The talented Johnnie Alexander is visiting our corner of cyberspace to discuss her latest novel, The Cryptographer’s Dilemma. The cover is a dream and a must-read for me!
*GIVEAWAY ALERT* Answer Johnnie’s inquiry at the end of this post to be entered for a chance to get a copy of this lovely book.
Welcome, Johnnie!
I love road trips. Sometimes I daydream about driving around the country following one of those maps that goes through each of the states. Except for Hawaii and Alaska, of course!
The main characters in my latest WWII novel, The Cryptographer’s Dilemma, travel from the East Coast to the West Coast—TWICE!—as they investigate suspicious letters supposedly written by women living in Ohio, Washington State, Oregon, and Colorado.
However, their primary mode of transportation was by train. A road trip might have been more comfortable for them but traveling long distances by car during those days wasn’t practical—especially not once gas was rationed.
I want to introduce you to them, but first a quick detour.
A few years ago, my sister and I spent a week traveling around Europe with our Eurail passes. Such an adventure! Someday I hope to ride AmTrak’s California Zephyr or Empire Builder from the middle of the country to the west coast.
Now back to my traveling investigators and their unlikely nemesis.
Eloise Marshall was recruited by the U.S. Navy to work in their newly-formed cryptography unit. She’s especially motivated to do all she can to help the war effort because her only brother was killed at Pearl Harbor.
Like many other young women whose families had been adversely affected by the Great Depression, Eloise received a scholarship to attend college. She majored in mathematics and minored in music. These majors, along with astronomy and languages, were common among the intelligent young women trained to be cryptographers by both the Navy and the Army.
FBI agent Phillip Clayton longs to train as a fighter pilot but can’t because he’s color-blind. He’s devastated when his appeal is denied, and he’s forced to consider Plan B—join another branch of the military. But his uncle, a high-level FBI executive, has yet another plan for Phillip before he takes that step.
The FBI needs to investigate letters that were mailed to Argentina but “returned to sender.” The problem is that the supposed “senders” claim they didn’t write the letters. Could the strange letters—which talk about a variety of dolls—be coded messages?
Absolutely!
In fact, the letters were written by Velvalee Dickinson, a New York doll collector. “The Doll Lady,” as the FBI dubbed her, had developed relationships with Japanese diplomats and military officials in the years before the war. Her letters, written in what’s known as jargon code, provided the Japanese with information about the repairs to ships that had been hit at Pearl Harbor.
Eloise and Phillip are figments of my imagination.
Velvalee Dickinson definitely is not.
In fact, she is the only person known to have successfully passed military info to Japan after Pearl Harbor and the first American woman to face the death penalty for her wartime betrayal. However, she eventually agreed to a plea bargain, confessed to forging the letters, and served seven years of a ten-year sentence.
This is the first time I’ve written a road-trip novel. Thanks to Eloise and Phillip’s travels, I studied train routes from 1940s, the histories of the FBI field district offices located in the major cities the couple visited, and even a map of Manhattan so we could follow along with Phillip as he trailed Velvalee from her Madison Avenue apartment to the train station beneath Gimbel’s gigantic department store.
Just writing about all this travel makes me want to hop into my little black Pontiac Vibe (that now has over 200,000 miles on the odometer) and hit the interstate.
If you share my road trip daydream, put the phrase “fastest route to drive all 48 states” in your search browser to find maps and suggestions. Or if you’d like to ride the rails but can’t make it to Europe, check out AmTrak’s popular sightseeing routes.
Please share your favorite travel daydream in the comments to be eligible for your own copy of The Cryptographer’s Dilemma, the first book in Barbour’s new Heroines of WWII Series.
Story Blurb
FBI cryptographer Eloise Marshall is grieving the death of her brother, who died during the attack on Pearl Harbor, when she is assigned to investigate a seemingly innocent series of letters. Agent Phillip Clayton is ready to enlist and head oversees when asked to work one more FBI job. A case of coded traitorous messages disguised as correspondence about dolls should be easy, but not so when the clues take Eloise and Phillip on a cross-country trek that has them both confronting past demons and an unmistakable attraction.
Eloise believes the letters refer to classified intel about U.S. warships, but can she prove it in time to catch the spy? Or before she and Phillip are permanently separated?
Johnnie Alexander is an award-winning, best-selling novelist who creates characters you want to meet and imagines stories you won’t forget in a variety of genres. A fan of classic movies, stacks of books, and road trips, she shares a life of quiet adventure with Griff, her happy-go-lucky collie, and Rugby, her raccoon-treeing papillon. The Cryptographer’s Dilemma is her thirteenth published novel. She’s also written several novellas and short stories. Connect with Johnnie at johnnie-alexander.com where she hosts a monthly giveaway for an inspirational novel.
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Candace, thanks so much for having me as your guest! Can’t wait to hear about traveling dreams!
