Interview with Bella Darling from Kathleen Shoop's Cinder Bella
We’re thrilled to be talking to Bella Darling from Kathleen Shoop's Cinder Bella. It is a pleasure to have her with us today at Pimp That Character!
Thank you for your interview, Bella. How old are you and what do you do for a living?
Thank you for having me! I'm twenty-one years old. I don't have a job in the way that some people do. For my entire life I've worked in the homes where I've lived. My parents died when I was little, then my
grandparents passed and then I found homes with so many kind souls that I just did whatever was needed from me in order to have a warm, safe home. Right now I'm tending chickens at the Westminster estate called Maple Grove. I've found that I'm quite good at coaxing eggs from spent hens. In fact the eggs that I take to market have caused quite a stir. Everyone wants them because when they bake and cook with them, wonderful things happen. I don't know what that means for my future but for now I'm quite distinguished in tending hens. And yes, I use words like distinguished. Though I'm uneducated in the formal sense, and though I'm a poor woman, I am well-read. All those houses I've lived and worked in--they all had rooms devoted to books. Hundreds and I read them all, every single one I could get my hands on.
Can you tell us about one of your most distinguishable features?
My most distinguishable feature would probably be that business with the hens. If you mean what I look like? People have said I'm beautiful, but not like the debutantes and daughters of the steel men. How could I be that? I'm busy tending animals and selling eggs at outdoor markets. But the son of a horseman once said I have the blue eyes of the deep sea and the soul of a wisewoman beyond my years. Then he tried to kiss me. I pushed him into the hay, thanked him for the compliment but ordered him to keep his distance. That was the end of him loving my ocean-colored eyes.
What would I love the most about you?
That would depend on who you are. Margaret, the maid who's pregnant out of wedlock loves my ability to make her belly aches go away. Others love that I always have a book quote at the ready. I suspect you might like that about me too. Most love the way I love them without any regard for their foibles. I see the bad in people, but I focus on the good. Everyone needs someone to like them if not love. And for some reason I give that to people. And so you might like that, too. Or my eggs, everyone loves my eggs.
What makes you laugh out loud?
My cat Simon is always up to something. When Bart came to call once, he was noticeably not a cat person and yet Simon made himself comfortable on Bart's shoulder. nuzzling him, not caring that he wasn't really welcome. That made me howl.
What is your most treasured possession?
Books. Maybe my notebooks that I write little stories in. One gives me comfort and the other gives others comfort. I treasure both.
Are you a loner or do you prefer to be surrounded by friends?
Oh, I'm such a loner. Bart and I just discussed this very thing. I'm content with my company, the books, my animals. People have always been nice to me, but they haven't been true friends. How could they be? I've moved from house to house of people beyond my means so they never viewed me as a friend, but as someone they were helping. But, now that the boarding house burned down and all the boarders came to live at Maple Grove in the big house, I'm starting to feel a little lonely. I yearn to spend more time with them. It's like I've found the missing pieces to the puzzle of me and so I'm changing a bit in that regard.
What is in your refrigerator right now?
I don't have one! The big house has an ice box and a cold cellar. And here's one of the wondrous surprises we've received since the holiday season began-- the Westminsters who are either stranded or hiding in Europe depending who you ask--the family had arranged for deliveries for their massive parties and they never cancelled the deliveries. So here we are, poor, lost souls being spoiled with the most decadent foods and gifts.
What is your greatest fear?
My greatest fear is that I may in fact live alone forever. It's not that I need a lot of people around, but I'd love for someone to see the good in me as I see it in them. I'd love to be loved.
If you could change one physical thing about yourself, what would that be?
I don't think anything in particular. I rarely use a mirror and though I brush my hair and braid it and keep clean as a whistle, I am far too busy to consider my appearance in a way that has made me dislike any part of it. I'm blessed for having no time or money to fuss over my looks.
Who is your best friend?
Oh my, Simon the cat
Do you have children?
Just my animals! I would love to have children someday.
What is your favorite weather?
Though it's the cruelest of conditions at times, winter is my favorite. Since being rewarded with the barn to live in at Maple Grove I have fallen in love with looking out the window in the loft as I fall asleep and am surrounded by starlight and snow. If I was an artist I would paint the scene every single night.
If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would you do today?
Oh, death brings up a bit of sadness for reasons mentioned above and another... but I won't spoil that for you. You have to read to know. But if I was going to die, I'd share all my eggs with those in need and make sure every single person who ever gave me a home or something to eat or lent me their ear to listen to a story knew how much that meant to me. And I'd ice skate. I find Bart and ask him for one more skate.
He lost everything.
Together they create a Christmas to remember.
December, 1893–Shadyside, Pennsylvania
Bella Darling lives in a cozy barn at Maple Grove, an estate owned by industrialist Archibald Westminster. The Westminster family is stranded overseas and have sent word to relieve all employees of their duties except Margaret, the pregnant maid, James the butler, and Bella. Content with borrowed books and a toasty home festooned with pine boughs and cinnamon sticks, she coaxes the old hens to lay eggs–extraordinary eggs. Bella yearns for just one thing—someone to share her life with. Always inventive, she has a plan for that. She just needs the right egg into the hands of the right man.
Bartholomew Baines, a Harvard-educated banker, is reeling in the aftermath of his bank’s collapse. With his friends and fiancé ostracizing him for what he thought was an act of generosity, he is penniless and alone. A kind woman welcomes him into her boarding house under conditions that he reluctantly accepts. Completely undone by his current, lowly position, and by the motley crew of fellow boarders who view him as one of them, Bartholomew wrestles with how to rebuild.
With the special eggs as the impetus, the first meeting between Bella and Bartholomew gives each the wrong idea about the other. And when the boarding house burns down a week before Christmas it’s Bella who is there to lend a hand. She, Margaret, and James invite the homeless group to stay at the estate through the holidays. But as Christmas draws closer, eviction papers arrive. Maple Grove is being foreclosed upon. Can Bella work her magic and save their Christmas? Is the growing attraction between Bella and Bartholomew enough for them to see past their differences?
Read a sample.
Cinder Bella is available at Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble & Kobo.
Bestselling author Kathleen Shoop, PhD writes historical fiction, women’s fiction, and romance. Shoop’s novels have garnered awards in the Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY), Eric Hoffer Book Awards, Next Generation Indie Book Awards, and more. You can find Kathleen in person at various venues. She’s on the board of the Kerr Memorial Museum, teaches at writing/reader conferences, co-coordinates Mindful Writers Retreats and writing conferences, and gives talks at various book clubs, libraries, and historical societies.
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Visit her website at www.kshoop.com or connect with her on X, Facebook, Instagram, BookBub, TikTok and Goodreads.
Cinder Bella is available at Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble & Kobo.
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