Temptation Rag A Novel

"A striking portrait of racial and gender inequality in the ragtime era. An unforgettable and deeply human story."— FREDRIC TULSKY, Pulitzer Prize-winner

"Could not put the book down. Great idea for your next Book Club reading."—THE HOLLYWOOD TIMES

May Convery is unhappy with her family's privileged life among New York City's elite and dreams of becoming a poet. When she meets the poor but talented Mike Bernard, an aspiring concert pianist, she imagines the two of them pursuing their artistic passions together. But after their secret liaison is discovered and Mike disappears from her life, neither of them is prepared for the consequences of his betrayal.

Five years later, in 1900, Mike has abandoned his concert career for a more lucrative one in vaudeville and won the coveted title "Ragtime King of the World." His professional rivalry with the self-proclaimed Originator of Ragtime, Ben Harney, is escalating into obsession. May, trapped in an abusive marriage arranged by her parents, struggles to find freedom through her poetry, the women's suffrage movement, and yet another forbidden relationship, this one with the popular composer J. Rosamond Johnson. Her friendships with Johnson and opera singer Abbie Mitchell introduce May to the world of Black musical theater and the authentic originators of ragtime. But May's freedom has come at a cost. When, by chance, she and Mike meet again, painful secrets from the past threaten to surface, and May is forced to confront the truth she had hoped to deny forever.

From vaudeville's greatest stars to the geniuses of early African-American musical theater, an unforgettable cast of real-life characters populates this richly fictionalized historical saga.

Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard is author of the historical mystery-thriller The Beauty Doctor, Finalist for the Eric Hoffer Book Award. Her historical novel Sisters of Castle Leod, Book 1 of the series Historic Women of the Highlands, is an Amazon Kindle #1 bestseller in Historical Biographical Fiction and Biographical Literary Fiction.

A writer and musician, Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard is the author of two historical novels. Her work has been recognized as a finalist by the Eric Hoffer Book Award, the Arizona Literary Awards, and has received 5-star ratings from Book Readers Appreciation Group and Readers' Favorite. For more about the author and her books, please visit: ehbernard.com.