Q. Ada Lovelace is likely a new historical figure for many of your readers. How did you first come across her story and what drew you to write about her life? A. I usually find the idea for a new novel when I come across an extraordinary historical figure while ... Read more »
History & Research
“All For Love and Murder”
John Wilkes Booth’s romance with Lucy Hale was not the only one of his relationships that ended badly, as this brief piece from the May 10, 1861 Louisville Daily Democrat shows. ... Read more »
Tudor Hall, Home of the Booth Family
To celebrate his success on the American stage, the renowned thespian Junius Brutus Booth, John Wilkes Booth's father, built his family a gracious residence on the grounds of their Maryland farm. However, tragedy would prevent Junius from ever living in the home he called ... Read more »
Ford’s Theatre
Displayed in the museum at Ford's Theatre in Washington, DC is an autograph quilt created in 1864 to raise money for the US Sanitary Commission. Among the signatures are those of Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. ... Read more »
The Surratt Boardinghouse
Mary Surratt, widow and Confederate sympathizer, ran the Washington, DC boardinghouse where John Wilkes Booth and his fellow conspirators plotted to bring down President Abraham Lincoln. On the left is a photo of the boardinghouse taken between 1861 and 1865 (source: Library ... Read more »
Asia Booth, John Wilkes Booth’s Sister
Have you been curious about the mysterious woman appearing with John Wilkes Booth on the cover of Fates and Traitors? Meet Asia Booth, one of his two elder sisters, his confidante and childhood companion. Asia adored her younger brother even as she became increasingly ... Read more »
Online Research Sources for Fates and Traitors
In the Acknowledgments to Fates and Traitors, I mention several excellent online resources I consulted while researching and writing the novel. Some of the most useful include the archives of digitized historic newspapers at the Library of Congress and Genealogybank.com, ... Read more »
John Wilkes Booth’s Diary
Among the items John Wilkes Booth carried with him when he fled Washington after he assassinated President Abraham Lincoln was a pocket diary. In it he carried portraits of five women: four actresses and Lucy Lambert Hale, the daughter of abolitionist New Hampshire Senator ... Read more »
The Brothers Booth
Three of Junius Brutus Booth’s sons followed in his footsteps and became actors, but John Wilkes Booth received no better than mixed reviews throughout his career. It was his elder brother Edwin who was considered the true heir of their renowned father’s talent. Edwin Booth ... Read more »
John Wilkes Booth’s Parents
Did you know that John Wilkes Booth was born in Maryland in 1838, the second youngest of ten children? His parents were the acclaimed British actor Junius Brutus Booth and Mary Ann Homes, a Covent Garden flower girl. ... Read more »