Patricia Gligor interviews Olivia Berger
Patricia:
Olivia, please tell us a little bit about yourself.
Olivia:
Well, Patricia, I’m seventy-nine years old. I own the old Victorian in Westwood
that was built by my great-grandfather back in 1863. I’m confined to a wheelchair
and have been since my accident. I’ve lived in the house all my life and I’ve
seen a lot from my second floor windows. I’ve watched the neighborhood and the
people change. I rent out the first floor apartment and I’ve had some
interesting tenants through the years.
Patricia:
I hate to bring up what must be a painful subject but would you please tell us
about your accident?
Olivia:
Actually, I think about it a lot. I try not to dwell on the negative aspects
because I’m basically an optimistic person. I guess you could say I’m an
optimistic realist. What happened, happened. You see, when I was seventeen, I
was madly in love with a handsome young man named Jeremy. My father, who was a
wonderful man but a strict, stubborn German, didn’t approve of Jeremy so I had
to sneak out my bedroom window to meet him. We used to meet under the old Osage
orange tree behind the house. Anyway, the night of the accident I planned to
tell Jeremy that I was pregnant with his child. It was so cold that night and
raining. As I made my way down the fire escape, I slipped on the icy rungs and
fell. By the grace of God, my baby survived but the doctors said I would never
walk again.
Patricia:
I’m so sorry, Olivia. Were you ever able to contact Jeremy?
Olivia:
J I’m afraid I can’t
answer that question, Patricia, because to do so would give away too much of
the plot in the Malone mystery series novels.
Patricia:
I appreciate that. So, you mentioned that you’ve had some interesting tenants.
I understand that Ann and David Kern and their two children, Danielle and
Davey, currently live downstairs. Can you tell me a little bit about them?
Olivia:
I adore Ann and the children. It’s so good to hear the sound of children
laughing in the house. And, David, well, David is a good man but he has a
problem with alcohol. I don’t mean to eavesdrop but sometimes I hear them
arguing through the heat vent and it saddens me. I truly hope he straightens
himself out.
Patricia:
I do too. Tell me a little bit about your son. I understand he lives with you.
Olivia:
Oh, yes. I thank God for Lawrence every day. He does all of the things around
here that I’m not able to do and he never complains. He’s a wonderful son. But
I feel so bad for him because he was born with albinism. His skin and eyes are
so sensitive to light that he’s never really had a normal life. My fervent
prayer is that he finds a woman to love who will love him because when I’m
gone, although he’ll inherit everything including the house, he’ll be all
alone.
Patricia:
I’ll pray for that too, Olivia. I have one last thing I’d like to ask you. You
told me that you’ve seen a lot of changes in your neighborhood over the years.
What do you think about the recent reports of the Westwood Strangler?
Olivia:
Oh, my! It’s truly terrifying! Everyone’s afraid to go out alone and afraid to
stay home alone too. I sure hope the police find out who it is soon. I’m so
fortunate to have Lawrence and a loaded thirty-eight caliber revolver. J
Patricia:
Good for you! I’m a gun person myself. I’d like to thank you for spending this
time with us today. It has been a pleasure.
Olivia:
No, dear. The pleasure was all mine. When you reach my age, you don’t have all
that many people you can talk to.
Bio:
Patricia Gligor is a Cincinnati native.
She enjoys reading mystery/suspense novels, touring and photographing old
houses and traveling, especially to the ocean. Mixed Messages, the first
novel in her Malone Mystery Series, was published in April 2012 by Post Mortem
Press. Unfinished Business is the
second novel in the series.
Blurb:
The Westwood Strangler is dead.
Or so everyone believes.
Ann Kern is busy preparing for
her favorite holiday. She’s especially looking forward to her sister’s annual
Christmas visit. But, several things threaten to ruin her festive mood.
The National
Weather Service issues a severe winter storm warning for the Cincinnati area,
predicting blizzard conditions, and Ann worries that her sister and her new
boyfriend won’t be able to make the drive from South Carolina.
Then, a woman is found strangled
in Ann’s neighborhood and everyone, including the police, assumes it’s the work
of a copycat killer. However, when two more women are murdered in their homes,
the police announce their conviction that the Westwood Strangler is
responsible.
When Ann hears the news, the
sense of safety and security she’s worked so hard to recapture since her attack
on Halloween night, shatters. If the intruder who died in her apartment wasn’t
the Westwood Strangler, who is? And, who will be the next victim?
Links:
Patricia Gligor’s Amazon page:
Giveaway:
At the end of
the blog tour, I will be giving away one copy of Unfinished Business, the second novel in my Malone mystery series.
Leave a comment and you’re automatically entered to win. Please include your
email address with your comment so that, if your name is selected, I may
contact you to get your mailing address. The winner will be announced on my
blog: http://pat-writersforum.blogspot.com/ on December 11. Best of luck!
Comments
Thanks so much for inviting me. I chose Olivia to interview because she's one of my favorite characters too.
Madeline
Olivia is, for the most part, a composite of several elderly women who were neighbors of mine at one point or another but she is a unique individual. My favorite thing about her is her positive attitude toward life.
Morgan Mandel
http://morganmandel.blogspot.com
Most of the elderly women I've known have done that - they keep an eye on the neighborhood by looking out their windows. They're kind of like a neighborhood watch committee all wrapped up in one person.
I'm delighted to meet Olivia. (Love the name, by the way.) I can't wait to read her story and find out if she and Jeremy ever get together.
Will Olivia and Jeremy ever get together? All is revealed in "Unfinished Business."
I love the element of romance that their relationship brings to the book. I hope you will too!
Yay ladies!!
Rionna
Rionna, maybe you were drawn in because I know Olivia so well that she almost seems real to me. :)
Wendy
W.S. Gager on Writing
Marja McGraw
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