Alicia Thompson is a writer, reader, and Paramore superfan. As a teen, she appeared in an episode of 48 hours in the audience of a local murder trial, where she broke the fourth wall by looking directly into the camera. She currently lives in Florida with her husband and two children.
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What’s the strangest thing you searched for on the internet for your novel?
Honestly, the strangest thing I searched for on the internet for this book is exactly what you might expect! I did a lot of serial killer research for this one, just to augment or confirm stuff I already knew from reading true crime books growing up. For example, I went down a whole rabbit hole on “The Vampire of Sacramento” just to make one reference about leaving your door unlocked. (Richard Chase told detectives he saw unlocked doors as an invitation to come inside.)
What book (or author) made you fall in love with the romance genre?
So many books made me fall in love with the romance genre, but some of my earliest romance-reading memories are of reading my mother’s Harlequins that would get shipped monthly in a box. My all-time favorite Harlequin Presents author was Alison Fraser, who wasn’t afraid to get a little dark even in her category romance. One of my favorite books of hers was Tainted Love, where the book starts with the heroine having just gotten out of prison. She’s prickly and defensive and deeply vulnerable – my type of character exactly!
What is your favorite trope? Why?
If I had to name one favorite trope, I would probably choose rivals-to-lovers, because I think the banter early on is so delicious, and I love watching two characters make that journey from thinking the other one is the most annoying person on the planet to realizing how deeply in love they are. I enjoy enemies-to-lovers, too, but I think few books truly capture that trope, especially in the contemporary space, so I’m going for versatility here.
It’s the morning after, and a lover is making your main character the perfect breakfast in bed. What is it?
If Sam tried to serve Phoebe breakfast in bed, her first question would be, “what am I supposed to do with this?” But if there was a donut and coffee on the tray, she’d probably snag that and tell him to take the tray of whatever else back into the kitchen where she’d eat it “like a normal person.”
What book are you reading currently?
Believe it or not, I am currently reading Gabriel García Márquez’s Love in the Time of Cholera! I read it a long time ago – in high school, maybe – and I thought I owed it to the book to read it again. My title is obviously an homage to this one, although the story itself is not a retelling or in any way connected. Love in the Time of Cholera is such a beautiful book with a slightly off-beat, tongue-in-cheek vibe to it. I keep picturing it in my head filmed almost in a Amélie type of style.
The rapid fire question: Do you prefer Ice Cream or Pizza
Pizza! (Can I cheat and still have gelato? Even if the answer is no, I would still choose pizza because I love it too much.)
