Interview: Jillian Forsberg of 'The Porcelain Menagerie'

I was intrigued to hear about the new novel by Jillian Forsberg, titled The Porcelain Menagerie, and even more so to learn it is set in the eighteenth century! In researching and writing The Blue, I delved into the tumultuous--even violent--history of porcelain creation in Europe, once inventors had "broken" the secret of the Chinese formulas.

I was lucky enough to read an advance copy of Jillian's novel and loved it. Here's a plot description: In a world where ambition is as fragile as porcelain, two lives are shaped by a king's dangerous obsessions. In 18th-century Dresden, the dangerous whims of King Augustus the Strong shape the court and the lives of those held captive, both people and animals.

Now the novel is out and winning rave reviews everywhere. I caught up with Jillian to ask her a few questions:

Nancy Bilyeau: You and I are both drawn to the history of porcelain when creating historical fiction. Why does it fascinate you?

Jillian Forsberg: Art history has always been interesting to me, but the creation of porcelain is truly an intriguing story — I love secrets, drama, and beauty, and porcelain encompasses all of those things. From the Chinese makers who perfected it to the Europeans who tried and failed and tried again to copy it, there’s such humanity in the process. In China, from one step to the next is the product of community, and in Europe, it always inspires me to find stories of reliance when the early makers failed so many times and just kept at it. It’s amazing, too, to see the differences in art that are considered wildly successful from different parts of the world: some look amazing, and some look downright grotesque. 

 

NB: What makes the 18th century an exciting setting for a narrative? 

JF: Well, I think I’m biased! My master’s thesis is set in the 18th century, and therefore, a lot of my mental energy was spent in that time period. Those 100 years for me have always been delicious because of the Age of Enlightenment, the expansion of curiosity, and then, toward the end of the century, upheavals and revolutions all over the world. One of my favorite things is a good museum gallery, and the 18th century produced some of the finest artifacts and collections of any time period. The ultra-wealthy sought out collections of all kinds of things, and it really was a testament to how the 1% lived. But below the shimmering surface of fine goods, the middle class was finding its footing… the thread through the 18th century is change, beauty, and endings. That makes for quite an exciting historical fiction setting!

 

NB: I find Augustus the Strong pretty mind-blowing as monarchs go. What were the most surprising things you learned about him?

JF: He truly is. I think I was truly surprised that even with my formal education, I had never heard of him. He would have been sorely disappointed in that! The man was almost a caricature as far as kings go — over the top, outlandish, boisterous, and relentless. But he didn’t really DO anything. The latest biography published about him, just last fall, is literally called Augustus the Strong: A Study in Artistic Greatness and Political Fiasco. He tried his best to be memorable, but unfortunately, what was most recorded was his rumored 300+ bastard children, terrible addiction to blood sport, chaining artists to the floors of their studios, and, my personal favorite, ripping horseshoes in half in front of a crowd. The man was unbelievable. A perfect fictional subject, a quite imperfect king. 

To learn more about Jillian Forsberg, go to her website.

To order The Porcelain Menagerie, click here.

Limited-Time Deal: 'The Blue' Is Free

I'm thrilled to let people know that they can download my novel, THE BLUE, for free until July 5. It's the first book in my Genevieve Planche series. 

Joffe Books set a three-day deal on the ebook of THE BLUE, coordinating with BookBub on a promotion. 

Here's the Publishers Weekly review from the time of its publication in 2018: 

Genevieve Planché, the appealing 24-year-old narrator of this intriguing thriller from Bilyeau (The Crown), longs to be a painter at a time, 1759, when “female sensibilities” are considered “too delicate for art.” Reluctantly, she accepts a job as a decorator at the Derby Porcelain Works, but before setting off from her London home, she’s approached by dashing Sir Gabriel Courtenay, who asks her to spy on the new chemist at the factory, Thomas Sturbridge, who has “created an entirely new shade of blue.” In exchange for this treachery, she’s promised enough money to set herself up as a painter in Venice. After agreeing to this scheme, she comes to realize that the quest for the new blue can alter the destiny of a king and create works of awesome beauty but also lead to kidnapping, betrayal, and murder. Fascinating details include glimpses of the newly opened British Museum, a Christmas party at the home of William Hogarth, and Madame de Pompadour’s residence at Versailles. Historical fans will be well satisfied.

