Interview with author Lilou DuPont

We are so happy to have author, Lilou Dupont stopping by today to chat with us. Lilou’s new book, Dangerous Love will be released Aug 6 but before you go and pre-order a copy, Lilou is giving one reader the chance to win a copy of Dangerous Love right here on Book Sniffers Anonymous.

Lilou DuPont graduated from Bryn Mawr College with a degree in Philosophy and studied Erotic Writing at The New School in New York City. She lives in Washington, DC where she enjoys a successful advertising career and a large circle of friends. Dangerous Love is her first novel. She is at work on her second book, a spy romance set in Bucharest, Romania. Vampires? No. Gypsies? Yes.

For more information on Lilou check out her website.

You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads.

interview
Thank you for stopping by to take the time out to chat with us today.
Thank you for having me, Kristin! I really like your website, Book Sniffers Anonymous.

How did you come up with writing an erotic romance involving the son of a Nazi and a Jew?
In Prague, I wandered into the Globe Bookstore & Cafe, a place popular with English-speaking expats. A man sat down at my small table. From his accent, I assumed that he was British. We flirted with each other. He eventually told me that he was German and his grandfathers had been in the “Army” in World War II. I took this to mean the SS.

As an American Jew, I was traumatized. Had I not looked at a map before leaving for the Czech Republic? It borders Germany. I had spent the afternoon with someone who had one degree of separation between himself and Nazis. (This, it turns out, is not so unusual in parts of Europe.)

 

While studying Erotic Writing at The New School in New York, I used the encounter as a starting point for one of my short stories, which became Chapter 2 – “Prague Dreaming” of Dangerous Love.

 

In the book, the attraction between the hero and hYour browser may not support display of this image.Your browser may not support display of this image.eroine is “beyond the realm of normal physics.” This is where art diverges from reality. Try telling that to my friends.

 

I noticed on your blog that you traveled to Prague, Vienna, Bratislava, Berlin, Ljubljana, and Budapest for Dangerous Love. Can you tell us a little bit about the areas and the significance to them in relation to the story?
Sure!

 

Prague: Laura and Byron first meet at the Globe Bookstore & Cafe. After they make love under the Charles Bridge, Byron announces that he is leaving. He is going to Bratislava to view the work of a renegade artist. Laura is deflated, but then Byron asks her to join him. She is thrilled.

 

Vienna: On the way to Bratislava, Laura and Byron are arrested for “lewd conduct in a public place.” They are thrown off the train and into jail in Vienna. Laura’s cellmate is a blonde street urchin, who attacks her. The girl reminds Laura of a young, deranged version of herself.

 

Bratislava: Laura and Byron stay with the brash artist, Sergei, in this exact loft. The building is punctured with bullet holes. Billowing plastic sheets stand in for glass window panes. It is the perfect setting for a threesome, don’t you think?

 

Berlin: It is here that a woman from Byron’s past – the darkly exotic Zsa Zsa – comes between them.

 

Ljubljana: Laura is held in captivity in this Soviet military prison turned boutique youth hostel.

 

Budapest: The beautiful city is the last stop on our whirlwind Eastern European tour. I do not want to reveal too much of the story!

I know that you are working on the second book, can you tell us a little bit about it? Do you have any ideas on where you might take the story next?

The second book is a super-sexy spy romance set in Bucharest. In the final days of the Cold War, Marina is a gorgeous, young American spy who works undercover as a Romanian prostitute. During the 1989 revolution, Marina strays terribly off mission. She loses not only her career position with the CIA, but naively betrays her “client,” confidante, and true love, Petru.

 

Fast-forward to the present day. Gypsies are causing unrest in Romania. Given her experience dealing with underworld operatives in that region of the world, the CIA calls Marina out of (forced) retirement and sends her back to Bucharest. She has the opportunity to professionally redeem herself and track down her long lost love. If Marina finds Petru, will he again dYour browser may not support display of this image.esire her? Or seek to destroy her?

 

The blog is called Book Sniffers Anonymous after all. So I must ask, are you a book sniffer?
Absolutely! I love the smell of fresh paper.

 

Since we do fave parts/quotes in our review, What’s your fave part/quote from the book? 
… She relaxed in his arms as he gathered up her limp body and transported her across the loft. They floated together in the darkness. He gently released her, this time on a bumpy, unstable, and rolling surface. He took out the gag and untied the blindfold.

