Murder at the Breakers (Gilded Newport)
By Alyssa Maxwell
Published by Kensington
Glass of Wine, Glass of Milk: I understand that you have spent much time visiting Newport, RI, where
your Gilded Newport series is set. Could you tell us a little about how your vision to set cozy mysteries here developed?
Alyssa Maxwell: My experience with Newport is much more than as a visitor. With my husband being born and raised there, and his family going back generations as Newporters, I learned about the city from a much deeper point of view than the average visitor. But from my very first visit, I fell in love with Newport’s history, its seaside atmosphere, its architecture, etc. As someone who has always been interested in history, it drew me in immediately. If I couldn’t actually time travel to see history firsthand, Newport was the next best thing. When I decided to begin a mystery series, I couldn’t imagine a more atmospheric setting. And when I thought of what was most unique about Newport, one of the aspects that stood out were the many Gilded Age Mansions lining Bellevue Avenue. The Gilded Age was a time of great wealth vs. great poverty, innovation vs. tradition, as well as deep-seated rivalries. All in all, Newport of the Gilded Age provided a wealth of material for a mystery writer to
work with.
Glass of Wine, Glass of Milk: I imagine that it must be thrilling to see Murder at the Breakers adapted into a film, but I also imagine not everything can match up exactly to what you envisioned while writing. Is there an aspect of the film that turned out even better than you imagined?
Review
Murder at the Breakers grabbed me immediately. I loved it and am eager to continue with the series. For the past year, my co-worker has been recommending that I read the Gilded Newport series. My preference for cozy mysteries, historical fiction, and strong female characters predisposed me toward Murder at the Breakers. The excellence with which the mystery was crafted and the characters formed delighted me.
Readers follow Emma, a Vanderbilt relative, as she investigates a murder in Newport, Rhode Island. Tying together real historical personages, Newport mansions I've seen in person, and a compelling cast of invented characters, Maxwell sets a dynamic stage I can easily envision. Maxwell's mystery unfolds nicely for readers - but not neatly for Emma- as Emma fights to investigate and be taken seriously as woman in a man's world. It is Emma's uncle's associate who is murdered, and her brother who is implicated. And, her apparent ally and possible paramour is not who he seems to be. As good as this all sounds, it would not be the captivating read that it is if Maxwell's writing did not envelop you as it does and her mystery perfectly balance complexity and believability. I am now hooked! And I can't wait to get back to Newport and see The Breakers in person again!
Don't be like me and procrastinate starting this series. Or maybe do be like me and lose sleep to read Murder at the Breakers in two sittings.
Murder at the Breakers grabbed me immediately. I loved it and am eager to continue with the series. For the past year, my co-worker has been recommending that I read the Gilded Newport series. My preference for cozy mysteries, historical fiction, and strong female characters predisposed me toward Murder at the Breakers. The excellence with which the mystery was crafted and the characters formed delighted me.
Readers follow Emma, a Vanderbilt relative, as she investigates a murder in Newport, Rhode Island. Tying together real historical personages, Newport mansions I've seen in person, and a compelling cast of invented characters, Maxwell sets a dynamic stage I can easily envision. Maxwell's mystery unfolds nicely for readers - but not neatly for Emma- as Emma fights to investigate and be taken seriously as woman in a man's world. It is Emma's uncle's associate who is murdered, and her brother who is implicated. And, her apparent ally and possible paramour is not who he seems to be. As good as this all sounds, it would not be the captivating read that it is if Maxwell's writing did not envelop you as it does and her mystery perfectly balance complexity and believability. I am now hooked! And I can't wait to get back to Newport and see The Breakers in person again!
Don't be like me and procrastinate starting this series. Or maybe do be like me and lose sleep to read Murder at the Breakers in two sittings.
Interview with Alyssa Maxwell
your Gilded Newport series is set. Could you tell us a little about how your vision to set cozy mysteries here developed?
Alyssa Maxwell: My experience with Newport is much more than as a visitor. With my husband being born and raised there, and his family going back generations as Newporters, I learned about the city from a much deeper point of view than the average visitor. But from my very first visit, I fell in love with Newport’s history, its seaside atmosphere, its architecture, etc. As someone who has always been interested in history, it drew me in immediately. If I couldn’t actually time travel to see history firsthand, Newport was the next best thing. When I decided to begin a mystery series, I couldn’t imagine a more atmospheric setting. And when I thought of what was most unique about Newport, one of the aspects that stood out were the many Gilded Age Mansions lining Bellevue Avenue. The Gilded Age was a time of great wealth vs. great poverty, innovation vs. tradition, as well as deep-seated rivalries. All in all, Newport of the Gilded Age provided a wealth of material for a mystery writer to
work with.
