Coming this Week at "Stalking the Belle Époque" and Punch's Cousin

Of course, tomorrow, Mr. Punch, Bertie and I will be celebrating Halloween as we unveil this year’s Stalking the Belle Époque pumpkins. We’ll continue our look at some spooky art, jewels and objects. And, we’ll also have a very special “Treat of the Week.”


The rest of the week will be a lot of fun. More obscure little books await you. I’ll be showing you some new objects that I’ve just added to my own collection of stuff. And, as always, there will be a lot of paintings, sculptures, gems and strange things to delight you. I’m also going to walk you through one of my first attempts at baking as I recount a favorite family recipe which my mother taught to me last weekend.

As for Punch’s Cousin, we’ve got six new chapters in store. Now that Agnes Rittenhouse is dead (at the hands of Iolanthe Evangeline), you’d think that things would get a little easier for Mr. Punch/Julian and their friends. But, no. Iolanthe, after killing Agnes, took the two babies with her and gave them to Edward Cage. Her reasons for giving one of the children to Edward Cage were expected, however, it was her desire to get even with Adrienne and Cecil that drove Iolanthe to offer up their child to Mr. Cage. As Mr. Punch and his companions close in on Edward’s house, will the shifty Mr. Cage be able to escape the law or will he have to return the children to their rightful guardians?

Even if Edward does the right thing, it might not be that easy to return Fuller to his parents. When last we saw Adrienne and Cecil’s young son, he was placed in the hands of Ulrika Rittenhouse who had just smuggled her newest boyfriend—Giovanni—into her bedroom. Ulrika has already given the boy a new name, “Raphael,” so things don’t bode well for that little one.

Meanwhile, Charles has managed to bring Barbara back to Julian’s house. However, she still thinks that she’s back in England with Arthur. Will Charles be able to break through her dementia or will she retreat further?

Also look for a few surprises as we continue Punch’s Cousin next week. The first week of November promises to be warm and bright. I can’t wait to share it all with you.