Chris Bohjalian's Blog, page 5
January 14, 2020
Meet an ER Doctor and a Midwife
14 January 2020
Dear Friends Who Read and Readers Who are Friends,
This month I want to celebrate two remarkable women. An ER doctor and a midwife. Both are characters from novels of mine.
First of all, I want you to meet Alexis Remnick — the heroine in my next book, THE RED LOTUS, a novel that Kirkus called a "breathless thriller,” and Booklist described as a "masterful merging of setting and plot [that] delivers a cerebral and dramatic dive into what happens when love turns to agony.”
Alexis is an ER doctor in New York City who goes on a bike tour with her boyfriend in Vietnam — where he disappears. The thriller asks the fundamental question: How well do we really know the person we love?
Although THE RED LOTUS does not bloom until March 17, you can meet Alexis right now in this two chapter excerpt we have posted on my web site:
https://chrisbohjalian.com/the-red-lo...
If you like what you read, please preorder it or ask your local bookseller to put a copy aside for you today.
The second woman I want you to meet is midwife Sibyl Danforth. Many of you have already met her in the pages of my novel, MIDWIVES — but now you can see her on stage. A week from today is the very first preview of my two-act adaptation of MIDWIVES at the George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick, NJ. Sibyl Danforth will be played by Ellen McLaughlin, the mesmerizing actor (and playwright!) who brought to life on Broadway the angel in Tony Kushner’s “Angels in America.” The visionary behind this production is the brilliant director, David Saint.
Please join me: here is the link to the theatre where you can learn more and order tickets.
https://georgestreetplayhouse.org/sho...
Thank you, as always, for your faith in my work. Tour details for THE RED LOTUS are coming soon.
All the best,
Chris B.
www.ChrisBohjalian.com
Dear Friends Who Read and Readers Who are Friends,
This month I want to celebrate two remarkable women. An ER doctor and a midwife. Both are characters from novels of mine.
First of all, I want you to meet Alexis Remnick — the heroine in my next book, THE RED LOTUS, a novel that Kirkus called a "breathless thriller,” and Booklist described as a "masterful merging of setting and plot [that] delivers a cerebral and dramatic dive into what happens when love turns to agony.”
Alexis is an ER doctor in New York City who goes on a bike tour with her boyfriend in Vietnam — where he disappears. The thriller asks the fundamental question: How well do we really know the person we love?
Although THE RED LOTUS does not bloom until March 17, you can meet Alexis right now in this two chapter excerpt we have posted on my web site:
https://chrisbohjalian.com/the-red-lo...
If you like what you read, please preorder it or ask your local bookseller to put a copy aside for you today.
The second woman I want you to meet is midwife Sibyl Danforth. Many of you have already met her in the pages of my novel, MIDWIVES — but now you can see her on stage. A week from today is the very first preview of my two-act adaptation of MIDWIVES at the George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick, NJ. Sibyl Danforth will be played by Ellen McLaughlin, the mesmerizing actor (and playwright!) who brought to life on Broadway the angel in Tony Kushner’s “Angels in America.” The visionary behind this production is the brilliant director, David Saint.
Please join me: here is the link to the theatre where you can learn more and order tickets.
https://georgestreetplayhouse.org/sho...
Thank you, as always, for your faith in my work. Tour details for THE RED LOTUS are coming soon.
All the best,
Chris B.
www.ChrisBohjalian.com
January 5, 2020
Only two days left to enter The Red Lotus Giveaway
Happy New Year and Merry Armenian Christmas,
There are now only two days left to win an advance copy of THE RED LOTUS here on Goodreads.
Here is what Kirkus said about it:
“In Bohjalian’s breathless thriller, the death of an American bicyclist in Vietnam sets off a race to avert further catastrophe… Tantalizing… Keep[s] us guessing and turning the pages until the very end.”
—Kirkus Reviews
And Booklist has weighed in, too:
"[A] tightly drawn, steadily hair-raising thriller… [Bohjalian’s] masterful merging of setting and plot delivers a cerebral and dramatic dive into what happens when love to turns to agony.”
