of Mirth, not for the age of railroads and steel but of hedge funds and overnight fortunes, of scorched-earth successes and abiding moral failures. A brilliant portrait of love, betrayal, fate and chance, Mrs. marries razor-sharp social critique and page-turning propulsion into an unforgettable tapestry of the way we live in the 21st Century. About the Author: Caitlin Macy is the author of The Fundamentals of Play and Spoiled. A graduate of Yale, she received her MFA from Columbia. Her work has been published in The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, O, The Oprah Magazine and Slate, among other publications. She lives in New York City with her husband and two children.

Located in the heart of historic downtown Charleston on a cobblestone street, Halls Signature Events is a 6,900 square-foot space, perfect for corporate meetings, cocktail and dinner receptions, welcome parties, weddings, rehearsal dinners and holiday parties for up to 250 guests. There is a city-owned parking garage located right next door for your convenience.

Peter Zheutlin "Rescued" Friday, February 23

What Second-Chance Dogs Teach Us About Living with Purpose, Loving with Abandon, and Finding Joy in the Little Things

‌ Join us Friday, February 23 at noon for Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series at Halls Signature Events as acclaimed author Peter Zheutlin discusses his new book, Rescued. In the follow-up to his New York Times bestseller Rescue Road, Zheutlin offers a heartwarming and often humorous new look into the world of rescue dogs.    Click Here for Tickets   Tickets for this fun event are $31 for the luncheon or $48 for lunch with Peter Zheutlin and a signed, softcover copy of Rescued. In addition to three creative courses by Halls Executive Chefs, the bar will feature specialty cocktails and wines.    This event is sponsored in part by Woof Gang Bakery, 341 King Street, who will provide swag bags for each attendee.   About the Book In the follow-up to his New York Times bestseller Rescue Road, acclaimed journalist Peter Zheutlin offers a heartwarming and often humorous new look into the world of rescue dogs. Sharing lessons from his own experiences adopting Labs with large personalities as well as stories and advice from dozens of families and rescue advocates, Zheutlin reveals the surprising and inspiring life lessons rescue dogs can teach us, such as:   - How to “walk a mile in a dog’s paws” to get a brand-new perspective - Living with a dog is not one continuous Hallmark moment—but it’s never dull! - Why having a dog helps you see your faults and quirks in a new light,  - How to set the world right, one dog at a time   For anyone who loves, lives with, or has ever wanted a dog, this charming book shows how the dogs whose lives we save can change ours for the better too.

About the Author: Peter Zheutlin is a freelance journalist and author whose work has appeared regularly in The Boston Globe and The Christian Science Monitor. He has contributed to The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, AARP Magazine, Parade and many more.  With his wife, author Judith Gelman, they wrote The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook: Inside the Kitchens, Bars and Restaurants of Mad Men in 2011 and The Unofficial Girls Guide to New York: Inside the Cafes, Clubs, and Neighborhoods of HBO’s Girls in 2013. He is a graduate of Amherst College and Boston College Law School and lives in Needham, Mass. with his wife and their two rescue dogs, Albie and Salina. They also have two grown sons.

About the Venue Halls Signature Events is a 6900 square-foot renovated historic building at No. 5 Faber Street in Charleston's City Market area. It's just behind S.N.O.B. off East Bay Street.   Parking is available on the street or in the garage at Cumberland and Concord Streets, which adjoins Halls Signature Events.   It's the perfect venue for all types of events, receptions, luncheons and dinners for up to 250 guests. The Hall Family appreciates the importance of true hospitality, unexcelled service and great food.

Feb. 2 Meet Christina Baker Kline, Author of the Instant NY Times bestseller "A Piece of the World"

