News & Events

On Tour with IRISH EYES

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Meeting readers is one of the best parts of being a writer! Please look below for a roster of my upcoming in-person events.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Friday, October 25th

Vogue Knitting Live
Join authors Suzan Colón and Hope C. Tarr on a wild and, yes, woolly exploration of Ireland’s Aran Islands, the setting for Hope’s historical debut novel, IRISH EYES. Hope will chat about how she weaves fact and fiction in the book, and how a trip to Western Ireland inspired her to write the story of her fictional heroine, an intrepid Aran Islander whose needlecraft skills take her from a remote fishing village to New York City at the turn of the century. 
12-1 pm ET
Register @vogueknittingonline.

PAST EVENTS

Wednesday, October 23rd

Haunted New York: Ghost Stories from NYC
Join Hope in conversation with Andrea Janes, co-author of A Haunted History of Invisible Women: True Stories of America’s Ghosts and the owner and founder of Boroughs of the Dead, a boutique tour company dedicated to dark and unusual walking tours of New York City.
The American Irish Historical Society
991 Fifth Ave., New York, NY 10028
6-7:15pm, including book signing of IRISH EYES.
Ticketed event.

Saturday, October 12th

Belmar Fall Beach Reader’s Adult Book Fair
Hope chats with book lovers and signs copies of IRISH EYES.
Taylor Pavilion
500 Ocean Ave., Belmar, NJ
Sponsor: Belmar Public Library
1-5pm

Monday, October 7th

Lodi Memorial Library
Book talk with signing of IRISH EYES to follow.
973) 365-4044
6pm

Saturday, June 29th

Barnes & Noble, Holmdel, NJ
Hope returns to sign copies of IRISH EYES.
Commons at Holmdel
2130 Route 35, Holmdel, NJ | (732) 203-6180
1-3pm

Saturday, June 22nd

Barnes and Noble, Brick, NJ
Hope signs copies of IRISH EYES.
44 Brick Plaza, Brick, NJ | 732-255-6600
1-3pm

Saturday, June 15th

Thunder Road Books
Greater Spring Lake Irish Festival
3rd Avenue, Spring Lake, NJ
11 am – 1 pm

A Novel Evening Podcast
Hope chats with A Novel Evening podcast host Dannie Carter about researching IRISH EYES. Tammany Hall, WW1, Prohibition/speakeasies + my fantasy evening — we covered a lot. Have a listen!

Wednesday, March 20th

Thunder Road Books
March Book Club Pick!
3rd Avenue, Spring Lake, NJ
7-9 pm
To attend, purchase IRISH EYES from Thunder Road Books on or before the event date. Call 973-436-0914 to reserve your copy.

Sunday, March 17th

Comfort Zone
Hope signs copies of IRISH EYES.
44 1/2 Main Ave., Ocean Grove, NJ | (732) 203-6180
12 noon – 2pm

Saturday, March 16th

Barnes & Noble, Holmdel, NJ
Hope signs copies of IRISH EYES.
Commons at Holmdel
2130 Route 35, Holmdel, NJ | (732) 203-6180
1-3pm

Saturday, March 9th

Barnes & Noble, Brick, NJ
Hope signs copies of IRISH EYES.
44 Brick Plaza, Brick, NJ | 732-255-6600
1-3pm

Saturday, March 2nd

Asbury Book Cooperative
Hope in conversation with ABC Vice President, Allyson Crystal
644A Cookman Ave., Asbury Park, NJ | 732-455-5549 | [email protected]
7pm
Sign up for the FREE event on Eventbrite.

Monday, February 12th

IG Live with Transformational Vision Coach, Barbara Biziou
“Perseverance and Faith Led to Publishing Gold”
https://www.instagram.com/barbarabiziou/
5:00-5:30 pm EST
Watch again here.

