Welcome to the world, Adrift! I love this book, y’all. It’s a good one:

“Everything about your life is my concern, Mr. Robb, including your betrothed.”

BOSTON, 1793—Now engaged, Molly Chase and new federal intelligencer Josiah Robb want nothing more than to settle into quiet married life—or as quiet as life can be when one is hunting down a ring of traitors among Boston’s elite. But the plan has one glaring flaw: Molly herself, and the madness that has plagued her since her father’s death. Until Molly proves herself an asset rather than a liability, Josiah’s investigation cannot move forward.

Intelligencer Eliza Hall thought she had left her troubles behind in Philadelphia long ago. When she is sent back to follow a suspect, she’s ready to acknowledge the truth and make her peace—except that the man she loves, who doesn’t know about her past, is assigned to come with her. Now she must outwit her fellow spy and closest friend, lest he hate her for what she had been, while they maneuver to prevent Revolutionary France from dragging the fledgling United States into a war it cannot afford.

Both women are in search of a safe harbor. Little do they expect the winds to blow them into the most tumultuous waters of all—back home.

Also, happy wedding day to Molly and Josiah! I leave the date unmarked in the novel, but their wedding date, Adrift’s launch date, and the feast of St. Dominic coincide. Isn’t that cool?

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Where to Purchase Your Copy:

For signed paperbacks, purchase directly from my author store. Note: I can ship anywhere, but I’m in the US and international postage rates are 😬.

For both paperbacks and .epub (e-book), purchase from my publisher, Chrism Press.

For Amazon, click here.

International customers: Adrift is available via Amazon or any independent bookstore who works with Ingram distribution.

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Virtual Launch Party

Please join me for the virtue launch party! I will discuss the story behind the book, read a short selection, and take questions. I would love to see you there!

August 8, 2023
Facebook Live: 8 p.m. Eastern (US)
Instagram Live: 9 p.m. Eastern (US)

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram (and all the places) here:

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Book Launch Celebration and Meet-Up

Join me for a short day trip on Lake Michigan aboard the Friends Good Will, in celebration of the release of Adrift.

Saturday, August 12th at 3:15 p.m.
Michigan Maritime Museum, South Haven, MI

Everyone will need to purchase their own ticket ahead of time. Go to rhondaortiz.com/blog/celebrate-adrift for complete info, links to purchase tickets, and an RSVP form.

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2022 was an insane year.

We had a baby. Our sixth. And while the baby himself is deeply beloved, I could have done without the pregnancy and postpartum challenges. I’m in my forties. My pelvis torques with every pregnancy. The usual postpartum hormones are complicated by preexisting conditions. Et cetera, et cetera. Plus, one of our autistic children had several rough months in a row. Also, I wrote/revised all 138,000 words of Adrift in the span of six weeks, not long before Christmas.

Insane. Like I said.

I’m still dealing with hip pain, but otherwise things have calmed down. Our happy baby is now a happy toddler, my mental health is stable, the special needs situation has been addressed, I finished edits on Adrift, and I’ve begun writing the next Molly Chase installment. I also stepped back from some commitments. The storm has abated; the ship has righted.

And with that, I’ve discovered reading again. Yes, books. I had no idea how little I was reading until I turned in Adrift and all of a sudden had time and attention for other people’s writing. “I’m free to read…whatever I want!” And I am. And it is glorious.

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Post Captain (Aubrey/Maturin, Book Two)
Patrick O’Brian

I began my first “circumnavigation” of the Aubrey/Maturin series last fall with Master and Commander. (Read my cheeky reflections here.) I started Post Captain not long after, but owing to doing my developmental edits on Adrift, I wasn’t able to pick it back up again until March. So glad I persevered. While Master and Commander is an enjoyable romp, and not a middling or unthinking story by any stretch, Post Captain is a literary achievement. Adding the women to the mix does so much to develop Jack and Stephen as characters—I understand both men better, and I’m far more invested in the story now than I was after Master and Commander.

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Code Name Edelweiss
Stephanie Landsem

I’m a huge fan of Stephanie Landsem’s work (and of Stephanie herself). Code Name Edelweiss is based on the fascinating real life story of the Nazis’ attempt to infiltrate Hollywood and the amateur spies who stopped them. The novel’s central characters are fictional, but several historical persons make their way into the novel, including Leon Lewis, the Jewish lawyer and former Army intelligence officer who formed the spy ring. Plus, Code Name Edelweiss has a love story subplot. History + spies + romance = right up Rhonda’s alley.

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Works of Mercy
Sally Thomas

Works of Mercy is my favorite type of literary fiction: philosophic and beautifully written, yet also unpretentious, with recognizable characters and a recognizable world.

(Especially for us American Catholics. I know Janet Malkin. I may be Janet Malkin.)

