INTERVIEW WITH MARGARET PHILBRICK

Award-winning author Margaret Ann Philbrick’s first novel, A Minor - A Novel of Love, Music and Memory garnered critical praise, “An emotional story…clear prose…delicately constructed….nuanced characters….breaks the mold.” Kirkus Reviews. Her Christmas book, Back to the Manger, created with her mother, is now a holiday classic with over ten years of consistent sales. She is the contributing editor of the essay and poetry collection for women, Everbloom - Stories of Deeply Rooted and Transformed Lives. Her poems and articles have been featured in numerous anthologies and publications including Christianity Today, Relevant, The Redbud Hyphen and Patheos. Margaret is a founding member of the Redbud Writers Guild NFP and a member of the Door County Published Author Collective.

OUR INTERVIEW

Tell us about your upcoming release?

House of Honor is an historical fiction novel about the heist of a nativity painting by Caravaggio. It was actually cut out of the frame with a box cutter on a rainy October night in 1969 in Palermo, Italy. It’s never been found. There are many theories about what happened to Caravaggio’s masterpiece and this book is my version of the story.

At the center are two Italian sons from prominent families, one in the north of Italy and one from the south, on the island of Sicily. These two sons, Orazio Bordoni and Nicolo Giotto and one woman, Lena Condotti, find themselves caught up in a web of underworld art and high stakes power plays within the Vatican and the mafia.

Despite being from completely different familial backgrounds, Orazio and Nicolo bond as brothers and Lena and Orazio develop a romantic relationship. Orazio’s natural brother Vincenzo is a priest in the Vatican with access to significant works of art unknown to the public. Vincenzo finds himself drawn into the trio because of his inside knowledge of the Vatican Secret Archives and thus, the web of lies deepens, leading to the heist.

What was your inspiration for this book?

While wandering somewhere between the Trevi fountain and Piazza Navona in Rome, our youngest son called out from the front of a church door, “Mom, you’ve got to go in here and see the three paintings by Caravaggio!” We went in and behold, my obsession began. I immersed myself in a two-year research journey to learn everything I could about the Renaissance master. When I read that his Nativity painting in Palermo was cut out of the frame with a box cutter and never recovered, I couldn’t stop asking questions around this heist. One question led to another and pretty soon I had the scaffolding of a suspenseful story.

What is your favorite part of the writing process?

Developing the characters in my mind before I begin writing. I dream them up while I’m driving or walking in the woods. I create dossiers on each of the characters before I begin writing a book. Hopefully, I know who they are before they step into the plot.

What is your least favorite part of writing?

The editing process. As they say, you have to kill your darlings. It can be painful when those darlings are aspects of a character that you thought you knew and they contributed to driving the plot forward. Yes, during the developmental editing the character can become a new version of themselves and you may not love that version as much.

Tell us three things about yourself that might surprise your reader.

I’ve done mission trips on the Amazon River and in Honduras and I’d love to go back to either of those places anytime. Despite all the research for this book, I’ve never been to Sicily. I always wanted to be a professional ballet dancer, but I quit ballet to join the high school pom pom team and do dance routines at half-time, definitely the wrong choice.

What are you working on now?

A non-fiction book. I need a break from creating fiction which can feel like swimming underwater too long and you emerge gasping for breath. This book is an examination of what it means to grow a home in a liturgical sense. I’m an Anglican sacramentalist so I can’t help myself.

Where can your readers learn more about you?

All facets of my writing are found on my website. My photography and poetry on Instagram and TikTok @seasonedpoetess. There is also a specific website for House of Honor.  

OFFICIAL BOOK TRAILER FOR HOUSE OF HONOR

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Two Italian sons, linked by a masterpiece painting, are put to a test of loyalty and honor.

At the heart of this gripping tale is Orazio Bordoni, the wayward son of a construction magnate, living a reckless life like that of his artistic hero Caravaggio. He finds himself befriended by Nicolo Giotto, the devoted son of a powerful Sicilian mafia clan, who wants to uphold the honor of his family.

As the dark underbelly of the art world and the Vatican expose their true character, Orazio finds himself in a world where his loyalty is tested, honor is at stake, and the boundaries between life and art blur. He and Nicolo discover just how far they're willing to push those boundaries, even if it means sacrificing everything else.

House of Honor is a pivotal story that weaves the threads of history, the ruthless allure of the mafia, the enigmatic power of the Vatican, and the timeless brilliance of Caravaggio.

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