—Carol Haggas, Booklist
The thriller about a bike tour gone bad and the plague (yes, the plague) does not arrive until March 17, but right now Doubleday Books is giving away 25 advance copies here on Goodreads.
Click here to enter:
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/en...
I thank you all so much.
All the best,
Chris B.
There are now only two days left to win an advance copy of THE RED LOTUS here on Goodreads.
Here is what Kirkus said about it:
“In Bohjalian’s breathless thriller, the death of an American bicyclist in Vietnam sets off a race to avert further catastrophe… Tantalizing… Keep[s] us guessing and turning the pages until the very end.”
—Kirkus Reviews
And Booklist has weighed in, too:
"[A] tightly drawn, steadily hair-raising thriller… [Bohjalian’s] masterful merging of setting and plot delivers a cerebral and dramatic dive into what happens when love to turns to agony.”
—Carol Haggas, Booklist
The thriller about a bike tour gone bad and the plague (yes, the plague) does not arrive until March 17, but right now Doubleday Books is giving away 25 advance copies here on Goodreads.
Click here to enter:
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/en...
I thank you all so much.
All the best,
Chris B.
December 8, 2019
Giveaway Alert: The Red Lotus
Greetings,
We have a Giveaway Alert!
Want to win an advance copy of THE RED LOTUS?
The thriller about a bike tour gone bad and the plague (yes, the plague) does not arrive until March 17, but right now Doubleday Books is giving away 25 advance copies here on Goodreads.
Click here to enter:
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/en...
I thank you all so much.
Fingers crossed my work never disappoints you.
All the best,
Chris B.
We have a Giveaway Alert!
Want to win an advance copy of THE RED LOTUS?
The thriller about a bike tour gone bad and the plague (yes, the plague) does not arrive until March 17, but right now Doubleday Books is giving away 25 advance copies here on Goodreads.
Click here to enter:
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/en...
I thank you all so much.
Fingers crossed my work never disappoints you.
All the best,
Chris B.
November 29, 2019
A Black Friday Booklist
It’s Black Friday: here are a few of my favorite books published in 2019, all titles that I can recommend highly. Savor them yourself or share them with others this holiday season.
Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger
The Testaments by Margaret Atwood
The Better Sister by Alafair Burke
Toil & Trouble by Augusten Burroughs
Furious Hours by Casey Cep
Honorable Exit by Thurston Clarke
The Cheslsea Girls by Fiona Davis
Wunderland by Jennifer Cody Epstein
Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higginbotham
The World that We Knew by Alice Hoffman
The Gifted School by Bruce Holsinger
The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
The Damascus Road by Jay Parini
Disappearing Earth by Julia Phillips
Normal People by Sally Rooney
The Stranger Inside by Lisa Unger
The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
You can peruse my reviews of them right here on my Goodreads page of books that I’ve read.
As always, thank you so much for your faith in my work – and in what stories can mean to the soul. Fingers crossed I meet many of you in 2020, either on tour for The Red Lotus or at the George Street Playhouse for Midwives.
All the best,
Chris B.
Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger
The Testaments by Margaret Atwood
The Better Sister by Alafair Burke
Toil & Trouble by Augusten Burroughs
Furious Hours by Casey Cep
Honorable Exit by Thurston Clarke
The Cheslsea Girls by Fiona Davis
Wunderland by Jennifer Cody Epstein
Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higginbotham
The World that We Knew by Alice Hoffman
The Gifted School by Bruce Holsinger
The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
The Damascus Road by Jay Parini
Disappearing Earth by Julia Phillips
Normal People by Sally Rooney
The Stranger Inside by Lisa Unger
The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
You can peruse my reviews of them right here on my Goodreads page of books that I’ve read.
As always, thank you so much for your faith in my work – and in what stories can mean to the soul. Fingers crossed I meet many of you in 2020, either on tour for The Red Lotus or at the George Street Playhouse for Midwives.
All the best,
Chris B.
September 15, 2019
A Goodreads Giveaway of The Red Lotus
Greetings,
Hoping all of you are having a nice start to autumn, with plenty of new books to excite you.
This is fun: Goodreads and Doubleday Books right now are giving away 25 advance copies of my March 17 novel, THE RED LOTUS.
