The Case of the Missing Botticelli

 Wild Women Authors is pleased to have author Marilyn Baron with us, talking about The Case of the Missing Botticelli, her most recent release out of the Wild Rose Press.

Tell us a bit about The Case of the Missing Botticelli. In this cozy mystery set in Florence, Italy, art detective Hadley Evans and her sexy Carabinieri boyfriend, Luca Ferrari, hot on the trail of a missing masterpiece, discover a cache of stolen Nazi art in a Venetian villa and encounter an enemy with a link to an evil past.

What made you choose an art detective for your protagonist’s profession? I’ve always been interested in art since I studied art history during college when I lived in Florence, Italy. A number of my books feature stolen Nazi art, but this is the first one where stolen art is the major theme of the novel. And this is my first cozy mystery.

Knowing what you know now, if you had it to do over again, would you stick with being an author or do something different? I majored in Journalism in college and started out in corporate public relations, then started my own public relations firm, so I’ve always been a writer. If I had it to do over again, I would have started writing fiction seriously at a younger age, but I’m definitely where I want to be.

Who is your favorite fictional character and why? Berlin police detective Bernie Gunther in the Bernie Gunther Series by Philip Kerr, because he’s multidimensional. He’s hard bitten, unsuccessful in love, but he tries to do good. I also love William Kent Krueger’s Cork O’Connor series about a Minnesota sheriff.

What is the best piece of writing advice you ever received? Finish the book. You can always edit a bad manuscript, but you can’t fix a blank page.

With regard to research, where did you start for this novel? I love Italy and I have visited the country many times. I built on my interest and background in art history from when I studied it in my senior year of college in Florence, Italy. I last traveled to Florence in 2019 to revisit my old haunts and returned to the Uffizi Gallery, which figures prominently in the book. I decided to feature my favorite artist, Sandro Botticelli, and my favorite painting of his, “The Birth of Venus,” which I first saw at the Uffizi. I had featured Botticelli in another one of my novels, The Widows’ Gallery, so I was familiar with the artist. I’m fascinated by World War II, so I decided to combine my favorite themes in my first cozy mystery.  

Tell us a bit about your publisher. How did you hear about them; what influenced you to submit to them; how is the submission process; what is the turn-around time from date of query to date of release? With more than 500 authors and 3,500 titles, The Wild Rose Press is a special publishing house, founded in 2006 by two published authors that caters to writers and is focused on author and customer satisfaction. I’ve been fortunate to have the same editor since I started publishing with them in 2012. She’s edited my books in a variety of genres. Turnaround time varies depending on a number of factors. I may have one book out a year, or two and I’ve had as many as four. I have 19 books or short stories with TWRP and 28 works of fiction in total.

What are you reading right now? I’m an avid reader. I’m in two book clubs and I’m the former co-chair and currently on the steering committee of Roswell Reads, a one-city, one-read program, as well as the Atlanta Authors committee. I’m also a reviewer with The Book Review Crew, so many of the books I’m reading now aren’t even published yet. I’ve read too many good books to list just a few. However, I do have some favorite authors, including William Kent Krueger;  Philip Kerr; Nora Roberts (J.D. Robb); Jane Ann Krentz (Amanda Quick); Kristin Hannah; Diana Gabaldon; and Lisa Scottoline. My favorite book of 2021 is Eternal, by Lisa Scottoline. My favorite themes to read are art theft and World War II.

What's next for you? The first in the Massimo Domingo Mystery Series, included two books—The Case of the Missing Botticelli and a bonus—The Case of the Vanishing Vermeer. I’m currently working on Book 3, The Case of the Forgotten Fragonard. Botticelli, Vermeer and Fragonard are three of my favorite artists.

 

To purchase The Case of the Missing Botticelli, go to:

Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Missing-Botticelli-Massimo-Domingo-Mystery-ebook/dp/B09KGPF531

 

Barnes & Noble:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-case-of-the-missing-botticelli-marilyn-baron/1140380667

 

Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Case-of-the-Missing-Botticelli-Audiobook/B09WCQ93X3

 

To learn more about Marilyn Baron and the stories she creates go to: www.marilynbaroncom.com

 

Website: www.marilynbaron.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarilynBaron

Personal Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/marilyn.baron.5?ref=bookmarks

Author Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/Marilyn-Baron-286807714666748/

Instagram: Marilyn Baron (@marilyn.baron.5)