Anna Lee Huber’s Lady Darby novels
illustrate one of the great delights of historical fiction: the way it allows
us to savor the atmospheric particulars of the past at the same time we reflect
on the very same issues and challenges that shape contemporary life. On the one
hand, the life of Huber’s protagonist, Kiera Darby, is unmistakably that of the
early nineteenth century. Most notably, her late husband was an
“anatomist,” part of the illegal trade in the corpses used for dissection, who
involved her in his work; though his death grows gradually more distant in time
as the series progresses, the stain and scandal that attach to his widow’s reputation
remain all too powerful. Happily, it’s a
rare woman indeed who will face that specific challenge these days. Yet looked
at more broadly, most women today do share
one or more aspects of Kiera’s experience: her quest for a separate and
authentic identity; her fight to step beyond the shadows of the past; her
delight in tests, quests and adventures not typically associated with women;
her love for art and artistry; or just her hopes for deep and enduring love with an equal partner. Kiera
Darby is fun to read, in part, because she is so different than we are—but she
is moving to read, in part, because she is so much the same. In Huber’s latest
novel, A Study in Death, (Berkley, Summer 2015), a portrait commission brings
Kiera face to face with mysterious death at the same time her relationship with investigative
partner and fiancé Sebastian Gage reaches new heights of complexity. Anna Lee
Huber is the author of three previous Lady Darby novels: The Anatomist’s Wife, Mortal Arts, and A Grave Matter; a member of Mystery Writers of America, Romance Writers of
America, International Thriller Writers, and the Historical Novel Society, she
lives in Indiana. Find out more about Anna and her books on her website, Facebook page, and Twitter feed, and be sure to look for the next installment
of Kiera Darby’s story, the novella A Pressing Engagement, out in May 2016. Society Nineteen is delighted to talk with Anna Lee Huber about female perils, female strength, the wonders of Scotland, and the lure of the 19th century. —SF
So19: Let’s start with an obvious question. What drew you to the nineteenth
century as a timeframe for the books? Were you inspired by reading, film,
history classes, something entirely different?
AH: I’ve always been interested in the late eighteen and nineteenth
centuries. I think it began with an early fascination with the revolutions in
America and France, and was later fed by Jane Austen’s Regency-set novels, and
the Sherlock Holmes series in Victorian England. There’s just so much exciting
history in this time period. It’s a lead-up to the modern era, a time of
innovation, and rebellion, and discovery. I think it appeals to my desire for
adventure and romance.
So19: You grew up in Ohio, I believe, and now live in Indiana. What inspired
you to choose Scotland as a setting and background? How do you research the
1830s reality of the books’ different locations within that country—Edinburgh,
for example, in this latest adventure?
AH: Quite simply, I adore Scotland. I’ve always been fascinated
with that country, and when I finally had the chance to visit there, it felt
like coming home. The varied landscapes easily become characters all their own,
each one speaking to you in its own voice. For The Anatomist’s Wife, I also needed an isolated setting, and the
Highlands were the perfect fit.
I would say 1830s Edinburgh was
the easiest to research of all my settings simply because of the amount of material
written about it. It was a densely populated city and there were a lot of
things happening, lots of changes and innovations, which helped to form a
picture of the city. I’ve also visited nearly all of the locations I utilize in
that city, and some of them have changed very little from the way they looked
almost 200 years ago. For the novels set in more rural situations I’ve been
able to locate some amazing websites for small villages, often with information
about the area’s history, pictures of the town through time, and local
anecdotes and myths.
So19: The life of your protagonist, Kiera Darby, is shadowed by the scandal
surrounding her late husband, an “anatomist” who involved her in his unsavory
practices. Perhaps you could talk a bit about that. Where did that plot and
backstory element come from? Did you choose the early 1830s because of their
connection with that bit of story, or for other reasons?
AH: When I first started writing Kiera, I had no plans for who she
was or where she’d come from. I simply had this character in my head who
insisted on speaking. So I gave myself permission to free write for a few
chapters and she was so vivid so real, I knew I had to find out more. I wanted
her to have some type of knowledge that would truly be an asset in
investigation, a skill that not even most men would have, and so that couldn’t
be ignored or brushed aside. Anatomy seemed perfect, and so I began diving into
her backstory, figuring out how she attained this knowledge and why, and what
that meant for her future.
And once I’d chosen anatomy, 1830
seemed the perfect starting point for the series. Eighteen months following the
trial for the body-snatchers turned murderers, Burke and Hare, and two years
before the passage of the Anatomy Act of 1832. It’s also a time of great
upheaval in politics, religion and business. In a few short years, many
important bills are finally approved, the culmination of years of struggle.
It’s an intriguing and little-used time to explore.
So19: What we would today call “domestic abuse” is a theme that runs through
this installment of the series…and of course, the systems and statues that
attempt to protect women today are definitely not present as a safety net in
the period about which you write.
AH: That’s true. In many ways we’ve come a long way in how we look
at and treat victims of domestic abuse, but sadly, in other ways, things have
not changed enough. I think that was the most shocking thing I discovered while
researching this issue. There are still people who believe the woman, or man,
deserved it. That they brought that abuse, that punishment on themselves in
some way. And that makes me tremendously sad. I found it wasn’t as difficult to
give many of my characters a realistic mindset for the 1830s because that
mindset still exists today. It’s certainly no longer the predominant one, but
it’s prevalent enough that it’s troublesome.
