Elena Meets the Author

Today, I’m speaking to Brigitte Dale about her debut novel, The Good Daughters. It is a powerful, beautifully written story that takes us back to early 20th-century England, when women from all social classes united to fight for the right to vote.
Brigitte’s suspenseful and fast-paced novel weaves historical fact with gripping fiction, centring on four young suffragettes from vastly different backgrounds who come together in London. In 1912, this was not a safe or symbolic act. These women lived in a treacherous world where they risked being beaten, sexually assaulted, imprisoned, and brutally force-fed in jail. The laws and the justice system were firmly stacked against them.
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In this conversation, we talk about the real dangers of being a suffragette, the cost of speaking up, and how these forgotten histories shaped the story Brigitte wanted to tell.
We also dive into the four central characters. Charlotte is a middle-class girl who discovers that education does not equal freedom. She shocks her parents by fleeing her English boarding school, escaping to London, and joining the suffragette movement. Beatrice is aristocratic, armed with a law degree she is not legally allowed to use, and engaged to a man she feels little connection to. While handing out leaflets and joining protests, she falls into a forbidden and dangerous love with Sadie, a fellow suffragette and American expat.
Then there is Emily, the daughter of the warden at the notorious Holloway Prison. When suffragettes are brought into the jail, Emily is forced to question everything she has been taught. Her father dismisses the women as hysterical and unstable, yet they do not seem crazy at all. They simply want the right to have a voice and decide their own future.
This is a timeless story about politics, friendship, chosen family, love, perseverance, sacrifice, and the courage it takes to speak up when doing so is dangerous.

Timestamps00:00 Elena meets Brigitte Dale00:42 Character deep dive: the four suffragettes03:13 Writing historical fiction and research05:44 The realities faced by women in the movement08:49 Protest, public response, and change17:17 Suffragists vs suffragettes20:32 Placing the story in its historical context29:00 What Bridget is working on next32:48 Final thoughts


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In this episode of Elena Meets the Author, I’m joined by the talented Samantha Greene Woodruff to talk about her gripping historical novel The Trade-Off.
Set against the backdrop of the 1929 Wall Street crash, the novel follows Bea Abramovitz, a mathematically gifted and young jewish woman who foresees the financial collapse but struggles to be taken seriously in a world dominated by men. We explore the inspiration behind the book, the harsh realities of Wall Street in the 1920s, and what it takes to write complex, compelling female characters in historical fiction.
Samantha also shares fascinating insights into her research process, how she balances historical accuracy with narrative tension, and the surprising parallels between the world of the 1920s and the financial and political climate we see today. It’s a thoughtful, timely conversation about power, intuition, and whose voices get heard, then and now.
Highlights
00:00 Introduction
00:15 Introducing Samantha Greene Woodruff
00:35 The story behind The Trade-Off
01:49 Samantha’s writing journey and inspirations
04:17 Researching Wall Street in the 1920s
07:04 Character development and key themes
08:48 Women in finance during the 1920s
22:59 Building suspense in historical fiction
24:27 Writing tension when readers know the outcome
25:04 Financial research and real-world data
27:33 The 1929 market crash
30:15 Choosing the right book title
32:30 The Lobotomist’s Wife and earlier work
34:33 Core themes and takeaways
35:29 The road to publication
39:20 New projects and what’s next
41:54 Final thoughts and surprising discoveries


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In this new episode of Elena Meets the Author, I’m joined by debut American novelist Emily Everett to talk about her novel All That Life Can Afford.
We talk about how Emily’s own experiences shaped the story, and explore themes of social class, ambition, friendship, and belonging. We also discuss the influence of Pride and Prejudice on the novel, and what it was like for Emily to write while balancing a demanding day job.
Emily shares insights into her writing process, reflects on the long road to finishing her debut, and tells me about her next novel, set in western Massachusetts. The episode also includes a reading from the first chapter, offering an early glimpse into the life and aspirations of the novel’s protagonist, Anna Byrne.
00:16 Introducing Emily Everett and Her Novel
00:35 Plot Summary of ‘All That Life Can Afford’
02:52 Interview with Emily Everett Begins
04:37 Autobiographical Elements in the Novel
15:57 Insights into Emily’s Next Book
20:12 Choosing St Tropez Over Zurich
20:45 Love for the British Library
22:28 Living in London: A Magical Experience
26:48 Writing Challenges and Successes
28:36 Audiobook Narration Insights
30:29 Book Recommendations and Inspirations
32:01 Hopes for Readers and Personal Reflections


