Interview with Author Sally Smith O'Rourke

Today, Feathered Quill reviewer Amy Lignor is talking with Sally Smith O'Rourke, author of Days of Future Past

FQ: You have proven many times over that you have that historical romantic vein running in your blood, with the intriguing ‘Jane Austen’ bent of some of your novels. Is history something you love to explore? Are you a research demon when it comes to past centuries?

O’ROURKE: Indeed, I love history. I believe the old adage that you can’t know where you’re going if you don’t know where you’ve been. Many ideas come from research I do for enjoyment, so I guess you’re right, I am a research demon or junkie, depending on how you look at it.

FQ: There are many authors who say they must ‘write from something they know,’ whereas others say their ideas come from the imagination. In your case, because all of the emotions are so deep in your tales, how exactly do your ideas come to you?

O’ROURKE: I guess I’m a combination of the two. The base storyline is generally from my imagination, but everything around it, details, relationships, and events are often based on my own experiences or those of people I know. Some does come from intense research. (An aside, the house manager of the Jane Austen House Museum told me that my depiction of Chawton made her feel as though she was walking down the road there – I’ve never been to Chawton)

FQ: If you could go into a book, any book, which would it be? And which character would you wish to be, and why?

O’ROURKE: You don’t stipulate fiction or non-fiction (although I suspect you meant fiction) and my choice is a bit of both. As a young teen-ager I picked up a copy of Anna and the King of Siam at a garage sale. After telling my mother how much I enjoyed it, she gave me a copy of The English Governess at the Siamese Court so that I would know the real story and not just the fictionalized one. There are those who believe that Anna Leonowens’ memoir was fictionalized. We will never know for sure, the world has taken Margaret Landon’s novel as the ‘real’ story. The bottom line, though is that in the mid-nineteenth century, in the heart of the Victorian era, Anna Leonowens was a fiercely independent woman who traveled the world and wrote about her experiences. Her bravery in a time when women were expected to marry well, have children and follow the proprieties of a repressive society, is extraordinary.

FQ: The vistas written are stunning; whether it be a bungalow in California or a Scottish 1800’s world. Is there a trick, I wonder, when it comes to writing such descriptive and detailed locations, to somehow not lose the characters or the core of the story? Much like Austen, your writing has that small ‘core’ of people, yet the world around them is so lofty.

O’ROURKE: I thank you for the compliment. I don’t think there’s a trick, although I don’t really know how I do it. Based on research and experience I visualize a scene or sequence and write it exactly as I see it in my mind. Perhaps that is why my writing has been called cinematic.

FQ: Time movement, history, past lives; are these subjects you are most interested in when it comes to writing a novel?

O’ROURKE: I’m sure my love of history is, at least, partially responsible when it comes to using time as a vehicle. However, not all are time related, The Maidenstone Lighthouse is a ghost story (of course, the ghost is from the past) and Christmas at Sea Pines Cottage is strictly contemporary (although is narrated by the family’s pet Golden Retriever, Meteor). But I must confess a desire to venture into the past.

FQ: Along those same lines, are there other genres you wish to explore with your writing?

O’ROURKE: I don’t really write in any particular genre, although they all include a love story, they are not considered romance. My books are listed as general fiction, and frankly because they don’t have a genre are often hard to market. My publisher put a ‘romance’ type cover on The Man Who Loved Jane Austen for the mass market edition, and we got several letters complaining that it wasn’t a romance novel. That said, I won’t be doing mystery or crime drama or anything like that, perhaps I will eventually write an actual historical novel, only time will tell.

FQ: Can you tell our readers what may be coming up next?

O’ROURKE: I am currently working on a ghost story that takes place in San Francisco, working title: The Bridge. I plan to do the third and final Jane Austen book, Farewell, Sweet Jane and on the back burner is a story that takes place on the Monterey peninsula of California and is peopled by fairies. I’ve been considering a novel set during the Civil War which may become my historical novel. So many stories, so little time.