It’s an honor having you, Johnnie! I’ve enjoyed reading these travel dreams. Come back anytime!
It looks great. I love to read Johnnie’s works. She always makes me want to turn the page.
Johnnie is a super-talented writer, and I cannot wait to read my copy of this one! I’m glad you dropped by, Jann!
Yes, she’s a fantastic storyteller! Blessings, Jann!
Hi, Jann! What a sweet thing for you to say. Thank you!!!
Hi, Jann! You just made my day! Thank you!!
I think it would be fascinating to take a train cross-country, but one that would allow for sightseeing. I’d love to be one of those hobo-writers. 😄
What a fun adventure! I’ve only ridden on a real old fashioned train for a twenty mile tour on the Kansas prairie. Cross-country would be delightful. Thank you for stopping by, Sophia!
This story sounds amazing! Who doesn’t love traveling the country with a little intrigue! And a history lesson thrown in to boot! We’ve always dreamed of hitting the railway and seeing the country. Can’t wait to read this. Thanks for the great interview!
It’s our pleasure! To travel the country on the railways is on my top 20 things I would love to do! I’m glad you stopped by, Cassandra!
We are kindred spirits, Sophia! A hobo-writer–wouldn’t that make a fantastic protagonist??
Just received my copy of The Cryptographer’s Dilemma! Can’t wait to read it! My travel dream came true years ago when we went to Hawaii. Right now, I would just like to get out of the house.
I got my copy too! Hawaii would be breathtaking. I would love to see the Pearl Harbor World War II memorial. Blessings, Tracy!
Hi, Tracy. Bet you didn’t take a train to Hawaii! LOL!!! (Though wouldn’t that be cool?!) Prayers and hugs!
Hmm. Involves a see through igloo shack hotel room underneath the northern lights. In Norway or Iceland or somewhere around there.
Wow! I would love to do that as well. I’ve never seen the northern lights. Blessings, Michaela!
Oh, wow, Michaela! That sounds fantastic. I never thought of a trip like that, but it would be amazing. Except for the cold. I don’t really like cold. LOL!
My favorite travel day dream? Right now it’s to be able to go anyplace. Truly, I have been so fortunate to have been able to travel to many interesting places. Maybe my day dream travel is an African safari.
That would be an amazing dream come true. Thank you for stopping by, Bonnie!
Sometimes I daydeam about driving with no destination in mind and flipping a coin to decide which way to turn. I think it would be fun to see where I ended up when the gas tank needed to be refilled.
That would be fun! You and I need to take a road trip! 🙂
Hi, Bonnie. I’d love to go on an African safari, too. How cool to see such majestic animals as elephants and zebras and lions in their native environment. Though not TOO close!
I love road trips!! I’ve actually saved a map to visit all the “lower 48 states”. I have visited 37 of the 50 states, so I do want to visit the ones I haven’t been to yet. My son and I hope to do an “American history” tour of some of the Eastern United States next summer. Thank you so much for the chance to win. I love cryptology and this story is on my wish list!
I love this! I’ve only visited 16 states but have always wanted to take a trip like this. I hope you and your son will get to go. Swing down my way if you can!
I would love that!! Thank you! It makes me want to get the maps out! 😊
Hi, Jeanne. I’m at 31 and hope to add two more in the next couple of weeks. Mainly I need to get further west and up into New England. An American history tour sounds so fun. Lots to see and do!
Some of Johnnie’s recent books have especially knocked it out of the park. I can’t wait to read this one and love the subject matter
I’m really intrigued by this subject as well. I had no idea. Thank you for stopping by, Delores!
Delores, you are so sweet. Thank you! This story was very fun to research. Codes are so fun!
I have always wanted to do an east coast to west coast trip by train with either family or my girlfriends. I wanted to stop along the way especially in Montana.
Sonnetta, I think the east-west train ride would be so much fun. Montana is one of the states on my “special wish list” though I do hope to get to all 48 if I can. And maybe Alaska and Hawaii, too.
I have traveled in all 50 states – most of them multiple times. America is a beautiful country and I recommend everyone see as much as they can. I have read several of Johnnie’s books and if she writes it I can recommend it whether I have read it or not!
Wow! That’s wonderful. I would love to visit all 50 states. Kudos to you! Blessings, Brenda!
Hi, Brenda! I envy all your travels but maybe I’ll get in my missing ones in the years to come. Thanks for your loving encouragement. Hugs!
I would love to travel on a train and let it take me wherever the route goes. Go from one train to the next.
That would be a lovely trip! Blessings and good luck, Teresa!
Hi, Teresa. That’s kind of what my sister and I did when we went to Europe a few years ago. We bought a five-country Eurail pass and decided from one day to the next where to go. It was adventurous and great fun. I’d like to do that here in the U.S., too! Hope you get to take that trip. Thanks for stopping by!