Mystery We Write Tour ~ Evelyn Cullet

The setting for my romantic suspense novel, Masterpiece of Murder, is the beautiful resort city of Bariloche, Argentina. 

Inspiration for a story can come from anywhere, and mine came when I first heard of Bariloche. I had once fancied myself an artist and took a year of art classes. It was there that I met an artist who had gone to Barioche to take a Master art class. I was unaware of the city, until I saw the photos of snow-capped mountains, glaciers, dense woods, and crystalline lakes that were brought in to class by the artist upon his return. The writer in me immediately thought that the solitude and scenic beauty of the area would be a unique setting for a romantic suspense novel. 

As I did more research and began to write, I discovered many lovely, and even a few perilous, locations to keep the reader interested in the story as the romance and the suspense unfolded. While the area surrounding Bariloche was breathtakingly beautiful, it also made the worst possible setting for my protagonist to be in when she realizes that she's the only suspect in a murder case. Finding herself in a foreign country where the nearest American Embassy is 837 miles away, unfamiliar with the customs and the laws, with a limited command of the language, and knowing only a few people; all strangers except for her fiancé whom she immediately has a falling out with, who can she trust? Finding the real murderer rests on her shoulders alone. She must draw on her limited experiences and every idea her mind can conger up to use the limited resources available to her to prove herself innocent of a crime she didn't commit. And to add to her problems, a military police officer is dogging her every step. A most unique and intimidating setting for a novel, don't you agree? To learn more about Bariloche, and to see pictures of the locations mentioned in Masterpiece of Murder, I invite everyone to visit the Photos Page on my website at: http://evelyncullet.com/.

I would love to know what you think, so please leave a comment and you'll automatically be entered in my book giveaway. You could win a signed print copy of Masterpiece of Murder. One lucky winner will be chosen at random and announced on my blog, http://evelyncullet.com/blog/ on December 11th. Don't forget to leave your email address so I'll know how to contact you.

Masterpiece of Murder,  is a fast-paced romantic suspense novel about a broken-hearted American art student, Charlotte Ross, who is so intent on locating her errant fiancé that she submits someone else’s painting as her own in order to gain access to a Master art class being held in Bariloche, Argentina—the place her lost love was last seen. When the painting gets her accepted into the class given by a world-famous artist and womanizer, being a novice makes keeping up with the others nearly impossible as she struggles to fake her way though, while trying to win back the man she loves. But her fiancé has his own reasons for being in Bariloche--he's after a stolen art masterpiece--that threaten Charlotte’s very existence and cause her to stumble into a downward spiral of deceit, art forgery, and murder. After accidently finding the murder victim. circumstantial evidence begins to mount up against her and the local police suspect she is the killer. Now she must use whatever skills she has, along with the help of two fellow art students, to discover who is really behind the murder before she's arrested. Not an easy task with a military police officer dogging her every step.

Evelyn Cullet has been an aspiring author since high school when she wrote short stories, but she didn't begin her first novel until college, later in life. Afterward, she continued to take writing classes and work on her novels while employed by a major soft drink company. Now, after early retirement, she finally has the chance to write full-time. Evelyn enjoys playing the piano, being an organic gardener, and an amateur Lapidary. She's a former long-time member of the Agatha Christie Society, and is currently a member of Sisters in Crime. Evelyn and her husband live in a suburb of Chicago.