The Night Jasmine Playlist
The paperback of The Temptation of the Night Jasmine comes out tomorrow! In honor of Night Jasmine’s imminent release, we have the Night Jasmine Playlist:
Head Over Heels, The Go-Go’s.
Doesn’t “head over heels” perfectly describe Charlotte’s reaction to Robert at the beginning of the book? In the music video, while the band sings, “I waited so long, so long to play this part….” the video cuts to a woman reading a romance novel. That’s our Charlotte!
I Need a Hero, Bonnie Tyler.
Who doesn’t? But Charlotte, more than most, is looking for a hero. And Robert so very badly wants to be one for her….
Underground, David Bowie.
Maybe it’s Charlotte’s thing for unicorns—and the fact that, in many ways, this is a novel about growing up and trading illusions for realities—but pretty much the whole Labyrinth soundtrack says Night Jasmine for me, and this song in particular. “Don’t tell me truth hurts, little girl/ ‘Cause it hurts like hell”. (Plus, I just love David Bowie as the goblin king. ‘Nuff said.)
World Before Columbus, Suzanne Vega.
This, more than any of the others, is the song that sums up the first half of Night Jasmine for me. It’s the quintessential ballad of love lost, of men going off on their own quests, abandoning the affection that might have been. “They’ll never know the gold or the copper in your hair.” Or in Charlotte’s hair, as the case may be.
In the Rough, Anna Nalick.
If World Before Columbus is Charlotte in the first half of the book, this is Charlotte in the second half—resilient and defiant. It’s very much a “you go, girl!” song. It was time she learned she could sparkle on her own.
Where in the World, The Secret Garden.
All the songs so far have been very Charlotte-centric, but this one, from The Secret Garden musical, is for Robert. It’s the plaintive cry of a man haunted by lost love. “Where in the world, tell me, where in the world/ Can I live without your love?” It still sends shivers down my spine.
Alexander’s Feast, Georg Friedrich Handel.
Happy, happy, happy pair!
None but the brave,
None but the brave,
None but the brave deserves the fair.
Do you have any good Charlotte and Robert songs to add to the list? (As you can see, I could use help on the Robert side of things.) When I post the lists to the Diversions page, I’ll be adding a “Readers Recommend” section to each list. So please recommend away!
that made my day!