--- a stunning, atmospheric novel of friendship, passion, and art, inspired by Andrew Wyeth's mysterious and iconic painting Christina's World. Join us Friday, February 2 at noon for Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series Luncheon at High Cotton. You'll meet Christina Baker Kline author of the instant New York Times bestseller A Piece of the World. Tickets for this fun event are $31 for the luncheon or $48 for lunch with Christina Baker Kline and a signed, softcover copy of A Piece of the World. In addition to three creative courses by High Cotton, the bar will feature specialty cocktails and wines.  Click Here to Order Your Tickets   About the Book To Christina Olson, the entire world was her family's remote farm in the small coastal town of Cushing, Maine. Born in the home her family had lived in for generations, and increasingly incapacitated by illness, Christina seemed destined for a small life. Instead, for more than twenty years, she was host and inspiration for the artist Andrew Wyeth, and became the subject of one of the best known American paintings of the twentieth century.    "Later he told me that he'd been afraid to show me the painting. He thought I wouldn't like the way he portrayed me: dragging myself across the field, fingers clutching dirt, my legs twisted behind. The arid moonscape of wheatgrass and timothy. That dilapidated house in the distance, looming up like a secret that won't stay hidden."    As she did in her beloved smash bestseller Orphan Train, Christina Baker Kline interweaves fact and fiction in a powerful novel that illuminates a little-known part of America's history. Bringing into focus the flesh-and-blood woman behind the portrait, she vividly imagines the life of a woman with a complicated relationship to her family and her past, and a special bond with one of our greatest modern artists.    Told in evocative and lucid prose, A Piece of the World is a story about the burdens and blessings of family history, and how artist and muse can come together to forge a new and timeless legacy.    About the Author:  Christina Baker Kline has written six other novels - Orphan Train, Orphan Train Girl, The Way Life Should Be, Sweet Water, Bird in Hand, and Desire Lines - and written or edited five works of nonfiction. Her 2013 novel Orphan Train spent more than two years on the New York Times bestseller list, including five weeks at # 1, and was published in 40 countries. More than 100 communities and colleges have chosen it as a "One Book, One Read" selection.    Kline was born in Cambridge, England, and raised there as well as in the American South and Maine. She is a graduate of Yale, Cambridge, and the University of Virginia, where she was a Henry Hoyns Fellow in Fiction Writing.    She has taught fiction and nonfiction writing, poetry, English literature, literary theory, and women's studies at Yale, NYU, and the University of Virginia, and served as Writer-in-Residence at Fordham University for four years. She is a recipient of several Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation Fellowships and Writer-in-Residence Fellowships at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts.     Kline lives in an old house in Montclair, New Jersey, with her husband, and three sons, and spends as much time as possible in an even older house in Southwest Harbor, Maine.

High Cotton is located at 199 East Bay Street, where the luncheon and discussion will take place. Parking is available at the Cumberland Street Garage, other municipal lots or at meters on the street.

Upcoming Author Events Please Join us... Friday, Feb. 23, for lunch at Halls Signature Events as acclaimed author Peter Zheutlin discusses his new book, "Rescued." In the follow-up to his New York Times bestseller "Rescue Road," Zheutlin offers a heartwarming and often humorous new look into the world of rescue dogs. Click here for tickets Wednesday, March 7 at the Charleston Library Society where A.J. Finn discusses his best-selling novel "The Woman in the Window," one of the biggest debut books of all time. Click here for tickets.    Monday, March 12 at noon for lunch at Halls Signature Events when bestselling author Caitlin Macy discusses her newest book, "Mrs." Click here for tickets   Monday, March 19 at the Charleston Music Hall where Colson Whitehead kicks off "The Underground Railroad" paperback tour. Click here for tickets. Presented by the Charleston Library Society.

Never a Dull Moment in This Lyrical, Engrossing Novel, "Border Child," with Bestselling Author Michel Stone Friday, January 26 at High Cotton

Join us Friday, January 26 at noon for Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series Luncheon at High Cotton. You'll meet Michel Stone as she presents her deeply moving tale that delivers a hefty emotional punch. Border Child is a compassionate, beautiful novel. Doors open at 11:30 a.m. with a delightful three-course luncheon served at noon. Limited seating provides a personal connection with the author. In addition to three creative courses by High Cotton, the bar will feature specialty cocktails and wines. Tickets for this fun event are $31 for the luncheon or $58 for lunch with Michel Stone and a signed, hardcover copy of Border Child. Click Here to Order Your Tickets     About the Book Young lovers Héctor and Lilia dreamed of a brighter future for their family in the United States. Héctor left Mexico first, to secure work and housing, but when Lilia, desperate to be with Héctor, impetuously crossed the border with their infant daughter, Alejandra, mother and child were separated. Alejandra disappeared. Now, four years later, the family has a chance to reunite, but the trauma of the past may well be permanent. Back in their sleepy hometown of Oaxaca, the couple enjoys a semblance of normal life, with a toddler son and another baby on the way. Then they receive an unexpected tip that might lead them to Alejandra, and both agree they must seize this chance, whatever the cost. Working increasingly illegal jobs to earn money for his journey north, Héctor seeks more information about his long-absent daughter. Meanwhile, a bedridden Lilia awaits the birth of their third child, but cannot keep herself from reliving the worst mistakes of her past.    In luminous, compassionate prose, Michel Stone drops readers into the whirlwind of the contemporary immigrant experience, where a marriage is strained to the breaking point by the consequences of wanting more for the next generation.   About the Author  Michel Stone is a writer, speaker, educator, and community volunteer. Her critically acclaimed novels Border Child and The Iguana Tree have been compared to the writings of John Steinbeck, and both books have been optioned for film.   Border Child has been most favorably reviewed by The San Francisco Chronicle, Charleston Magazine, The Charlotte Observer, The New York Journal of Books, Kirkus (starred review) among many others. Stone has published numerous stories and essays, and is a 2011 recipient of the South Carolina Fiction Award.   She is a graduate of Clemson University with a Master's Degree from Converse College, and she is an alumna of the Sewanee Writers Conference. She is the immediate past board chair of the Hub City Writers Project and has served on The Spartanburg Regional Foundation Board, The Clemson University Humanities Advancement Board, and as a Trustee of Spartanburg Day School.   Currently Michel is a Spartanburg Regional Fellow and serves on the President's Advisory Council for Wofford College. Michel is a Fellow of the 12th class of the Liberty Fellowship and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

