5 Intriguing Things I Learned While Researching Naughty on Ice
By Maia Chance
November 29, 2018Read about all the interesting things Maia Chance learned while researching her latest Discreet Retrieval Agency Mystery, then comment below for a chance to win a copy of Naughty on Ice!
How to Make a Negroni
When my 1920s-set mystery novel required an apéritif that was both sinister and festive, I thought: Negroni. The only trouble was I had never actually drunk one. I’m not a fan of Campari. Not only does it remind me unpleasantly of an ex-boyfriend’s judgy, country-club type father, but it originally derived its glowing scarlet hue from carmine, which is made from boiled bugs. Also, I was appalled to learn that Campari contains … rhubarb.
The Negroni was allegedly invented in Florence, Italy, in 1919, and although it wasn’t popular in 1920s America, my murderee is a wealthy cosmopolitan who could have been exposed to the cocktail. (In the ‘20s, the trendy Campari cocktail was the comparatively lily-livered Americano, with club soda in place of the Negroni’s gin.)
A Negroni is made of equal parts Campari, gin, and sweet vermouth, stirred over ice and garnished with a twist of orange. Feeling very vintage, I ordered one at a bar. The verdict: although the sweet vermouth tones things down, it is still bitter, herbal, and decidedly Campari-flavored. And strong. I decided it would serve nicely for a murder.
How Booze Was Smuggled from Canada into New England
I had done some research on this topic already since bootlegging appears in all of my Discreet Retrieval Agency mysteries. However, for Naughty on Ice, I needed to get into the nitty-gritty.
Take a visual tour through Naughty on Ice with GIFnotes!
Unlicensed drinking establishments called line houses were built just over the border, or even straddling the border, in Canada. Bootleggers would pick up contraband at line houses and transport it many miles south where they would deposit it at a holding facility. Some bootleggers carried alcohol on horseback, while others drove along perilous mountain roads, sometimes stashing alcohol in caves.
Intriguingly, while bootlegging operations were run by professional gangsters, much of the transport of alcohol from the border was done by locals who knew the roads. Young men, even teenagers, would get liquored up for courage at line houses and then set out with their risky cargo. Immigration road patrol officers, lurking in the lonely New England hills and dales, could often spot a bootlegger by his erratic driving.
All About One of Vermont’s Most Fabulous Historic Mansions
Burklyn Hall in Burke, Vermont, was the inspiration for Goddard Farm, the lavish country estate of the troubled family at the center of my story. What is more, the real-life biography of Elmer Darling (not joking), the local-boy-made-good who built Burklyn Hall, helped me shape the story of my fictional family.
Completed in 1908, Burklyn Hall pulls out all the Colonial Revival stops, with towering pillars, mahogany paneling, wedding cake-worthy plasterwork, and countless grand rooms simply ripe for familial loathing, scandal, and homicide.
You can get a really good look at this place on Zillow because it’s currently on the market for a touch under 3 million smackeroos. At more than 13,000 square feet, it’s a dollar-per-square-foot bargain, right?
The History of Downhill Skiing in 1920s America
I am not only a history nerd but a skier. So imagine my delight when I discovered an exhibit about the history of skiing in New England in the lower level of Bretton Woods Mountain Resort in New Hampshire. (My delight may have been deepened by the fact that every minute spent studying the exhibit was a minute not somersaulting down a black diamond behind my more athletic companions.)
That exhibit opened up an avenue of research that became a core part of Naughty on Ice. Downhill skiing was just catching on in the United States in the ‘20s, having been imported from Scandinavia and promoted by local ski clubs all over the country. Many of these ski clubs were even run by Scandinavian immigrants.
That Vermont Is Rife with Legendary Spooks and Monsters
You wouldn’t expect it of no-nonsense Yankees, but New England legend is saturated with creepy supernatural … things. Just read Robert Frost’s poem “The Witch of Coös” if you’re skeptical. That must be one of the most disturbing poems ever—although the fact that I first read it in a 1870s farmhouse in Vermont just across the Connecticut River from Coos County (yes, the place in which the poem is set), probably intensified my experience.
Some of the spooky things Vermonters can boast of: an oversupply of ghosts (the University of Vermont alone claims 14!), a cemetery statue called Black Agnes that might kill you if you sit on her lap, a phantom bear named Slipperyback that raids farms, the Pigman of Vermont (I think this one may have inspired a Seinfeld episode), and huge serpent-like monsters in Willoughby Lake and Lake Memphremagog. Either this is one supernaturally-charged region, or it’s the cabin fever talking. Either way, let’s keep the axes locked up, okay?
Read an excerpt from Naughty on Ice!
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Donnak722@hotmail.com
I visited Vermont only once, staying in a historic “painted lady” Victorian home in Montpelier (smallest state capitol in the US with only 8,000 people). Appropriately, I was there to attend a funeral. Despite the gorgeous fall foliage and crisp but sunny weather, I found it quite atmospheric. Wonderful setting for this type of story.
sounds like a fun one
I will have to start an online fundraising campaign to buy Burklyn Hall–I think it would fit me like a glove!
Fascinating and intriguing novel.
This interests me greatly. Sounds unique and very appealing.
This sounds like an excellent book. Thanks for the chance to win Naughty on Ice!
