Love Painted in Red
by Cristiane Serruya
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GENRE: Romance
Cristiane Serruya will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
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LOVE PAINTED IN RED Blurb:
Tavish MacCraig, thirty-three-year-old Highlander, forsook his medical and military career, after being a POW for 6 months in Afghanistan, to run his family’s internationally renowned art gallery in London, The Blue Dot. Despite being surrounded by wealth and beauty, Tavish’s days are bleak, his nights, living nightmares, and his heart, an empty shell. But when he meets Irish painter Laetitia Galen, a powerful and sizzling attraction ignites between them.
Laetitia, who fled hell on earth when she was sixteen, now works as a well-paid housekeeper in a forsaken country manor in Warwickshire and sells her paintings in an obscure gallery. To preserve her new life and recently found peace, she resists Tavish and The Blue Dot's fantastic offer of an exclusive contract.
Laetitia becomes Tavish’s obsession; Tavish, Laetitia’s unattainable dream.
Meanwhile, a man with a burning grudge plots his long-awaited revenge, which could destroy them all over again.
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| Cristiane Serruya, Author |
Cristiane Serruya is Brazilian and lives in Rio de Janeiro, with her husband, two teenage daughters, and Loki, her Shetland sheepdog. She has studied in England, France, Italy, and Switzerland and graduated in Law, with a Master’s in Business Law, and a BA in Fine Arts. In 2012, she published her first romance, and is proud of the awards her novels have received.
She still works as a lawyer, but writing has become an essential part of her life, and a fulfilling adventure, as it allows her to make friends all over the world.
Links:
Hello, Caroline, and thanks for hosting me. I’m so happy to be here with you and your readers today.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up and I live in Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro. Yeah, Brazil! I also have studied in England, Switzerland, Italy, and France. I have a BA in Fine Arts and a Masters in Law, and worked as a lawyer for twenty-two years before I put pen to paper to write a novel.
I have always loved to read—crazed bookworm here!—listen to music, and travel.
Who are your favorite authors and favorite genres?
I'm kind of obsessed about books and I have eclectic taste. When I was young, I loved Barbara Cartland, Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte. As I grew, Kafka, Becket, Victor Hugo, George Orwell, the Greek classics, and many others made their way into my library. I read what my daughters read: Rick Riordan, JK Rowlings, and even Stephanie Meyer. And of course, lots and lots of contemporary, paranormal, and historical romances. A new author has caught my eye recently: Jacqueline Ward, with her Random Acts of Unkindness. A kidnapping thriller, it tells a story within a story, and both narrators are women. Very well written, Ward has caught my attention from the first page. I recommend this turning-page thriller!
What’s your favorite way to relax and recharge? Hobbies?
I would love to have more spare time. It’s hard to find some while being a part-time lawyer, an almost full-time writer, a full-time mother of 2 teenage daughters, and wife of a six-foot-six husband. But when I find it, I read—and read some more!—go to museums, and most important of all, I pamper my family and spend time with them.
Do you have a favorite quote that sums up how you feel about life?
I go by the words of Gandhi,“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”
That’s my favorite quote. How long have you been writing?
I’ve written since I was a kid, but my life in the written world started in a very unexpected and silly way. In 2009, had a horrible flu that kept me in bed for days. I felt so bad that I could not even read, so I decided to tell myself a story. It was only on February 28th, 2011 that I began to write the story of three wealthy, beautiful, and strong characters, full of secrets and tragedies, and desperately looking for love: Sophia, Ethan, and Alistair. The thing grew—and grew—so I decided to give writing a chance and published Entwined Fates, TRUST Series #1, in November 2012. Now that I’m hooked, I can’t free myself. In fact, I don’t want to be freed.
Where do you prefer to write?
I have pretty boring writing habits. I have a home-office where I plan the story and characters and do the editing on my iMac. My favorite place to write is the big armchair I have on my living room and I use a MacPro for that. There, drinking home-made ice-tea during the Carioca summer (almost all year round) or hot tea in the Carioca two-week-winter and listening to music, I type away on my laptop all night until the sun comes out.
Are you a plotter or a panzer?
I have multiple personalities and multiple identities so the answer would be: it depends on who would be inhabiting my body at the moment. And, no, I am not crazy…hmm..just a bit. J
Do you use real events or persons in your stories or as an inspiration for stories?
Don’t tell anyone, but meeting interesting people—in person or on line—gives me the inspiration for my characters. *smile* Also, there’s a little bit of me in my characters as well—yeah, including the bad ones! The only one that is closer to a blueprint would be Sophia Leibowitz, from TRUST Series. Also, there’s a lot of me in her.
In Love Painted in Red, I interviewed many people about many things, but especially about war and strange cults. Then I mixed everything in my cauldron spiced it with my imagination and out came Tavish, Laetitia, and their love story.
Do you set daily writing goals?
Although I try to write every day, it’s not always possible. I like to write at night when everything is quiet, but my six-foot-six husband who is very jealous of my books—or should I say jealous of the male lead characters?—demands I go to bed at a more…hmm…normal hour once in a while. *grin* I don’t have writing goals. I can write 10,000 words in a day—not that I was counting, I never do; not a single character in others; delete whole chapter; write middle chapters—which will probably not be used; have a horrible writer block for days…that’s okay, it’s part of my author life. But then I can be hooked by the story and won’t stop until I finish it. J
What do you hope your writing brings to readers?