FQ: I always end my interviews with a question that readers love to know the answer to: If you could have lunch with any author, alive or dead, who would it be, and why?

O’ROURKE: I would love to sit by a fire and have tea with Jane Austen. I find her mind, wit and talent amazing and fascinating. Comparing my writing to hers is the ultimate compliment. Thank you.

To learn more about Days of Future Past please read the review at: Feathered Quill Book Reviews.

Book Review - Days of Future Past

Days of Future Past

By: Sally Smith O’Rourke
Publisher: Victorian Essence Press
Publication Date: August 2014
ISBN: 978-1-8914-3706-9
Reviewed by: Amy Lignor
Date: December 20, 2014

Ann Hart has one of those dream romantic lives that all women wish for on the stars. Although there is one regret in her past, one painful remembrance, she journeyed on from that moment in her life to marry her husband, Alex, and live in what could only be seen as a ‘fairytale’ home; a bungalow that spoke of nature, beauty and peace. However, as with any love story, there is darkness and suspense waiting right around the corner. And in this case, for readers, that thrilling and captivating ‘unknown’ begins in seconds.

Alex was a warm, kind man who wanted to help people. Unfortunately, that kindness brought him a shortened life, leaving Ann to live in their bungalow alone and do her best to go on. A normalcy for Southern California, an earthquake, hits and scares many; yet instead of being a blisteringly painful moment in Ann or any of her family’s lives, the quake turns out to be a door that opens into the past.

Ted McConaughy is a trauma specialist, and because of this earthquake, he and Ann Hart run directly into one another…again. You see, Ted is the one regret that Ann has. She and Ted were once extremely happy together; to the point that they were even ready to walk down the aisle, when something Ted did led to their relationship breaking apart. But now, after all these years, Ted is far worse off than ever. In fact, he is spouting words that only a person from the 19th century would say; not to mention, speaking in a Scottish brogue that he does not usually own. This is where the past meets the present, and Ann and Ted find out that the present-day may not be the only time they have ever fallen in love.

This author does an amazing job of interweaving the beauty of another day and age with the harsh modern world. This is not a surprise, as this author has written works that mirror the life and times, the love and passion, of a Jane Austen realm. As readers become attached – quite quickly, in fact – to the main characters, they will find themselves drawn into a journey that they will never forget. Not only will mystery lovers be pleased, but the romantic and mystical, even supernatural fans out there, will be over the moon for this one.

Quill says: From the intriguing dialogue to the expansive plot that wraps around a truly unforgettable couple, this book has it all!

For more information on Days of Future Past, please visit the author's website at: www.sallysmithorourke.com

Books In For Review

Here's a quick look at some of the books that have just arrived for review.  Check them out!  Reviews will be posted here and to our main site, Feathered Quill Book Reviews, shortly.




