Writers Read: Tracee de Hahn

Monday, February 27, 2017

Tracee de Hahn

Tracee de Hahn is the author of the Agnes Lüthi Mysteries published by St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books. The first in the series, Swiss Vendetta, was inspired by the 2005 ice storm that ravaged Geneva. De Hahn was born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri and spent most of her youth in Kentucky. After receiving degrees in Architecture and European history from the University of Kentucky she moved to Switzerland with her husband. Currently they and their two Jack Russell terriers live in Virginia.

Recently I asked the author about what she was reading. Her reply:

I’m on tour for Swiss Vendetta right now so I have snatches of time in between events to catch up on reading. Every day is a trip to a different bookstore and during the first week on tour I’ve bought a few. Here’s what I have so far:

Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan. I will see my nieces in a few days, and I bought this on the recommendation of a young reader at the Barnes & Noble in Jonesboro, Arkansas. I loved the girl’s enthusiasm for the book and hope to have a chance to read it before I give it away (or maybe I’ll buy another copy to leave behind!). The cover says ‘if you’re lost, you might need to swim against the tide.’ My young advisor said that was a perfect description and I liked the sound of it.

The wonderful manager of the Evansville, Indiana Barnes & Noble suggested I buy The Life and Times of Persimmon Wilson by Nancy Peacock. It is historical fiction, which I love. The tale of a former slave who on the day leading up to his execution wants to set the record straight it really is an epic adventure.

When I reached Little Rock, Arkansas everyone was talking about Rising Tide by John M. Barry. It is the story of the great Mississippi flood of 1927, a truly devastating event. I was intrigued because I had recently met another writer who is researching a book on this subject. The Arkansas crowd was excited because it told the story of places near to them, places I know from summers spent on my grandparents’ plantation in Drew, Mississippi.

During my trip through Ohio, Kentucky, Arkansas and Indiana, the weather has been exceptional, springtime in the midst of winter. Perhaps because of this, my eye was drawn to Stephen Anderton’s Lives of the Great Gardeners. (This may also be the result of eyeing Instagram posts of a gardener friend of mine in Lexington, Kentucky. Joseph Hillenmeyer entices me to dream of a gorgeous back yard for myself, maybe someday!)

I did bring two books with me (and my Kindle loaded to capacity as a backup). Jane Steele: a novel, by Lyndsay Faye is another work of historical fiction. Inspired by Charlotte Brontë’s classic Jane Eyre, this book is a marvelous satirical romance.

The other book I packed for my trip is Lee Child’s A Wanted Man. I never travel without a Reacher story. It can be counted on to distract and hold my attention in any situation!