Welcome to the Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt! If you’ve just discovered the hunt, be sure to start at Stop #1, and collect the clues through all the stops, in order, so you can enter to win one of our top 5 grand prizes!
The hunt BEGINS on 10/21 at noon MST with Stop #1 at LisaTawnBergren.com.
Hunt through our loop using Chrome or Firefox as your browser (not Explorer).
There is NO RUSH to complete the hunt—you have all weekend (until Sunday, 10/24 at midnight MST)! So take your time, reading the unique posts along the way; our hope is that you discover new authors/new books and learn new things about them.
Submit your entry for the grand prizes by collecting the CLUE on each author’s scavenger hunt post and submitting your answer in the Rafflecopter form at the final stop, back on Lisa’s site. Many authors are offering additional prizes along the way!
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Hello, beautiful Scavenger Hunt folks!
I'm
Michelle Shocklee, author of several historical novels, including
UNDER THE TULIP TREE, a 2021 Christy Award finalist! (I'm still pinching myself!) You can learn more about me and my books here on my blog,
my website,
Facebook,
Twitter, or
Instagram.
One of the best things about being an author of historical fiction is the research. I positively adore visiting historical sites--Civil War battlefields, old homes, graveyards, etc--and imagining the people who walked those hallowed places long before I was born. When we moved to Tennessee in 2017, I felt like a sponge soaking up the fascinating history of the area. A very cool event I kept reading about was the 1897 Tennessee Centennial Exposition. And the more I learned about this World's-Fair-type event, the more the novelist in me
knew I'd have to write about it someday!
Ta-da! My next release, COUNT THE NIGHTS BY STARS, a time-slip novel, takes readers to 1897 Nashville, where forbidden love, star-filled nights, and dark secrets come to light when unmailed postcards from the expo are discovered in an elaborate scrapbook 65 years later. The book releases March 8, 2022, but I'd love to give you a sneak peek of that magical place and time now.
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Promotional map of the 1897 Tennessee Centennial Exposition (If you look closely at the cover of my new book, you'll see some familiar buildings hiding on Priscilla's blouse!)
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The History:Tennessee became the 16th state on June 1, 1796. To celebrate its 100th birthday, officials decided to hold an exposition. Planning and finances delayed Tennessee's party, making it one year late for the actual centennial when the expo opened May 1, 1897.
The Buildings:
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Me at Centennial Park in front of the Parthenon and Lake Watauga |
Over 100 temporary buildings were constructed on the 200-acre fairgrounds, with the most famous being the city of Nashville's contribution, the Parthenon. Built as an exact replica of the Parthenon located in Greece, it honored Nashville's nickname "the Athens of the South." Because the Parthenon became the symbol of the expo, it was left standing after the fair closed and was rebuilt with permanent materials in the 1920s. All other buildings were torn down or sold and moved.
Vanity Fair:
Vanity Fair offered a Giant See-Saw, Chinese village, Streets of Cairo, animal shows, historical exhibits, and all manner of exotic foods to over 1.7 million visitors. You could even take a gondola ride on Lake Watauga in an authentic Venetian gondola, steered by a true Italian gondolier. (My characters do this in my new book. So romantic!)
While researching COUNT THE NIGHTS BY STARS, I visited Centennial Park many times, imagining Priscilla and Audrey there in 1897 and in 1961. I hope you'll "visit" the exposition again when my book releases next year!
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Here’s the Stop #22 Basics:
If you’re interested, you can preorder COUNT THE NIGHTS BY STARS on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Tyndale, or at your local bookstore!
Clue to Write Down: blanket
Link to Stop #23, the Next Stop on the Loop: Pepper Basham’s site!
Before you head out to the next stop, be sure to sign up for my e-newsletter (top right corner of this page) and be entered in my giveaway! THREE WINNERS from my newsletter list will choose between a signed paperback copy of UNDER THE TULIP TREE now OR wait until March for a signed paperback copy of COUNT THE NIGHTS BY STARS! (USA only, please.) Giveaway closes 10/25 at 12:01 AM MST. I'll draw the winners and post names here and on my social media outlets by Wednesday Oct. 27.
For an EXTRA ENTRY, leave a comment and tell me what your favorite state fair/county fair food is! Make my mouth water, y'all! 😋
I love that buildings from the Exposition are on the blouse of the woman on your new book cover! How clever! I'm looking forward to reading your new book!
ReplyDeleteFunnel cakes are my favorite, hands down! Can't wait to read your books!
ReplyDeleteI think funnel cakes are the only state fair/ fall festival type foods that are not found everywhere else.
ReplyDeleteYour books sound very interesting and I like how you input the buildings into the shirt on the cover!
