Have you ever tasted Absinthe? It’s
strange, beautiful stuff and something of an acquired taste. Straight from the
bottle it’s an earthy golden-green similar in hue to high quality olive oil.
When mixed with water it becomes an enchanted, cloudy shade of pale opalescent
jade. The mysterious green transformation is where the legend of the La Fée
Verte, the green fairy begins. In cafés of the 19th century a patron
would be served a fluted, parfait style glass, a small pitcher of water, a
filigree spade-shaped spoon that often was a work of art in itself, and a tiny
dish of chunky oblong sugar cubes.
The patron would balance the spoon across
the top of the glass, place the sugar cubes atop the spoon and very slowly
drizzle the absinthe over the sugar cubes, saturating them. Then a small amount
of water would be trickled over the sugar cubes and allowed to dissolve them.
The final step after the last bits of green sugar had slipped through the spoon
is to stir the mixture until it becomes opaque. At that moment it’s time to ask
La Fée Verte to be kind with you.
The first impression that might leap to
mind while tasting modern commercial absinthe might be “Dear god that’s
strong”, or it might be, “Wow this is just weird black licorice and a lot of
booze.”
Taste it again and the other subtle
flavors begin to come forward. Taste it again and you’ll notice there are a lot
of layers to this stuff, multiple ingredients that are familiar yet very hard
to name. Anise is right at the top, screaming “licorice!”, but there are other
quietly seductive flavors as well as the possibly of a few sinister properties.
Absinthe as it was made in the 19th century contained wormwood as one of the
principle ingredients, which is said to induce hallucinations and eventually
madness.
Madness? Wormwood? You might think that
sounds a little unsetting but it didn’t stop the French from guzzling the
stuff. Until World War I Absinthe was the most popular alcoholic beverage in
France. French veterans returning from the Crimean War came home with a taste
for exotic herbed alcoholic beverages. Absinthe’s astonishingly high alcohol
content and notorious ability to intoxicate added to its popularity among the
poor and serious café drinkers alike.
Absinthe’s allure crossed all social boundaries in 19th
century France. Intellectuals, artists and well-to-do middle class matrons all
enjoyed and often overindulged in La Fée Verte’s warming and yet numbing
embrace.
For professional purposes only I drank a
little absinthe while editing Fairy In The Flesh. I called on La Fée Verte to
bring me a beautiful vision as I asked the question, “What if your soul mate
was born a century before you?” Fairy In The Flesh explores that question big
time.
In this excerpt Maya has been tricked into
drinking mojo laced absinthe, travels back in time and wakes up in 1903…
Blurb: Fairy In The Flesh
Katalina
Leon
Maya Rousseau’s fantasy vacation in Avignon France heats up
when an eccentric enchantress tricks her into drinking mojo-laced absinthe.
An unexpected encounter with the green fairy causes Maya’s
reality to have a serious melt down. She travels back in time and wakes up
naked in the bed of her favorite bad boy Bohemian artist, the tall, dark and
mysterious André Bosco. There’s nothing wrong with that except it’s 1903.
For André it’s love at first sight. He begs Maya to become
his cherished model, muse and lover. The chemistry and shared passion between
them is overwhelming. André’s a generous-hearted dream man but there’s a catch.
Every hour they spend together bonds them tighter and time is running out. The
same powers that flung Maya back to 1903 are preparing to snatch her back.
With a hundred and ten years separating these soul-bound
lovers it’s uncertain if they can find a happy ending without the help of a
little magic and La Fée Verte.
Note: Story contains
super hot sex with an unattainable man, enchanted hallucinatory beverages,
mischievous time-twisters and green fairies.
Ellora’s
Cave Publishing: http://www.ellorascave.com/fairy-in-the-flesh.html
Bio: Katalina Leon
I’m an artist, an
author, mother and wife. I write for Ellora’s Cave, Loose Id Publishing and a
couple new publishers to be announced soon. I try to bring a touch of the
mystical and a big sense of adventure to everything I write because I believe
there’s a bold, kick-ass heroine inside all of us who wants to take a wild ride
with a strong worthy hero.
Website:
katalinaleon.com
Ellora’s Cave:
Amazon:
All Romance eBooks:
Night Owl Reviews Author Page:
Pinterest:
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Twitter: Katalina_Leon
Thanks Katalina for stopping by and sharing,
Tina
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