I was fortunate enough to win endorsements for THE BLUE from some wonderful authors:

'Definitely a winner!' -- Kate Quinn, bestselling historical novelist

'Fascinating' -- Ian Rankin, author of the top-selling Rebus mystery series

'Bilyeau is an impressive talent who brings to life a heart-stopping story of adventure, art and espionage.' - Stephanie Dray, author of My Dear Hamilton.

‘...transports the reader into the heart of the 18th-century porcelain trade—where the price of beauty was death.’ - E.M. Powell, author of the Stanton & Barling medieval mystery series.

'With rich writing, surprising twists, and a riveting sense of 'you are there,' The Blue is spine-tingling entertainment.' – Gayle Lynds, New York Times bestselling author of The Assassins

To download an e-book in the US: here.

To download an ebook in the UK: here.

To download an ebook in Canada: here

To download an ebook in Australia: here.

A New Design for My Genevieve Planché Series

After I turned in my final edits on The Versailles Formula, I felt a tug of excitement over seeing what cover design my publisher's designer had created for the novel. Both The Blue and The Fugitive Colours displayed lovely covers, and I was curious to see the plan for the third in the series.

To my surprise, my editor emailed me that the team at Joffe Books had come up with a bold new idea: to redesign the covers of the first two novels along with the cover of the third. The series would take a fresh approach, emphasizing that these were suspenseful historical novels with a woman protagonist at the center who was facing obstacles and searching for answers. (Once I think about it, the covers of the first two, while striking, did not convey that.)

They fiddled and fussed over the details for a while—I have to say the suspense was building in my house! But when my editor emailed me the covers, I was enthralled. They have a rich atmosphere, a touch of eeriness, and a mood that I think conveys the spirit of Genevieve Planché.

Here they are:

I hope you like the new look of the series!

To kick off the series and find new readers, The Blue's ebook is discounted at 99 cents (or pence). 

'The Blue' Ebook Is Free This Week

 

My novel THE BLUE, set in the 18th century and following a Huguenot painter's secret mission to discover the formula for the most beautiful shade of blue ever created, is free for the ebook in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia. The sale lasts until June 3rd.

I was fortunate enough to win endorsements for THE BLUE from some wonderful authors:

'Definitely a winner!' -- Kate Quinn, author of The Alice Network

'Fascinating' -- Ian Rankin, author of the Rebus mystery series

‘...transports the reader into the heart of the 18th-century porcelain trade—where the price of beauty was death.’ - E.M. Powell, author of the Stanton & Barling medieval mystery series.

'Bilyeau is an impressive talent who brings to life a heart-stopping story of adventure, art and espionage.' - Stephanie Dray, author of My Dear Hamilton.

'With rich writing, surprising twists, and a riveting sense of 'you are there,' The Blue is spine-tingling entertainment.' – Gayle Lynds, New York Times bestselling author of The Assassins

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Andrew Planche: A Huguenot Porcelain Visionary

In all the fiction I've written so far, the main character is a product of my imagination, as are many of the secondary characters. But I also weave into my stories real people from history. Some are quite famous, such as Henry VIII and Catherine Howard in my Tudor trilogy, and Louis XV and Madame de Pompadour in The Blue. But some "real" people who populate my books, while far from well known to the general public, are important to me and to my story.

Such is certainly the case with Andrew Planche, a character in The Blue.

  

When I was first sketching out my ideas for this historical thriller, I knew I wanted to write an espionage story set in the porcelain world of the 18th century, but I hadn't developed the main character beyond  "female spy." I had a true "A ha!" moment when, in my research, I discovered that Huguenot artists played a pivotal role in the early days of many English porcelain factories. I had long been wanting to write about the French Huguenots. I myself am descended from a Huguenot settler who came to New Amsterdam (now New York City) in 1661.

But before I go any further on the Huguenots, it's important to explain the state of porcelain-making in England in the 1700s. For centuries, porcelain was the provenance of China, with hard-paste porcelain produced there beginning in the 13th century. When Western markets opened up, it was exported to those who could pay. In Europe, porcelain found an eager market, with the royal families of several Western European countries spending a fortune on their collections.  King Philip of Spain, who tried, and failed, to invade England, was a porcelain enthusiast; King Louis XIV of France a porcelain fanatic.

