Book Spotlight: The Wicked City by Beatriz Williams

Today, The Wicked City,
the latest book by Beatriz Williams comes out and I’m
super excited about this one. This is the first book in her newest series.  I’ve had
the pleasure of meeting Beatriz quite a few times and will be seeing her
again next week. She’s delightful and I have
really enjoyed all the books I’ve read of hers, and I love that familiar characters have a habit of popping up again and again! My review of The Wicked City will be up in a few days, but in the meantime, please enjoy this spotlight and the bonus video that Beatriz put together about her books and New York City and do let me know if you’ll be reading the book or seeing Beatriz on tour 🙂

Title:The Wicked City

Author:Beatriz Williams

Series: The Prohibition Series, #1

Published:January 2017, William Morrow

Format:Hardcover, 384 pages

Ella Gilbert
impulsively—and, in her mother’s mind, foolishly—moves out of her
luxurious Soho loft when she discovers her husband cheating. As she
unpacks in a small apartment in an old Greenwich Village building,
it’s hard not to be depressed—until she’s doing laundry and runs into
her surprisingly attractive new neighbor, Hector, who warns her to stay
out of the basement at night. Tenants have reported strange noises after
midnight—laughter,
clinking glasses, jazz
piano—even though the space has been empty for decades. Apparently it
had been a speakeasy during Prohibition, and Ella can’t help but be
intrigued by the tall tale from her handsome neighbor.

 

And what a
speakeasy it was. In 1924, Geneva “Gin” Kelly, a smart-mouthed flapper
from the hills of western Maryland, is a regular at the Christopher
Club, just the kind of Village hideaway she imagined finding
in Manhattan. But the fun turns dangerous when she’s caught up in a
raid. And in the fallout, Gin becomes entangled with Prohibition
enforcement agent Oliver Anson, who persuades her to help him catch her
stepfather Duke Kelly, one of Appalachia’s most notorious
bootleggers.

 

Gin is
headstrong and independent, and the last thing she wants is Oliver
bossing her around and knowing what’s best. Plus, she’s got Princeton
boy Billy Marshall, the dashing son of society doyenne Theresa Marshall
(from Beatriz William’s A Certain Age) wrapped around her little
finger and begging to make an honest woman out of her? This taciturn,
straight-arrow Revenue agent doesn’t know what he’s in for.

 

Gin’s
adventures—even by Roaring Twenties standards—will shake proper
Manhattan society to its foundations, exposing secrets that shock even
this free-spirited redhead—secrets that will echo from Park Avenue to
the hollers of her Southern hometown.

 

And in the
present, as Ella learns more about her predecessor and finds herself
inspired to dance to her own rhythm in her own city.

 

THE WICKED CITY is
Beatriz Williams at her finest, weaving together historical research, a
strong sense of place, and headstrong adventures from women
who aren’t afraid to take charge of their own destinies.

Early Praise for The Wicked City: 

“Williams
deftly weaves together Ginger’s Jazz Age woes with Ella’s contemporary
troubles, though Ginger steals the show. An otherworldly atmosphere,
pulse-raising tension, and swoonworthy romance
all provide a stellar foundation for what will become a series starring
the dame-with-a-heart Ginger and her stalwart swain, Oliver Anson.”—Booklist

 

“The
novel moves between the storylines smartly and quickly with powerful
cliff-hangers and the two women leap off the page with a clarity and
strength of purpose that is rare in stories. The
connections forged between them across the decades is a journey of
discovery for the reader.”—All About Romance 

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Bonus Material:

Beatriz put together a short video about her books and New York City: 

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUZoz0JYeYY 

 

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About the author: A graduate of Stanford University with an MBA from Columbia,
BEATRIZ WILLIAMS spent several years in New York and London
hiding her early attempts at fiction, first on company laptops as a
communications strategy consultant, and then as an at-home producer of
small persons before her career as a writer took off.
She lives with her husband and four children near the Connecticut
shore.

  

THE WICKED CITY  by Beatriz Williams

William Morrow, Harper Collins Publishers  

January 17, 2017 

Hardcover ISBN: 9780062405029; $26.99

E-book ISBN: 9780062405036; $12.99