About the Event

We are pleased to invite you to our Rome, Raphael and Ravioli Virtual Adventure with bestselling authors Christopher Castellani, Kate Quinn, Crystal King, and Stephanie Storey.  Join us on Zoom* to “meet” the authors and their shared passion for Italian art, culture, music, and food.

As you relax in the comfort and warmth of your own home for this Adventure, pour yourself a glass of Italian wine, surround yourself with lovely artwork, prepare a delicious plate of ravioli, light some inspirational candles, or nestle in your favorite chair, while you travel virtually with our authors to the enchanted land of Italy.

Share the passion and creative energy between Tennessee Williams and Frank Merlo in Christopher Castelllani’s Leading Men, and enjoy a brief dramatic reading from the book by Christopher.

Travel back to first-century Rome in Kate Quinn’s Mistress of Rome, and do not miss a surprise vocal performance by this bestselling author and classically-trained singer.

Hunger for delicious Renaissance food prepared by the first papal chef, Bartolomeo Scappi, in Crystal King’s The Chef’s Secret, and feast on Crystal’s visual presentation of a papal kitchen.

And admire the magnificent world of Renaissance art in Raphael, Stephanie Storey’s historical art thriller, along with  Stephanie’s visual presentation of Renaissance art set to music.

This Virtual Adventure was designed not only to support four authors whose book tours/events were cancelled due to COVID-19, but also to provide readers with our signature Adventures by the Book multi-sensorial experience that brings literature to life in exciting and unique ways. Event admission is included with your purchase of any of the authors’ books, or purchase all four, and receive a special bundled discount.

Your Adventure includes your choice of any of the authors’ books, free shipping within the US, signed bookplate, a virtual book discussion, Q&A, a little Italian music, a visual presentation on the papal kitchen, and a Renaissance art slide show.

*Instructions to join the Zoom virtual Adventure will be emailed to you three days prior to the event. Please note that no technical assistance will be available during the event, so we highly recommend you practice using Zoom with friends and family prior to the event.

About the Authors

Christopher Castellani is the son of Italian immigrants and a native of Wilmington, Delaware. He currently lives in Boston, where he is the artistic director of Grub Street, the country’s largest and leading independent creative writing center.

He is the author of three critically-acclaimed novels, A Kiss from Maddalena—winner of the Massachusetts Book Award in 2004— The Saint of Lost, a BookSense (IndieBound) Notable Book; and All This Talk of Love, a New York Times Editors’ Choice and finalist for the Ferro-Grumley Literary Award.

The Art of Perspective: Who Tells the Story, a collection of essays on point of view in fiction, was published in 2016, and his new novel, Leading Men, for which he received Fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the MacDowell Colony, and the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

Kate Quinn is the USA Today, New York Times, and internationally bestselling author of The Alice Network and The Huntress, along with multiple historical fiction novels, including two books set during the Italian Renaissance, and four books in the Empress of Rome Saga, all of which have been translated into multiple languages.

Mistress of Rome is the gripping first novel in the Empress of Rome Saga that takes place in first-century Rome, a world of blood, depravity, and secrets, where the ruthless and enigmatic Emperor Domitian watches over all—and fixes his gaze on one humble young woman….

A native of southern California, she attended Boston University where she earned a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Classical Voice.

To schedule a book club visit with Stephanie or any of our authors on NovelNetwork:

Crystal King is an author, culinary enthusiast, and marketing expert. Her writing is fueled by a love of history and a passion for the food, language, and culture of Italy. She has taught classes in writing, creativity, and social media at several universities including Harvard Extension School and Boston University, as well as at GrubStreet, one of the leading creative writing centers in the US.

A Pushcart Prize–nominated poet and former co-editor of the online literary arts journal Plum Ruby Review, Crystal received her MA in critical and creative thinking from UMass Boston, where she developed a series of exercises and writing prompts to help fiction writers in medias res. She resides in Boston but considers Italy her next great love after her husband, Joe, and their two cats, Nero and Merlin. She is the author of Feast of Sorrow and The Chef’s Secret. 

To schedule a book club visit with Stephanie or any of our authors on NovelNetwork:

Stephanie Storey’s debut novel Oil and Marble is a Los Angeles Times bestseller, was named one of Hudson Booksellers’ Best Books of 2016, and was called “tremendously entertaining” by The New York Times. She has a degree in Fine Arts from Vanderbilt University and attended a PhD program in Art History—before leaving to get her MFA in Creative Writing from Emerson College.

She has studied art in Italy and been on a pilgrimage to see every Michelangelo on display in Europe. She has also been a television producer for over 15 years in Los Angeles for shows like The Alec Baldwin Show on ABC, The Arsenio Hall Show for CBS, and The Writers’ Room for Sundance Channel. When not writing novels or producing television, she can usually be found — with her husband, an actor and Emmy-winning comedy writer — traveling the world in search of her next story.

To schedule a book club visit with Stephanie or any of our authors on NovelNetwork:

For Book Clubs

Are you in a book club, or do you have a group of friends, colleagues, or other social group who are seeking fabulous authors who are excited and available to meet with you? Then you will be delighted to know that Kate Quinn, Crystal King, and Stephanie Storey are just three members of our wonderful community of over 100 NovelNetwork authors, available to meet with book clubs via video chat, and you can even do so via Zoom (for free) from the safety and comfort of your own homes.

NovelNetwork is the nation’s first and only match(dot)com for authors and book clubs to find each other, so check it out today. Book clubs join for free and gain access to our database of dozens of authors, from NYT and international bestsellers, to debut authors, cookbook authors, mystery and non-fiction authors, and representing various regions of the United States, and even Alaska and Hawaii, all of whom want to meet with you!

To schedule a visit with Kate, Crystal, Stephanie or any of our authors, join for free here.