4Word Press and Gliterary Girl Book Tours wants to introduce you to author Michele Wolfe and her debut novel,
THE THREE GRACES!
About THE THREE GRACES
The day Jessie, Isabel, and Sara meet in a college humanities class, their lives take a sharp turn. Jessie hears music within a maze, Isabel descends into a damp, dark cave, and Sara feels invisible chains slither up her arms and legs. As these frightening events recur, the young women set out to discover how, but more important, why, this is happening to them. Decades earlier, in 1935, a statue of The Three Graces, inhabited by the spirits of Brilliance, Joy and Bloom, arrives at Hearst Castle. Everyone from staff to guests is enthralled by the sensuality and pleasure the Graces bring to their surroundings. As the years go by, The Graces search for three who will help release them from the confines of marble so they can return home.
Jessie, Isabel and Sara, meanwhile, are struggling with college, parents, boyfriends and what the next step in life will be. Isabel, forthright and artistic, is growing further apart from her close-knit Catholic family while trying to ignore her feelings for the first person to champion her talent. Sara is rich, smart and on anxiety medication with a secret she won’t even admit to herself. Jessie has beauty, vitality and two men she can’t let go of or forget.
On a winter break trip to California the young women explore the coast, ending with a visit to Hearst Castle. When Jessie, Isabel and Sara see The Three Graces and experience stone turned flesh, each young woman connects with one of the spirits: Jessie to Brilliance, Isabel to Joy and Sara to Bloom.
Back at home, as mysterious incidents escalate, Jessie, Isabel and Sara battle their personal crises. Jessie can’t get over the death of her musician boyfriend and the issues it raises over college life versus a musician’s life. Isabel wants to date the ex-priest who comes back into her life but is afraid of the repercussions on her artistic career. Sara’s confused feelings toward other women are surfacing with a vengeance after years of being pushed down. Each of them also experiences escalating conflict with their mothers.
When the Graces give each young woman a beautiful pendant to guide and protect her, the young women hesitantly begin to heed the Graces’ advice and enter into the ethereal world of the ancient goddesses. When the girls face their greatest fears and doubts, enigmatic messages from the Graces lead to answers as they work together in both worlds to choose the right roads to follow. The novel culminates as Jessie’s maze, Isabel’s cave, and Sara’s chains merge with the Graces’ world so that the choice each of them makes toward freedom from the past and into a future of their own making, ultimately becomes the Graces’ way home.
INTERVIEW
1)
Tell us about your book and why you chose to
write it: The Three Graces is about three young women on a journey: A journey to find
their true selves, a journey of friendship, a journey to let go of the past so
they can move into their futures. My book is a story of women finding the freedom to be who they are
meant to be and share the talents they have with others. I was inspired by an
experience in my own young adult life and the three characters, Jessie, Isabel
and Sara, grew out of my imagining other young women facing similar challenges.
2)
If you could be one character inside of your
book who would it be and why? I had so much fun imagining the goddesses in my story, Brilliance, Joy and
Bloom. If I could be one character it would be Joy. Her sole purpose in life is to bring
happiness, creativity, laughter and song to others. What an amazingly beautiful
idea!
3)
Who is your favorite author and what is your
favorite book?
I have so many favorites! Classics: Jane Austen; YA: Cassandra Clare and Suzanne Collins; Vampires: J.R. Ward; Romance: Madeline Hunter; Historical Fiction: Christie Phillips; I also love Elizabeth Gilbert, Deborah Harkness and Diana Gabaldon.
I have so many favorites! Classics: Jane Austen; YA: Cassandra Clare and Suzanne Collins; Vampires: J.R. Ward; Romance: Madeline Hunter; Historical Fiction: Christie Phillips; I also love Elizabeth Gilbert, Deborah Harkness and Diana Gabaldon.