The thriller about a New York City ER doctor is set in Vietnam and Manhattan.
Click below to enter to win one of them.
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sh...
Thank you, as always, for your faith in my work!
All the best,
Chris B.
Hoping all of you are having a nice start to autumn, with plenty of new books to excite you.
This is fun: Goodreads and Doubleday Books right now are giving away 25 advance copies of my March 17 novel, THE RED LOTUS.
The thriller about a New York City ER doctor is set in Vietnam and Manhattan.
Click below to enter to win one of them.
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sh...
Thank you, as always, for your faith in my work!
All the best,
Chris B.
June 27, 2019
Cover Reveal -- The Red Lotus
Greetings!
Behold the cover for my next novel. The Red Lotus arrives March 17, 2020 from Doubleday Books.
"From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Midwives and The Flight Attendant comes a twisting story of love and deceit: an American man vanishes on a rural road in Vietnam and his girlfriend, an emergency room doctor trained to ask questions, follows a path that leads her home to the very hospital where they met.
"The first time Alexis saw Austin, it was a Saturday night. Not in a bar, but in the emergency room where Alexis sutured a bullet wound in his arm. Six months later, on the brink of falling in love, they travel to Vietnam on a bike tour so that Austin can show her his passion for cycling and he can pay his respects to the place where his father and uncle fought in the war. But as Alexis sips white wine and waits at the hotel for him to return from his solo ride, two men emerge from the tall grass and Austin vanishes into thin air. The only clue he leaves behind is a bright yellow energy gel dropped on the road. As Alexis grapples with this bewildering loss, navigating the FBI, Austin's prickly family, and her colleagues at the hospital, Alexis uncovers a series of strange lies that force her to wonder: Where did Austin go? Why did he really bring her to Vietnam? And how much danger has he left her in? Set amidst the adrenaline-fueled world of the emergency room, The Red Lotus is a global thriller about those who dedicate their lives to saving people, and those who peddle death to the highest bidder."
You can add it now to your Want to Read list here on Goodreads.
As always, thank you so much for your faith in my work!
All the best,
Chris B.
Behold the cover for my next novel. The Red Lotus arrives March 17, 2020 from Doubleday Books.
"From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Midwives and The Flight Attendant comes a twisting story of love and deceit: an American man vanishes on a rural road in Vietnam and his girlfriend, an emergency room doctor trained to ask questions, follows a path that leads her home to the very hospital where they met.
"The first time Alexis saw Austin, it was a Saturday night. Not in a bar, but in the emergency room where Alexis sutured a bullet wound in his arm. Six months later, on the brink of falling in love, they travel to Vietnam on a bike tour so that Austin can show her his passion for cycling and he can pay his respects to the place where his father and uncle fought in the war. But as Alexis sips white wine and waits at the hotel for him to return from his solo ride, two men emerge from the tall grass and Austin vanishes into thin air. The only clue he leaves behind is a bright yellow energy gel dropped on the road. As Alexis grapples with this bewildering loss, navigating the FBI, Austin's prickly family, and her colleagues at the hospital, Alexis uncovers a series of strange lies that force her to wonder: Where did Austin go? Why did he really bring her to Vietnam? And how much danger has he left her in? Set amidst the adrenaline-fueled world of the emergency room, The Red Lotus is a global thriller about those who dedicate their lives to saving people, and those who peddle death to the highest bidder."
You can add it now to your Want to Read list here on Goodreads.
As always, thank you so much for your faith in my work!
All the best,
Chris B.
March 26, 2019
Wingspan has landed!
Dear Friends Who Read and Readers Who are Friends,
It's official: the audiobook of my first play, WINGSPAN, landed today. You can download it wherever you download your ebooks.
If you enjoy reading scripts, there is an ebook, too.
The one-act play premiered last year at 59E59 in New York City and ran throughout the summer as part of Summer Shorts. It was directed by Academy Award winner, Alexander Dinelaris (BIRDMAN and THE REVENANT).
WINGSPAN is the story of a young flight attendant with a fear of flying, who is about to work her first transatlantic trip. When a veteran co-worker tries to help her through the turbulent crossing, she discovers that a fear of flying is the least of the young woman's secrets.
