As the sun sank below the lakeside horizon, Shady Ladies gathered at the private home of Danialle Karmanos for an evening of fires, s’mores and stories of fate with author Anjali Sachdeva. 

Smoke wafted through the through the rain-damp air and fire pits burned brightly across the patio overlooking Cass Lake. The scent of burning wood and fall welcomed them to an evening of sensory experiences.

Kevin Peterson and Jane Larson, owners of Castalia Cocktails, greeted guests with two signature cocktails that they paired with custom-blended scents. 

The pair likes to serve up a full sensory experience, which they do at their Midtown Detroit bar. By day the jewel box space sells their Sfumato line of scents; by night Castalia morphs into a cocktail lounge where each drink has a paired scent. It’s the best possible merging of art and science — and it was on full display for Shady Ladies! 

Once guests made a stop at the bar, they headed straight for the long outdoor grazing table overflowing with charcuterie, towers of bread, soups and cheese fondue! Chef Toni Sova of Nostimo Kitchen ladled tomato and vegetable soups into delicately painted mugs for Shady Ladies to enjoy along with their plates of cheesy goodness. But that was just a precursor to the star: homemade marshmallow s’mores!

At dusk, it was time for stories around the fires. Danialle graciously welcomed everyone to her home and confessed that it had been her life-long dream to host a gathering of book lovers for an experience just like the one we were having. 

She is an avid reader and lover of stories — as is her husband, Peter, and their four children. Danialle even has her own podcast, Karma Has Spoken, so she can tell the stories of people doing interesting things in Detroit. Which is how she met our founder, Amy Haimerl!

It was then Anjali’s turn to take the stage and read one of the short stories from her book All the Names They Used for God.  She left everyone on a cliffhanger, so they couldn’t wait to get home and read their signed copies. But first there was a thoughtful conversation beween Amy and Anjali about women’s relationship with fate and nature.

Growing up, Anjali spent a lot of time outdoors, and she attributes many of the stories to the experiences she had on these adventures. And, as many of the stories straddle the line between fantasy and reality, she challenges herself to maintain a balance between the two. 

“Maybe this has never happened...,” said Anjali of the stories, “but it could happen.” As each character navigates through their story, they are all bound by fate. “No matter what they believe in,” said Anjali, “Each character is looking for something bigger than themselves that they can trust.”

At the end of the night, Amy asked Shady Ladies to write their desired fates on pieces of paper and set them ablaze, sending their dreams into the universe. 

As the fires began to dim, Shady Ladies left one by one, with a box of Bon Bon Bon chocolates to make their ride home a little sweeter. The smell of woodsmoke woven into their jackets was a final reminder of the night. — Allia McDowell