No mid-century grotesques here: this is Jane Austen’s “bits of ivory,” the drama of ordinary life. Even the church cleaning lady has a story, and Sally Thomas tells it straight.

While I was immediately invested in Kirsty Sain, not much seemed to be happening, story wise…until something was happening. My husband likened the novel’s arc to the slow cracking of an egg. Crack… Crack… Crack, crack… Crack-crack-crack… Crack. BREAK.

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The Ghost Keeper
Natalie Morrill

Not entirely sure how to describe The Ghost Keeper except to say that it’s exceptional. One reviewer described it as “one long lyric poem, but never self-indulgent.” Like any story about WWII, it delves into darkness, but it also dares to hope. I loved the nuance, the love and care with which Natalie Morrill treats each character, including the antagonist. So well done.

The changes in narratorial point of view (first person, close third person, omniscient) interested me from a craft angle. Jozef questions his own reliability as a narrator several times over the course of the novel, and he also questions Friedrick’s, when we finally have Friedrick’s story. The war skews their vision of the whole, and the narratorial instability underscores this important theme.

Content warning for sensitive readers: In addition what’s obvious from the back cover copy, the book includes a few open door bedroom scenes.

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Next up in fiction:

• H.M.S. Surprise (Aubrey/Maturin Book 3), Patrick O’Brian

• The Metropolitan Affair, Jocelyn Green

• The Songs That Could Have Been, Amanda Wen

• Counterfeit Hope and Counterfeit Faith, Crystal Caudill (enjoyed Counterfeit Love, the first in the series; looking forward to numbers two and three)

• Dear Henry, Love Edith, Becca Kinzer

• And a ton of other titles from Catholic Writers Guild and Christian Mommy Writers authors. Now that 2022 is behind me, the world is my oyster!

Next up in nonfiction and professional development:

• Reach, Becky Robinson (almost finished!)

• The Genesis of Gender, Abigail Favale

• The Four Cardinal Virtues, Josef Pieper

• The City-State of Boston, Mark Peterson

How about you? What are you reading? Contact me here.

(Just a screenshot. See below for video links.)

For Holy Week, I was asked to share my thoughts on the readings for Holy (“Spy”) Wednesday. Our parish’s video service doesn’t allow for direct linking or embedding, but you can watch the video on Facebook here.

If you’re not on Facebook, use this link and click through the sidebar until you find the video for 4/8/20.

While we're on the subject of rare books... another book I needed to hunt down was an 18th century edition of the letters of Saints Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, and Polycarp of Smyrna, all first and second century Christian bishops.

One of my main characters is something of an armchair theologian. Like most 18th century Bostonians, he's a lifelong Congregationalist, but one with a lot of questions. And he's not one to accept another's say-so with having first examining matters himself.

Such things run in his blood; he's the grandson of a minister. Thankfully, he received a private education that included the study of Latin. In the 18th century, knowing Latin opened intellectual doors: most everything worth reading could be read in Latin.

Following the Reformation, theologians were increasingly interested in the writings of the early Church Fathers, as the differing Christian factions sought to establish themselves against Catholicism. The argument was that the Catholic Church has veered from its apostolic moorings and needed to be purged of its accumulated trappings. (Disclosure: I'm a practicing Catholic.)

Being married to a theologian and patristics scholar, I knew that if my character was going to read the Church Fathers, then I had better find the actual book, double-check its contents, and come up with a plausible account for how my character acquires said book. Not the easiest task! Fortunately, he’s an officer on a merchant ship, and with that comes mobility. When one travels the world, one is more likely to find things that other people wouldn't.

What I found was this:

Bibliotheca Patrum Apostolicorum—Library of the Apostolic Fathers

Once again, hat tip to Google Books.

This edition was edited by a Lutheran divine named Littig, who published the volume in Leipzig in 1699. It includes an opening essay by Professor Littig, followed by the letters of Clement, Ignatius, and Polycarp in both the original Greek and Latin translation on facing pages.

A rare book, indeed! And when my character finds it in a Charleston bookshop owned by a grumpy French ex-pat, he knows that this is the book he wants!

But will he manage to haggle his way to a bargain? When that surly Frenchman knows exactly what kind book he has, beyond a shadow of a doubt?

Good luck, son. Good luck.

One of my characters in my work-in-progress is an excellent cook. She was taught by the daughter of a French Huguenot refugee whose grandfather had been a pastry chef in Lyons. My character’s cooking is a blend of French, British, and American cuisine, with a preference for anything involving pastry.

Of course, cooking has evolved over time. While I always do a quick internet search to check the history of any particular dish before including it in my story, it's often easier to pick dishes from period cookbooks. The two I find myself returning to again and again are American Cookery by Amelia Simmons and The Modern Cook by Vincent La Chapelle.

And thanks to the wonders of Google Books, facsimiles of these books are not only available online for free, but also searchable. If historical cooking interests you, check them out!