In her first two novels, Boston-based Crystal King has explored the unique ways that history and food both reflect and affect each other. King talks with Canadian historical novelist, Roberta Rich, about The Chef’s Secret, set in Renaissance Italy, which details the life of Bartolomeo Scappi, the legendary chef to several popes and author of one of the bestselling cookbooks of all time. King talks about, among other topics, how the few details known of Scappi’s life afforded her an opportunity as a novelist to invent and imagine. Crystal King is an author, culinary enthusiast, and marketing expert. Her writing is fueled by a love of history and a passion for the food, language, and culture of Italy. She has taught classes in writing, creativity, and social media at several universities including Harvard Extension School and Boston University, as well as at GrubStreet, one of the leading creative writing centers in the US. A Pushcart Prize–nominated poet and former co-editor of the online literary arts journal Plum Ruby Review, Crystal received her MA in critical and creative thinking from UMass Boston, where she developed a series of exercises and writing prompts to help fiction writers in medias res. She resides in Boston but considers Italy her next great love after her husband, Joe, and their two cats, Nero and Merlin. Roberta Rich divides her time between Vancouver and Colima, Mexico. She is a former family law lawyer. The Midwife of Venice, her #1 bestselling debut novel, has been published to acclaim in thirteen territories, including the U.S., the U.K., Germany, Spain and Brazil. Her second novel, the nationally bestselling The Harem Midwife, has published in over ten countries.