Here is a link to learn more:
http://chrisbohjalian.com/chris-bohja...
I love that the second act of my life seems to be as a playwright as well as a novelist. My second play premieres at 59E59 this summer and my third, a brand new two-act adaptation of my novel, MIDWIVES, at the George Street Playhouse in January 2020.
I hope you enjoy WINGSPAN. I am so grateful to all of you for your faith in my work -- on the page and on the stage.
All the best,
Chris B.
It's official: the audiobook of my first play, WINGSPAN, landed today. You can download it wherever you download your ebooks.
If you enjoy reading scripts, there is an ebook, too.
The one-act play premiered last year at 59E59 in New York City and ran throughout the summer as part of Summer Shorts. It was directed by Academy Award winner, Alexander Dinelaris (BIRDMAN and THE REVENANT).
WINGSPAN is the story of a young flight attendant with a fear of flying, who is about to work her first transatlantic trip. When a veteran co-worker tries to help her through the turbulent crossing, she discovers that a fear of flying is the least of the young woman's secrets.
Here is a link to learn more:
http://chrisbohjalian.com/chris-bohja...
I love that the second act of my life seems to be as a playwright as well as a novelist. My second play premieres at 59E59 this summer and my third, a brand new two-act adaptation of my novel, MIDWIVES, at the George Street Playhouse in January 2020.
I hope you enjoy WINGSPAN. I am so grateful to all of you for your faith in my work -- on the page and on the stage.
All the best,
Chris B.
March 17, 2019
A playlist -- and a glimpse into how I write
Dear Friends Who Read and Readers Who are Friends,
I'm asked often about the process of writing: how I approach my day.
Invariably, my day begins by watching movie trailers or music videos to get into the right emotional space for whatever scene I am going to write that morning. Movie trailers and music videos are often a wonderful shorthand for very deep feelings.
For my most recent novel, THE FLIGHT ATTENDANT, I tended to watch more music videos than movie trailers.
Here's a playlist I created of the songs I listened to most often while writing that novel. Flight attendant Cassie Bowden's "anthem" would be Sia's poignant, wrenching "Chandelier." I know of no song that so perfectly captures "morning-after" self-loathing with such remarkable clarity. Click here to watch the whole playlist -- or whichever songs interest you most.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...
I must admit, I love Cassie Bowden. She is among my favorite heroines. Yes, she's a mess and makes some terrible mistakes. I know what a disaster her childhood was and how those scars inform her choices and her adult behavior.
But I've always appreciated what John Gardner suggests in his terrific book on writing, "The Art of Fiction." He teaches us that the two points on a compass that matter most in fiction are conflict and human transformation. Can Cassie change before it's too late? (Good heavens, can any of us?) That was often the question I asked myself while writing the novel.
And I also know how many books we have all loved with main characters whose decisions we may not always have liked: think of such remarkable novels as THE GODFATHER, THE SECRET HISTORY, SHARP OBJECTS, or ANNA KARENINA.
In any case, I thought you might enjoy this playlist.
Happy reading -- and happy watching.
As always, thank you so much for your faith in my work!
All the best,
Chris B.
I'm asked often about the process of writing: how I approach my day.
Invariably, my day begins by watching movie trailers or music videos to get into the right emotional space for whatever scene I am going to write that morning. Movie trailers and music videos are often a wonderful shorthand for very deep feelings.
For my most recent novel, THE FLIGHT ATTENDANT, I tended to watch more music videos than movie trailers.
Here's a playlist I created of the songs I listened to most often while writing that novel. Flight attendant Cassie Bowden's "anthem" would be Sia's poignant, wrenching "Chandelier." I know of no song that so perfectly captures "morning-after" self-loathing with such remarkable clarity. Click here to watch the whole playlist -- or whichever songs interest you most.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...
I must admit, I love Cassie Bowden. She is among my favorite heroines. Yes, she's a mess and makes some terrible mistakes. I know what a disaster her childhood was and how those scars inform her choices and her adult behavior.