Thursday, January 4th

Hope in conversation with Fiona Davis (THE SPECTACULAR).
Barnes & Noble Upper West Side
2289 Broadway @ 82nd Street, NY, NY
6:30 – 8:00pm
View the event highlights: https://fb.watch/pJ7cNIfZGo/

Thursday, December 7th

Spring Lake Holiday Soiree – Ladies Shopping Night
Thunder Road Books
3rd Avenue, Spring Lake New Jersey
5 – 8 pm

A Novel Evening With Irish Eyes

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I had so much fun guesting on A Novel Evening, an exciting British podcast for book lovers everywhere. Host Dannie Carter and I chatted about my historical novel, IRISH EYES — Tammany Hall, WW1, Prohibition/speakeasies — we covered A LOT. Plus, a sneak peek at what I’m writing now (hint: sequel) and who I’d invite to my fantasy “novel evening” (and who’s on my Naughty List). Have a listen!

In Conversation for IRISH EYES with Fiona Davis

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Last Thursday’s (January 4) in conversation book talk for IRISH EYES at the Barnes and Noble Upper West Side Manhattan was a magical evening (Subway train derailments aside). Fiona Davis was a superb moderator and the newly renovated bookstore is bright and airy and in every way conducive to chatting. But don’t take my word for it. Enjoy the video, and if you’d like a *signed* copy of IRISH EYES, you can pick one up at B&N at 2289 Broadway @82nd Street.

IRISH EYES Release Day + Sarah, Duchess of York

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The wait is over! IRISH EYES, my historical saga set in turn-of-the-century New York City, is for sale wherever books are sold. I’ve received a VERY special SURPRISE Release Day prezzie — a gorgeous review from bestselling author, Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York!

“WELL DONE TO HOPE C. TARR FOR A MAGICAL JOURNEY, SO GRUELLING, SO FULL OF OPTIMISTIC BELIEF, IN THE HOPE OF A BETTER FUTURE. I LOVED ROSE AND HOW SHE FOUGHT FOR HER OWN STRENGTH WITHIN HERSELF.” – Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York

Find Irish Eyes at any of these brick-and-mortar and online booksellers:

Amazon

Amazon UK

Barnes & Noble

Bookshop.org

Target

Walmart

Books-A-Million

River Road Books

Book Culture – signed copies avail in-store

The Corner Bookstore – signed copies avail in-store

Thunder Road Books – signed copies avail in-store

Join me in celebrating later tonight at Thunder Road Books, an awesome indie bookstore in quaint Spring Lake, New Jersey. As part of Spring Lake’s Holiday Shopping Soiree, from 5-7pm, I’ll sign copies of Irish Eyes and raffle off a gift basket of tasty NYC-themed treats to one lucky winner. Cocktails, mocktails, snacks — we are going to have THE A-B-S-O-L-U-T-E BEST TIME. Join us!

Speaking of winners, congrats to the winners of my Irish Eyes Shelf-Awareness Giveaway sponsored by AuthorBuzz: Laurie J., Susan B., Beth T., Melissa M., Mary G. and Lizz at Curiouser Books. Your copies of Irish Eyes are en route in plenty of time for the holidays.

Also, darling historical fiction author Finola Austin and I are giving away a signed copy of Irish Eyes and Finola’s brilliant historical novel, Bronte’s Mistress to one lucky winner. If you haven’t already done so, pop over to Finola’s site, The Secret Victorianist, and enter to win. Bonus: read our fun and (hopefully) informative interview on writing the historical novel.

xo Hope

In Convo with Finola Austin + IRISH EYES Book Giveaway!

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Before we all scattered for the Thanksgiving holiday, I chatted with historical fiction author Finola Austin AKA The Secret Victorianist about my inspo for Irish Eyes, what I’m working on now (hint: it’s the sequel!), and killing my darlings, namely, two prologues, neither of which made it into the final book.

Pop on over to The Secret Victorianist to read the interview, then sign up for Finola’s monthly newsletter to win a copy of Irish Eyes *and* a copy of Finola’s brilliant historical novel, Bronte’s Mistress. One lucky winner will receive both books. Giveaway closes December 7th — the Irish Eyes Release Day!

Irish Eyes on Irish Central!