High Cotton is located at 199 East Bay Street, where the luncheon and discussion will take place. Parking is available at the Cumberland Street Garage, other municipal lots or at meters on the street.

Coming Up! BBB Charleston Author Series Presents an Impressive Lineup for 2018

Christina Baker Kline, A Piece of the World February 2 

Peter Zheutlin, Rescued February 23 

3/12 Caitlin Macy Little Brown Mrs.

3/22 Charlotte Caldwell Faces of Local Food

 

4/6 Holly Herrick Charleston Chefs Table Cookbook

5/31 Cinelle Barnes Monsoon Mansion

Karen White June 11 (Augusta June 7)

 

 

SIGN UP HERE TO RECEIVE INVITATIONS TO THESE GREAT EVENTS.

 

Latest Military Thriller from Bestselling Author A.J. Tata Kicks Off 2018 Charleston Author Series Luncheons

Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series Luncheon will start the new year with Brigadier General A.J. Tata's newest military thriller Direct Fire, his third novel in the award-winning Jake Mahegan Series, Wednesday, January 10 at noon. Plan now to meet this inspiring author, speaker and national security expert.   Packed with high-powered action and stunning authenticity, the novels of Brigadier General A.J. Tata have won widespread acclaim from the bestselling masters of suspense. In Direct Fire, he brings the war on terror to America with his hero, Jake Mahegan, caught in the crossfire.  "The high-octane action scenes make this a must read for military thriller fans..." "Impossible to put down..." Tickets are $31 for the luncheon or $58 for lunch with General Tata and a signed, hardcover copy of Direct Fire.    (Click Here to Order Your Tickets) ABOUT THE AUTHOR General Anthony J. Tata has more than three decades of public service as a military officer and in leadership roles at the county and state level. His last combat tour was as the Deputy Commanding General of the 10th Mountain Division and the Joint Task Force in Afghanistan, commanding nearly 25,000 troops.  General Tata served two tours of duty in the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg. He also served as a brigade commander in the 101st Airborne Division and as the Deputy Commanding General of the 10th Mountain Division.  Among his military decorations, he has been awarded the Combat Action Badge and Bronze Star, served as a Master Parachutist and graduated from the U.S. Army's Ranger School. He is listed as a distinguished member of the 502nd, 504th and 505th Parachute Infantry Regiments. Tata is the National Security Expert for One America News Network and is a frequent commentator on foreign policy matters on dozens of programs and networks including CBS News, CNN, Fox News and The Daily Buzz. ABOUT THE BOOK A powerful banker, gunned down in cold blood. A military family, senselessly slaughtered as they sleep. A four-star general, hacked and framed by virtual assassins. Another key general, kidnapped from his farm near Fort Bragg. Atrocities like these are all too common in places like Iraq and Afghanistan. But this is the United States of America . . . When Jake Mahegan receives a distress call from General Savage in North Carolina, he rushes to the commander's home and walks right into an ambush. When the smoke clears, Mahegan is alive but the implications of the attack are as absolute as death: The terrorists are here . . . and no one is safe. Joining forces with Savage's combat JAG officer, Alexandra Russell, Mahegan follows the trail to a killer who goes by the name Jackknife, a Syrian refugee-turned-terrorist who vows to avenge the bombing of a Syrian wedding by killing as many Americans as possible. But time is running out for Mahegan. Terrorist cells are gathering in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Hackers are emptying the nations banks of millions of dollars. And their final act of vengeance will bring the whole world to its knees. For Mahegan, its time to kill. Now. High Cotton is located at 199 East Bay Street, where the luncheon and discussion will take place.

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Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series Presents Natasha Boyd "The Indigo Girl"

 

Join us at noon Friday October 6 at High Cotton for Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series Luncheon. You'll meet internationally bestselling and award-winning author of contemporary romantic southern fiction Natasha Boyd.

Doors open at 11:30 AM with a delightful three-course luncheon served promptly at noon. Limited seating provides a personal connection with the author. In addition to three creative courses by High Cotton, the bar will feature specialty cocktails and wines.

