Lighthouse Keeper
by Eliza Lentzski
Released: Mar 12, 2024
Genre: Historical Romance
Why this book and why now?
I’ve been wanting to write a historical romance for a while now. I have a PhD in American history, so it felt overdue to finally do that. I have a few history ideas in my “books to be written” folder, but Lighthouse Keeper was the novel vying for the most attention.
My wife and I were in Provincetown, MA two Decembers ago. It was a warm-for-December sunny day, so we went for a walk on P-town’s giant rock breakwall (jetty). We went at low tide to see the lighthouse, and it struck me how isolated the beacon was and what a lonely existence that would have been–to be the lighthouse keeper. The more I thought about this lighthouse at the end of the earth, the more my brain kept spinning, and I eventually came up with the premise that became Lighthouse Keeper.
What is a significant way your book has changed since either the first draft or the way you thought it would turn out when you first had the inspiration?
The most significant way the novel has changed is probably point of view. I tend to write in 1st person POV, but as I started to write Lighthouse Keeper, I knew I wanted readers to have a glimpse into both Lizzy and Joana’s lives and inner thoughts, so it suddenly became 3rd person POV, something I hadn’t done since I wrote Second Chances, over a decade(!) ago.
What’s your main character(s)’s favorite book and why?
Lizzy’s favorite book is Lewis Carroll’s, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (a.k.a. Alice in Wonderland). The book is about a topsy-turvy world where upside-down is right side up, which is exactly how she feels when she meets and eventually falls in love with Provincetown’s enigmatic new lighthouse keeper.
What 3 things would your main character want with them if they got stranded away from civilization, and why?
1. A good book: Lizzy and Joana bond over books and reading, so they would definitely need some novels to help pass the time.
2. A portrait/photo of their families: Family is really important to both characters, so having that with them would be a comfort.
3. A lamp or candle, which would remind them of the lighthouse’s lantern where they fell in love.
Publishing a book is a huge accomplishment and it’s time to party! Choose a celebratory beverage for one of your main characters to toast the release of your new book.
Lighthouse Keeper is set in 1874, which is too early for a lot of beverages. My favorite cocktail is the Old Fashioned, but that wasn’t invented until the 1880s. Root beer wasn’t even mass produced until 1876! However, the very first ice-cream soda is recorded to have been sold in 1874, and since my middle name is ‘Ice Cream,’ that seems like an appropriate celebratory book beverage.
