Mr. and Mrs. American Pie: The Inspiration for Palm Royale Seasons One and Two

Juliet McDaniel came of age during a time when beauty pageants were rapidly becoming tacky relics of a far more sexist time, or so she thought. Although raised in Arizona, she spent the last 25 years living in Chicago, and knows its history and culture inside and out, so those places became a fitting home for her characters. Juliet has a B.A. in American Studies from Lake Forest College and a M.A. in Writing from DePaul University. She has had several screenplays optioned, and one produced: indie rom-com QWERTY, released in 2012. Mr. & Mrs. American Pie is her first novel.

Named a 2018 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards Finalist"McDaniel's debut is the perfect blend of salty and sweet, combining 1970s culinary horrors like ham and bananas hollandaise with a motley crew of fakers learning what family really means." —Booklist (starred review)"A gorgeously messy and misguided heroine. I love this story." —Laura Dern"Mr. & Mrs. American Pie is nonstop fun from start to finish." —HelloGiggles "Juliet McDaniel's debut novel is hilarious." —Refinery29 "A laugh-out-loud story starring a offbeat heroine you won't soon forget, Mr. & Mrs. American Pie is the comic relief you've been waiting for." —Bustle "Juicy and kooky—I loved it." —Cat Marnell, author of How to Murder Your Life "McDaniel has a winner with her wittily titled debut. Mr. & Mrs. American Pie mixes a riotous 1969 California with a story that speaks to today's Time's Up movement." —Andy Lewis, The Hollywood Reporter "Driven by three unforgettable characters, Mr. & Mrs. American Pie isn’t just a fast-paced romp about an American beauty pageant—it's a treatise on class, gender, politics, the power of perseverance, and what it means to be family." —Sarah Nivala, Book Soup "A hilarious and thought-provoking satire with as much heart as bite. For fans of Maria Semple and Helen Ellis with a dash of Carl Hiaasen's humor." —Becky Spratford, Librarian (RA for All) "This is the type of relentlessly entertaining, deeply kind novel that will appeal to fans of Maria Semple and Jami Attenberg." —Magan Szwarek, ‎Librarian (STDL)