Between the Chapters Book Club discussion

For the most part, Rosie speaks to the reader in a contemporary voice. Do you think her flippant sarcasm adds to or detracts from the story? Did you find Rosie more relatable due to the absence of Shakespeare's Elizabethan language?

Normally I dislike a modern voice in a HR. Obviously I don't wish for old English either. My husband has to pull me from the ceiling everytime I see an author use the term "lean in", an automatic star deduction. However Rosie makes it work. Actually Ms Dodd has it working for all the characters. We aren't reading Shakespeare, we are reading a fun mash up on one of the most famous stories/plays ever written.

Maureen wrote: "Normally I dislike a modern voice in a HR. Obviously I don't wish for old English either. My husband has to pull me from the ceiling everytime I see an author use the term "lean in", an automatic s..."

❤️

Rosie came to me as a whole character, as did her voice, and I knew I was walking a fine line for Shakespearean purists. I've written a lot of historical romances, so I know how to create the (almost believable) language, but Rosie is a 20 yo daughter of celebrity parents, so she had an edge. Which was released in her smartass-ness.

This is similar to the time travel stories where the modern person sent back in time can understand and speak like the natives automatically. In this case we're back in Verona, engaging with the characters, and not having to translate!