Glass of Wine, Glass of Milk: I imagine that it must be thrilling to see Murder at the Breakers adapted into a film, but I also imagine not everything can match up exactly to what you envisioned while writing. Is there an aspect of the film that turned out even better than you imagined?
Alyssa Maxwell: There are two characters included in the movie that I didn’t have in the book,
and I wish I had. One is Dr. Harriet Rice. In the movie she works as the coroner’s assistant. In real life, Harriet Rice, an African American, was born and raised in Newport, graduated from Wellesley College, and earned a medical degree from the University of Michigan. She practiced medicine in Chicago. Although she was older than depicted in the movie and no longer living in Newport at the time, I like that the movie brings attention to her name. Another is Mary Dickerson, also African American, who, in real life and in the movie, owned a popular dress shop on Bellevue Avenue that was frequented by members of the Four Hundred. The African American community of Gilded Age Newport was thriving and marked by successful business people and entrepreneurs.
Glass of Wine, Glass of Milk: In your Gilded Newport series, Emma Cross is an aspiring mystery author. Would you say that Emma is much of an incarnation of yourself? What occupation, if any, do you think you would have had if you had lived during the Gilded Age?
Alyssa Maxwell: I wouldn’t say that Emma Cross is an incarnation of me, but certainly as a
product of my imagination, she has one or two of my characteristics. She also has traits in common with my mother-in-law, who was born and raised in Newport: her stubbornness, her strength, and her willingness to step in and help people no matter how difficult the task might be. I do think, or hope, that if I had lived in this time period that I would have tried my hand at novel- writing. Edith Wharton is a favorite of mine, as are y other female writers who lived in the 1800s and early 1900s. Some had to write under assumed, male names, but as time progressed women became respected for their writing abilities. I can think of no better profession that being a writer, and writing was something I wanted to do from an early age.
Glass of Wine, Glass of Milk: As readers anticipate the forthcoming Murder at Vinland, are there any other mysteries you recommend in the meantime?
Alyssa Maxwell: Readers might want to give my Lady’s Maid Mysteries a try. They take place in the Cotswolds of England in the years following WWI. They involve a lady, Phoebe, and her maid, Eva, as they investigate above and below stairs and in their village. There are so many wonderful historical mysteries to choose from these days. Colleen Cambridge, Anna Lee Huber, Clara McKenna, Mariah Fredericks, are just a few I highly recommend.
Glass of Wine, Glass of Milk: What genres do you enjoy reading? How do your reading preferences inform your writing?
Alyssa Maxwell: I love historical mysteries and historical fiction. I read other genres including
contemporary fiction, but those are the two genres I always come back to when I want something I can completely lose myself in. So, I would say that I’m writing what I love to read.
Alyssa Maxwell: I love historical mysteries and historical fiction. I read other genres including
contemporary fiction, but those are the two genres I always come back to when I want something I can completely lose myself in. So, I would say that I’m writing what I love to read.
Glass of Wine, Glass of Milk: Can you name an all-time favorite book, or does it change regularly?
Alyssa Maxwell: There are too many books I love to be able to name one. Some of the authors I
adore are the Bronte Sisters, Jane Austen, Edith Wharton, Agatha Christie, Daphne du Maurier, and Mary Stewart. These are the authors who influenced me the most as both a reader and a writer, the ones who brought me joy and made me aspire to be a writer.
Glass of Wine, Glass of Milk: Considering this blog's tilt toward children's literature, can you share any picture books that impacted you as a child? Are there any particularly memorable authors who shaped you as a young reader?
Alyssa Maxwell: I don’t remember specific picture books, but before I began reading the above
authors, one who really impacted me was Madeleine L’Engle. I read A Wrinkle in Time (no, not a historical!) multiple times growing up, and revisited the book when she passed away in 2007, as well as finally reading the rest of the series. It was and will always remain one of my favorite books and probably the first that stayed with me long after I finished it.
adore are the Bronte Sisters, Jane Austen, Edith Wharton, Agatha Christie, Daphne du Maurier, and Mary Stewart. These are the authors who influenced me the most as both a reader and a writer, the ones who brought me joy and made me aspire to be a writer.
Glass of Wine, Glass of Milk: Considering this blog's tilt toward children's literature, can you share any picture books that impacted you as a child? Are there any particularly memorable authors who shaped you as a young reader?
Alyssa Maxwell: I don’t remember specific picture books, but before I began reading the above
authors, one who really impacted me was Madeleine L’Engle. I read A Wrinkle in Time (no, not a historical!) multiple times growing up, and revisited the book when she passed away in 2007, as well as finally reading the rest of the series. It was and will always remain one of my favorite books and probably the first that stayed with me long after I finished it.
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