Short Synopsis: Carla Matteo copes with life by "taking to the bottle"— glass goddesses funneling perfume! During a mid-life renaissance, the juice provides a hook for Carla to find her own niche while the ominous rose note in Paloma Picasso forces her to confront a troubled past.

Long Synopsis: More than a cocktail for hot flashes and fluctuating libido, Underlying Notes strews crumbs of callousness, blame, self-sacrifice, repression, and restlessness along the unmarked trails of introspection and reinvention weaving through Carla Matteo's journey to find her own niche in the Second Act of life.

Fragrance addiction numbs the pain of her father's tragic death, wards off the sting of a severed adolescent friendship, fortifies her against the stench of employment in her husband's waste management company on land purported to have been swindled from a downtrodden pig farmer by her shady father-in-law, and wafts through fantasies of having a fling with hubby's paesano. During a mid-life renaissance, the "juice" offers false security in Carla's quest to reinvent herself, while the ominous rose note in Paloma Picasso forces her to confront a troubled past.

Carla's self-deprecating wit and candor navigate the reader past Rhode Island's affluent coastal communities, prominent landmarks, cherished institutions, and olive oil spills of the underworld as she reveals her quirks, inhibitions, anxieties, and fears. Her account is as multi-layered as the fragrances she wears to permeate back-stories that illuminate the present and surrender underlying secrets one morsel at a time.

Author Bio: Under Mother's tutelage, Eva Pasco became a proficient typist by the age of nine and soon pounded chapter stories replete with dialogue on her girlie-pink Tom Thumb typewriter. In high school she composed her first novella earning its own reserve shelf in the library. On the fast track of college, Pasco's penchant for writing deferred to churning out term papers. Throughout a rewarding teaching career she dedicated her craft to drafting curriculum, developing student proficiency in creative writing, and penning poignant notes to her charges. Undergoing a mid-life renaissance, Pasco enkindled her passion for storytelling by composing fiction that taps into significant issues impacting the lives of women.

Eva Pasco resides in southern Rhode Island with her husband Bill and their three cats that "have it made." She enjoys the splendor of sunset from a double-hung window above a work bench in the basement where her fingers dance over the keyboard whenever a notion pops into her head. Sometimes the cats allow her to work undisturbed. Life is good!

Readers may contact the author at eva.pasco@hotmail.com.

To find out more about the author, visit Eva Pasco on My Space - http://www.myspace.com/evapasco.