Leisure, information, and empowerment. As a reader, I look for characters that I can relate to in some way; a woman who is more than a damsel in distress but not a badass bitch; a man who is a domineering alpha male and loves and admires strong women. I love fiction books which bring me new information, make me thing, and do that in a non-lecture way. Learning is a passion of mine and sharing my experiences and thoughts through my stories is amazing. But if the readers want just to breeze about my in-depth thoughts and not give a fig about them, because they only want to have a good time, they are more than welcome to do it. After all, I (mainly) write fiction.
What long-term plans do you have for your career?
My plans are…to keep writing. J Since Love Painted in Red, I have published a new book, a novella: FROM THE BARONESS’S DIARY: The erotic escapades of Baron Beardley’s wife, The Diaries Series #1, which is a 20th century romantic erotica, already on pre-order on Amazon, release date on September 13th, 2016.
It started with a single diary entry I wrote and was supposed to be a bonus scene for the print version of Love Painted in Red, where Laetitia, a painter, used the late Baroness’s diaries to develop a series of erotic paintings, but I realized I would be doing a disservice to my readers if I didn’t develop Lady Chloé Beardley’s own story.
My first kid’s book—Prince Peter and The Kingdom of Perfection—is coming out by the end of the year. I am writing The Diaries sequel, which will be available by spring next year; and, finally, I have immediate plans for co-authoring a full length comedy romance. After that, only God knows. J
What advice would you give to unpublished authors?
Research what you are writing about if you are not familiar with the theme. And, of course, exhaustedly review your manuscript and ask, at least five beta readers—not your friends—to read it too.
Share a fun fact readers wouldn’t know about you.
When my daughters were younger, they hated my Kindle and nicknamed it: The Enemy. Since I started writing, they and my husband hate—absolutely hate to the point of groaning out loud—when I say I have a new idea for a book.
Thankfully, my family is very supportive of my writing. Share something about you that would surprise or shock readers.
I am terribly shy to the point I dreaded—hated even—to do audiences when I was a full-time lawyer. I had to take notes so I didn’t forget the main points I had to defend when facing the judges. Until now, I haven’t done a signing night because…hey, I am shy!
I’m shy also and dislike book signings. Is your book a series?
Love Painted in Red is not exactly part of a series, but Tavish Uilleam appeared on my first release, Entwined Fates, TRUST Series #1. He is the younger brother of Alistair Connor, one of the male lead characters of TRUST Series. He grew so much as a character during TRUST Series that I had to write his story.
Can you give readers a blurb about your book?
Tavish MacCraig, thirty-three-year-old Highlander, forsook his medical and military career, after being a POW for 6 months in Afghanistan, to run his family’s internationally renowned art gallery in London, The Blue Dot. Despite being surrounded by wealth and beauty, Tavish’s days are bleak, his nights, living nightmares, and his heart, an empty shell. But when he meets Irish painter Laetitia Galen, a powerful and sizzling attraction ignites between them.
Laetitia, who fled hell on earth when she was sixteen, now works as a well-paid housekeeper in a forsaken country manor in Warwickshire and sells her paintings in an obscure gallery. To preserve her new life and recently found peace, she resists Tavish and The Blue Dot's fantastic offer of an exclusive contract.
Laetitia becomes Tavish’s obsession; Tavish, Laetitia’s unattainable dream.
Meanwhile, a man with a burning grudge plots his long-awaited revenge, which could destroy them all over again.
Tavish and Laetitia will discover that falling in love is life’s greatest risk!
How about an excerpt from LOVE PAINTED IN RED?
Chapter 5
Mallory Court Hotel
12:00 p.m.
“I trust you’ll find the food excellent,” he said, parking his car in front of a Lutyens-style main house, the epitome of a classic English country house.
After she had changed clothes and came to meet him in the studio, he had known she would capture the attention of all the men in Mallory Court. It was not that her dress was transparent, clingy, short, or even brand-new. Far from that. She was wearing a lilac turtleneck long-sleeve maxi dress with a large gray belt low on her hips and gray flat booties. The vintage outfit emphasized her youth and put his imagination on fire. He wanted to rip off her dress and devour her breasts.
He wasn’t quite sure what they had talked about or what had happened on the way to the hotel, as her sweet scent wrapped him in its flowery vine.
As he helped her out of the car, the warmth of his hands penetrated through her dress. She kept her hands on his shoulders when he didn’t let go of her waist immediately, striving to ignore how rigid and well formed his muscles were. Damn, Laetitia! Stop these thoughts. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Wee lasses tend to have a difficult time descending from my car in long dresses, unaided.” And man, I’ve developed an appreciation for wee lasses in long dresses.
She wanted to point out that everything would be wee when compared to him, but she just said again, “Thank you.”
He clasped his hands behind his back, lest he would pick her up in his arms and take her directly to a room. Focus on something else. “You have a lilting Gaelic accent. But you’re not Scottish, are you?”
Where can readers find your books?
Let’s start with the good news: All my ebooks are on KindleUnlimited, so after you read my interview, visit Cristiane Serruya's Amazon Page and read them all for free!
How can readers learn more about you?
Is there anything else you’d like readers to know about you?
Thank you for the opportunity to share my thoughts here and helping me promote my work, Caroline.
Cristiane Serruya will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