Not surprisingly, in Europe there were many efforts to create porcelain without needing to import it at such tremendous cost, but no one could figure out the correct formula for turning clay into fragile objects of ravishing, sparkling beauty. Then came two breakthroughs--one of them thanks to a mission of espionage in China--and by the early 18th century the competition was on. 

Porcelain workshops sprang up in Germany, France, and England to try to snatch up this luxury market. One museum curator described it to me as "the space race of its time." Ironically, these same three countries became embroiled in the Seven Years War in the mid-18th century, known as the French and Indian War in America. They were vying for dominance in many spheres. One was colonial exploitation, yes. Another was manufacturing the most beautiful porcelain.

As for the Huguenots, they were French Protestants who, faced with hostility from the Catholic powers-that-be in France, immigrated in waves.  They formed a sizable community in England--in fact, the word refugee was coined to describe these Protestants seeking refuge in another country. Many Huguenots  were highly skilled artisans such as silk weavers, potters, and silversmiths, and it is now acknowledged that France erred in driving out these valuable citizens. The destruction of this burgeoning middle class played a part in the outbreak of the French Revolution.

Andrew Planche is in many ways a classic Huguenot of his time. However, there are gaps and contradictions in his story. 

He was born in either 1727 or 1728 to Paul Planche, a French refugee, and his wife, Marie Ann Fournier, and baptized in Soho. Some accounts say that his father was a coffee merchant whose name was actually Blanchet, others that the father was a ceramicist trained at Meissen, one of the leading porcelain workshops in Europe, who taught Andrew what he knew. It seems that either the father died while Andrew was a teenager or he remarried and Andrew and his brothers had to "shift for themselves."

By the 1750s, Andrew Planche seems to have found a home in Derby, one source said "in reduced circumstances." According to various documents and papers, he was there in 1756 at the formation of Derby Porcelain Works. William Duesbury, who had London experience in "enameling," and a banker named John Heath set up this business. Planche is thought by some to have been the creative force. 

One book published in 1878 described the situation:

"There has always been a tradition that the first maker of China [porcelain] in Derby was a Frenchman, who lived in a small house in Lodge Lane, who modelled and made small articles in China, principally animals--birds, cats, dogs, lambs, etc., which he fired in a pipe-maker's oven in the neighborhood belonging to a man named Woodward....He was evidently a very clever man and ... had the secret to making China body, Duesbury the energy and other requirements and Heath the money to start out and carry out the famous Derby China Works."

"Chinaman and Boy," attributed to Andrew Planche

Above is a photograph of one of the very few porcelain objects attributed to Andrew Planche. As you can see, it is far from a simple cat or dog but a sophisticated figure of an Asian man, swirling in motion. The art and fashion of the Far East fascinated the aristocrats and wealthy merchants of England  during this time.

Despite its promising launch as a business, Andrew Planche extricated himself from Derby Porcelain Works just as it was gaining its first acclaim. I could never find an explanation as to why.

Catherine Beth, Lippert, the author of Eighteenth Century English Porcelain in the Collection of the Indianapolis Museum of Art, said Planche's work displayed "a vitality and crispness of modeling that the later pieces lack." After Planche's exit, Lippert wrote that Derby's style of the porcelain was strongly influenced by Sevres, the French manufactory sponsored by Madame de Pompadour, the mistress of Louis XV.

By the 1760s Andrew had changed his name and was actively pursuing a career as an actor. He toured the north of England and by 1768 worked as a prompter at the Old Orchard Street Theatre in Bath where he supposedly "stayed for thirty-one years." Andrew Planche died in January 1805.

As for Derby Porcelain Works, it did not suffer long from Planche's departure. By 1770, Duesbury, described by all as an astute and assertive businessman, acquired some of his competition in the respected Chelsea China Works and the Bow moulds, and brought a number of their craftsmen from London to Derby. He opened a large London showroom in 1773.

A figure created in Derby after Planche's departure

According to the website for the factory, "A Royal Warrant from King George III, dated 28th March 1775, appointing William Duesbury and John Heath 'Derby China Manufacturers to His Majesty', and in recognition the factory adopted a new mark with a crown surmounting the script Duesbury ‘D’ used earlier."


Royal Crown Derby "is one of the few original fine bone china manufacturers that still remains in Britain today, 100 percent producing in Britain," states its website. "Ours is a history with an illustrious heritage in British society."

Royal Crown Derby porcelain made in 1770s, showing influence of Sevres.
From the Victoria and Albert Museum Collection.

