Thursday, December 07, 2006
So Much For My Happy Ending, by Kyra Davis
On the GCC tour this week is SO MUCH FOR MY HAPPY ENDING, by Kyra Davis. I thoroughly enjoyed her chicklit mystery series, and am looking forward to reading this one!
Here's some press info about the book, followed by Kyra's answers to my GCC questions!
Kyra Davis, the author of the very successful mystery series that includes SEX, MURDER AND A DOUBLE LATTE, was married to man diagnosed with a bipolar disorder. The symptoms were barely noticeable at first. But as the marriage wore on, her husband’s erratic behavior—his
lies about his job, his extravagant spending sprees using her credit cards that almost resulted in her filing for bankruptcy, his fits of temper and other highly unsettling behavior—led to her divorce.
In her latest book, SO MUCH FOR MY HAPPY ENDING (MIRA Books, November 15, 2006, $13.95)—a departure from her light-hearted mystery series—Kyra Davis tackles the subject of mental illness. With her usual wit and humor, Kyra probes a very serious subject, and one that is close to her heart: What happens when the man you love and subsequently marry turns out to be someone entirely different from the man you dated? How do you recognize the difference between mental illness and the usual marital problems that afflict all couples? How could a man who was so romantic and loving turn out to be bipolar ?
Kyra explores these questions as she chronicles the relationship between April and her soon-to-be husband, Tad, who is the man of her dreams: romantic, attentive and adoring who holds the promise of a normal, secure life. But on their honeymoon—Tad’s withdrawn behavior, his refusal to leave the hotel room, and other disturbing behavior—are cause for alarm. When they return home, however, and Tad reverts back to the man she knows and loves, April rationalizes his behavior during their honeymoon, but she can’t quite dismiss it. “The warning signs were there,” she later muses. No neon signs, mind you, just little sparks at the end of a very long string. Funny that I could have been blind enough not to realize that the string was a lighted fuse.”
SO MUCH FOR MY HAPPY ENDING chronicles every step of April’s relationship with Tad, from the engagement and subsequent marriage, through the unraveling and finally the turning point. As April tries to cope with what is happening to her husband, Tad is grappling with the demons that are driving him apart from April and threaten to destroy the one stable anchor in his tumultuous life.
In her unique style, Davis examines the disturbing subject of coping with bipolar illness of a loved one with the sensitivity, insight and perspective of one who has been there, and the humor of one who has had to make difficult choices in order to survive and move on.
HERE ARE KYRA'S ANSWERS TO MY QUESTIONS:
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR TYPICAL “WRITING DAY”?
The only thing about my writing process that is consistent is the massive amount of caffeine I consume while creating my manuscripts. Other than that it’s a crapshoot. Sometimes I write in the day, sometimes at night--sometimes the middle of the night. I could write at home, at a café, on a train, in the rain---you get the idea.
DO YOU RECALL THE KERNEL OF INSPIRATION FOR THIS BOOK?
This novel is a fictional autobiography. I wanted to share my story with other people who have seen someone they love ravaged by a mental illness. I wanted them to know they weren’t alone.
PICK A CHARACTER IN THE BOOK AND TELL US WHAT TRAIT YOU SHARE (OR COME CLOSEST TO SHARING) WITH THAT CHARACTER.
My protagonist and I have a lot in common although she’s a little more needy than I am now---but I’m stronger now than I was before. That said, April manages Dawson’s Sassy department. I managed Nordstrom’s Savvy department. She married a guy who was charming, pathological, intelligent, self-destructive and loving and so did I. She has great friends and I do to. I could go on and on (now you understand why I started with what we DON’T have in common).
IF YOU WERE STUCK ON A DESERT ISLAND, WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE A MAGICAL TRUNK THAT GAVE YOU LIMITLESS BOOKS TO READ, OR A LIMITLESS SUPPLY OF PAPER ON WHICH TO WRITE?
Books! I love writing but it wouldn’t be the same if I couldn’t share my work with others.
BEER OR WINE?
Wine.
CHOCOLATE OR VANILLA?
Chocolate
WHAT’S YOUR ALL-TIME FAVORITE BOOK?