But I've always appreciated what John Gardner suggests in his terrific book on writing, "The Art of Fiction." He teaches us that the two points on a compass that matter most in fiction are conflict and human transformation. Can Cassie change before it's too late? (Good heavens, can any of us?) That was often the question I asked myself while writing the novel.
And I also know how many books we have all loved with main characters whose decisions we may not always have liked: think of such remarkable novels as THE GODFATHER, THE SECRET HISTORY, SHARP OBJECTS, or ANNA KARENINA.
In any case, I thought you might enjoy this playlist.
Happy reading -- and happy watching.
As always, thank you so much for your faith in my work!
All the best,
Chris B.
January 7, 2019
The Flight Attendant as landed -- in paperback!
7 January 2019
Dear Friends Who Read and Readers Who are Friends,
When I was a boy, one of my aunts was a flight attendant – or what we called at the time, a stewardess. She was brilliant and beautiful and she flew overseas, disappearing for days at a time because back then no one was texting America from Paris or posting pictures on Instagram from Moscow.
And so sometimes my mother joked that my aunt was a spy.
Flight attendants have (to quote Napoleon Dynamite) “mad skills.” They keep us safe and comfortable at 35,000 feet. They know where the tough-cuffs are stored on a plane, how to reassure us in the midst of seismic turbulence, and how to handle that passenger with bare feet who is literally climbing over the beverage cart to get to the lavatory. I respect and revere them.
And, just maybe, some of them really are spies.
This morning The Flight Attendant landed – the brand new paperback of my 2018 thriller about a dead body in Dubai, Russian espionage, and a lot of tequila.
And I’m thrilled. If you didn’t meet my hot mess of a flight attendant – Cassandra Bowden – in hardcover or ebook or audio last year, please consider saying hello to her in the new paperback edition. I love her: she’s among my favorite of my heroines.
You can buy a copy wherever books are sold (including Hudson airport stores) or order one online.
Or you can buy a signed one if you meet me this week on tour. I’ll be giving out some old-fashioned airline playing cards at these events.
I hope I see many of you this week and this spring. You can see all of my upcoming events right here:
http://chrisbohjalian.com/events/
Now, usually I don’t encourage readers to imagine an actor playing one of my characters, but I do with this book. Why? The utterly perfect Kaley Cuoco – Penny from The Big Bang Theory – and Warner Brothers Television have optioned it for a limited series. I can’t think of a better actor than Kaley to bring my beleaguered flight attendant to life.
In the meantime? Happy New Year.
To 2019: may our world inch a little closer to sanity and peace.
All the best,
Chris B.
www.ChrisBohjalian.com
Dear Friends Who Read and Readers Who are Friends,
When I was a boy, one of my aunts was a flight attendant – or what we called at the time, a stewardess. She was brilliant and beautiful and she flew overseas, disappearing for days at a time because back then no one was texting America from Paris or posting pictures on Instagram from Moscow.
And so sometimes my mother joked that my aunt was a spy.
Flight attendants have (to quote Napoleon Dynamite) “mad skills.” They keep us safe and comfortable at 35,000 feet. They know where the tough-cuffs are stored on a plane, how to reassure us in the midst of seismic turbulence, and how to handle that passenger with bare feet who is literally climbing over the beverage cart to get to the lavatory. I respect and revere them.
And, just maybe, some of them really are spies.
This morning The Flight Attendant landed – the brand new paperback of my 2018 thriller about a dead body in Dubai, Russian espionage, and a lot of tequila.
And I’m thrilled. If you didn’t meet my hot mess of a flight attendant – Cassandra Bowden – in hardcover or ebook or audio last year, please consider saying hello to her in the new paperback edition. I love her: she’s among my favorite of my heroines.
You can buy a copy wherever books are sold (including Hudson airport stores) or order one online.
Or you can buy a signed one if you meet me this week on tour. I’ll be giving out some old-fashioned airline playing cards at these events.
I hope I see many of you this week and this spring. You can see all of my upcoming events right here:
http://chrisbohjalian.com/events/
Now, usually I don’t encourage readers to imagine an actor playing one of my characters, but I do with this book. Why? The utterly perfect Kaley Cuoco – Penny from The Big Bang Theory – and Warner Brothers Television have optioned it for a limited series. I can’t think of a better actor than Kaley to bring my beleaguered flight attendant to life.