Royal Crown Derby today

To circle back to The Blue, I was so intrigued by the mysteries of Andrew Planche, described by one 19th century writer dismissively as "an apocryphal French refugee," that I decided to make him the cousin of my main character, a Huguenot artist who I named Genvieve Planche. In the novel Andrew plays a small but pivotal role, yet he's as much of a fundamental mystery to Genevieve as he is to history. :)

'The Blue' Discounted to .99 on Boookbub Day

It's a big day. My novel THE BLUE has been chosen as the Bookbub offering for all the newsletter subscribers whose chosen category is Historical Fiction. Since Bookbub wants to promote novels on discount, my publisher has lowered the price of the book to .99 for the ebook in the United States and the United Kingdom. The discount is in effect until Friday, Feb. 15th.

Other exciting news: the Historical Novel Review has bestowed on THE BLUE an Editors' Pick in the February issue: "...Bilyeau takes us on a rollercoaster ride through the history of porcelain making and through the world of 18^th-century French and British espionage. On that ride, we meet Madame Pompadour at Versailles, walk the halls of the British Museum, and stroll the streets of 18^th-century London. On that journey, too, Bilyeau introduces us to a memorable cast: Genevieve, who is faced with seemingly impossible choices which test her resolve and her faith; slick and despicable Courtenay; Sturbridge, clever, funny and always with something up his sleeve. Bilyeau’s research is impeccable, taking what might have been a dreary industrial novel and making it into a living, breathing drama. Kudos and highly recommended!" Full review here.

So please order the ebook today, and take advantage of this deep discount :). Click here.

Thank you!

I'm on the Cover of The Big Thrill!

Very pleased to be on a magazine cover for the first time ever :) I was interviewed by Dawn Ius, an editor of The Big Thrill, on my new novel The Blue. How I got the idea for the book, the historical underpinnings of the 18th century, and creating the characters.

She concluded the feature with:

"The novel, both beautifully written and historically impressive, delivers surprises not only for the author, but for the reader as well, demonstrating just how much one is willing to suffer in pursuit and protection of their dreams."

To read the whole story, go here.

Cover Reveal Day for "The Blue"!

Today is the day to share with everyone the cover of "The Blue," my historical thriller set in the 18th century that asks the question: What would you do for the most beautiful color in the world?

The cover was created by designers at Endeavour Quill, my UK-based publisher for the novel. I think they did a great job!

I can also share the very first endorsement blurb: ‘Bilyeau’s sumptuous tale of mystery and intrigue transports the reader into the heart of the 18th century porcelain trade—where the price of beauty was death.’ E.M. Powell, author of the Stanton & Barling medieval mystery series.

In this book, I plunge into the luxury-obsessed Georgian society of the 1750s, when someone would go bankrupt collecting porcelain. But it was also the time of a war with France, and spying between the two countries was flourishing. In "The Blue," these two worlds intersect, with a heroine, Genevieve Planche, drawn from the Huguenot Spitalfields neighborhood.

This book is a big departure for me, based on years of research, and I worked to develop some multi-faceted characters.

I need your support :) Please go to my brand new Goodreads page, and mark the novel "Want to Read." I'd be extremely grateful :)

The book will be published this Fall, in print and on digital in the UK and US. Details to follow...

Historical Novel Society: Announcement of My 18th Century Thriller

I'm so pleased that Historical Novel Society, in it quarterly publication Historical Novel Review, released the news of my upcoming novel, The Blue. I'm moving from the 16th century to the 18th century with this book, which revolves around a woman artist, a French Huguenot living in London, who gets caught up in a spying conspiracy to steal the formula for a new shade of the most beautiful color in the world.


The publication date right now is Fall 2018. Exact date to follow!

From HNS:

"Endeavour Ink, a new imprint of Endeavour Press, has bought Nancy Bilyeau's fourth novel, The Blue, a suspense novel set in the porcelain-workshop race for supremacy in 18th century England and France, for publication in the UK and US in print and digital formats." :):

2018 is going to be exciting. I will be sharing all sorts of things for the rest of the year--an extra chapter of The Tapestry that was cut from the book, one that contains Princess Mary; a prequel to the trilogy I've written; and special advance tidbits of The Blue. I'll release all of the information on how to get the goods through my newsletter, so if you haven't already, please sign up here. It will take just a minute. :) 

And stay tuned!!