Nassau Hall, a centerpiece of Princeton University campus, a national landmark

When I started writing the Poison & Wine series, I thought about creating a fictional town around Princeton, New Jersey. I even considered choosing a neighborhood small town as the location for the series, but something was missing. Much like the Martha's Way series in which the island Martha’s Vineyard became a character in itself, I wanted to capture that same indispensable quality in the Poison & Wine series. After a lot of back and forth with myself and my supporting group, I decided to go with my heart.

The medium-size vibrant town is family friendly, centrally located between
Philadelphia and New York. It holds the record for having the most ice cream
parlors in Mercer County, which include The Bent Spoon, Halo Pub, Thomas Sweet
and Ricky's…needless to say we eat a lot of ice cream.

Princeton is also home to Princeton University, Colbie Bennington’s alma mater. The University is mentioned several times in the novel as Colbie is one of the two protagonists in SOMEWHERE TO BEGIN.

Excerpt from SOMEWHERE TO BEGIN

It had been almost five years since she waved goodbye to her alma mater. Yet standing across the street, staring at the oldest construction at Princeton University, chills ran down her spine—from its critical role in America’s history during the Revolutionary War, the fact that her grandparents met and fell in love while studying at the same University she later attended, to the many days she’d spent sitting on the front lawn deep in a debate over Dante, Socrates, situational ethics with fellow classmates, reading one of Shakespeare plays, and writing research papers.

A wave of sadness hit her. There, she’d been free, the most alive. She missed the carefree Colbie, however fleeting that time had been.

A little side note. One of my favorite pictures of our boys is of them running
toward Nassau Hall.

I’ve learned a lot about Nassau Hall from my father-in-law. The man is a walking
history book. As I’m writing this, I can hear his voice vibrating with delight
as he marvels over the historical events surrounding this national landmark.

Nassau Hall was named in memory of King William III of England, House of Nassau
and Prince of Orange. The Renaissance style building with ivy climbing on its
walls was at one time the largest stone structure in North America and played a
significant role during the American Revolutionary War.

During the Battle of Princeton, January 3, 1777, the British occupied Nassau
Hall but soon surrendered to General Washington’s troops, who had hit the
structure hard with artillery.

I love to include symbolism in my novels, something that captures the essence of
a story. This national landmark has survived fires, wars, and of course
students. Yet, much like a battered veteran, it remained standing, serving as a
symbol of the history and traditions of the University. Even the dent left by a
cannonball on the south side of the west wing—that remains evident
today—encapsulates Colbie and Zander and their battle scars, a reminder of who
they used to be, where they’ve been, and who they’ll never be again.