4)
What made you start writing? Well, I’d been writing ever since I
could remember, journalling and some poetry I shared with friends and family. After
I had my first son, I tried writing a children’s book but didn’t get much further
than a first draft. Then one day I met someone who told me I had a story to tell
and I needed to write it down. And I decided to take her seriously and The Three Graces evolved.
5)
If you could have one person read the book for
audio purposes who would be your star celebrity? Meryl Streep. She is an amazing actress and has a great voice
that she can do just about anything with.
6)
What do you have coming down the pipe in the
future? Art is a huge inspiration
for me. Hence the statue in The Three
Graces. When I was traveling through Italy and Greece with my husband a few
years ago, I saw a painting in the National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome that
inspired my next novel, which I am currently working on and hope to finish by
the end of the year.
7)
What is your favorite movie? I have lots of favorites but one I
enjoy watching again and again is Room
with a View based on the novel by
E.M. Forster.
8)
Do you have any rituals you partake in while
writing?
With my busy life, that is almost impossible. I can write anywhere, anytime, as long as the inspiration hits and my laptop is nearby. Crowded cafes, a quiet or often not so quiet kitchen table, the park, you name it.
With my busy life, that is almost impossible. I can write anywhere, anytime, as long as the inspiration hits and my laptop is nearby. Crowded cafes, a quiet or often not so quiet kitchen table, the park, you name it.
9)
Who inspires you? Other women and the telling of their stories,
whether fictional or not, inspires me.
10)
Any last words before the lightening round
begins? Enjoy
The Three Graces!
Fast 10 –
Hot or Cold: hot
Black or White: black
Mountain or Beach: beach
Romance or Mystery: romance
Book or Movie: book
New Release or Classic: new release
Coke or Pepsi: Coke
PJ’s or Birthday Suit: pjs
Dogs or Cats: dogs
Sunny Day or Rainy Day: sunny
About MICHELE WOLFE
Growing up between the Rocky Mountains and the city of Denver in Colorado, gave me a life-long love of both. I suspect my experiences were similar to others my age then; summers in one-piece bathing suits; bicycle riding without a helmet; vacationing in the family station wagon; skiing down the local mountains. I was lucky enough to be the spoiled youngest of three girls and supported by friends and a loving extended family.
I loved drama, singing, gymnastics and ice skating. And I was never without a good book, no matter where I went. Soon after finishing college and becoming a teacher, I decided I wanted to explore the world. I took long road trips, spent time at Martha’s Vineyard, and fell in love with the ocean and California, which eventually became my home.
Four years after moving to Los Angeles, I discovered two things that changed my life. My husband was the first. We fell in love hard and fast. Twenty-two years later, we are fully, after a lot of hard work, co-dependent and co-evolved, and very happy about both. The second discovery was a passion for teaching adults English as a Second Language in a poor immigrant community in East L.A. I’m still there, too.
My husband and I have two handsome boys, Caleb Justus and Joshua William. They are our pride and joy. Caleb is in the Army and Joshua is finishing high school. And I should mention our ‘girl’ Sophie, who loves running to and fro on our walks, dancing in the kitchen, her tail-wagging in joy.
Being a busy teacher, mother and wife made finding time to write a challenge. When I started my first novel, there was no space in our little home to write except at the kitchen table. I diligently carved out time on the weekends and eventually took my laptop to coffee shops and writers’ groups to finish it.
When writing, I let the story and characters come to me in their own time, in their own way. I am inspired by music and art, which often influence a scene or a conversation in my stories. I hope my writing inspires others and makes people think and feel. And of course be entertained.
I am working on my next novel, also about a work of art, this time a painting at the Museum of Modern Art in Rome. I am currently submitting two short stories as well to literary magazines.
Connect with Author Michele Wolfe
In appreciation towards her fans, Michele and 4Word Press will be giving away a $20.00 Amazon gift card to one grand prize winner, a signed hardback copy of THE THREE GRACES for the runner up and three lucky winners will receive an ecopy of THE THREE GRACES. Please check out each blog and enter the giveaway every day for more chances to win. All entries must be received by June 17th by midnight.
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