Midnight Duet by Jen Comfort
I have something really special for you today! Only on A Grand Romance, I’ve got an interview with Jen Comfort about her new book, Midnight Duet, and the exclusive cover reveal! Midnight Duet will be published January 10, 2023. (audiobook is available that date as well)
Interview
Q: What is similar and what is different about “Midnight Duet” compared to your last novel “The Astronaut and The Star”?
A: I like to call my author brand “romcoms for nerds” but if “The Astronaut and the Star” was my love letter to space nerds, “Midnight Duet” is my tribute to theater nerds. At its core, it’s a modern Phantom of the Opera retelling, except our Phantom is Erika Greene, a disgraced former Broadway diva who used to the spoiled, celebrated darling of the theater world, and now finds herself living in the basement of the decrepit Nevada opera house she inherited from a colorful relative.
“Midnight Duet” is still a rom-com, with a bonkers plot and a loveable cast of weirdos, but to pay proper homage to both the book and the musical, the tone of this book is gothy, melodramatic, and over-the-top sexy. Characters wander around after dark in floor-length silk robes for absolutely no reason other than why wouldn’t you wander the halls of your crumbling opera house in a floor-length silk robe? What’s the point of owning an opera house if not for that sole dramatic purpose, I ask you? And Erika, who has been in theater her whole life, knows the value of drama.
Q: How would you classify “Midnight Duet”? Is it literary fiction, romance, fantasy, historical romance?
A: This is definitely still a romantic comedy, because that’s what I enjoy writing and what I do best–I’m not sure I enjoy stories that take themselves too seriously.
Q: What is your favorite scene from “Midnight Duet”?
A: Hands-down, the pipe organ scene. I can’t tell you more than that, because it’s absolutely, scorchingly inappropriate. My favorite scenes are always the ones where I ask my beta readers, “Is this too much? Can I get away with this?” And they’re like, “Who cares, DO IT.” We’ve all just come through a pandemic and the world is on fire, and I think everyone who wants it deserves some outrageously hot stuff. As a little treat.
(If that’s not up your alley as a reader, there are some fantastic rom-coms out there with low or no heat levels, and “Midnight Duet” might not be for you. Though you can always skip past–I try not to involve too much plot in the sexy scenes, so that the book might exist without them and still be enjoyable.
Q: Did you listen to music when writing “Midnight Duet”? If so, what should we listen to when reading it?
A: I tend to go in my ADHD hyper-focus mode when I’m writing, so even if there is music playing, I don’t register it. But I have made a short little Spotify playlist for Midnight Duet which features songs that are either mentioned by name in the book, or vibe-wise represent the plot and characters.
Q: What was your inspiration for “Midnight Duet”?
A: I’ve always wanted to write a retelling where the Phantom of the Opera was a woman–especially because I adore writing unlikeable, flawed heroines. And who says sexy, forbidden anti-hero(ine) like the Phantom? The key was figuring out how to retell this story in a contemporary setting, because it’s all pretty extra. But if there are two things in our modern world that understand excess drama for the sheer sake of it, it’s 80s glam rock… and Vegas, baby. That’s why we get Christof Daae, our smoking-hot and delightfully innocent frontman of Nachtmusik , a hair metal revival band from Germany, deciding to rent a “haunted” Opera House outside of Las Vegas in order to develop his band’s second studio album. He’s keeping a big secret. And his band absolutely cannot find out about what’s happening during the midnight singing lessons he’s been taking with the opera house’s owner, Erika….
I’m so excited to share this book with everyone! For updates, sneak peeks, and more secret goodies about Midnight Duet, I invite readers to join my newsletter mailing list! I only send them out about once a quarter, but when I do, they’re full of fun insider treats. 😉
Cover Reveal
Cover design by Philip Pascuzzo.
Synopsis
From The Astronaut and the Star author Jen Comfort comes a wildly electric romance about two musicians who collide on the stage of a Nevada opera house.
Self-professed diva Erika Greene has it all: a starring role on Broadway, legions of fans, spectacular natural talent. But after an accident on stage leaves her face scarred and her career in shambles, Erika retreats to Paris, Nevada, where she’s inherited a ramshackle opera house in desperate need of some TLC.
Erika pours her savings into the building, but it’s not enough to stave off casino developer Raoul Decomte’s avaricious gaze. With foreclosure imminent, she leases the space to some unexpected tenants: a German hair metal band, fronted by glam rock god Christof Daae.
Erika is tempted by Christof’s low-slung leather pants—and even more so by his ambitious drive to make Nacht Musik international superstars—but he’s off-limits. The rest of his band thinks he’s still dating their beloved keyboardist, who is conveniently not present on this jaunt to the American Southwest. When Erika finds out Christof’s been unceremoniously dumped and is trying to keep it under wraps, she makes a deal to keep his secret…for a price, of course.
Christof is desperate to hold the rest of the band together after his keyboardist’s departure, but he can’t maintain the charade forever. Nor can he resist the opera house’s mysterious proprietor, who tempts him with midnight singing lessons. It isn’t long before sensuous nighttime interludes turn into smoldering backstage encounters.
But can their newly ignited passion survive the searing light of day? Or will their beautiful duet turn into a brokenhearted power ballad for one?
Meet Jen Comfort
Jen discovered romance novels as a Very Cool (TM) teenager, when she volunteered at the local library after school (as Very Cool teens often do). At the time, the specific appeal was that they had way more sex in them than the Nancy Drew books she’d been reading… but she also loved the feminism, optimism, and unrelenting pursuit of happy ever after—even in the darkest times.
Determined to become a romance writer, Jen made the obvious decision to major in astrophysics. When that didn’t work out (did you know they require you to do homework?), she got a degree in hospitality instead, then spent a decade managing restaurants in NYC and Portland before finally settling down to write.
She now lives in Portland, Oregon with her cat, a sassy husky-malamute, and a rotating collection of short-lived plants.
Jen is represented by the most excellent Eva Scalzo at Speilburg Literary agency.
Follow Jen
You can pre-order Midnight Duet on Amazon here.
I hope you are so excited by this exclusive cover reveal that you run and pre-order Midnight Duet right away.
For another great book by Jen Comfort, click here.