In the meantime? Happy New Year.
To 2019: may our world inch a little closer to sanity and peace.
All the best,
Chris B.
www.ChrisBohjalian.com
The Flight Attendant has landed -- in paperback!
7 January 2019
Dear Friends Who Read and Readers Who are Friends,
When I was a boy, one of my aunts was a flight attendant – or what we called at the time, a stewardess. She was brilliant and beautiful and she flew overseas, disappearing for days at a time because back then no one was texting America from Paris or posting pictures on Instagram from Moscow.
And so sometimes my mother joked that my aunt was a spy.
Flight attendants have (to quote Napoleon Dynamite) “mad skills.” They keep us safe and comfortable at 35,000 feet. They know where the tough-cuffs are stored on a plane, how to reassure us in the midst of seismic turbulence, and how to handle that passenger with bare feet who is literally climbing over the beverage cart to get to the lavatory. I respect and revere them.
And, just maybe, some of them really are spies.
This morning The Flight Attendant landed – the brand new paperback of my 2018 thriller about a dead body in Dubai, Russian espionage, and a lot of tequila.
And I’m thrilled. If you didn’t meet my hot mess of a flight attendant – Cassandra Bowden – in hardcover or ebook or audio last year, please consider saying hello to her in the new paperback edition. I love her: she’s among my favorites of my heroines.
You can buy a copy wherever books are sold (including Hudson airport stores) or order one online.
Or you can buy a signed one if you meet me this week on tour. I’ll be giving out some old-fashioned airline playing cards at these events.
I hope I see many of you this week and this spring. You can see all of my upcoming events right here:
http://chrisbohjalian.com/events/
Now, usually I don’t encourage readers to imagine an actor playing one of my characters, but I do with this book. Why? The utterly perfect Kaley Cuoco – Penny from The Big Bang Theory – and Warner Brothers Television have optioned it for a limited series. I can’t think of a better actor than Kaley to bring my beleaguered flight attendant to life.
In the meantime? Happy New Year.
To 2019: may our world inch a little closer to sanity and peace.
All the best,
Chris B.
www.ChrisBohjalian.com
Dear Friends Who Read and Readers Who are Friends,
When I was a boy, one of my aunts was a flight attendant – or what we called at the time, a stewardess. She was brilliant and beautiful and she flew overseas, disappearing for days at a time because back then no one was texting America from Paris or posting pictures on Instagram from Moscow.
And so sometimes my mother joked that my aunt was a spy.
Flight attendants have (to quote Napoleon Dynamite) “mad skills.” They keep us safe and comfortable at 35,000 feet. They know where the tough-cuffs are stored on a plane, how to reassure us in the midst of seismic turbulence, and how to handle that passenger with bare feet who is literally climbing over the beverage cart to get to the lavatory. I respect and revere them.
And, just maybe, some of them really are spies.
This morning The Flight Attendant landed – the brand new paperback of my 2018 thriller about a dead body in Dubai, Russian espionage, and a lot of tequila.
And I’m thrilled. If you didn’t meet my hot mess of a flight attendant – Cassandra Bowden – in hardcover or ebook or audio last year, please consider saying hello to her in the new paperback edition. I love her: she’s among my favorites of my heroines.
You can buy a copy wherever books are sold (including Hudson airport stores) or order one online.
Or you can buy a signed one if you meet me this week on tour. I’ll be giving out some old-fashioned airline playing cards at these events.
I hope I see many of you this week and this spring. You can see all of my upcoming events right here:
http://chrisbohjalian.com/events/
Now, usually I don’t encourage readers to imagine an actor playing one of my characters, but I do with this book. Why? The utterly perfect Kaley Cuoco – Penny from The Big Bang Theory – and Warner Brothers Television have optioned it for a limited series. I can’t think of a better actor than Kaley to bring my beleaguered flight attendant to life.
In the meantime? Happy New Year.
To 2019: may our world inch a little closer to sanity and peace.
All the best,
Chris B.
www.ChrisBohjalian.com
