GEORGIA'S FOLLY
Deborah Chase
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GENRE: split time historical fiction
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BLURB:
For
fans of "Antiques Roadshow" and "American Pickers" - this
is the one for you!
Beginning
at a cluttered flea market and ending at a glittering art auction, Georgia’s
Follytells the compelling story that blends past and present and the search for
a valuable and illusive antique. Chloe Bishop grew up in foster care. She loves
shopping at flea markets, picking up family heirlooms like old pottery or
vintage furniture to fill in for the family and home she never had. As Chloe
walks through the Brooklyn Flea Market, she stumbles upon the diary of Miss
Georgia Potter, a young woman who had lived in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania during
the Civil War. The yellowed pages reveal the impact of the war on daily life
and spotlights the role of women including Harriet Tubman, Clara Barton and
Louisa May Alcott. Like Chloe, Georgia Potter was a passionate collector and
her diary lists her collection of valuable antiques—including the Holy Grail of
18th century furniture—a Chippendale settee. Well versed in antiques, Chloe is
aware that There are only five known examples and a sixth settee would be worth
more than $4 million.
Chloe
immediately contacts Ben Thompson, the man who sold her the diary. Ben is a
picker who drives his RV across America, searching for collectibles to sell to
dealers. He is estranged from his wealthy, prominent family who cringe at his
chosen career. Ben agrees to take her along to search for the valuable and
iconic settee. As Ben and Chloe head to Gettysburg, they are unaware that
Gregor Petrov, a shady antiques dealer and Harrison Kent, a respected but
unscrupulous art expert are trailing them.
The
search for the settee takes Chloe and Ben on fast paced journey from the
Gettysburg battlefields to the 18th century street of artisans in Philadelphia
to a historic mansion on the banks of the Hudson River. Traveling together in
the small RV, Ben and Chloe draw closer. In the confines of the RV, embroiled
in an unimaginable quest, Chloe confides that she is also in search for the
father she never knew while Ben struggles to explain his complicated family to
a woman who never had one.
In
a thrilling ending, the rare Chippendale settee is not Chloe’s only valuable
discovery.
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Excerpt
Two:
The Diary of Miss Georgia Potter
March 4, 1861
Today is my birthday and I am now officially an old maid at
age twenty-five. Mama was horrified that Uncle Joshua gave me a large, golden
eagle that once hung over the fireplace in Lord Dumfries’ home in Bath.
According to Uncle, it was a gift from George III in 1776. But I loved the
eagle, as I do all of Uncle’s gifts.
Mama rolls her eyes when Uncle brings me a new treasure. She calls it
Georgia’s Folly.
After dinner I went to the kitchen to thank Annie for the
birthday feast. Liam was leaning against the kitchen table. Pushing back a shock of black hair, he
flashed a smile and handed me a small package wrapped in brown paper. Inside was a heart shaped charm on a silver
chain that had belonged to his mother. Liam explained that it was a Celtic knot
that symbolized everlasting love. Someday I will be able to wear it but for now
it is tucked deep into this diary.
This year I share my birthday week with the Inauguration of
President Lincoln. Uncle is pleased that Lincoln was elected, but he is still
worried about the talk of secession. Most of the customers for Potter carriages
are in the South, especially Virginia and Georgia. The weather in Gettysburg is far too cold and
wet to ride in the Potter carriages, but in the South, our Phaeton carriages
are famous.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
I
grew up in a family filled with art and antiques. On the high end, my uncle, William Lincer,
lead violist at the New York Philharmonic, was an art lover whose collection
was sold at Sotheby’s. On the low end, her father, writer Allen Chase took me
to flea markets and estate sales. He
sparked a lifelong fascination with tales of lost treasures that ranged from
plundered Egyptian tombs to trainloads of art stolen by the Nazis. It was this love of history and antiques that
inspired my first novel, Georgia’s Folly
I
was a founding editor of the Berkeley Wellness Newsletter and the author of 12
books including The Medically Based No-Nonsense Beauty Book (Alfred Knopf),
Extend Your Life Diet (Pocket Books), Fruit Acids for Fabulous Skin (St
Martin’s Press), Every Bride is Beautiful ( Morrow), and with her husband Dr
Neil Schachter co-author of Life and Breath
(Doubleday) and The Good Doctor’s
Guide to Colds and Flu (Harper). The books have been a selection of the Book
of the Month Club and my articles have appeared in Ladies Home Journal, Self,
Glamour, Redbook, Family Circle, Parents and Good Housekeeping.
I
am a graduate of Bronx High School of Science and a winner of the Westinghouse
Science Talent Search. A graduate of New York University I earned a degree with
a duel major in journalism and history.
A
native New Yorker, I like to spend my weekends at an upstate home where a big
kitchen and an endless supply of estate sales indulge my duel passions for
cooking and collecting.
Website: www.Deborahchase.com
Facebook:
@Deborahchase
Instagram:@writinglife2
Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Georgias-Folly-Deborah-Chase-ebook/dp/B0DGWF6J7G
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GIVEAWAY
The
author will be awarding a $50 Visa card to a randomly drawn winner.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Thank you so much for featuring GEORGIA'S FOLLY today.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to checking this book out. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSounds good!
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