Perfect Red
Here’s the set-up:
“A whipsmart, wildly original ride that’s a heady mix of chemistry, politics, mystery, obsession and a 1950’s heroine daring to find her way. The writing sparkles on the page, and the essential question — what would you do for your passion? — becomes as provocative as it is haunting. Perfect Red is more than perfect — it’s absolutely dazzling.” — Caroline Leavitt, New York Times bestselling author of Pictures Of You
In McCarthy-era New York, having the right idea for a book can lead to fame and fortune, but having the wrong idea can turn you from citizen to suspect. When the secretary of a prominent book editor becomes obsessed with the story of the world’s most glamorous red lipstick, she becomes convinced that it was the book she was born to write. She struggles to overcome her belief that surrendering to passion of any kind is dangerous and to fend off the seductive attention of the editor’s star author.Ultimately, she must fight the author for the right to tell the tale and for the right of an author to tell her own truth.
Editorial Reviews
“Captivating from the first sentence, impossible to put down, Perfect Red leaves you inspired, energized and ready to take on the world. Powerful storytelling at its most potent.” — Lisa Cron, author of Wired For Story: The Writer’s Guide To Using Brain Science To Hook Readers From The Very First Sentence
From the Author
Perfect Red is my fourth novel, and my seventh book – but it’s definitely not business as usual for me. Perfect Red took me way out of my creative comfort zone. Instead of a small family drama or memoir, this is a story of passion and intrigue that takes place during one of the most insidious chapters in American history. I chose that period of time because I was interested in the concept of ideas — who owns them, who gets credit for them, and who gets punished for them. I was mainly concerned with creative ideas, but it made sense to set the story at a time when ideas about loyalty and patriotism were being questioned, as well.
As for the red lipstick, I was inspired by a story one of my clients told me about a real-life duchess who used blood to make her cheeks red; I was inspired by some things I read about Coco Chanel, on whom my character Isadora is based; and I had done a lot of research about the color red for my last book, The Threadbare Heart. I was going to make the main character in that story a textile historian. I am always intrigued by the work that my characters do, and at first she was going to be a mathematician who liked fabric, and then she morphed into a fabric collector and historian. I read a book called A Perfect Red by Amy Butler Greenfield, which is a fascinating exploration of the history of the color red. All that was in my head when I started writing this new book.
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And here, in the comfort of your own browser, is your free sample of PERFECT RED by Jennie Nash: