It’s A Crime by C.E.Hansen-A Review and Interview with the Author

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IT’S A CRIME by C.E. Hansen

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 12, 2013

Wealthy New York socialite Grace Preston uses men for amusement, holding her heart inside an ice fortress for protection. Spurned by a sociopathic male model, Grace picks up a new man with all the right moves; smooth as bourbon, Cole slides under her wall and touches her in places she thought were well-guarded. But after a weekend of fiery passion, he leaves, devastating her.

Cole Grayson has spent ten years building his commercial real estate firm and chasing the arsonist who killed his family when he was a boy. Women are a dalliance, and have no place in his personal quest. Then Grace rocks his world—not only sexually-but, in her arms his nightmares cease. To protect her, he pushes her away; he’s close to finding the culprit and Grace must not get tangled in the cross-fire.

When women matching Grace’s description start turning up dead in Central Park, Cole is forced to divide his influence between personal revenge and protection for the woman he has come to love. But throwing money at the problem only goes so far. Grace is in danger—can he get to her in time?

••••••••••••••••

REVIEW: IT’S A CRIME is an erotic, contemporary, suspense storyline with many similarities to Fifty Shades and the Crossfire Series. The premise follows several intersecting timelines going from past to present as the reader is pulled into a story of a psychopathic killer, murder, revenge, love, lust and sex. All timelines will eventually coalesce in the present day when a killer seeks revenge against the woman he believes wronged him many years before.

The storyline can best be described as an erotic tale of murder and sex. The main characters meet and their attraction is instant. There is no question that each is looking for a one-night stand but in the end, they will both lose their hearts to each other. The murder and suspense saga weaves throughout the story as a serial killer murders his way through New York hoping to find the one woman who drives him on his quest.

It’s A Crime is an interesting storyline and one I felt contained many similarities to Fifty Shades and the Crossfire series. The sex is explicit and verbal; and the storyline is rife with profanity-almost too much profanity. I am by no means a prude, but at times, I was overwhelmed with the continuous use of certain four letter words.

The storyline develops slowly as C.E. Hansen intertwines different background stories and timelines building up to the final scenes, but in doing so lost some of the momentum of the story. Then all too quickly, the final resolution is revealed and the storyline heads deeper into FSOG territory.

C.E. Hansen has written a storyline about sex and love; betrayal and revenge; murder and hate. It’s A Crime is a novel of erotic sex, billionaire moguls and a man who will not stop until the final plunge of the knife. There is mystery and suspense with a twist that begins to reveal the truth behind a murderous rampage and a man’s need to avenge the death of someone close.

Copy supplied by the author.

Reviewed by Sandy

 

TRC: Hi Cindy and welcome to The Reading Café.  Congratulations on the release of It’s A Crime.

Cindy: Thank you so much. It’s a pleasure to be here, thanks for having me.

TRC: We would like to start with some background information.  Would you please tell us something about yourself?

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Cindy: First and foremost, I’m a wife and mom. I currently work full-time at a beautiful fine wine store in Central New Jersey. I have a wonderful husband and a beautiful daughter who just turned 25.

TRC: What difficulties or challenges have you faced as an author?

Cindy: Keeping all the characters in my head busy and talking so I could write it all down is probably the most challenging, but once I get them talking the going gets smooth…It’s quieting them down so I could sleep that becomes the issue…It would also be helpful if one of them were a good secretary, that knew how to keep files properly.

TRC: Many authors bounce ideas and information with other authors or friends and family.  With whom do you bounce ideas?

Cindy: I’m lucky enough to have a few great friends that have been my biggest critics as well as my biggest fans, Donna, Michelle and Gee, and my daughter, Katie whom I’m constantly bombarding with questions.

 

TRC: It’s A Crime is the May 2013 release in your erotic new adult series. Would you please tell us something about the premise?

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Cindy: It’s a contemporary Adult Romance/Suspense story which takes place in New York City, and is about a beautiful, wealthy socialite, Grace-the stories heroine, who meets and falls in lust with Cole Grayson, our hero, very wealthy as well, who is unable to feel love after suffering the loss of his family when he was a boy, he’s turned himself off emotionally.

The two meet, at a bar and one thing leads to another, and they end up having an affair…

Of course they have their share of obstacles; Cole is close to finding the man who started the fire that killed his family, and Grace is close to being the killer’s next victim…

TRC: How do you keep the plot unpredictable without sacrificing content and believability?

Cindy: That has been a challenge for me as a first time author, in fact everything has been a challenge, but I love writing about crazy killers, the sex scenes just comes easy.

TRC: What difficulties did you encounter (logistical, research, etc) outlining and writing this particular novel?

Cindy: My biggest challenge was trying to combine the various story lines together to make it flow without giving anything away. Lets hope I was able to accomplish that.

TRC: If you could virtually cast the leading characters, which actors or models would best represent your ideal image?

Cindy: Chris Hemsworth as Cole, Elisha Cuthbert as Grace, and in a perfect world, Ryan Gosling would be Jonathan…lol

TRC: How many books do you plan for the series and will the characters and storylines overlap?

Cindy: Two books in this series and yes they do overlap. I loved them when I first wrote them, so I had no choice but to continue their story in book 2. But there will only be two books…I don’t want to stretch their story too thin. I also have a young adult book currently being edited and it’s sequel currently in my head.

TRC: It’s A Shame is the December 2013 release in the same series.  Would you please tell us something about the premise?

Cindy: Well, in It’s A Crime, I had started one or two story lines that fell to the background of the first book…I am now delving into those plot lines a little more in It’s A Shame…suffice it to say, it is just as twisted and crazy as the first book, but I was able to bring some of the smaller characters back and give them a much bigger pressence.

TRC: How thoroughly do you plan out your characters and story before you begin the first draft?

Cindy: I write out my outline by hand, which is constantly evolving as I bounce the ideas and storyline off my daughter…I enjoy picking her brain, she gives me a totally different perspective and she’s full of ‘what if’s’. She keeps me on my toes.

TRC: Do your characters direct the storyline or do you have a semblance of control?

Cindy: For the most part, I tell them what to do…once in while they take me on a joy ride at their expense.

TRC: If you could become a contestant on a television reality program, which show would you prefer and why?

Cindy: The Voice…because I always wanted to sing!

TRC: How do you handle the pressures and anxiety of deadlines?

Cindy:   Poorly, which is why I typically don’t give myself any.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

Cindy: I’m currently working on the last few chapters of It’s A Shame, and I have the sequel to the Young Adult ‘hero’ series rattling around in my head. I also have an idea for another erotic adult book and plan to create new people to talk to me. I will miss Cole and Grace though.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

Cindy: I wanted to thank you personally for being so kind to have me on and review It’s A Crime. I follow your blog and love your taste in books, they are so similar to my own. Again, thank you so much.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food
big juicy hamburger

Favorite Dessert
ice cream

Favorite TV Show
Game of Thrones

Last Movie You Saw
Pitch Perfect with Anna Kendrick

Dark or Milk Chocolate
Milk

Favorite Flower
Iris

Early riser or Late sleeper
Early riser against my body’s better judgment

Favorite Pastime
Writing and reading

TRC: Thank you C.E for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on the release of It’s A Crime.  All the best with your upcoming novels.