Investment banker Louise Moscow loves her new career in late 1980s Paris. With a high-profile dream job wooing rich clientele, she enjoys the lavish lifestyle in a glamorous city. When she stumbles upon criminal activity at her company, the FBI and CIA force her to cooperate and bring down the murderous bankers in what turns out to be one of the greatest financial scandals of the twentieth century.
Targeted Age Group:: 18-80
What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
When I lived in Paris, several of my close friends worked at the BCCI Paris branch. When the bottom fell out, they lost their jobs and it was a really big deal. When I decided to write my novel around that scandal and began to dig deeper, I realized how complicated the story was and I needed to conduct more research beyond what I learned from my friends. The opening scene of my book was my invention, but was loosely based an event mentioned in a book called “The Outlaw Bank: A Wild Ride into the Secret Heart of BCCI,” written by journalists Jonathan Beaty and S.C. Gwynne. I found more helpful facts in the “Report to the Committee on Foreign Relations, United States Senate,” by Senator John Kerry and Senator Hank Brown. (Toni Nealie)
How Did You Come up With Your Characters?
Based on a true story that was a precursor to the Panama Papers scandal, there was no shortage of fascinating characters. But to hold it all together, I also needed solid central characters, especially one uniting character, namely Louise Moscow.
Book Sample
He prayed silently as he approached the front door of the family home he no longer owned. As he opened it, feeling the unlatched door give way, he knew he had arrived too late. The sound of his wife weeping echoed in the other end of the house, and a single gunshot rang out. He ran to the back parlor, but a man in the doorway blocked his entry. His wife lay on the temple bed, naked, bruised; a single line of blood mixed with snot dripped from her nose. The worst had happened. She stared blankly at the smoke rising from the gun barrel pointed down at her dead brother-in-law.
The man stood motionless, gripping the briefcase full of cash, an utter failure. The gun now pointed in his direction as the killer-rapist walked toward him. The accomplice continued to restrain him with a raised finger. Young, barely twenty-five years old but wise in the ways of rape and murder, he tucked the gun into his jacket and slipped the briefcase from the man’s grip. He opened the case and eyeballed the amount of cash. He removed one bundle and handed it to his victim.
“Spend what you have left wisely, and don’t do anything else foolish.” The killer nodded to his cohort that they were leaving.
“You are from a good Pakistani family, a fellow Mohajir. There is nothing noble in what you are doing,” the man whimpered.
“And yet you are still alive.” The two thugs walked out and continued casually down the road, confident no one would pursue them.
Author Bio:
Lorraine Evanoff is a critically acclaimed author originally from Chicago. She studied and worked for seven years in Paris and is currently living in Los Angeles with her husband. A former finance executive in Silicon Valley and the entertainment industry, Lorraine's adventures include CFO positions at high tech companies during the dot-com era, and various production companies, notably as CFO of National Lampoon. She already has multiple film credits to her name and now has a screenplay in pre-production. She is a proud member of the Mystery Writers of America and Romance Writers of America.
Lorraine's award-winning Louise Moscow mysteries, including FOLIAGE and the newly released PINOT NOIR, are high concept noir thrillers inspired by real-life banking scandals. Lorraine is able to spin complex tales of international finance while making it feel like classic mystery storytelling.
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