Tickets for this fun event are $31 for the luncheon or $58 for lunch with Natasha Boyd and a signed, hardcover copy of her book.

CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS

About the Book
The year is 1739. Eliza Lucas is sixteen years old when her father leaves her in charge of their family's three plantations in rural South Carolina and then proceeds to bleed the estates dry in pursuit of his military ambitions. Tensions with the British, and with the Spanish in Florida, just a short way down the coast, are rising, and slaves are starting to become restless. Her mother wants nothing more than for their South Carolina endeavor to fail so they can go back to England. Soon her family is in danger of losing everything.

Upon hearing how much the French pay for indigo dye, Eliza believes its the key to their salvation. But everyone tells her its impossible, and no one will share the secret to making it. Thwarted at nearly every turn, even by her own family, Eliza finds that her only allies are an aging horticulturalist, an older and married gentleman lawyer, and a slave with whom she strikes a dangerous deal: teach her the intricate thousand-year-old secret process of making indigo dye and in returnagainst the laws of the dayshe will teach the slaves to read.

So begins an incredible story of love, dangerous and hidden friendships, ambition, betrayal, and sacrifice.

Based on historical documents, including Elizas letters, this is a historical fiction account of how a teenage girl produced indigo dye, which became one of the largest exports out of South Carolina, an export that laid the foundation for the incredible wealth of several Southern families who still live on today. Although largely overlooked by historians, the accomplishments of Eliza Lucas influenced the course of US history. When she passed away in 1793, President George Washington served as a pallbearer at her funeral.

This book is set between 1739 and 1744, with romance, intrigue, forbidden friendships, and political and financial threats weaving together to form the story of a remarkable young woman whose actions were before their time: the story of the indigo girl.

About the Author
Natasha Boyd is an internationally bestselling and award-winning author of contemporary romantic southern fiction. Her debut novel Eversea was a finalist in the 2013 Winter Rose Contest for Contemporary Romance and won the 2014 Digital Book Award for Adult Fiction. She is a member of Romance Writers of America, Georgia Romance Writers, Passionate Ink, and Island Writers Network in coastal South Carolina where she has been a featured speaker. She holds a bachelor of science in psychology and has a background in marketing and public relations.

Blue Bicycle Books Launches Dorothy St. James "Asking for Truffle" in New Location

MOUNT PLEASANT BOOK LOVERS HERE'S AN EVENT FOR YOU

Dorothy St. James Launches Asking for Truffle   Join us Tuesday, September 12 at noon for Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series Luncheon at Mt. Pleasant's Old Village Post House Inn. You'll meet Charleston author Dorothy St. James, aka the prolific and award-winning Dorthy McFalls, and hear about her delightful new book, Asking for Truffle, Book One in the Southern Chocolate Shop Mysteries. Doors open at 11:45 AM with a delightful three-course luncheon served promptly at noon. Limited seating provides a cozy, personal experience with the author. In addition to creative courses by Post House Executive Chef Antonia Krenza, the bar will feature specialty cocktails and wines, and of course there will be chocolate! Tickets for this fun event are $31 for the luncheon or $58 for lunch with Dorothy and a signed, softcover copy of Asking for Truffle. Click here to purchase your tickets. About the Book When Charity Penn receives a letter saying she won a trip to Camellia Beach, South Carolina complete with free cooking lessons at the town's seaside chocolate shop, The Chocolate Box, she's immediately skeptical. She never entered any contest. Her former prep school friend offers to look into the phony prize--only to end up drowned in a vat of chocolate. Struck with guilt, Penn heads to the southern beach town to investigate why he was killed.  But as wary as she is of the locals, she finds herself lured into their eccentric vibe, letting her defenses melt away and even learning the art of crafting delicious chocolates. That is, until delight turns bittersweet as she steps straight into the midst of a deadly plot to destroy the seaside town.  Now, only Penn's quick thinking and a mysterious cask of rare chocolate can save the town she's learning to love. Rich and decadent, Asking for Truffle, the first in a new cozy series by Dorothy St. James, is sure to be a delectable read for fans of JoAnna Carl and Joanne Fluke. "The first in a new series for St. James features an appealingly reflective heroine and a varied roster of suspects." ~ Kirkus Review Reviewers have called her work: "amazing", "perfect", "filled with emotion", and "lined with danger." About the Author  Dorothy St. James is the alter-ego of award-winning, multi-published author Dorothy McFalls. She enjoys writing in several different genres.  Her works have been nominated for many awards including: Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Award, Reviewers International Organization Award, National Reader's Choice Award, CataRomance Reviewers' Choice Award, and The Romance Reviews Today Perfect 10! Award.    The Old Village Post House Inn is located at 101 Pitt Street in Mount Pleasant's Charming Old Village District. Street parking is available.