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In this special holiday episode of Elena Meets the Author, I’m joined by Lisa Scully, the owner of the wonderful Locust Valley Bookstore on Long Island.
Lisa shares her journey into independent bookstore ownership and speaks openly about the challenges and rewards of running a local bookshop today. We talk about competing with Amazon, the importance of community support, and what keeps independent bookstores alive and thriving, especially during the Christmas season.
We also dive into the joy of bookselling. Lisa talks about how she curates her shelves, why book covers matter more than we sometimes admit, and how Instagram has become an essential way for her to connect with readers and share thoughtful, often unexpected recommendations. Along the way, she offers plenty of reading inspiration, including Christmas gift ideas, bestselling titles from the year, standout children’s books, and some personal favourites.
It’s a warm, funny, and uplifting conversation about books, community, and resilience, and a perfect listen for the holidays.
You can explore Locust Valley Bookstore and Lisa’s recommendations at
https://www.locustvalleybooks.com
You can also follow the bookstore on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/locustvalleybookstore
Episode chapters
00:00 Introduction00:15 Special Christmas episode00:32 Lisa Scully and Locust Valley Bookstore03:16 Lisa’s journey to owning a bookstore09:13 The challenges and triumphs of running a bookstore15:06 Competing with Amazon19:48 Instagram and modern bookselling24:13 The importance of book covers26:40 What makes Locust Valley Bookstore unique27:28 Book recommendations28:24 Christmas reading suggestions29:36 Top-selling books of the year36:27 Children’s books highlights37:51 Favourite books of the year39:37 The resilience of independent bookstores
🎧 Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.


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New episode out now!
In episode 37 of Elena Meets the Author, I speak with award-winning journalist and debut biographer Chris Sweeney about his fascinating new book, The Feather Detective: Mystery, Mayhem, and the Magnificent Life of Roxie Laybourne.
Chris’s book introduced me to a woman I had never heard of but now can’t stop thinking about: Roxie Collie Laybourne, the trailblazing scientist whose work quite literally changed aviation safety. Known as the world’s first forensic ornithologist, Roxie had an extraordinary ability to identify bird species from the tiniest fragment of feather, skills she developed during her decades at the Smithsonian Institution.
Roxie’s expertise became essential to understanding bird strikes, a major risk to aircraft. Her feather-identification methods helped the FAA and aircraft manufacturers design safer planes, refine engine tests, and prevent accidents. Today, her techniques remain foundational in aviation forensics.
While aviation made up the bulk of her career, Roxie’s feather work also touched the world of criminal investigations, including poaching cases and a KKK murder. The New York Times called her the Miss Marple of Eiderdown. Chris and I talk about what he uncovered in his research, what surprised him, and what it was like to piece together a life lived partly behind laboratory doors.
We also dive into Chris’s writing process: how he first came to hear of Roxie, how he structured her biography, how he kept the science vivid and accessible, and how he grappled with portraying a woman who valued precision, privacy, and sometimes mischief. Roxie began her Smithsonian work long before “forensic ornithology” had a name, and she left an imprint on both science and safety that is still felt today.
I loved this conversation, and I hope you come away admiring Roxie Laybourne’s genius as much as I now do.
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⏱ Episode Chapters
00:00 Introduction00:16 Meeting Chris Sweeney and discovering Roxie Laybourne01:04 Roxie’s early life and path into natural science01:36 The feather-identification breakthrough02:41 Challenges, opportunities, and major achievements05:37 How Chris first stumbled onto Roxie’s story09:28 Aviation disasters and how feather forensics played a role12:51 The FAA and the history of bird-strike investigations14:40 Roxie’s long-term impact on aviation safety20:31 Her broader contributions to forensic science22:07 Feather evidence in wildlife and poaching cases25:15 Roxie as mentor and collaborator27:51 A significant family decision and how Roxie handled it28:51 How Chris approached writing an engaging biography30:33 Structuring a life story on the page32:39 Roxie’s legacy today33:46 How she navigated sexism in subtle—and not-so-subtle—ways35:59 Her deep commitment to her craft37:56 Creating the book cover for The Feather Detective40:13 Behind-the-scenes research surprises43:38 The emotional journey of writing a first book45:08 Future projects and inspirations46:46 Final thoughts and recommendations


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