Lady Hawkeye: Giveaway & Interview with Limoncello Yellow by Traci Andrighetti

Limoncello Yellow

Publisher: Gemma Halliday Publishing (January 4, 2014)

E-Book File Size: 1904 KB

ASIN: B00GK3LY92

Print Length: 250 pages

ISBN-13: 978-1493690817

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Synopsis

From debut author, Traci Andrighetti, comes a tale of murder, mayhem, and meddling Sicilian grandmas…

Francesca “Franki” Amato is a tough-talking rookie cop in Austin, Texas—until an unfortunate 911 call involving her boyfriend, Vince, and a German female wrestler convinces her once and for all that she just isn’t cut out for a life on the police force. So Franki makes the snap decision to move to New Orleans to work at her friend Veronica’s detective agency, Private Chicks, Inc. But Franki’s hopes for a more stable life are soon dashed when Private Chicks is hired by the prime suspect in a murder case to find out what really happened to a beautiful young boutique manager who was found strangled to death with a cheap yellow scarf. When she’s not investigating, Franki is hoping to seduce handsome bank executive Bradley Hartmann, but most of her time is spent dodging date offers from a string of “good Italian boys”—make that not-so-good aging Italian men—that her meddlesome Sicilian grandma has recruited as marriage candidates. As Mardi Gras approaches and the mystery of the murdered shop girl gets more complicated, Franki must decipher the odd ramblings of a Voodoo priestess to solve both the murder and the mystery of her own love life.

“Traci Andrighetti’s Limoncello Yellow had me tickled pink! Her smart, sassy heroine wacky cast of characters, and vividly original settings had me glued to the page. I can’t wait to read more from this author!” - Gemma Halliday, New York Times bestselling author

“Traci’s writing is sharp and funny; the world she paints leaps off the page and makes the reader laugh out loud…. A thoroughly enjoyable new voice in fiction!” - Kristin Harmel, Internationally bestselling novelist (The Sweetness of Forgetting)

About This Author

Traci Andrighetti is the author of the Franki Amato mystery series. In her previous life, she was an award-winning literary translator and a Lecturer of Italian at the University of Texas at Austin, where she earned a PhD in Applied Linguistics. But then she got wise and ditched that academic stuff for a life of crime–writing, that is.

If she’s not hard at work on her next novel, Traci is probably watching her favorite Italian soap opera, eating Tex Mex or sampling fruity cocktails, and maybe all at the same time. She lives in Austin with her husband, young son (who desperately wants to be in one of her books) and three treat-addicted dogs.

Interview

What is your favorite genre to read/write?

I have always loved reading mysteries. I got addicted to them after stumbling across my aunt's old Nancy Drew books at my grandmother's house when I was around 10 or so.

As far as writing goes, from the moment I sat down to write Limoncello Yellow, my first novel, I knew it had to be a lighthearted mystery. I love to laugh and joke around, so it just didn't make sense for me to write something dark.

How, when and why did you first start writing?

Ha! Well, I actually wrote my first mystery with my cousin when I was twelve (I think it was a whopping ten pages in length). Like so many little girls, I was inspired by all those Nancy Drews I'd read. Fortunately, the not-so-intriguingly titled The Mystery of the Driftwood did not survive my childhood.

Anyway, I didn't write a single line of fiction again until last year. I wrote various academic and magazine articles in the meantime, but nothing fun. I think it was because I didn't know I could write fiction—at least, not as an adult. But that all changed the day I discovered Italian author Gabriela Genisi's mystery series (I read in Italian, too) featuring a sexy police inspector obsessed with fruit. There was just something about Genisi's books that convinced me I could write my own mysteries. So, I enrolled in an online Chick Lit writing class, and the Franki Amato Mystery series was born.

Who is your favorite character in your book and why?

Of course, I love Franki. I mean, her last name, "Amato," is Italian for "loved!" But my favorite character is probably Glenda O'Brien, whose stage name is Lorraine Lamour. Because she's an aging ex-stripper, I can make her say the most outrageous things. Plus, I like the fact that Glenda isn't what she seems on the surface. If you look past the stripper facade, you see that she's actually a smart, savvy businesswoman. She's just a little rough around the edges, that's all.

How long did it take you to write Limoncello Yellow?

I have a day job (huge sigh), so it took about 10 months from start to finish. I wrote anywhere and everywhere I could: in bed, on airplanes, in cars, at my parents' house, in coffee shops, and even in a couple of New Orleans bars! That's not the complete list, either.

What I've learned from this whole experience is that the spare time–approach to writing is probably the best for me because it gives me time to mull over ideas and scenes in my head. That way, when I finally get to sit down in front of my computer, I'm always ready and excited to write.

Is yellow your favorite color? If not, then what color is your favorite and why?

Yellow has special significance for me because I associate it with success and because the Italian word for yellow (giallo) is used to mean "mystery" (the first mystery novels published in Italy had yellow covers). But, my favorite color has always been purple. For me, purple means passion, moodiness, and, yes, mystery. And it doesn't hurt that it's the color of royalty, because I'm an unabashed royal watcher!

If you could sum your main character into five words, what would they be?

Smart, spunky, superstitious and Italian! (I counted "and" as a word because, after all, I'm a writer.)

Webpage: http://traciandrighetti.com