Greek Cultural Center to host benefit book signing

By Dan Cooper

Staff Intern

SPRINGFIELD The St. George Greek Cultural Center will host a presentation and book signing by local romance novelist Linda Cardillo on Feb. 4 from 2-4 p.m. to benefit the American Heart Association.

Cardillo, of Longmeadow, will be talking about her debut novel, "Dancing on Sunday Afternoons," to be released Feb. 1.

Cardillo wanted to be a writer since the sixth grade. When she attended Tufts University, she wrote short stories. She first found a job in Boston as a secretary for a Boston publishing house. Within a year, she moved into an editorial position.

Cardillo then attended Harvard Business School and earned a Master of Business Administration degree. She then moved to Europe for a while and lived in Germany, her husband's birthplace.

Event organizer Susan Alvanos said, "Linda's novel will be the first in a new series from Harlequin, and she'll talk to the group about her writing experiences. She is also almost finished with her second novel, so she'll give us a sneak preview of that as well."

Cardillo said the novel is the launch book for a new imprint from Harlequin. "The book is leading Harlequin off in a new direction focusing on emotionally complex and long term relationships," Cardillo said.

"The seeds for this first novel were a group of letters from my immigrant grandparents," Cardillo said. "Dancing and all its forms was a recurring theme in the letters, so the title came from there."

Cardillo said the story itself is fiction, but she did quote from the actual letters when they were used in the novel. "The letters were written in Italian, so I had to translate them. They are almost 100 years old," she said. Cardillo, who is Italian, said the letters were written between 1910 and 1912.

Cardillo said she didn't write the novel as a romance novel at first. "I just wrote the story I had to write. Harlequin picked it up.

"Harlequin isn't just romance novels," Cardillo said. "It's more women's literature, which is a broader concept than the company was originally conceived to be."

She said her second novel is also going to be a part of the new series as well, called "Harlequin Everlasting Love." "The second novel is completely fictional, however."

Cardillo said she sees writing novels as a definite long-term professional career for her.

Alvanos said the event, called "A Happy Heart," is going to be hosted by the St. George Ladies Philoptochos Society. "There is a $10 donation to benefit the American Heart Association and Linda's book will be available to purchase."

Alvanos said the Ladies' Club has always done something open for the public and had been working with the American Heart Association to organize a program for some time.

"Linda's novel is being published around the same time our event was planned, so we combined the two because it made sense, since her novel is a romance novel and a great story," Alvanos said.

Cardillo also said the connection made sense, since February is Heart Month and her story is a love story. "The program shows what's good for the heart in terms of love and health," she said.

Alvanos said Cardillo, who is a friend of hers, loved the idea and agreed to do it. The event will include a wine social and information on heart health for women in addition to Cardillo's talk.

For advance tickets and additional information about the event, contact Susan Alvanos at 413-789-0157.