Q&A with Maryka Biaggio, author of Parlor Games

A while back, I read Parlor Games by Maryka Biaggio, a fictional account of a notorious con-woman named May Dugas. If you’re a fan of sassy, strong and clever women who stop at nothing to get what they want, this is a tale for you. I absolutely loved reading about May’s travels throughout the world and her fabulous taste for everything expensive.

Learn more in my review and my Q&A with Maryka Biaggio below. Parlor Games is available TODAY on Amazon. Canadian readers can also order from Indigo.

–

If you had to describe Parlor Games in 140 characters, what would you say?

Parlor Games tells the true story of the enchanting May Dugas, whom the Pinkerton Detectives dubbed the most dangerous woman in the world.

What about the real May Dugas inspired you to write a fictional account of her story? What are the main differences between your May and the real May?

May, who came of age during the Gilded Age, was loved by family and close friends but considered notorious by most others. Her exploits attracted the attention of the Pinkerton Detectives, one of whom doggedly pursued her around the globe. How could I resist telling her tale?

May Dugas was most likely a rather inscrutable character. I imagine she didn’t reveal much about herself to others. Thus, my interpretation is just that—my rendition of her motives and inner life, albeit told in first person as she herself might have. In my novel, the trial recounted at intervals during the telling of her story presents others’ views of her, so the reader can make her/his own judgment about May’s real character.

In modern terms, many readers would describe May Dugas of Parlor Games as a gold-digger. In your opinion, what is her main motivation for her crimes? 

This, of course, is a central question of the novel. There are many possible motivations—all of which May conveys along the way. She came from poor beginnings and, after her father’s death, took it upon herself to provide support for her family. She wished to see the world, and adventuring about required a goodly amount of money. She was cunning and no doubt loved the game of outsmarting and extracting money from rich gentlemen. And, of course, a woman on her own must find some means to support herself, mustn’t she? I won’t reveal my opinion on the matter, however, because I have tried to honestly portray her adventures and allow the reader to mull over the question of motivation.

Of all the exotic locations that May travels to in Parlor Games, which is your favourite and why? 

I found May’s sojourn in Shanghai quite exciting. It was her first foray out of the country, and it was chosen more out of necessity than anything else (since she fled on the first ship out of San Francisco after an exploit gone slightly awry). She landed in this completely different culture, surrounded by a few Brits and crowds of Chinese, and she struggles through adversity as she navigates this strange place. I had the good fortune myself to travel to several Chinese destinations in 1985, not many years after it re-opened to the West in the wake of the communist revolution. I found it a truly fascinating place—the masses, the bicycles, the chatter—all of it transported me to a world entirely different from the U.S. or Canada.

Rapid Fire Questions:

Rubies or emeralds? 
Wine-red rubies

Diamonds or pearls? Heavens, how can one possibly choose? I’ll take thirty of each.

Prenup or no-Prenup? None. Why take the fun out of it all?

Downton Abbey or Boardwalk Empire? Downton Abbey

Friend or enemy of May Dugas? Undying (but vigilant) friend  

Photo credits: dustjacketattic.blogspot.ca, retrorack.blogspot.com, chinatoday.com

Related articles:

• This Girl Just Wants to Have Fun
• Parlor Games by Maryka Biaggio : Review
• Last Minute Gift Ideas
• Blog Tour: My Top 5 Fave Historical Fictions

Found in Translation: A Hitman’s Guide to Housecleaning

A while back, I discovered AmazonCrossing through a book called The Hangman’s Daughter. AmazonCrossing is a division of Amazon that finds popular books in foreign languages and translates them to English so we, in the English-speaking world, can enjoy them.

As a special gift for being a AmazonCrossing newsletter subscriber, I was given a discount on select titles today so I quickly snapped the Kindle version of The Hitman’s Guide to Housecleaning by an Icelandic author named Halgrimur Helgason.

The Hitman’s Guide to Housecleaning is about a Croatian hit man in New York who’s botched a mission. He flees the country to go to Iceland only to find that himself out of work. Because of course, murder doesn’t really happen in Iceland. But you’d never know it by the amount of murder mysteries coming out of that country.

Personally, I love reading translated fiction. It’s refreshing to dive into a new culture or setting. I guess it’s the next best thing to actually travelling to a foreign country (but almost nothing is comparable).

Plus, translation always does something funny to prose. I know there will always be something that’s “lost in translation” but until I learn all the languages in the world on Livemocha, I’m going to appreciate all the nuances that translation brings.

 

 

Beauty is fleeting in Natsuo Kirino’s Grotesque

Appropriately, I finished reading Natsuo Kirino’s Grotesque on a dark and rainy night. Kirino is a Japanese writer whose novels are part crime mysteries, part feminist social commentary. Known for writing about the criminal under belly of Japan (which is arguably more visible than in other parts of the world), Kirino convincingly takes you into the minds of the characters who are trapped on the bottom rungs of society.

Grotesque is the story of two prostitutes and how they came to be killed by the same man. One woman, Yuriko, is a self-described nymphomaniac whose beauty renders men speechless and turns women into jealous monsters. The other, Kazue, is a severe and studious woman who is employed at a well-known architecture firm. Both women attended the prestigious Q High School for Young Women as teens but they couldn’t be more different. The story is told from several perspectives: Yuriko’s sister gets a turn, as does the two murdered women and so does the alleged murderer.

Without giving too much away, it’s fair to say that none of the narratives are completely reliable. They all have too much to hide. But Kirino’s writing is as beautiful as this story is horrible and so the reader silently listens to all the lies. In this world and often in our world, women are constantly judged by their appearances and whole families are permanently sidelined due to social standing. Even the beautiful Yuriko can’t escape the social pressures when she grows old and has to sell herself at the lowest price.

Grotesque is not a book for the weak. It touches on some very taboo topics such as incest, male prostitution and sex with minors. There were parts of the novel that had me cringing but it’s not without reason. Kirino is trying to make a statement as hard as it is to hear it.

Every time I wanted to close the book and pretend none of these issues were real, I kept going back because I so fascinated by the characters. I wanted to know how they ended up dead. Grotesque lives up to its title by being that train wreck that you just can’t turn away from.

Photo credits: data.whicdn.com

The Tragic Comedy of The Sisters Brothers

I was taught in high school that comedy is simply tragedy and time. And in the case of Patrick DeWitt’s The Sisters Brothers, there is plenty of tragedy but the timing is all off. But for some reason, this only makes the story more tragic and even funnier.

The Sisters Brothers is a brilliant but easy read. The relationship between Eli and Charlie Sisters (who are brothers), two seemingly unfeeling contracted killers during California’s Gold Rush, take centre stage in the story. DeWitt doesn’t waste time describing tumble weed and landscapes. Narrated by Eli Sisters, the more sensitive brother who has an even more dangerous streak when angry, the story rolls out slowly with the voice of a simple cowboy.

I’ve read too many novels where the writer takes his or her merry time describing the setting. This isn’t that kind of book. There is plenty of plot and well orchestrated dialogue between the brothers. And while Eli might be a pansy of a killer, he breaks your heart because the poor guy wants nothing more but to be loved. It’s a struggle for me to explain why The Sisters Brothers is comedic. You’ll have to read it to understand. I think a lot of it has to do with Charlie laughing at the wrong times – or as I would like call them FML-moments.

While I was sad to finish this story because it was SO good, DeWitt is either an amazing writer or has a fantastic editor. There is not a second wasted moment or word in the book. Everything serves a brilliant purpose in this sad, sorry tale.

Photo credits: starrymessenger.tumblr.com, pinterest.com