A Love Song for Ricki Wilde (104)
To my editor, Seema Mahanian, you always know how to coax the good-good stuff out of me; to encourage me to dig deeper and Go There. How lucky am I to be edited by a woman whose romantic sensibilities and pop-culture heart matches mine? I’m also hugely thankful to designers Albert Tang and Sarah Congdon for creating yet another epically perfect cover! And to my mind-reading, superstar agent, Cherise Fisher—without your brains and tenacity, I never would’ve had a second act in publishing. We’ve come so far, my Monserattian queen. Forevermore, #allhats.
Thank you to my wonderful family and friends—notably my brother-in-law, Adam Gantt, who let me borrow an anecdote he shared about finding an antique piano in an old house. “That’s what’s up” indeed!
Finally, I must thank my husband, Francesco, who is the most patient man on Earth, and also the most handsome and most skilled in the kitchen. You put up with my emotional artist bullshit, and keep me sane(ish). I love you, tremendously. And to Lina, my teen dream daughter, you delight me daily with your witticisms, perspective, and concerningly dark plot advice (“How about a murder? Someone should die.”). You’re my world, ladybug. And, as always, you’re banned from reading my books till you’re thirty-five.
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READING GROUP GUIDE
Discussion Questions
1. Harlem creates a vibrant, exciting backdrop for this love story, a place for creatives and artists to find themselves and flourish. Describe the ways in which Harlem has changed over time in the novel. Discuss how this neighborhood functions within the novel—what role does it play beyond just a setting?
2. Ricki feels like an outsider in her family, never quite fitting in or meeting their expectations. In what ways does this dynamic challenge Ricki to achieve her goals, and how does it hold her back?
3. The power of love and relationships is a central theme throughout the novel, and we learn that both Ricki and Ezra have had tumultuous romantic, platonic, and familial relationships. How is their romance different from ones they’ve had in the past, and how does it change their other relationships?
4. Ms. Della is Ricki’s guardian angel from the moment they meet, providing her with the support and encouragement that Ricki’s been missing. How is her outlook on life different from Ricki’s? Who in your life has been a Ms. Della figure?
5. Ezra’s past is a long and painful journey that takes him from one heartbreak to the next. Describe the mechanisms he’s developed to cope with his grief. How does opening his heart to Ricki lead him on the path toward healing?
6. What does A Love Song for Ricki Wilde say about the power of love and vulnerability?
7. Ezra is preoccupied with the idea of legacy; and later, so is Ricki. How do they each leave their mark on the world? What does it say about what they value most?
8. Tuesday Rowe becomes Ricki’s closest friend. Though she’s fiercely confident in some ways, she’s wounded in others. How did her years as a child star impact her adult sense of self?
9. There are almost one hundred years between Breeze’s 1927 interview with Olive Randall and Ricki’s 2024 interview with Clementine Rhodes. But the two journalists similarly imply that Black culture is given value when it’s sanctioned by white people. How does Ricki push back on this idea? Discuss the ways you see this still happening in the world today.
10. Ricki and Ezra are described as the “two luckiest lovers in the world” (here). How would you describe their love story? Do you think their romance is entirely due to fate and destiny? Or, is it due to choices they made and personal growth?
Author Q&A
Q: What prompted you to write this story? Was there a specific character that worked as initial inspiration, a line you were itching to write that sparked an idea?
A: I swear, the plot just arrived in my mind during a bout of insomnia! Nothing like that has ever happened to me. Smaller details would evolve and change, but I had these core elements: a cursed Harlem Renaissance musician, a free-spirited florist who flees her family for Harlem, destined soulmates, and the brownstone where it all goes down. I wrote the outline in a fever. But I was nervous to share it with my editor, because I thought the mystical elements would sound far-fetched.
Q: The flashbacks to the Harlem Renaissance are filled with so much wonderful, rich detail. What did your research consist of? Was there a fact or story that you discovered and loved but weren’t able to include in the novel?
A: I’m a massive 1920s buff. I love the silent films, the stars, the style, the literature, and especially the Renaissance. I watched endless clips of Ezra’s contemporaries like Duke Ellington and Willie the Lion. I read every book I could get my hands on about the cultural luminaries of the era. My favorites were Yuval Taylor’s Zora and Langston: A Story of Friendship and Betrayal and Allon Schoener’s Harlem on My Mind: Cultural Capital of Black America, 1900–1968. There’s so much I wish I could’ve included, like a cameo from Gladys Bentley, the drag king of the Renaissance, or Blanche Dunn, the era’s most glamorous It-girl socialite.
Q: It’s particularly poignant to read about the “Sepia Paradise” of Harlem in the ’20s versus the Harlem of today. What did you want to show in the depiction of this neighborhood and community?