Historical Author G.G. Vandagriff Launches Book Tour in Colorado and Arizona

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) September 1, 2009 -- An empire falls and an extraordinary woman emerges in G.G. Vandagriff's historical romance, The Last Waltz–a Novel of Love and War, published by Shadow Mountain Books. Vandagriff draws on her extensive studies of Austria during the first half of the twentieth century to paint a vivid picture of the last days of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

A singularly impressive woman, Amalia Faulhauber, comes onstage in 1913, attending Vienna's opulent balls, courted by a Polish doctor then engaged to a German Baron. She pays little heed to the gathering storm of nationalist pride that will shortly throw the ancient empire into chaos. As the war begins, she is in Berlin with her new husband. Descending into the darkness of war-torn Europe while nursing the wounded, she suffers as her husband mentally disintegrates in the trenches. When he dies at Verdun, Amalia returns to the chaos of a military hospital in Vienna.

After Austria's disastrous defeat, Amalia seeks stability in a marriage with Baron Rudolf von Shoenenburg, an eventual minister of Austria's first democratically-elected government. Her hope for peace soon disappears with the rise of fascism in Germany and Italy and the threats posed by authoritarian dictators to Austria's new democracy. In this largely unknown bit of history, she fights valiantly at the side of her husband, against yet another great cataclysm as her countrymen are drawn into a military alliance lead by Adolph Hitler.

Margaret Donsbach of HistoricalNovels.info has written, "The novel offers a perceptive and fascinating introduction to the politics of pre-WWII Austria, a setting that has been neglected amid the outpouring of novels about Nazi Germany. In many ways, the Austrian setting is far more interesting, as the artistic Viennese society gradually splinters into groups that cannot neatly be classified into pro-Nazi or anti-Nazi. The dissention within Austria paves the way for a German takeover and Amalia's dramatic, hair's-breadth escape attempt."

Vandagriff will be visiting the following Colorado and Arizona bookstores:
Moroni Books, Fort Collins, Sept 2 from 4-7:00pm
Thorncreek Barnes&Noble, Thornton, Sept 3 from 3-5:00pm
Barnes&Noble, Loveland, Sept 4 from 6:30-8:30 pm
Barnes&Noble, Boulder, Sept 5 from 1-3:00 pm
Barnes&Noble, Tempe, Sept 8 from 6-8:00 pm
Arrowhead Barnes&Noble, Peoria, Sept 9 from 6-8:00 pm
Kierland Commons Barnes&Noble, Scottsdale, Sept 11 from 6-8:00 pm
Deseret Book, Chandler, Sept 12 from 1-3:00 pm

Deseret Book, Glendale, Sept 13 from 4:30-6:00 pm

About G.G. Vandagriff
G.G. Vandagriff is the author of six successful novels. Her studies at Stanford University and George Washington University took her to Austria where, as part of her studies, she interviewed Viennese survivors of the chaos between the two world wars. Her unique insights allow her to intertwine a history of fascism into a moving and profound historical romance.

Contact:
David Vandagriff
(213)915-6171
http://www.last-waltz.com

fascism history     historical author     historical romance     The Last Waltz