 

It was Byron. “I love you!” she exclaimed.

 

What did she say? Did she mean it? If this abandonment of control and unquenchable desire was love, then yes, she did mean it.

 

She waited for his response. Given the awkward situation, most guys would at least mutter “I love you, too” with their words all running together and at an almost inaudible decibel level. Not so, her Byron. It felt like an eternity before his lips parted. And even then, he said nothing.

 

He kissed her on the mouth and on her face. She was disappointed, but tried to be reasonable about it. They had basically just met. She looked around her and saw where they were, in a crate of plastic balls, like the ones they have at a McDonald’s Play Land. Only in Bratislava, thought Laura. At long last, Byron put his fingers into her hole and attentively, fervently touched her. It was seconds before she came. She erupted recklessly, as the McDonald’s balls spun and gave way under her and she heard Byron say, “I love you, I love you, I love you, too.”

 

 about the book

Dangerous Love
Genre: Erotic Romance

Goodreads
Amazon
All Romance

In Prague, Laura feels that she has met her soulmate. Yet how can her soul merge with the son of a Nazi? After being passed over for a promotion at a Chicago advertising agency, Laura cashes in her stock options, quits her job, and moves to Prague. There, she begins an erotic romance with Byron, only to discover that he is German and his father was in the Hitler Youth. As an observant Jew, Laura has deep misgivings about becoming involved with the son of a Nazi, but the attraction between them is so strong that she cannot resist. When a woman from Byron’s past – the darkly exotic Zsa Zsa – comes between them, can the true love of Laura and Byron survive?

31 Thoughts on “Interview with author Lilou DuPont

  1. Thanks for hosting Lilou today! 🙂

  2. Hi Lilou, nice interview, i enjoyed. wow, its a great blurb, and i wonder how you study erotic romance. can you tell me where or something that inspired you to write a erotic books?

    • Thank you, Cecilia!
      I studied with Tsaurah Litzky, a brilliant writer of poetry and erotic fiction. She was teaching a class at The New School in New York. It was voted “Best Writing Class in New York City” by readers of the Village Voice. Tsaurah was and continues to be my inspiration.

  3. Thank you for hosting me on Book Sniffers Anonymous today!

  4. How hard was it to use part of world history and fit it into your story line? What type of research did you have to do in order to be accurate?

    Lynn
    lareynolds0316@gmail.com

    • Hi, Lynn! Thank you for stopping by and your questions! There were two types of research: geographic and historical.

      I traveled to all of the cities I wrote about. Some of the sites inspired whole chapters: “Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe” (Holocaust memorial in Berlin) and “Judenplatz” (the archeological remains of a destroyed synagogue in Vienna).

      Living in DC, I have access to the US Holocaust Memorial Museum. At the museum store, I found a book, written for young adults, about the Hitler Youth. It provided me with vital info for the character of Josef, the hero’s Nazi father.

  5. Anonymous on 2 August, 2012 at 3:27 pm said:

    This book sounds great!! Would love the chance to read it!! julierupert@gmail.com

  6. This book sounds amazing. 🙂

  7. This book sounds awesome!!!!

  8. This book sounds amazing!! =) Can’t wait to read it! I can’t believe I’ve never heard of it before!

  9. Just wondering – what music do you listen to when you write?

  10. What do you like to eat while writing?

  11. What inspires you when you get stuck writing?

    • When I get stuck, I start writing about anything! Even if it has absolutely nothing to do with the book. After getting “whatever” out of my system for a few minutes, I manage to get on track with my story. Thank you for your question, eclairre!

  12. Thank you for the chance to win! Fingers crossed! 🙂

  13. Hi Lilou *waves* Is this the first book of a series or if not do you see it shaping into one in the future?

    minnie2297@yahoo.com

    • Hi Minnie,
      Thank you for your question! Dangerous Love is the first of three erotic romances set in Eastern Europe. The next two books will have different characters.
      Good luck in the drawing!

  14. I really like the sound of your books. The one you’re working on interests me because of the Cold War which I don’t read much about.

    • Thank you, Na! The Cold War one has two narrative streams…of Marina as a young spy and later as a woman “of a certain age.” Hopefully, I can pull it off. Thank you for your comment and good luck in the drawing!

  15. Dangerous love sounds very interesting….thanks for the chance to win a copy!

  16. You’re very welcome, DeeAnn! Thank you for commenting and good luck in the drawings!

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