McDivitt says that while the novel was inspired in part by her own experience as a debutante in Colorado Springs, the book mostly aims to capture what it’s like to struggle to fit in, and has the added suspense of a murder mystery.
“One of the things I wanted to capture was how special the debutante season can be,” said McDivitt. “But it makes it far more interesting for mystery-lovers, like myself, if there are also a couple of murders and some outrageous characters thrown into the mix.”
McDivitt added that while the debutante world is the backdrop of her mystery novel, the heart of it deals more with themes of friendship and self-discovery. “I hope girls who read it will see that, even though Samantha Robinson is adventurous and independent, she discovers that in order to have friends, you have to be a friend. And matters of the heart can sometimes be as complicated as they seem.”
The book might be most interesting to middle-school and high-school girls, but McDivitt says she hopes readers of all ages will enjoy it too. “The parties and people I depict in the novel are completely made up, but the way Samantha feels about making friends, getting to know her parents, and growing up a bit along the way, are all parts of the deb experience that I cherish to this day.”
McDivitt currently works as an anchor and reporter at NY1, a 24-hour cable news station in New York City. She covers the borough of Queens during the day, and at night continues to work on future adventures for her mystery-solving heroine. “Unfortunately, you only get to go through the debutante experience one time,” said McDivitt. “But once a Debutante Detective, always a Debutante Detective. So Samantha will be bringing her manners with her on her next adventure.”
To get a copy of The Debutante Detective, which is currently only available as an e-Book, you can go to the publisher’s website atwww.48fourteen.com, or download it for a Kindle or Nook on Amazon or Barnes & Noble websites, respectively.
Here is what readers are saying about The Debutante Detective:
“Get ready for a roller coaster ride. Debutante Detective is great fun.” – Carise
“I couldn’t put down this charming, fast-moving mystery, and I’m not even a Young Adult (YA) reader! Besides introducing a cast of memorable and unique characters, the book let me into a world I know nothing about, and now my biggest problem is waiting for the next book in the series! A refreshing good read!” – Rosalie Maggio
“McDivitt knows exactly how to pace a mystery along side the perfect amount of description and action.” – Elizabeth Guizzetti