Days of Future Past by Sally Smith O'Rourke It is by no means an irrational fancy that, in a future existence, we shall look upon what we think of as our present existence, as a dream. Edgar Allen Poe Fate sometimes conspires to right a decades-old wrong. And the 6.8 earthquake that strikes Southern California one warm March night is the fateful event that brings family therapist Ann Hart and trauma specialist Ted McConaughy back together. In search of her cell phone after the tremor, Ann picks up a shard of vintage cut glass from a collection she and her husband gathered during the four years of their marriage. For the millionth time she thinks about the day six years ago when he disappeared on a search and rescue mission in the Sierra foothills. Sitting atop the shattered crystal, a small silver cigar lighter glistens in the beam of her flashlight. Gently she returns the Victorian piece to the shelf. What does it mean that something she and Ted, her ex-fiancé, bought together survived when Alex’s beautiful glass is smashed to dust? Ann tells herself that it doesn’t mean anything more than glass breaks and silver doesn’t. Sara Jane McConaughy has never experienced a strong earthquake, and as her father comforts his 16-year-old daughter, his mind is flooded with memories of the Northridge quake in 1994. He was living with his fiancée, his ex-fiancée, and even after all these years he doesn’t know what caused the split, but he always loved her. And he’d been sure she loved him. Volunteering with the American Red Cross in the aftermath of the earthquake brings Ann and Ted face-to-face for the first time since their break-up, twenty years ago. Angry, flustered, excited, and bewildered by Ted’s sudden appearance and unusual behavior while she’s teaching a small group of people relaxing exercises, Ann demands he leave. Just as excited and bewildered, Ted rushes away. His exit leaves both of them wondering about … everything. The earthquake (or is it seeing Ann?) ignites a series of recurring dreams peopled by total strangers in places Ted has never been. Accompanied by short lapses of time and sleepwalking, the dreams take a heavy toll on his waking hours. Sara Jane’s concern sends Ted on a quest to discover the cause and find a cure. When all medical possibilities are exhausted, he turns to a colleague, whose diagnosis leaves Ted more baffled than ever. Tom Alderman believes that the dreams are memories of past lives. The lives live in his subconscious, and the cure is hypnotherapy. After several months of suffering with these increasingly emotional recurring dreams, Ted turns to Ann for help. One of Ann’s specialties is hypnotherapy and since he must be able to trust the hypnotist, Ann is his only salvation. Ann’s agreement to try and help (at the urging of a mutual friend) sends her carefully regimented and calm life into complete turmoil. The garden gate they pass through together sends them on a journey that defies time and reason, forcing them to rethink their past, present, and future. Now, each must reconsider their capacity for love and forgiveness. Things are not always what they seem.

Things Half in Shadow by Alan Finn The year is 1869, and the Civil War haunts the city of Philadelphia like a stubborn ghost. Mothers in black continue to mourn their lost sons. Photographs of the dead adorn dim sitting rooms. Maimed and broken men roam the streets. One of those men is Edward Clark, who is still tormented by what he saw during the war. Also constantly in his thoughts is another, more distant tragedy—the murder of his mother at the hands of his father, the famed magician Magellan Holmes...a crime that Edward witnessed when he was only ten. Now a crime reporter for one of the city’s largest newspapers, Edward is asked to use his knowledge of illusions and visual trickery to expose the influx of mediums that descended on Philadelphia in the wake of the war. His first target is Mrs. Lucy Collins, a young widow who uses old-fashioned sleight of hand to prey on grieving families. Soon, Edward and Lucy become entwined in the murder of Lenora Grimes Pastor, the city’s most highly regarded—and by all accounts, legitimate—medium, who dies mid-séance. With their reputations and livelihoods at risk, Edward and Lucy set out to find the real killer, and in the process unearth a terrifying hive of secrets that reaches well beyond Mrs. Pastor.  

High Stakes: A Jack Doyle Mystery by John McEvoy Irreverent Jack Doyle has worn many hats, one or two blown off by his irrepressible temper. A former boxer, advertising rep, and publicity man, Jack’s midlife career has been shaped by the world of thoroughbred horse racing and dark deeds therein. So it’s no surprise when two FBI agents he’s sleuthed with before pressure him to identify an animal activist who is carrying out “mercy killings” of retired race horses donated to Midwestern university veterinary schools. Plus two Chicago senior citizens are being threatened by an imperious Internet millionaire intent on owning their beloved horse. Then a call comes from Ireland where the life of Jack’s friend Niall Hanratty, the noted bookmaker, is under attack from an unknown enemy. Meanwhile Doyle’s nemesis Harvey Rexroth, the rapacious media mogul Jack helped put into federal prison, enlists a fellow inmate, a Mobconnected attorney, to have Jack killed. Carrying out this contract will be W. D. Wiems, a brilliant, frighteningly warped University of Kansas student who has eagerly launched a career of murder for hire. Fast tracking, Jack visits vet schools while juggling pieces of investigations near home and traveling twice to Ireland where his quest to find Hanratty’s enemy takes him to Kinsale, Connemara, and a Dublin slum. Meanwhile the vicious contract killer is, all unknown, tracking Jack…