Surrender
(A House of Sin Novella)
by Elisabeth Naughton
From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Elisabeth Naughton comes a new story in her House of Sin series…
The leaders of my House want her dead.
The men I’ve secretly aligned myself with want her punished for screwing up their coup.
I’ve been sent by both to deal with her, but one look at the feisty redhead and I’ve got plans of my own.
Before I carry out anyone else’s orders, she’s going to give me what I want. And only when I’m satisfied will I decide if she lives or dies.
Depending, of course, on just how easily she surrenders…
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An Exclusive Interview With Elisabeth Naughton:
~ with Jillian Stein of Read Love Blog
Oh how I loved this novella! Felicity and Marco are amazing. How did you choose them for this novella?
Felicity and Marco play big parts in DECEIVED and UNDONE, books two and three in the House of Sin trilogy. They are a steady and stable couple, role models, really for Luc and Natalie to see that love can win out even in a really twisted world. I wrote SURRENDER so readers could read about Marco and Felicity’s backstory–how they met, how they fell in love, how they ended up in Italy together in the later books. I also wanted readers to learn more about their relationship, and understand why they are so devoted to each other, yet still aren’t married.
I love this new series so much! It’s sexy and suspenseful. Where did you get the inspiration?
The House of Sin series has been percolating for quite some time. A few years ago, I was in Italy with my husband on vacation. We took a tour of the Colosseum and Roman Forum, and our tour guide was so good, we decided to take his walking tour of Rome later that night. We met on the steps overlooking Trajan’s Column and the Trajan Forum, and as we were waiting for the rest of the tourists to arrive, the tour guide pointed out a building and told us it belonged to the Knights of Malta. Now, I didn’t know a whole lot about the Knights of Malta at the time, but they are their own sovereign state right in the middle of Rome (like the Vatican) and although our tour guide didn’t have a lot of details about the Knights of Malta (they are super secretive) he did have some very interesting stories. Those stories stimulated all kinds of new book ideas in my head.
Of course, the books that resulted from that trip are NOT based on the Knights of Malta or on any religious sect. But the tour we took that night did plant the seeds for what turned out to be my dark, secret-society based House of Sin series.
If you could dream cast Felicity and Marco, who would you choose?
Oh man, that is always so hard for me to do! Let’s see… I love Gemma Arterton, and she’s British, so I think she’d make a great Felicity. As for Marco… (You’re in trouble for making me search pictures of hot Italian guys for the last hour!) Oh my… Probably first choice would be a younger version of Raoul Bova (think Under the Tuscan Sun.) But Giulio Gerruti is also a strong contender.
How will you be spending the summer? Any fun plans you can share with us?
After a super crazy writing spring, I’m taking a little down time with the family. We’re hoping to go to Omaha for the College World Series. After that, we’re just relaxing at home this summer. I live in western Oregon, and we have the BEST summers. It’s really hard to travel during our summers because they’re mild, warm, with no humidity…and best of all, no rain (what we live with year round.) So if I’m going to travel, I prefer to do it during the rainy months. Plus, my son plays baseball so…there goes any hope scheduling vacations!
Can you give us a hint as to what you’re working on now?
Next up on my writing schedule is WICKED, the next full-length Eternal Guardians story. I’m super excited to get back into the world of gods and heroes and scheming! WICKED should release in early September 2018.
After that, the fourth book in my Deadly Secrets Series – UNSPEAKABLE – releases November 20, 2018
Biography:
Elisabeth Naughton is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. From Elisabeth: “I was never one of those people who knew they wanted to be an author at the age of six. I didn’t have imaginary friends. I didn’t write stories in my journal or entertain my relatives by firelight after Thanksgiving dinner. For the most part, I was just a normal, everyday kid. I liked to read, but I wasn’t exceptional at it. And when my teachers complimented me on my writing abilities, I brushed them off. I did, however, always have a penchant for the unique and absurd. And as my mother told me all throughout my childhood, I should have been an actress—I was a drama queen before my time.
“Years ago, my husband bought me Scarlett: The Sequel to Gone With The Wind. If you ever saw the book, you know it’s a long one. I sat and read that thing from cover to cover, and dreamed of one day being a writer. But I didn’t actually try my hand at writing until years later when I quit my teaching job to stay home with my kids. And my husband? After that week of reading where I neglected him and everything else until I finished Scarlett, he vowed never to buy me another book again. Little did he know I’d one day end up sitting at a keyboard all day drafting my own stories.
“My writing journey has not been easy. I didn’t just sit down one day, decide I was going to write a book and voila! sell my very first attempt. As most authors will probably agree, the path to publication is filled with hours of work, pulling all-nighters I thought I’d given up in college, sacrifices, rejections, but a love I discovered along the way I just can’t live without. Instead of a big, thick book to read by lamplight (I do read much smaller ones when I get the chance), I’ve traded in my reading obsession for a laptop. And I’ve never been happier.
“I’m one of the lucky ones. I have a wonderful family and fabulous husband who put up with my writing—and obsessive personality—even when life is chaotic. More than once my kids have been late to swimming or baseball because I needed just five more minutes to finish a scene. Their support and encouragement mean the world to me. I also have amazing friends and a support network I couldn’t survive without. So to all of you out there who have encouraged me along the way, sent me emails and fan letters, phone calls and congratulations, I just want to say, thank you. You make this whole writing gig that much more enjoyable. I truly wouldn’t be here without you.”
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