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Recently I caught up with the fine folks at IRISH CENTRAL to chat about IRISH EYES, my historical fiction debut out with Lume (Joffe) Books this December 7th. Irish Central is the largest Irish culture media outlet in North America, and I’m so excited to share my fictional heroine, Rose O’Neill’s, story with its readership. Read the full interview here.

Irish Eyes Unboxing Video

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Last month, I shared the cover for IRISH EYES (12.7.23). Lovely as that was, and is, there’s nothing quite like holding the actual book in your hands — in this case, the Advanced Review copies courtesy of Lume/Joffee Books.

You can preorder Irish Eyes on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and wherever books are sold.

IRISH EYES #CoverReveal

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I am absolutely over the moon to present the cover of IRISH EYES (12.7.23), my new historical novel and the launch of my American Songbook series! Double yay, the book is available for preorder worldwide as an ebook and trade paperback!!! (The audiobook also will release on December 7). For a quick and (hopefully) fun primer on why preordering an author’s book matters, check out my post on Substack.

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Bookshop.org

The Story Behind the Story

Irish Eyes is very much a love note to my Irish ancestors, who came to America on the coffin ships at the height of the Great Hunger (1845 – 1852). For years, I batted around the idea of writing something with an Irish protagonist but back-to-back projects left me with little headspace to pin down what that story might be.

Then, on a hiking trip through Western Ireland in 2009, I stopped at the famed Cliffs of Moher, gazed across Galway Bay to the trio of islands known as The Arans—and Rose O’Neill’s story began taking sharp shape in my mind’s eye. Back in Manhattan, runs along the Hudson River looking out to Ellis Island and Lady Liberty helped me to further flush out Rose’s story.

I wouldn’t start writing the book for several more years, but eventually I did and here we are.

December 1898. In the aftermath of America’s war with Spain, eighteen-year-old Rose O’Neill leaves her beloved Arans and boards a steamer for New York City. Herded through the  emigrant landing depot at The Battery, abandoned and alone, she soon discovers that the New York streets are no more paved in gold than those of Galway. To survive, she must ford her way through Lower East Side tenements and sweatshops, Fifth Avenue mansions and tony hotels – tangling with the mighty Tammany Hall for the husband with whom her fate is inextricably linked while fighting her feelings for the first love who still holds her heart. Just as she begins to make peace with the past, the Great War erupts in Europe, threatening to topple the dynasty for which she has sacrificed so much.

I’ll leave you with this beautiful book trailer courtesy of my fab publisher, Lume Books.

🥁IRISH EYES & Sequel Sell to Lume Books

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As we ford into another new year, I’m thrilled to announce that IRISH EYES, my historical fiction debut, sold to London-based publisher, Lume Books in a two-book deal! IRISH EYES will release worldwide in November 2023, in print, digital and audiobook. Here’s a taste.

It is 1898. In the aftermath of America’s war with Spain over Cuba and the Philippines, eighteen year-old Rose leaves her beloved Inishmore and boards a steamer for New York City in search of the Yank soldier who swore to marry her. Herded through the emigrant landing depot at The Battery, abandoned and alone, she discovers the New York streets are no more paved in gold than those of Galway. To survive, she must ford through Lower East Side tenements and sweatshops, Fifth Avenue mansions and tony hotels, tangling with Tammany Hall for the soul of the husband with whom her fate is inextricably linked while fighting her feelings for the first love who still holds her heart. Just as she begins to make peace with the past, the Great War erupts in Europe, threatening to topple the dynasty for which she has sacrificed everything.

A second book, STARDUST will follow Rose’s children and grandchildren into the Second World War and will release in 2024.

Cover reveal and pre-order details coming later this year, so do check back!

Wishing everyone a 2023 brimming with blessings.

xo Hope

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire for THE IRISH TIMES

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On March 25, 1911, a fire broke out at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in Washington Place in Lower Manhattan, killing 146 workers, most immigrant women and girls, and sparking a nationwide fight for safer workplaces. I’m thrilled to share this milestone event in US labor history with readers of THE IRISH TIMES for the fire’s 110th anniversary. Read the full story here.