Really like the cover of your upcoming book! My favorite fair food is kettle corn. Thanks for having this giveaway!
ReplyDeleteFunnel cake :)
ReplyDeleteHi, I love the funnel cakes. Thank you for the chance.
ReplyDeleteKettle corn and hot pretzels are amazing!
ReplyDeleteIce cream!
ReplyDeleteFavorite fair food would have to be ice cream or a hot dog.
ReplyDeleteI haven't been to the fair for a long time but I would have to say a funnel cake, yummm!
ReplyDeleteHard to pick just one! Love ice cream cones and funnel cakes...oh, and especially mini donuts! Total favorite from my childhood when we went to the fair! Loved those mini donuts! And I still do :0)
ReplyDeleteRoasted corn on the cob, hands down!
ReplyDeleteThe Fisher scones at the Puyallup Fair in Washington!
ReplyDeleteThank you for participating in this scavenger hunt 💛.
mint milkshake from the dairy booth!
ReplyDeleteIce cream or pretzels. Thank you for the opportunity!
ReplyDeletePie
ReplyDeleteMouse ears yummy.
ReplyDeleteFunnel cakes! I love the smell too!
ReplyDeleteI love funnel cakes but corny dogs come a very close second. Really anything cooked in grease.
ReplyDeleteWe have fried corn on a stick at ours...it delicious! It’s amazing how many items can be fried!! Congrats on being a Christy finalist!!
ReplyDeleteI love candied pecans!
ReplyDeleteCorn dogs, hot pretzels and fresh squeezed lemonade!
ReplyDeleteKettle Corn!!
ReplyDeleteI love cotton candy and candied apples. Such a sweet tooth!
ReplyDeleteOh my, my mouth really is watering reading all these yummy fav's!! Keep 'em coming!! Thank you all for playing along!! Enjoy the Hunt!
ReplyDelete~Michelle
First- I did a double take when I saw the Parthenon in your photo!! Then had to read everything. I live just outside of Nashville- so seeing sights I KNOW and have visited was too cool!! I definitely want to read this book now!
ReplyDeleteAs for foods- I haven't been to a state/county fair in ages, so I will go with the fair I love to visit- the Ren Faire! I love those huge turkey legs that you cart around and can even pretend to use as a sword if need be!
Syrenity,
DeleteI think you’ll really enjoy the Nashville history since you live nearby. My novel UNDER THE TULIP TREE is also set in Nashville. 😎
Sure wish I knew how to do this stuff. But I love reading!
DeleteMy favorite fair foods are corn dogs and kettle corn!
ReplyDeleteI love eating deep fried double stuffed Oreo's with powdered sugar!
ReplyDeleteCandied Apples
ReplyDeleteI love the warm mini donuts
ReplyDeletetiramisu392@yahoo.com
I like funnel cakes. Yum!
ReplyDeleteFavorite would be blooming onions
ReplyDeleteWithout a doubt, funnel cakes. Fairs are the only times I indulge myself in that sweet, moist, covered-with-powdered-sugar bit of yumminess.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite fair food would have to be candied apples.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite fair food is caramel apples with nuts.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite fair food is funnel cakes on the sweet side and corn dogs with ketchup and mustard on the foodie side.
ReplyDeleteFunnel Cakes - hands down all favorite!
ReplyDeleteFunnel Cakes - hands down all time favorite!
ReplyDeleteFoot long corndogs
ReplyDeleteI am always content with a walking taco or a good ole pulled pork sandwich.
ReplyDeleteFunnel Cakes
ReplyDeleteFunnel cakes, of course!
ReplyDeleteFunnel Cakes!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite fair food is funnel cakes. I love them plain with just lots of confectioner's sugar on top.
ReplyDeleteElkhart County Fair in Goshen, IN is the best and has great food. Favorites are mini donuts, haystacks, Tenderloins and fish, and of course the ice cream. Shoot - i like it all!!!
ReplyDeleteFried oreos for sure!
ReplyDeleteWe have apple cider donuts with cinnamon sugar! I Love them so much!
ReplyDeleteI'm already a newsletter subscriber. When we go to our local county fair, gotta have one of them elephant ears with cinnamon & sugar!! Yummy!
ReplyDeleteThank you for participating in the hunt and the giveaway chance to win your book :-)
Funnel cakes, just like most everyone else!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the giveaway!! I have so many food allergies that I can't have much when it comes to fair food anymore :(
ReplyDeleteI’m sorry about your food allergies. ☹️ If you can, please reply with your name and/or email address so I can give you the extra entry! 👍
DeleteFunnel cakes with fruit jam in the middle and topped with whipped cream.
