The Debutante Ball Welcomes Anna Lee Huber!

Anna Lee Huber was born and raised in a small town in Ohio.  She is a graduate of Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN, where she majored in Music and minored in Psychology.  THE ANATOMIST’S WIFE, just out from Berkley, has been hailed as “a riveting debut.”  She currently lives in Indiana with her husband and troublemaking tabby cat.  When not hard at work on her next novel, she enjoys reading, singing, travel, and spending time with her family.

THE ANATOMIST’S WIFE is set in Scotland, 1830. Lady Darby has taken refuge at her sister’s estate, finding solace in her passion for painting. But when her hosts throw a house party for the cream of London society, Kiera is unable to hide from the ire of those who believe her to be as unnatural as her late husband, an anatomist who used her artistic talents to suit his own macabre purposes.

Kiera wants to put her past aside, but when one of the house guests is murdered, her brother-in-law asks her to utilize her knowledge of human anatomy to aid the insufferable Sebastian Gage-a fellow guest with some experience as an inquiry agent. While Gage is clearly more competent than she first assumed, Kiera isn’t about to let her guard down as accusations and rumors swirl. When Kiera and Gage’s search leads them to even more gruesome discoveries, a series of disturbing notes urges Lady Darby to give up the inquiry. But Kiera is determined to both protect her family and prove her innocence, even as she risks becoming the next victim…

Oooh, sounds juicy! We are so pleased to have Anna with us today as she takes the Deb Interview…

Where do you love to be?

I love to be with my family.  I have four brothers and one sister, and my husband has four brothers, so with all the wives and children, whenever either side gets together it’s a fairly large gathering.  There’s no end to the drama and noise, but the chaos is good.  And there are lots of people to love and care about you, no matter what.

Which talent do you wish you had?

I wish I could draw and paint people.  I so envy the people with the ability to capture life with photo realism.  That’s why it was so fun to make my protagonist a portrait artist, because I could give her a talent I wish I had.  My husband and one of my brothers are artists, and I have several friends with amazing gifts in that area, so I’m able to get the information I need from them as well as research books.  But, trust me, you would not want me to paint a portrait of you, unless you wanted it to look something like a Picasso, and without his decided flare.  

What time of day do you love best?

I love sunset.  For some reason, that’s always been a magical time for me.  There’s just something about it that truly stirs my soul and yet gives me peace.  Maybe it’s the amazing variety and brilliance of colors that wash the sky, or the simple fact that day is giving over to night, or the loveliness of the stars peeking out one by one through the velvety blue.  I don’t know.  But I’ve always been drawn to it.  Even as a child, I can remember sometimes just lying on the grass outside our home and watching the light fade from the sky and the stars come out.  At some point my parents figured out this was soothing for me, because they would just let me wander off to do it, even in the winter, as long as I was dressed in full snow gear so I wouldn’t freeze to death.

Share something that’s always guaranteed to make you laugh.

There is a clip of comedian Jim Gaffigan from one of his live shows where he jokes about Hot Pockets, and it gets me every time I watch it.  I can’t stop laughing.  It’s just that funny.  Most of his stand-up comedy makes me laugh, as does Craig Ferguson’s and John Heffron’s.

[editor’s note: we’re pretty sure this is the link.]

What is your advice for aspiring writers?

Never give up.  The only way you can be certain you won’t succeed is if you give up.  Just keep doing what you love.  The more you write, the more you learn, and the closer you get to publication.  Believe that it will happen, and it will.

 

Anna has generously offered a free copy of THE ANATOMIST’S WIFE to one of our readers (US addresses only)! To enter, leave a comment below.  Bonus style points for telling us about your “hot pocket” food you know you shouldn’t eat… but do anyway.

Buy a copy of THE ANATOMIST’S WIFE at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or your local bookseller.

Want to know more about this author? Find Anna at her website here. Or follow her on Facebook or Twitter.