Louis, Cindi 1962-

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LOUIS, Cindi 1962-

PERSONAL: Born December 27, 1962, in Port Arthur, TX. Education: Lamar University, Beaumont, TX,

ADDRESSES: Home—P.O. Box 411366, Dallas, TX 75241. Office—c/o Author Mail, 7th Floor, HarperCollins Publishers, 10 East 53rd St., New York, NY 10022.

CAREER: Romance novelist.

MEMBER: Romance Noir Book Club (founder), The Writer's Block, Black Writers Alliance, Alpha Kappa Alpha.

WRITINGS:

Crazy Thing Called Love, Harper/Torch (New York, NY), 2001.

(With Brenda Jackson, Felicia Mason, and Kayla Perrin) The Best Man, St. Martin's (New York, NY), 2003.

SIDELIGHTS: Author Cindi Louis was a long-time fan of romance novels before she began her own writing career. Her love of the genre drew her to travel on a Romance Slam Jam cruise with some of her favorite authors. As she wrote on her Web site, her enthusiasm for the cruise led her husband to tell her, "As much as you read you should write." Not long afterwards she decided to start writing, and within a few years she had published her debut novel, Crazy Thing Called Love.

Louis's first book is set in her hometown of Port Arthur, Texas. Her heroine is Judge Jayda Tillman, a divorcee who has become soured on men after being burned by her ex-husband. Jayda has a reputation as a hanging judge who is cold as ice, a cover for her fragile self-confidence. Her love interest is Jason McNeal, a criminal defense attorney and womanizer who moves into the apartment above Jayda, keeping her awake with his late-night activities. Both characters struggle against the feelings that develop, but when they are thrown together in a high-profile murder trial that puts Jayda in jeopardy, they give in to their passion.

Romance readers welcomed Louis's debut effort. Reviewer Martine Bates, writing for Romance and Friends, said, "Cindi Louis has written a delicious love story that reads like the work of a seasoned author." Reviewing the book for the online Romance Reader, Gwenolyn Osborne said that Crazy Thing Called Love "earned Cindi Louis a spot on my Emerging Authors List." Osborne cited Louis's humor and dialogue among her writing strengths, and noted that her work would help meet the need for more African-American romantic comedies. Summarizing the novel, critic Harriet Klausner wrote on BookBrowser, "Cindi Louis captivates fans of ethnic romances with a touch of the paranormal, intriguing court scenes, and a bit of suspense to sweeten a delectable love story." Klausner and other reviewers suggested that a subplot involving Jayda's friend Melissa Beacon would make a popular sequel to Crazy Thing Called Love.

Louis wrote on her Web site that she chose the romance genre because "I like happy ever after." Humor is also important to her, she said, "because life itself is serious enough."