ReplyDeleteWow, lots of funnel cake lovers here! 😋
ReplyDeleteA housekeeping notice: be sure your email and/or name here in the comments matches the info you used to sign up for the newsletter. I’d hate for you to miss getting the extra entry!
Thank you all for joining in on the fun! 🤩
My husband judged the Guernsey show at our state fair in Puyallup this year. He surprised me and brought back a baker's dozen of Fisher's Scones. They are delicious, filled with raspberry jam.
ReplyDeleteI am looking forward to your next book! Cant wait to learn about the Tennessee Centennial Exhibit! My FAV Fair foods are Footlong Corn Dogs with lots of mustard and a large Lemon Shake up! Like YUM!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite food from the fair is a Fletcher's corn dog.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite fair food is, before going home for the night, getting the freshly deep friend round donuts that are dusted with my choice of sugar or cinnamon sugar. I usually just upgrade to the bucket size ;)
ReplyDeleteFunnel cake
ReplyDeleteLove The Funnel Cakes they are so yummy! Thank you for this amazing hunt!
ReplyDeleteI love the funnel cakes! Always a fave!
ReplyDeleteI'm already a newsletter subscriber.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite would probably be funnel cakes (now I'm going to be dreaming about them with none in sight...oh well). Thanks for being part of the scavenger hunt.
I’m a subscriber. My favorite is funnel cake.
ReplyDeleteVanilla taffy - yummy!
ReplyDeleteFunnel Cakes for sure...with lots of powdered sugar!! I am already a subscriber!!
ReplyDeleteHello there! So you'll think I'm crazy but I've only ever been to a fair once when I was a young child. I don't exactly have a favorite food from the fair, but I'll say this, I love ice cream! You're new to me as an author and I'm excited to add your books to my TBR pile! They sound wonderful!
ReplyDeleteI love funnel cakes. Yum!
ReplyDeleteI will be controversial and say that elephant ears are much better than funnel cakes! We did not usually get much food when we went to the fair as kids, but an elephant ear was always a treat! :)
ReplyDeleteMy favorite state fair/county fair food hands down is ELEPHANT EARS!!! :)
ReplyDeleteFried Oreo cookie. It sounded crazy but when we tried it oh, my. An instant favorite! Grin!
ReplyDeleteFunnel cakes and foot long hot dogs!
ReplyDeleteI love a good corn dog!
ReplyDeleteI am already a newsletter subscriber.
Funnel cakes for sure!
ReplyDeleteDeep fried oreos, or fried twinkie, yum!
ReplyDeleteWhen we lived in Nashville, we discovered a small town called Centerville, TN that hosted a banana pudding festival every year. It was tiny, but a real treat.
ReplyDeleteI love the New York grilled sausage and onion sandwiches! My mouth is watering just thinking about it!
ReplyDeleteAlways always always an Elephant Ear! So yummy!
ReplyDeleteLove the elephant ears and fresh taffy.
ReplyDeleteKeep these yummy comments coming!
ReplyDeleteSome of you mentioned Elephant Ears but I hadn't heard of them. Had to look them up. OHMYWORD!! Yes, please!! what's not to love about fried dough, cinnamon and sugar!?!? Haha! Thanks for sharing!
And thank you ALL for joining the scavenger hunt fun!! Enjoy!
Funnel cakes, fresh lemonade, and sirloin tips
ReplyDeleteI enjoy most fair food...really enjoy the corn dogs, funnel cakes, churros, kettle corn, and twisty fries with onions!
ReplyDeleteI love funnel cakes!!
ReplyDeleteFried cheese curds are my favorite!
ReplyDeleteI love the hot dogs and ice cream.
ReplyDeleteTighefan42atgmaildotcom
I love elephant ears (deep friend dough sprinkled with cinnamon sugar!) YUMMO!
ReplyDeleteFry bread and roasted street corn are my favorite fair foods. I had never had them before moving to AZ, but now I go to the county fair just to get those two goodies.
ReplyDeleteI like corndogs at the fair.
ReplyDeletePick one?! I don't know that I can; I like several fair-type foods. Funnel cakes must be mentioned along with corn on the cob. But one of my favorites is getting the latest and greatest fried foods: Oreos, kool aide, butter (how in the world do they do that?), Twinkies, etc. You get the idea. It's fun to see what they come up with and it is usually tasty.
ReplyDeleteCorn dogs and I'll only eat them at state or county fairs!
ReplyDeleteChris Henderson
Probably my favorite fair food is elephant ears (fried indian bread). Love them!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite faire food is cotton candy, but I do love funnel cake!
