It’s a pleasure to start off the blog tour for Lesley Fernández-Armesto by staying in with Lesley to chat about her writing. My thanks to Grace Pilkington for inviting me to participate and for putting us in touch with one another.

Staying in Lesley Fernández-Armesto

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Lesley and thank you for staying in with me. Tell me, which of your books have you brought to discuss?

I’m bringing along my first novel, Away Weekend. It’s a comedy of manners, a send up of the differences between Brits and Americans. It was inspired by one of those ‘what if’ moments. I’ve spent a lot of time in Indiana, where my husband is a professor at a university famous for American Football. It’s the sort of place where most days one yearns for excitement, yawns with boredom, then, whoosh, it’s game day, and this quiet, Catholic campus erupts into a razzmatazz of parties.  The air is filled with the roar of the crowd, and the whiff of hotdogs. The blare of the marching bands wafts through the ether, as cheerleaders high kick their way to the stadium. The game – to me –is impenetrable, and the emotion it inspires in its followers overwhelming.

I think we’re still two nations divided by a common language Lesley! What can we expect from an evening in with Away Weekend?

One hot September afternoon, there I was, sitting on the balcony of our apartment, anticipating the start of a game. Watching the unfurling scene before me, I was utterly baffled by it all.  I sipped on a cooling glass of wine, and as the liquid trickled agreeably down my throat, I invented a character. For no reason whatsoever I called her Geraldine. This exacting creature, punctilious in her appearance, is curiously prone to faux pas. And she has a particular penchant for white wine. Back in London she has met a glamorous, rich, good-looking American guy, Ellis. He’s wined and dined her in all the very best places. And now she’s accepted an invitation to travel with him in his friend’s private plane – a real deal clincher – to spend the weekend with his old university chums at a football game.  She has absolutely no idea what to expect, has packed all the wrong clothes, and has already realised that Ellis is not quite the sophisticated gentleman she thought he was. To make it worse, she’s left her tiny, precious mews house in St John’s Wood in unusual disarray. Both her sister and her daughter have been dumped by their partners, and they’ve turned up unexpectedly on her doorstep, creating chaos. It augurs ill for the weekend away, as everything, but everything, is about to go horribly wrong.

That sounds rather rash of Geraldine. Tell me more about her – what would she bring along for an evening in?

There’s no doubt Geraldine, like me, loves a party.  I think she’s the sort of girl (ok, she’s in her fifties) who plays Black Eyed Peas ‘Gotta Feeling’ when she’s putting her make up on to go out, but tonight, to show she can be cultured, too, she’s bringing a much-loved vinyl of Maria Callas singing popular arias. And she’ll bring a bottle – or two – of Champagne in her Longchamp bag, which she’ll be happy to share.  She may be a little on the late side, because she’s been re-arranging her wardrobe according to colour – a frequently performed task which used to enrage her ex-husband, Jonty. 

Anyone bringing champagne is welcome here! What else might Geraldine add to the party?

It’s more than likely she’ll bring her dog, Bolly, too, as he doesn’t like being left on his own. He’s a small apricot poodle with an extensive collection of pashminas, and he’s an excellent judge of character.  He took an instant dislike to Ellis the minute he met him. Geraldine has taken much longer to form the same opinion, but perhaps her weekend away has made her realise that family and friends are more important than relationships with people one doesn’t really know. Her homecoming reveals even more surprises, but at least there’s a decent bottle of Chablis in the fridge.

I rather like the sound of Geraldine, Lesley. Thanks you for introducing us. I think you’d better get some music on and pour a glass of champagne whilst I tell Linda’s Book Bag readers a little more about Away Weekend:

Away Weekend

How could Geraldine resist the invitation from charming and enigmatic Ellis, especially as it includes travel on a private plane? It will be a glamorous change from her increasingly chaotic life, and a chance to meet his friends, as they reunite at their old college in Indiana for a football game. Not that Geraldine is interested in sport, unless shopping counts. She’s jet-set ready and eager for take off . What can possibly go wrong?

Published by Quadrant on 1st April 2024, Weekend Away is available for purchase here.

About Lesley Fernández-Armesto

Lesley spent an inordinately long time at university, and has a degree in Law, and a Master of Arts in War Studies.  Her first experience of the US was as an exchange student, ostensibly to study international law, but mainly to party up and down the East Coast. Lesley has ghostwritten the autobiography of an African president, adapted Shakespeare’s As You Like It for an opera libretto, and organised literary and opera events for a major charity.  Her greatest love – apart from her family, of course – are Dachshunds. Lesley acquired her first in 1981 and has remained faithful to the breed!

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