So19: The pregnancies of Kiera’s sister give readers glimpses of another
difficult reality of that time: the danger to health and life posed by
pregnancy and childbirth in a time that still lacked anesthesia, antiseptics,
accurate knowledge of things like pre-natal nutrition, and today’s array of
testing technologies.
AH: Alana’s struggles with the end of her pregnancy and her
difficult delivery were certainly interesting concepts to research, and
emotionally fraught to write. I had just given birth to my first child when I
wrote this book. So they were in some ways easier to write in an authentic
manner, and also incredibly difficult to face. Today’s women still have much to
fear from childbirth, but before the advent of truly modern medicine, there was
so much that could go wrong, and so little that could be done to save them. It
makes one truly grateful to live in the modern age. And just imagine what women
100 years from now will be saying about our current medicine.
So19: Kiera’s romance with Sebastian Gage gives you the opportunity to write
about the power balance between a man and a woman who not only love each other,
but also work on complex and sensitive tasks together. (Of course, there’s now
a very difficult prospective father-in-law to complicate things, too!) I always
sense that you relish this aspect of the novels—is that right, or do I just
especially enjoy it? Is it ever difficult to imagine how a woman from around
1830 would think or behave on this front, as opposed to the ways we might
respond to similar situations today?
AH: I do enjoy writing the complex and ever-evolving relationship
between Kiera and Gage. It’s fun to explore their dynamic, and watch Gage’s
charm and dependability gradually thaw Kiera’s mistrust. I think one of the
most difficult things about thinking like an 1830s woman is that my
modern-sensibilities rebel at the idea of placing Kiera’s life and well-being
so much in the hands of a man, even if it is Gage. There’s a fine balance
between being true to the average woman of the era (because there were always
exceptions) and portraying and motivating her actions in such a manner that
modern readers can both understand and relate. Because of everything Kiera has
endured and now sworn never to face again, it’s easier to allow her to assert
her independent thought and strength because the reader appreciates where she’s
coming from and why she now refuses to remain silent. And, of course, it’s
helpful to have a hero who is attracted to these qualities in her, and tries to
nurture them, most of the time.
So19: Let’s talk about the gifts and challenges of writing a series
generally. I believe you’ve said that you’ve got the story arc roughly plotted
out through about book nine. How much do you find that your conception of the
characters and overall story changes as you develop each new book? What has
most surprised you about the way Kiera and her journey have developed since your
first glimmers of her?
AH: I do have Lady Darby very roughly plotted through book nine. I
think, in general, Kiera and Gage have remained true to who I’ve always
imagined them to be; however, the secondary characters are constantly
surprising me by what they decide to bring to the stories. Gage, by virtue of
the fact that I write from Kiera’s perspective, has always been a bit more
mysterious, but thus far there have been no big surprises, though his
relationship with his father has developed into something much more complex.
The most unexpected thing I’ve discovered about Kiera was her attachment to
William Dalmay in Mortal Arts, and
how everything that followed affected her. That was not altogether planned. Nor
was her tentative friendship with Bonnie Brock. Will and BB were just two minor
characters who insisted on being more, and thus their relationship with Kiera
has to be more fully explored.
So19: Could you describe your writing process and rhythm for So19 readers?
For example, when and how you do the research for each book, what your working
day is like, how you get books written in the midst of the considerable time
contemporary authors must devote to social media and marketing, how you balance
work and personal/family life?
AH: I did a large chunk of research about the time period and setting
before I ever started writing Lady Darby book one. That way I had a firm grasp
of where and when I was that could carry me through the series, so that now I
just have to do spot research pertaining to the specific elements of each
book’s plot. The exception to this being Book 5, As Death Draws Near, which I’m working on now. This book required a
lot more research from the start because it’s set in Ireland and I needed to
become better acquainted with the setting and the political and religious
climate of 1831.
Because I have an
eighteen-month-old daughter, my schedule is somewhat sporadic. I have to write
whenever I have a free half-hour or more. This usually gets done at naptime, or
when my husband is able to watch her. And my mother is a life-saver when the
deadline crunch approaches. Then she comes to babysit several afternoons a
week. It can be difficult keeping a continuity when I’m constantly starting and
stopping, but I make it work. Social media and marketing and promo all get squeezed
in when I can. While my daughter is playing or while I’m watching TV in the evening.
I’m constantly searching for the right balance between work and family time,
and I suspect I’ll be doing so for the rest of my life. Or at least until my
kids are in school and I can have six to eight hours of uninterrupted writing
time.
So19: I always end by asking an author what’s next. Can you give us any
glimpses of the next book? As always, you’ve left so many intriguing open
issues….
AH: Next comes a special Lady Darby novella, which falls between
Books 4 & 5, titled A Pressing
Engagement, which releases May 17, 2016. I don’t think it’s any secret
anymore that this contains Kiera and Gage’s wedding. But before they can say
their vows, there are a few loose ends from previous investigations to tie up,
including a favor Bonnie Brock insists on redeeming. Then comes Lady Darby Book
5, As Death Draws Near, which opens
at the end of Kiera and Gage’s honeymoon. They receive an urgent letter from
Lord Gage about the death of a nun at an abbey in Ireland. This young lady is a
distant relative of the Duke of Wellington, and he wants to know how she was
murdered and why, and, of course, Kiera and Gage are the perfect team to find
out.
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| Edinburgh from Tower Hill, c. 1830 |