Author Talk: Susan Metallo ("Hearts on the Table")

Bards Alley presents Hearts on the Table author Susan Metallo in conversation with Alice Scott and Andrew Joseph White

Susan Metallo visits Bards Alley to discuss her new YA novel Hearts on the Table, a reimagining of William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night set during World War I. Join us for the conversation, moderated by bookseller/author Alice Scott and guest author Andrew Joseph White (Hell Followed with Us)!

Boasting an ensemble of queer, trans, and neurodivergent characters, Hearts on the Table follows 17-year-old Violet as she navigates various romantic entanglements on the island where she has been shipwrecked. It is recommended for readers ages 14 and up. Copies will be available for purchase and a post-discussion signing at Bards Alley.

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ABOUT THE BOOK

Violet is used to winning—with her mathematical mind, no one stands a chance of beating her at cards, or much of anything else. So, when her wrathful father threatens to marry her and her trans twin brother Seb to the highest bidders, she’s certain they can escape England, even with a war on. But before they reach safety in Italy, a U-boat sinks their ship, and Violet washes up on a small island, on the wrong side of enemy lines, desperate to find her missing twin.

To earn passage to the mainland, where she hopes Seb has landed, Violet disguises herself as a man and accepts a job delivering love poetry for melancholy pacifist Teo, the island’s irritating golden boy. The object of his affection, fair Olivia, is less than enchanted, but she is intrigued by the handsome delivery boy—Violet in disguise. While Violet struggles to sidestep Olivia’s attentions, she’s vexed by her own inconvenient but undeniable attraction to Teo. Add a mysterious newcomer, who converts the love triangle into a square, and Olivia’s autistic sister, who’s concocting a devilish revenge against the island’s biggest bully, and odds are things will only get messier.

Fortunately, playing the odds is Violet’s specialty.

In a twisty transformation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, populated with queer, trans, and neurodivergent characters, Violet’s bold prose alternates with verse chapters from the perspective of autistic musical prodigy Faustina. Susan Metallo’s whip-smart writing and the fresh wartime setting make for a witty, elegant, and high-stakes exploration of love, loss, friendship, and identity.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Susan Metallo is a neurodivergent author and youth services librarian. Reasons To Hate Me, her debut novel, was an Indies Introduce Selection for Summer/Fall 2025. She serves as regional advisor for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators in New Mexico. “My intentions for Hearts on the Table,” she writes, “were to honor the neurodivergent and LGBTQIA+ experiences of the early twentieth century with a balance of accuracy and hope, acknowledging the challenges and discrimination while focusing on agency and joy.”