ReplyDeleteI'm with the funnel cake people! Cotton candy is too sweet! jarning67(at)hotmail(dot)COM
ReplyDeleteIt has been many, many years since we have gone to a fair. My favorite food item is funnel cake. We make them at home, in strips, instead of circular & we call them funnel snakes!
ReplyDeleteThe second food would be a Frito Pie, they take a single serving size bag of Fritos and slit the side of it, a generous helping of taco seasoned beef, a short squirt of mustard (optional) over the top. All you need is a fork and you are ready to go.
It’s been a long time since I’ve been to a fair but my old timey favorite is the red candy apples. My current favorite is the funnel cakes !
ReplyDeleteCotton candy. Love it.
ReplyDeleteNew York State Fair has its own NYS fair marinade for Chicken!
ReplyDeletebut my favorite thing is fried dough!!!
Blessings
Linda Marie Finn
Faithful Acres Books & Author Services
This week is my state's State Fair! I have to say deep fried mac-n-cheese wins the fair food contest!
ReplyDeleteI love the funnel cake and fresh-squeezed lemonade! I'm already a newsletter subscriber.
ReplyDeleteFunnel cake for sure!
ReplyDeleteFunnel cake!
ReplyDeleteI like kettle corn and soft pretzels.
ReplyDeleteLoved your first book and can't wait to read the next one!!!
ReplyDeleteI like turkey legs and fried mac and cheese
ReplyDeleteI love cotton candy and soft pretzels with mustard and Navajo tacos
ReplyDeleteI wish I could remember! I was 2 when I last went to a county fair. But I love cotton candy at carnivals!
ReplyDeleteI'm already a subscriber. My favorite fair food would have to be scones at the Washington State Fair.
ReplyDeleteI already subscribe to your newsletter. I don't eat fair food.
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, we attended the "Festival of the West" every July 4, and always made a beeline to the Navajo fry bread booth when we got there (and it always had the longest line). It is delicious hot off the skillet and drizzled with honey!
ReplyDeleteI'm already a subscriber. I haven't been to a fair in many years. So I don't remember.
ReplyDeleteFrench Fries with ketchup and vinegar.
ReplyDeleteAnd Funnel Cakes.
Wow, thank you for sharing all that information! My favorite would be corn dogs :)!
ReplyDeleteFreshly picked and roasted sweet corn.
ReplyDeleteFried zucchini and fried green tomatoes
ReplyDeleteFunnel cakes!!!!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed pork loin sandwiches at the Ohio State Fair.
ReplyDeleteI loved the cherry or ABC pie a la mode at the Cherry Festival. 😋🍒🫓 But, normally funnel cake. Thank you so much for sharing! I love & appreciate all the research that goes into novels!! 🥰📚
ReplyDeleteWorldtraveler79(at)@outlook(dot)com
DeleteI hardly ever use google acct. 🤪
I’m already a subscriber. I LOVED Under the Tulip Trees! My favorite fair food offering was the homemade pecan pralines a friends mom made for our school fair every yea (it was a big fair)., They were so incredibly yummy! She taught me how to make them and I still have her recipe.
ReplyDeletePerrianne Askew
perrianne (DOT) askew (AT) me (DOT) com
Wisconsin fried cheese sticks!!!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite county fair food is funnel cake!
ReplyDeleteLoraine Ertelt
Lpertelt at aol dot com
All,
ReplyDeleteI'm loving all the delish food ideas you're sharing!! Boy, makes me reeeally want to find a county fair soon! Ha!
Again, thank you ALL for joining the Scavenger Hunt fun! And THANK YOU to everyone who has signed up for the newsletter--those who were already faithful subscribers and to all the new folks. I sincerely appreciate each and every one of you!!
Keep the yummy comments coming!!
~Michelle
Corn dogs. Can't wait for your upcoming book
ReplyDeleteLemon shakeups
ReplyDeleteI do love plain ol' ice cream the most. Give me a soft-serve cone any day! Although I have always wanted to try one of those donut burgers (the buns are donuts!). I just can't bring myself to do that to my health, haha!
ReplyDeleteI love discovering new authors through this scavenger hunt! Thank you for doing this!
Favorite state fair food was a deliciously spicy Indian Frybread “taco” that I just can’t seem to find anymore — spicy shredded beef in a zesty red sauce, maybe some onions, but simple made it the best. Wish I could find it again!
ReplyDeleteSnocones and cotton candy. I always get both.Couldn't pick one without the other!
ReplyDeleteCorn dogs are my absolute favorite from county fair food treats!! Thanks for the chance! I’d love to read your book!
