Mel Harrison is the author of the new novel Crescent City Carnage, the latest in his Alex Boyd series. He served in the U.S. Foreign Service, and he lives in Florida.
Q: What inspired you to write this new Alex Boyd novel?
A: The novel, Crescent City Carnage, is the sixth thriller in the Alex Boyd series. I wanted to generate deep emotion among my readers toward the characters, unlike in most thrillers where plot takes priority over character development.
That's why I created the roles of Papa Ed Ardoin and his wife, Camille Ardoin, the parents of the murdered girl in the story. This gave me an opportunity to flesh out their own history, and that of upper class black New Orleanians.
It also allowed me to enhance the emotional side of my protagonist, Alex Boyd, and his wife, Rachel Smith.
Q: The story is set in New Orleans--how important is setting to you in your writing?
A: The setting is vital to me. I think of the setting as another character to be developed and described. Whenever I plan a new book, I simultaneously think about the story and where it will be set.
In all six books, the settings are where I have lived or worked in the Foreign Service. This gives the setting a personal and realistic image in my mind and helps me create an environment for the readers to explore and treasure.
Q: How would you describe the relationship between Alex and Rachel?
A: The relationship is passionate, filled with emotional and physical thrills, with a shared love for travel, adventure, and even danger. They are also competitive, whether it is intellectual competition, sexual, or verbal banter.
For them, the journey in their relationship is as important as the destination. Both are former college athletes and like to win. Yet, they can acknowledge and appreciate when the other gets the upper hand.
They are also protective of each other's safety. Neither believes their life would be fulfilling without the other being there. They are a team.
Q: What do you hope readers take away from the story?
A: I want them to gain knowledge of the Foreign Service and specifically of an element called the Diplomatic Security Service. I also want readers to learn about New Orleans and how unique it is as an American city, as well as to understand the diversity of its people.
Naturally, I want readers to continue to identify with the passion and dedication of Alex Boyd and Rachel Smith, as they have done in my prior books.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I have written about 10 chapters in two different books, just to see which one I will continue to develop. The one I seem to be most keen on is set in Sicily and involves totally new characters.
While I am not done with Alex Boyd and Rachel Smith, I want to explore a new protagonist and to write in the first person. In this case the protagonist is called Max Hungerford.
He is an international businessman, a former CIA case officer, and has rekindled the flame with a former Italian lover. Unfortunately, her life in Sicily comes with substantial baggage and he will have to decide which path to follow.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: While the settings are where my wife and I have lived, worked, or traveled to in our lives, and the stories are drawn from experiences we had living abroad or in New Orleans, the books and characters are fiction.
However, every restaurant scene in all of the books involve real restaurants, and the meals that Alex and Rachel eat, my wife and I have eaten at that specific restaurant.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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