Gwen Florio's "Best Be Prepared"

Gwen Florio grew up in a farmhouse filled with books and a ban on television. After studying English at the University of Delaware, she began a decades-long career in journalism that has taken her around the country and to more than a dozen other countries, including several conflict zones. Her first novel in the Lola Wicks mystery series, Montana, won the Pinckley Prize for Crime Fiction and the High Plains Book Award, and was a finalist for the Shamus Award, an International Thriller Award and a Silver Falchion Award. She has since released four other books in the Lola Wicks series and three standalone novels.

Here Florio dreamcasts the lead in an adaptation of her new novel, Best Be Prepared, the fourth book in the Nora Best series:

I didn’t have to think twice when asked who might play the lead in Best Be Prepared, the fourth in my series featuring protagonist Nora Best.

Hands down, it’s Reese Witherspoon.

First – and this is no small thing – she's age-appropriate. (OK, almost. Witherspoon is 47; Nora Best is 50. Close enough.)

When starting this series, I deliberately chose an older woman as a way to highlight the unexpected freedom many women find in middle age. Nora herself is childless, but many women in that age range are empty nesters, relieved of the most time-consuming aspects of parenting. One of the things I enjoy about writing this series is watching Nora discover that freedom and the new agency that comes with it.

Witherspoon also manages the nifty trick of projecting both strength and vulnerability. Again, this works well for Nora, who constantly questions her own reactions and decisions, especially under pressure from others.

Nora’s instincts – in Best Be Prepared, her suspicions that the death of a local environmentalist is far from accidental – are sound. But she’s the only one in their Northwest Pacific coastal community who seems to think so. Some of the strongest pressure for her to drop her inquiries comes from her new boyfriend, who’d prefer she focus on their relationship.

Nora’s torn: her previous marriage was a disaster, and she treasures this seemingly healthy new involvement. But … but …

At this point, I can see Witherspoon’s brow wrinkle.

What’s her next move? Will she bestow a radiant – if a little forced – smile upon the boyfriend?

Or will she square her shoulders and trust herself?

That’s the dilemma driving Best Be Prepared, both for Nora and the larger community as it grapples with the issue of development versus tsunami safety measures.

A final argument for Witherspoon, one seemingly unrelated to the book. But it’s why she’d shoot to the top of my list even if she weren’t so perfect for this part: her championship of books and reading.

Her choices for her book club are whip-smart – an assessment probably based on the fact that her wide-ranging and diverse selections are routinely among my favorites.

So, Reese Witherspoon. Because a writer can dream.

Visit Gwen Florio's website.

Coffee with a Canine: Gwen Florio & Nell.

Q&A with Gwen Florio.

The Page 69 Test: Best Be Prepared.

--Marshal Zeringue