ELIZABETH THE FIRST WIFE

Witty and relatable, ELIZABETH THE FIRST WIFE is about the unexpected turns that life sometimes takes and how one woman handles those turns with the cynical humor and unfaltering poise of a Shakespearean heroine.

Elizabeth Lancaster, an English professor at Pasadena City College, fills her days with books, tending her garden and growing her collection of European comfort shoes. But that all changes when her ex-husband and A-list action movie star FX Fahey unexpectedly shows up with a job offer that she can’t refuse. Now, instead of grading papers, Elizabeth packs for a summer at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival where her role is to provide artistic support and make sure FX doesn’t humiliate himself in an avant-garde production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Meanwhile, Elizabeth’s house sitter back in Pasadena is her Congressman brother-in-law’s dreamy chief of staff, whose calls regarding how to work the washing machine and stovetop slowly cross the line into much more personal territory. ELIZABETH THE FIRST WIFE is interspersed with pages from the relationship book Elizabeth is writing, a clever and entertaining mash-up of Shakespearean classic relationship examples and modern day pop culture. Gems include “Elizabethan Fashion Dos & Don’ts for the Modern Woman,” “6 Classy Ways to Throw Down an Insult” and comparing Hamlet, Romeo and Edward Cullen. As she did so skillfully with her first novel, Helen of Pasadena, which spent more than a year on the Los Angeles Times bestseller list, Lian Dolan spins a lively, smart, and very funny tale of a woman reinventing her life in unexpected ways. Lian Dolan is also the co-author of The Satellite Sisters' Uncommon Senses. As part of the Satellite Sisters, Lian and her four sisters found national acclaim first on NPR, then on ABC Radio and XM Satellite Radio. She also creates the popular podcast and blog Chaos Chronicles. Lian Dolan is a mother, wife, novelist, talk show host, Satellite Sister and Chaos Chronicler. Her first novel, Helen of Pasadena, was an LA Times Bestseller for over a year and a nominee for Best Fiction from the Southern California Indie Booksellers.