Author Marty Ambrose gave a talk on “The Haunted Summer of 1816” at the East County Regional Library in Lehigh Acres. PHOTO PROVIDED

Author Marty Ambrose gave a talk on “The Haunted Summer of 1816,” at the East County Regional Library in Lehigh Acres Friday, kickstarting a reading festival now in its 20th year.

The talk, one of several at libraries throughout the county, was a preview event to the Lee County Library System’s free Southwest Florida Reading Festival.

The festival will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 2, at the Fort Myers Regional Library campus, 2450 First St., downtown Fort Myers.

During the preview, the historical fiction author discussed her latest novel “Claire’s Last Secret,” which surrounds the private circle of Lord Byron and Mary Shelley. Ambrose spoke about her own literary pilgrimage to Geneva, a city that help to bring inspiration for her book.

“In 2016, I began my research and went to Geneva to see the legacy of Tambora, the volcano whose eruption created the ‘year without a summer.’ During my visit Geneva celebrated the bicentennial of Frankenstein and the ‘haunted summer’ of 1816. The city also exhibited the first hand-written manuscript of Frankenstein,” said Ambrose. “My first stop on the Byron/Shelley Reality tour was Castle Chillon – a medieval structure built to imprison/torture generations. It rises out of a rocky spit on Lake Geneva.”

Ambrose went on to convey how being in the very dungeon where Byron stopped with Shelley in 1816 as they sailed around the lake during their own literary pilgrimage, led to aid her own pilgrimage.

“The romantic poets were fascinated by the dungeon where Francois Bonivard was chained to a post for seven years. It was amazing and a little creepy to stand in that very dungeon and see the pillar where he was once chained,” Ambrose said.

The novel “Claire’s Last Secret” is based around the private circle of Lord Byron and Mary Shelley. Many of the characters are based on real people and the dates match up historically. Ambrose did add two fictional characters to the novel.

“The plot for this novel revolves around whether or not Claire’s daughter survived. It incorporates both mystery and a murder plot. This type of book is considered genre bending,” said Ambrose.

Ambrose is currently finishing up a second novel, part of her trilogy series.

“The book is my heart. Something I have wanted to write for quite some time. It’s sold as a trilogy and I just finished the second book last month. The name of that book is “A Shattered Fate,” and it follows Claire’s pursuit to find out whether her daughter is really alive,” said Ambrose.

Marty Ambrose has been a writer most of her life, immersed in the world of literature, whether teaching creative writing in the MFA program at Southern New Hampshire University or creating her own fiction. Her career has spanned almost two decades with eight published novels. A local university approved a grant, which allowed Ambrose to travel to Geneva and research her latest novel trilogy.

For more information of the Southwest Florida Reading Festival, visit www.swflreadingfestival.com or call 239-479-4636.