This week, I’m pleased to welcome Latayne Scott, who will be sharing about her new Young Adult book, The Mona Lisa Mirror Mystery. Isn’t that an intriguing title? Let’s find out a little more about the book.
Addy’s three friends don’t know what to think when Addy tells them she’s “whooshed” right back into time and met quirky Leonardo daVinci. Is it a dream? And what do the girls do when they have just as much drama in the present?
Latayne, what led you to write the book?
Although it is now the most famous painting in the world, the Mona Lisa by Leonardo DaVinci was not well-known to the general public before 1911. That was the year it was stolen, and is true of many crimes, the theft (and eventual return) made it famous. Since then numerous books, songs, and movies have speculated on the meaning of Lisa’s enigmatic smile.
But was it really Lisa del Giocondo in the painting? Again, hundreds of thousands of words speculate on this issue. But I wondered – what if someone went back in time and watched the process of the painting?
As soon as I thought of that, with a “whoosh” the whole story that became The Mona Lisa Mirror Mystery fell into place. My main character, a teenager living today in Santa Fe, New Mexico, stares at the famous painting and with a “whoosh” is transported back to Florence, Italy during the early 1500s. There, some of the well-known historical quirks of the artist DaVinci (writing backwards or in mirror images, his secrecy about projects he worked on, other peculiarities) that led me to a possible answer to the enduring mystery.
But as a Christian author, I couldn’t just write entertainment. I’ve been committed to writing on significant themes since my first book, The Mormon Mirage. In fact, my newest nonfiction is a co-written book on sexual predators. I’m passionate about using both nonfiction and fiction to help people think through difficult subjects. So The Mona Lisa Mirror Mystery delves into apologetics and sexual abuse from the point of view of an adolescent, to provide the reader not with just a fun read, but help with ideas about witnessing to non-Christian friends, what to do if a friend has been molested, and other topics important to young people.
Latayne C. Scott writes controversial books. A recent novel, the critically acclaimed A Conspiracy of Breath (a finalist in the International Book Awards), is based on the scholarly theory that a woman wrote part of the Bible. She has won other awards for her writing, including from Pepperdine University, its “Distinguished Service Award.” Her first book, The Mormon Mirage–also controversial– has stayed in print almost continuously for almost 40 years. She has two dozen other published books.
One notable recent book is about the discovery of the ancient Biblical city of Sodom (Discovering the City of Sodom.) Her first novel is a murder mystery revolving around a code developed by the early Mormon church (Latter-day Cipher). Another is an Amish ghost story, What Will Be Made Plain. Co-written with three other ex-LDS scholars, is Leaving Mormonism. All are…. controversial.
With her sole-authored theological books, she is patron-supported and publishes those books exclusively with TSU Press. She’s also won a national award for humor. Her kids say she’s not so funny, but she just holds up the prize check.
Bethany House just released Protecting Your Child From Predators: How to Recognize and Respond to Sexual Danger, co-written with Dr. Beth Robinson.
Latayne blogs at Latayne.com, and is Latayne C. Scott on Facebook and Latayne on Twitter.
Latayne is giving away 2 ebook copies of her book. Follow the directions below to enter.
Thanks for joining us, Latayne!