Fireside Chat with Meg Hamand and Claire Istenthal

Join local authors Meg Hamand and Claire Istenthal for a fireside chat about their journeys as writers, excerpt readings from their novels, and a Q&A with the audience.

Diamonds in Auschwitz

A poignant novel of love, survival, and how brightly hope can shine against the backdrop of unimaginable darkness

Rachael is a resilient Jewish woman imprisoned in Auschwitz during World War II, clinging to the memories of her lost family while enduring the harrowing reality of the concentration camp. Amidst the brutality, she uncovers a hidden diamond engagement ring in the mud—its brilliance offering a glimmer of hope and a reason to survive. As she navigates the perils of camp life, Rachael forms a profound bond with Chaya, a young girl also yearning for connection and comfort in their shared despair.

Interwoven with Rachael’s tale are the lives of Samual and Hanna, a young Jewish couple planning for their future while navigating the hardships of Nazi-occupied Prague. Distracted by his life in Prague, Samual initially dismisses the growing threats against their community, focusing instead on the engagement ring he dreams of giving to Hanna. As the grip of the Nazis tightens, their plans unravel, yet their love becomes a beacon of resilience amid escalating fear and loss.

Diamonds in Auschwitz illustrates how, when everything seems lost, even the smallest treasures can illuminate the path to freedom and connection. Through Rachael and Chaya’s friendship, and Samual and Hanna’s unwavering love, the story reminds us that even in the bleakest times, the best aspects of humanity can shine brightly.

Meg Hamand is the author of the newly released, Diamonds in Auschwitz. She has written professionally for The Plymouth Pilot News, The Effingham Daily News, Michiana Executive Journal, and 13th Hour Magazine. She’s had short stories appear in Hoosier Writers, Indiana English and Internationally Yours: Prize-Winning Stories.

Meg is a debut author of historical fiction. She holds an undergraduate degree from Indiana State University in English and Creative Writing. She has master’s degree in business administration from Indiana Wesleyan University.

She lives in northern Indiana with her family (husband and daughter) and their miniature dachshund Mr. Darcy (named after Pride and Prejudice, not Bridget Jones’s Diary, she is quick to point out).

The Rising Order

Flynn faces an impossible choice―save her family and friends or save the lives of thousands of innocent people.

Flynn Zarytsky, recruiter for the Chicago mega-tech company Magnetic, comes face-to-face with true terror amid a horrific mass shooting by homegrown terrorist organization REDS. Wolf, a REDS soldier, has her in his sights, then decides to spare her life. But in doing so, he may have ensnared her in a fate worse than death.

REDS’ master plan is to make society pay for its greed and to establish a new order. Wolf sees manipulating Flynn in her role at Magnetic as the perfect way to infiltrate the tech company and use its reach to unleash catastrophic devastation on the city of Chicago and topple civilization. He never expected Flynn could chip away at his resolve and question REDS’ mission. And she never dreamed she’d be a pawn in a dangerous game that forces her to leave the citizens of Chicago vulnerable to slaughter so that her loved ones can live.

Claire Isenthal grew up traveling all over the world with her family. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Purdue University and went on to live in Chicago where she worked in Digital Marketing and Ad Sales for over ten years. She has since relocated her family back to her Indiana hometown, but is still an avid traveler and loves nothing more than to lose herself in a good book. She attributes her knack for structure and pacing to reading some of the Harry Potter books over 10 times. Claire is an International Thriller Writers (ITW) member and publishes a monthly Substack for new authors — Rising Talent, Earning Your Space in the Publishing Industry. When Claire is not attending writer’s conferences or classes, her evenings are spent with her husband, two children, computer or writers group. The Rising Order is her first novel and was an almost instant Amazon bestseller. She recently completed the second installment to the series, The New Order.

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