ReplyDeleteTom Thumb doughnuts at the Minnesota State Fair which are small doughnuts made on-site and sprinkled in cinnamon sugar. It’s been many decades since I moved away from Minnesota, but I’ve always dreamed of going back for the State Fair, and of course, getting some Tom Thumb doughnuts! Oh, how I hope they are still available!
ReplyDeleteOur county fair (Fulton County Fair, OH) has several "MUST HAVE" foods on the midway. Pork chops-on-a-stick are wonderful. And the Dairymen make some of the BEST milkshakes you'll ever have! The beef producers sell rib eye steak sandwiches that are delicious.
ReplyDeleteFunnel Cakes!
ReplyDeleteFunnel Cakes are the best!
ReplyDeleteCinnamon rolls as my as both my hands.
ReplyDeletepumpkin dumplings with pumpkin icecream and carmel sauce
ReplyDeleteLove a good cream puff!!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite fair food is funnel cake. Yummy!
ReplyDeleteFunnel cake😊😊!!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite fair was always the Fur Rondy in Alaska where I grew up. Unlike some, ours was always in the middle of winter in February! I read my first ferris wheel in 20 degree weather with my husband (engaged then) and my favorite food there was the caribou dogs ( like a big hot dog) complete with cheese sauce and onions sauteed in coca cola :)
ReplyDeleteThis is also Bethany Cox- I subscribed to your email list, but the site didn't publish my name!
DeleteI love the fair! It has been a tradition in my family for years! The fresh donuts and cider are always good. There is always a stand for cinnamon sugar coated almonds that are AMAZING!!! Plus, steak tips with mushrooms and mashed potatoes. Just thinking about it makes me hungry!
ReplyDeleteFried cheese curds! Nothing can top them.
ReplyDeleteA close second is the fresh bucket of cookies at the MN state fair - watch them come out of the machine and drop into the bucket before they are handed straight to you. Though I also love the deep fried candy bars and deep fried cheese on a stick.
I am already a subscriber. My favorite fair food is either onion rings, cheese curds - the ones that are a big gooey clump, not the little nuggets - or cotton candy.
ReplyDeleteHello! I am subscribing and am so excited to be here! My Fave was the Erie County Fair! We would go every year and it was huge! Funnel Cake with Powdered Sugar! OMG, now my mouth is watering!
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for the chance!
I subscribe! And no matter how old I get, I love a big fluffy cotton candy on a stick! Or yummy fried dough piled high with lots of powdered sugar!
ReplyDeleteI'd like to be original, but the #1 state fair food I like is hot dogs! (Unless it has sugar in it! Sugar always wins!)
ReplyDeleteSausage with peppers and onions
ReplyDeleteFunnel cakes!!!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a little girl, I liked the foot long hot dogs with chili and onions. Probably couldn't eat it now.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely funnel cakes! Mmmm! Went to the UP Fair and our kids had them for the first time. Wonderful memories!
ReplyDeleteI was just about to close out of this page and I saw the letters UP. Do you live in the UP? I do and I keep saying I need to visit the UP fair but I never seem to make it there. ☹️
DeleteIt's a toss up between fried cheese curds or Sweet Martha's cookies (chocolate chip, of course!).
ReplyDeleteCotton candy!!
ReplyDeleteHello fellow Yooper Girl! 😊
DeleteI love deep fried Oreos! I tried them once, and yum!!!
ReplyDeleteI am not really one to order food at the state fair. But pie might be a good option.
ReplyDeleteAt our local 4hH County Fair, one of the booths sells chicken & noodles over mashed potatoes. It's an Indiana thing, to be sure, but I love it!!!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite County Fair food is hot salty pretzels. I am already signed up for your newsletter.
ReplyDeleteI’m already a subscriber. My favorite fair food is Funnel cakes!
ReplyDeleteI'm already a subscriber. Country ham sandwiches and elephant ears are my two faves!
ReplyDeleteFunnel cakes - and now I'm hungry!
ReplyDeletecotton candy
ReplyDeleteDeep Fried Candy bars
ReplyDeleteI subscribed. My favorite food is the polish dogs loaded with onions and peppers. 😁
ReplyDeleteI’ve subscribed. My favorite Fair Food is the Homemade Biscuits & Molasses served by our own MS State Dept of Agriculture! Followed closely by Penn’s Chicken-on-a-Stick! (lg.hudson@yahoo.com)
ReplyDeleteCorn on the cob in the bag of butter.
ReplyDeleteI'm a subscriber! I have to be a party pooper & really have to stay away from most of the traditional fair foods because high fat & sugar is a bad combo with my gastric bypass. But get out the way, because mama is going to get herself a corndog, with a little ketchup painted up the side.
ReplyDelete