In case you missed…

My three-part podcast: “The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire of 1911, An Emigrant’s Experience” with Fin Dwyer’s Irish History Podcast

My interview with IRISH CENTRAL: “New podcast series explores disastrous Triangle Shirtwaist Fire in New York.”

My interview with AM NEW YORK, “New podcast explores events of Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in Greenwich Village from eyes of young women survivors.”

Interview with Irish Central

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I recently sat down with Irish Central to talk about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911, which marks its 110th anniversary this March 25th. Between research for my Gilded Age novel manuscript, Irish Eyes and my three-part podcast series with Irish historian Fin Dwyer, there was soooo much fascinating material that didn’t make it into either of those projects, leaving me lots to talk about, not only the grim facts of the fire but the workplace reforms won its wake.

The fire took the lives of 146 workers, most of them immigrant women and girls. The youngest victim was just 14 years old. Triangle policies such as denying workers fire drills and locking workroom doors from the outside greatly contributed to the catastrophic loss of life — the deadliest workplace disaster in New York State until 9/11.

In combing through the debris afterward, rescuers recovered fourteen engagement rings, a poignant reminder of the thwarted promise of so many young lives lost.

Check out my Irish Central interview here and then have a listen to the pod.

Tweet me your thoughts @hopetarr #historymatters.

Podcast – Episode Three, The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911: An Emigrant’s Experience

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In the fire’s wake, the International Ladies Garment Workers and other women-led union groups helmed the fight for reform. Photo: osha.gov.

Episode Three, the final episode of my podcast series, “The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire: An Emigrant’s Experience” with Irish historian, author and podcaster, Fin Dwyer looks at the fire’s legacy through the eyes of two young women workers who survived it, Annie Doherty from County Donegal, Ireland, and Celia Walker from Przemsyl, Poland. One woman would disappear from the public record less than a decade later; the other would go on to achieve a modest version of the American Dream.

Meanwhile, the public outcry against the factory owners’ criminal negligence would fuel an unprecedented nationwide labor reform effort led by the International Ladies Garment Workers Union. For the first time in US labor history, women didn’t have to beg a seat at the bargaining table — they were leading the charge. 110 years later, we have these fiercely dedicated women to thank for fire drills and many other legally mandated workplace safety measures we take for granted today.

Catch up on the previous episodes here:

Episode One follows Annie’s and Celia’s harrowing transatlantic journeys to New York where both women would make their home, Annie in the notorious West side neighborhood of Hell’s Kitchen, Celia in the predominantly Eastern European Lower East Side.

Episode Two takes Annie and Celia from the citywide garment workers strike of 1909 known as The Uprising of 20,000 to Saturday, March 25, 1911 when the fire broke out on the factory’s eighth floor, trapping hundreds of young women and girls inside and killing 146, making it the most lethal workplace disaster in New York State until 9/11.

Have a listen and share your thoughts on Twitter where I post as @HopeTarr #HistoryMatters.

For Sharing on Social:

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire: An Emigrant’s Experience (Episode 3)
https://tinyurl.com/y3d9dtxy
#HistoryMatters #podcast

Don’t miss a thing! Sign up for my newsletter here.

Labor of love! Every year since 2004, volunteers for The Chalk Project chalk the names of the fire victims outside their last known NYC residence.

Podcast – Episode Two, The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911: An Emigrant’s Experience

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Fire trucks rush to the scene at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in Washington Place, March 25, 1911.

They called them the Shirtwaist Kings. Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, owners of the Triangle Shirtwaist Company, one of the largest ready-made clothing manufacturing firms in the United States and a principal provider of ladies’ button-up blouses, the go-to garment for the New Woman.

