![]() She loved the book and had great feedback. ![]() Sher, who happens to be a Black woman and a pianist, shared her thoughts with me after she was done. When I was finished, I sent it to a handful of beta readers. I wrote their story, and I poured my whole self into it. Benny and Esther started talking, and I wasn’t about to ignore them. But when the idea for this story took root in me, it flowered quickly. I don’t have any firsthand knowledge of the decade this story was set in-not the music scene, the Mafia life, the political climate, or the civil rights movement. And unlike some of the novels I’ve written, there was no comfortable distance from the setting or the time. When I told my mom I was writing a historical love story set in the 60s, she said, “The 1960s isn’t historical.” Meaning: “I was alive then, so it wasn’t that long ago.” No, Mom. In some ways, it made the complicated nature of the past easier to understand. I had no idea how complicated life would become. ![]() I had no sense of what was coming when I wrote about Benny and Esther and the world they lived in. I proposed The Songbook of Benny Lament to my publisher in 2019 and finished it in early 2020, right before the world was gripped in our current troubles. The Songbook of Benny Lament – A Note From the Author She is in a class of her own.” - Mia Sheridan, New York Times bestselling author “Amy’s stories are always deeply addictive and transporting, but beyond that, her compassion and insight into the human experience raises her work to another level completely. Powerful writing, enthralling reading!” -TJ Mackay, founder and publisher of InD’tale Magazine “The story is enlightening, heart-breaking, and ultimately inspiring as these two beautiful characters find the soul of what it truly means to be human and love. Amy Harmon blew me away again…Everyone should read this book.” - LJ Evans, IAN award-winning author A raw, real, and inspiring love story.” - DC Renee, author of Scrubbed Amy Harmon has a way of writing characters that invoke deep emotion, and Benny and Esther are no exception. Elegantly written, with sensitivity to the racial hurdles of the era, this book is a work of historical fiction that will absolutely not be forgotten.” - EmmyB, host of the Lovely Books podcast “With a vibrant backdoor view to the New York music scene in the 60s, Harmon constructs authentic, enduring characters that will capture your heart and break it too. I have no words except that this is a must read.” - Shanora Williams, New York Times bestselling author The representation of an interracial couple in the 60s, but more importantly the struggle of a Black woman trying to make it in a world that doesn’t want any good for her. But though America might love the music they make together, some people aren’t ready for Benny Lament and Esther Mine on-or off-the stage. Benny’s songs and Esther’s vocals are an explosive combination, a sound that fans can’t get enough of. ![]() But the music and the woman are too hard for the piano man to resist. And when Benny writes a hit song and performs it with her, their collaboration thrusts the duo onto the national stage…and stirs up old issues and new scrutiny that the mob-and Benny-would rather avoid. So he keeps to himself, writing songs for other musicians, avoiding the spotlight…until the night his father brings him to see Esther Mine sing.Įsther is a petite powerhouse with a gorgeous voice. With his father’s deep ties to the mob, the Bronx piano man has learned that love and family can get you in trouble. New York, 1960: For Benny Lament, music is his entire life. From the bestselling author of What the Wind Knows and From Sand and Ash comes a powerful love story about a musical duo who put everything on the line to be together. ![]()
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