I was very caught up in this story right from the start. The voice of the heroine is young and edgy, yet vulnerable. The hero is very strong. And even though I was right in his head, the twist at the end came as a surprise.
The characters’ life stories were painful and realistic, making for well-motivated actions. This is a romance, and follows the story arcs expected in the genre, but does so in a convincing and natural way. Such organic arcs flow from strong, realistic character motivations.
Along with the characters, the suspense, and the mystery, I enjoyed the author’s light touch with the romance. Feelings grow naturally and realistically while intimate moments are written sparingly. Actually, all the writing is quite spare, making for a strong contemporary fiction feel and fast romantic-suspense pace.
We have the author here today to answer a few questions.
Melinda, welcome! Great book. Tattoos and Tangles is a real page turner. Where did you come up with the idea for this book?
Melinda: A friend said to me one day (half-joking), “You know what the world needs? More tattooed bad boys. That’s what you should write!” So I laughed and replied, “Fine. I can do that.” So I started with the opening scene.
Nia: I was going to ask what came first: the characters, the situation, the plot, the livelihood… Apparently the tattoos. Can you elaborate?
Melinda: The tattoo parlor came first, and Cass’s story. I knew exactly what had happened to her from the first page.
Nia: You wrote in multiple first person. I was excited to see how you handled this point-of-view (POV) choice because my co-author John Holland and I decided to go with this POV for our novel. We went back and forth with POV, sometimes writing in third person but always coming back to first. First just felt right. Why did you choose first person and did you write it another way and change it or decide on first person from the start?
Melinda: I almost always write in first person. It feels natural to me. I wrote Cass’s first two chapters, but knew as soon as I was done with them that John needed to get up close and personal, too.
Nia: Where are you in your writing career? How long have you been writing, what else have you published and where do you hope to go?
Melinda: I feel like I’m just getting started in the part of writing that equals a career, but I’ve been writing for as long as I could hold a pencil. If you ask my parents, they’ll tell you that my room was covered with story notes from the time I was about 8 years old. In addition to Tattoos and Tangles, I have two Indie novels, Snapshots by Laura and Long Way From Home, both available on Amazon. I have a New Adult Romance coming out with Harlequin in the early summer. I’m currently working on another Romantic Suspense and just hope to keep going forever!
Nia: Congratulations. You are off to a great start with the career phase of your writing. Can you tell us why you write?
Melinda: I have a lot of stories in my head. I feel like I have to get them out. Like REALLY have to.
Nia: What do you like to read?
Melinda: Just about everything. I love historical romance and romantic suspense. I also enjoy a good thriller. I decided a while back that I was going to write a Young Adult novel, so most recently I’ve been diving into those. Last year, I read 55 books!
Nia: Thank you for joining us, Melinda. Bloggees, you can find Tattoos and Tangles at the link below, and you can find Melinda on the web at the links below as well.
Tattoos and Tangles, by Melinda DiLorenzo
Facebook: www.facebook.com/MelindaDiLorenzo
Twitter: @melindawrites
Nicci Carrera 