Toss up between William Goldman’s Princess Bride and Anne Rice’s The Vampire Lestat.
BE SURE TO VISIT KYRA AT: www.kyradavis.com
Here's some press info about the book, followed by Kyra's answers to my GCC questions!
Kyra Davis, the author of the very successful mystery series that includes SEX, MURDER AND A DOUBLE LATTE, was married to man diagnosed with a bipolar disorder. The symptoms were barely noticeable at first. But as the marriage wore on, her husband’s erratic behavior—his
lies about his job, his extravagant spending sprees using her credit cards that almost resulted in her filing for bankruptcy, his fits of temper and other highly unsettling behavior—led to her divorce.
In her latest book, SO MUCH FOR MY HAPPY ENDING (MIRA Books, November 15, 2006, $13.95)—a departure from her light-hearted mystery series—Kyra Davis tackles the subject of mental illness. With her usual wit and humor, Kyra probes a very serious subject, and one that is close to her heart: What happens when the man you love and subsequently marry turns out to be someone entirely different from the man you dated? How do you recognize the difference between mental illness and the usual marital problems that afflict all couples? How could a man who was so romantic and loving turn out to be bipolar ?
Kyra explores these questions as she chronicles the relationship between April and her soon-to-be husband, Tad, who is the man of her dreams: romantic, attentive and adoring who holds the promise of a normal, secure life. But on their honeymoon—Tad’s withdrawn behavior, his refusal to leave the hotel room, and other disturbing behavior—are cause for alarm. When they return home, however, and Tad reverts back to the man she knows and loves, April rationalizes his behavior during their honeymoon, but she can’t quite dismiss it. “The warning signs were there,” she later muses. No neon signs, mind you, just little sparks at the end of a very long string. Funny that I could have been blind enough not to realize that the string was a lighted fuse.”
SO MUCH FOR MY HAPPY ENDING chronicles every step of April’s relationship with Tad, from the engagement and subsequent marriage, through the unraveling and finally the turning point. As April tries to cope with what is happening to her husband, Tad is grappling with the demons that are driving him apart from April and threaten to destroy the one stable anchor in his tumultuous life.
In her unique style, Davis examines the disturbing subject of coping with bipolar illness of a loved one with the sensitivity, insight and perspective of one who has been there, and the humor of one who has had to make difficult choices in order to survive and move on.
HERE ARE KYRA'S ANSWERS TO MY QUESTIONS:
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR TYPICAL “WRITING DAY”?
The only thing about my writing process that is consistent is the massive amount of caffeine I consume while creating my manuscripts. Other than that it’s a crapshoot. Sometimes I write in the day, sometimes at night--sometimes the middle of the night. I could write at home, at a café, on a train, in the rain---you get the idea.
DO YOU RECALL THE KERNEL OF INSPIRATION FOR THIS BOOK?
This novel is a fictional autobiography. I wanted to share my story with other people who have seen someone they love ravaged by a mental illness. I wanted them to know they weren’t alone.
PICK A CHARACTER IN THE BOOK AND TELL US WHAT TRAIT YOU SHARE (OR COME CLOSEST TO SHARING) WITH THAT CHARACTER.
My protagonist and I have a lot in common although she’s a little more needy than I am now---but I’m stronger now than I was before. That said, April manages Dawson’s Sassy department. I managed Nordstrom’s Savvy department. She married a guy who was charming, pathological, intelligent, self-destructive and loving and so did I. She has great friends and I do to. I could go on and on (now you understand why I started with what we DON’T have in common).
IF YOU WERE STUCK ON A DESERT ISLAND, WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE A MAGICAL TRUNK THAT GAVE YOU LIMITLESS BOOKS TO READ, OR A LIMITLESS SUPPLY OF PAPER ON WHICH TO WRITE?
Books! I love writing but it wouldn’t be the same if I couldn’t share my work with others.
BEER OR WINE?
Wine.
CHOCOLATE OR VANILLA?
Chocolate
WHAT’S YOUR ALL-TIME FAVORITE BOOK?
Toss up between William Goldman’s Princess Bride and Anne Rice’s The Vampire Lestat.
BE SURE TO VISIT KYRA AT: www.kyradavis.com