Roni.aspinwall@yahoo.com
I like stories set in places I have no desire to visit IRL. They keep me wandering while I’m comfortably at home.
Thank you for this interesting background info behind the writing, it has me even more excited to read this book. Would love a chance to wander through that home!
Love a good book!
Looks like a great book
This one sounds like a really fun read!
Lots to chill on in this article!
I would love to read this book. Looks great.
loving that cover
This looks really good
Sounds like fun reading.
The Negroni cocktail is very good.
Negroni drink, a hint of perfume and a soft glow in the room….sounds good!
What are the odds? I’m aware, through family stories, of misadventures in Canada during the bootlegging era of Prohibition! I’ve never read a book which researched that period though!
This books sounds so interesting and along with history, one of my favorite subjects, will be a winner.
Fingers crossed 🤞🏻
Never Read anything from this author – I love trying something new !
Have enjoyed the others in this series and look forward to reading this title.
I grew up (and live) in Vermont and only knew some of this. Great research for what looks like a great book!
As a fourth generation Vermonter, this sounds wonderful. Although the Negroni does sound kinda disgusting. I am more of a straight bourbon sort. Love tow read this, thanks
This sounds like a very good mystery to read on a snowy day
Sounds a fun read! Thanks for the chance =)
Ooh! This looks good!
Maia Chance had me at “supernatural”!! I’m intrigued.
This is an author with whom I am not familiar but the time period has always fascinated me. The excerpt has certainly gotten my attention
Very interesting facts! Sounds like an intriguing book! I would love to win a copy! Thanks for the chance!
This book will be so much fun to read. Thanks for the chance!
I love the Discreet Retrieval Agency. Those ladies rock!
“Naught on Ice” has everything I want in a book – mystery, strong intelligent women detectives, delving into moneyed-family secrets, and cocktails!
I love New England, but I didn’t know about all the supernatural stuff other than Salem and its witches.
I’ve been wanting to check out this series. Looks like a good one!
I’m intrigued! Thank you for the opportunity to win!
I enjoyed reading about your research. Teetotaled was a fun read, and I look forward to reading Naughty On Ice. bluedawn95864 at gmail dot com
Sounds like this is right up my alley
Knock 3. Times. For. Entry. To. Speakeasy. Have. A. Stiff. Belt
Can’t wait.
Would love to win this! Happy Holildays!
Love all the research that was done for this book. Can’t wait to reserve it!
Vermont sounds like a great place to visit. Or maybe not. Lol! Not many places have ghosts, lake monsters and pigmen!
Cocktails are amazing. I just read an incredible book about the origin of many cocktails and how to make them. I’m curious to see how they are connected with the plot. Thanks for the chance to win
Great!
Here in the Northwest we have a history of smuggling booze into Washington State from Vancouver Island during Prohibition.
Yes, please enter me in this sweepstakes.
Thanks —
I find this time period very interesting.
Did the off season tour of Vermont
As a non skier did ski lift sans snow. Fun
It is interesting, thank you for sharing. And > A Negroni is made of equal parts Campari, gin, and sweet vermouth, stirred over ice and garnished with a twist of orange. (imagine that)
Interesting information. I always learn something new when I read a well researched book. This one sounds really good
A good and beautiful Vermont this must be a winner!
Negronis !!! I am a fan. I tried my first one in a restaurant on Lake Como on a clear day.
Can’t wait to read this newest installment. Keep them coming!
Count me in, please!
Burklyn Hall is spectacular
A new author for me and the book sounds great!
I would love to read this book and report on it at my book club.
Booze! Yes!
This sounds really good—I’d love to read it! Legallyblonde1961@yahoo.com
Though I don’t think I’ll be trying a Negroni, I definite would like to check this book out! It sounds like a fun read!
interesting info
What a fun article!
I would like to read this book.
Twenty three skidoo on the Negroni!
A 1920’s mystery sounds wonderful and an Estate styled after Burklyn Hall for the setting is perfect. I would definitely pass on the cocktail during that period. The thought of boiled bug liquid is disgusting! So, I can certainly believe that a woman willing to kill would be willing to drink it.
Thank you for the chance to win – sounds great!
Thanks!
Sounds like an awesome book
We spent a wonderful summer vacation in Vermont. The history of the state and its people is really interesting and the setting is beautiful. Did the marble city get mentioned in the book?
I like the connection with Canada. It makes sense that booze was brought in from Canada but I had no idea. Thanks for the historical tidbit!
Love the whole idea of the characters, place and time. Thanks for the opportunity to win a copy of “Naughty on Ice”.
Thank you for the chance
Sounds like a winner.
As recently as the 1970s, according to a pilot friend of mine, you could see (from an airplane) strange lines running straight north/south through the thick forests of Quebec’s Eastern Townships into Vermont — the colour and size of the trees visibly distinct from their neighbours. The story was that they were the scars from old smuggler’s roads from the Prohibition era, grown back over the ensuing forty or so years.
Love reading spooky tales based in New England.Thank you for the opportunity to win!
I would love to win this book!
Very interesting facts about Vermont. Thanks
I love the 20’s—one of my favorite historical periods to read about!!
Interesting article.
Thanks for reminding me of the Negroni I had in Rome
Interesting that VT has so many ghosts…who knew?
Not sure what Campari is but it does sound nasty!
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