To the workers employed in their factories in Syracuse, Yonkers, Boston, Philadelphia and Manhattan, Blanck and Harris were more than kings. They were as good as gods, wielding the power of life and death over hundreds of employees, mostly immigrant women and girls like Annie Doherty from Ireland and Celia Walker from Poland, the subjects of my new three-part podcast series on the fire, a collaboration with Fin Dwyer, Irish historian, author and creator of the acclaimed Irish History Podcast.

Episode One follows Annie’s and Celia’s harrowing transatlantic journeys to New York where both women would make their home, Annie in the notorious West side neighborhood of Hell’s Kitchen, Celia in the predominantly Eastern European Lower East Side.

Episode Two, which launched 1/18/21, follows Annie and Celia from the citywide garment workers strike of 1909 to that fatal Saturday, March 25, 1911 when the fire broke out on the factory’s eighth floor. Within 30-minutes, 146 workers would be dead, another 78 injured, victims of what would be the deadliest industrial disaster in New York State until the 9/11 terrorist attack.

Episode Three, which looks at the legacy of the fire in the lives of survivors and in the larger landscape of labor reform, will post Monday, January 25.

Have a listen and then share your thoughts on Twitter where I post as @HopeTarr #HistoryMatters.

For Sharing on Social:

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire: An Emigrant’s Experience (Episode 2)
https://tinyurl.com/yxhn6a66
#HistoryMatters #podcast

Don’t miss a thing! Sign up for my newsletter here.

Podcast – The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911: An Emigrant’s Experience

Posted on:

I’m thrilled to announce the launch of “The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911: An Emigrant’s Experience,” a three-part podcast with Irish historian, author and podcaster Fin Dwyer. I first met Fin in 2018 at an event at the American Irish Historical Society in Manhattan where he was the guest speaker, thought he was brilliant and approached him afterward about how we might collaborate to put together a podcast program for the fire’s 110th anniversary on March 25, 2021. Nearly three years later, and more than 3,000 miles and five hours apart — Fin in Kilkenny and me in NYC — here we are!

The fire at the Triangle factory, housed in the Asch Building (today the Brown Building, part of New York University) took the lives of 146 workers, most of them immigrant women and girls, and injured 78 others, making it the deadliest workplace disaster in New York State until the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Each approximately 30-minute podcast episode looks at a different aspect of the fire as seen through the eyes of two immigrant factory workers who lived it: Annie Doherty, an Irish Catholic from Finn Valley in Ireland’s County Donegal and Celia Walker, an Eastern European Jew from Przemysl in southwestern Poland, in the late 19th century part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Listen to Episode One here, which follows Annie’s and Celia’s harrowing transatlantic journeys to turn-of-the-century New York where both women would make their home, Annie in the notorious West side neighborhood of Hell’s Kitchen, Celia in the predominantly Eastern European Lower East Side.

Episode Two: Fire and Episode Three: Legacy will post Monday, January 18 and Monday, January 25, respectively. Have a listen and then share your thoughts on Twitter where I post as @HopeTarr #HistoryMatters.

For Sharing on Social:

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire: An Emigrant’s Experience
https://tinyurl.com/y38ntjuk
#HistoryMatters #podcast

Don’t miss a thing! Sign up for my newsletter here.

Sharing the Love with a Giveaway

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February being the host month of Valentine’s Day, it’s no surprise that I have love on the brain. Since IRISH EYES released on December 7th, I continue to be blown a-w-a-y by the love readers are showing the book, including 385 reviews on Amazon, so far! Here’s a taste of what you’re saying.
​​
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Great read. I loved this book! …Very touching and believable heroine and characters. – Len C.

​⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Spellbinding. Wonderful characters and plot. I couldn’t put it down. History, romance and intrigue. No one could ask for more. – Anne D.

​​Now I’d like to give some of that love back… with a giveaway! THE ORCHID HOUR by Nancy Bilyeau is an utterly delicious historical mystery set in 1920’s New York. To win it alongside IRISH EYES, sign up to my free Substack newsletter, History With Hope. Anyone who subscribes between February 1-14 will be entered into a random draw to win. One winner (both books). Giveaway closes at 12 midnight EST.

Subscribe to History With Hope