Ruthie Marlenée + Mary Camarillo

2122 East 4th Street,Long Beach CA 90814

14 September, 2022

Description

Join Bel Canto Books as we welcome local authors Ruthie Marlenée, AGAVE BLUES, in conversation with Mary Camarillo, THE LOCKHART WOMEN. This is an outdoor event in the garden at The Hangout (2122 E 4th Street, LB). Attendees will be required to follow all current COVID-19 restrictions and staff instructions. Please stay home if you are feeling sick. ABOUT THE BOOK MIX TOGETHER A LITTLE FAMILY, DRAMA, GHOSTS, AND TEQUILA, AND YOU GET A HELL OF A COCKTAIL! Sometimes la sangre atrae “the blood calls you back” and when Maya gets the call to go back to her agave roots in order to claim the body of her long-missing father, her world changes forever. Set against the backdrop of her childhood Mexico, Agave Blues is the story of ailing Attorney Maya in a broken relationship and butting heads with her teenaged daughter, Lily. Maya swore never to return, but once she sets foot on the mystical grounds, she uncovers the turbulent history of her family and how tequila lies on top of secrets that have altered her life, both emotionally and physically. She realizes what’s been missing in her life-magic, mystery, art, unconditional love and the stories of her past, including the myth her father used to share with her about her grandfather, Pancho Villa. The fields seem to heal her and her relationships and so she extends her stay and further reconnects with her family. But when she comes in contact with the handsome, yet haunted Antonio, a childhood crush resurfaces, only to cause her more grief as she tries to learn the tequila business. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ruthie Marlenée is a Mexican-American novelist, poet and screenwriter born and raised in Orange County, California, and lives in Los Angeles and the desert of the Coachella Valley with her husband. Marlenée earned a Writers’ Certificate in Fiction from UCLA and is the author of Isabela’s Island, Curse of the Ninth, nominated for a James Kirkwood Literary Prize and Agave Blues which has received an Honorable Mention by the International Latino Book Awards for the Isabel Allende Most Inspirational Fiction Book Award. ABOUT THE IN-CONVERSATION PARTNER Mary Camarillo’s novel “The Lockhart Women” was published in June 2021 by She Writes Press. It won first place in the Next Generation Indie Awards for first fiction and was a finalist in the Screencraft Cinematic Book Competition. She had a long career with the postal service as a distribution clerk, accounting manager, CPA and auditor for the Inspector General’s office. Her poems and short fiction have appeared in publications such as 166 Palms, The Sonora Review, Lunch Ticket, and The Ear. She lives in Huntington Beach, California with her husband who plays ukulele and their terrorist cat Riley. Ruthie Marlenée and Mary Camarillo 9/14 event hosted by Bel Canto Books in Long Beach, California