Most Anticipated Books of 2014: Debuts

Since this month is largely dedicated to celebrating the books I'm most looking forward to in 2014, each Saturday I'm going to be featuring a different set of books that I can't wait to get my hands on! To start off, these are the 2014 debuts I'm most excited to start reading:

The Art of Lainey by Paula Stokes.
Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman.
Sekret by Lindsay Smith.

A Mad, Wicked Folly by Sharon Biggs Waller.
Landry Park by Bethany Hagen.
NIL by Lynne Matson.

The Break-Up Artist by Philip Siegel.
Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy.
The Fifty-Seven Lives of Alex Wayfare by M.G. Buehrlen.

The currently coverless:
Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch.
Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley.
Otherbound by Corinne Duyvis.
Stitching Snow by R.C. Lewis.
Behind the Scenes by Dahlia Adler.

Honourable Mentions:
(These books are 2014 debuts that I've already read and enjoyed)

Defy by Sara B. Larson.
Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge.

Any of these books topping your lists for 2014? Any of them new to your TBRs?

2014 Feature: The Break-Up Artist by Philip Siegel

I'm excited today to welcome Philip Siegel to my Most Anticipated Event because I am loving the sound of his debut, The Break-Up Artist! He was kind enough to join me today to chat a bit about it to help share some more info!

First, a bit about the book:

The Break-Up Artist by Philip Siegel.
To be published: April 29, 2014
by: Harlequin Teen.

Goodreads Blurb:
Some sixteen-year-olds babysit for extra cash. Some work at the Gap. Becca Williamson breaks up couples. 



After watching her sister get left at the altar, Becca knows the true damage that comes when people utter the dreaded L-word. For just $100 via paypal, she can trick and manipulate any couple into smithereens. With relationship zombies overrunning her school, and treating single girls like second class citizens, business is unfortunately booming. Even her best friend Val has resorted to outright lies to snag a boyfriend.

One night, she receives a mysterious offer to break up the homecoming king and queen, the one zombie couple to rule them all: Steve and Huxley. They are a JFK and Jackie O in training, masters of sweeping faux-mantic gestures, but if Becca can split them up, then school will be safe again for singletons. To succeed, she'll have to plan her most elaborate scheme to date and wiggle her way back into her former BFF Huxley’s life – not to mention start a few rumors, sabotage some cell phones, break into a car, and fend off the inappropriate feelings she’s having about Val’s new boyfriend. All while avoiding a past victim out to expose her true identity.

No one said being the Break-Up Artist was easy.

Sounds great, right? Here's Phil with more:

Jess: Welcome, Phil! I'm so glad you could join me. To start us off, "Twitter Pitch" THE BREAK-UP ARTIST to me (140 characters or less).

Phil: Becca runs a business breaking up couples, and is hired to split up her school's uber-couple, the homecoming king and queen.

J: Well if that isn't conflict waiting to happen, I don't know what is! THE BREAK-UP ARTIST clearly has such a fun concept behind it (with so much potential for things to go wrong). Where did the inspiration for that come from?

P: I’ve always been a fan of the movie MY BEST FRIEND’S WEDDING, and I wanted to write a character like the one Julia Roberts plays. She schemes and is the self-proclaimed bad guy, but you root for her anyway.

At the same time, I had some friends in bad relationships a few years ago. Not abusive-bad, luckily, but just really wrong pairings. These couples were not meant to be; dating these guys had changed my friends – and not for the better.

This was a tricky situation for me. How do you tell a friend that she should break up with her boyfriend? If I tried to broach the subject, they’d come up with excuses. It’s always awkward. I realized that I was not alone, that lots of other people have had this dilemma. Becca was borne out of that frustration.

J: Was it ever hard to get into the head of a teenage girl to write from Becca's perspective? Did you have any techniques you used?

P: I never tried to write like a teenage girl. Readers would see through that in a second. I just wrote a character that I would want to read and hoped people would like her, too. The inspirations for many of the teenage characters are based on adults I know now. Here’s a secret about adulthood: none of us ever truly grow up.

J: That's kind of reassuring, actually! What has been your favourite part of writing the book?

P: I loved plotting out the story. Since I studied screenwriting in college, plot structure was ingrained in me. It’s fun writing a character into a corner or figuring out how to get them from Point A to Point B. This was especially true for Becca’s break-up schemes. The main break-up scheme in the book is a slow burn that builds and builds, and I’m really proud of it.

J: I'm definitely looking forward to reading how she manages to pull some of those schemes off! Was there a specific book that inspired you to start writing?

P: Here is where I should put something literary, but I’m going to tell the truth: It was THE A-LIST and GOSSIP GIRL book series. I picked up THE A-LIST at the airport in college and read it on my flight. I immediately bought the next book. Then I moved onto GOSSIP GIRL (this was before the TV show). I had always assumed that YA books were so serious and filled with description. I was never a big reader growing up, and mostly read what was assigned in class. But these books were more my speed: funny, fast-paced, lots of dialogue. They inspired me to try my hand at writing a book.

J: Oh, I devoured those Gossip Girl books when I was younger. They're entertaining, for sure. If you could introduce one of your characters to any character from another book, who would it be and why?

P: Probably Audrey from AUDREY WAIT! by Robin Benway. They would get along so

well, and their conversations would be of epic, GILMORE GIRLSian potential.

J: Can you share a favourite quote from THE BREAK-UP ARTIST?

P: One of my favourite, non-spoilery quotes is from Becca’s sharp-tongued sister Diane, who’s had a falling out with her circle of friends. While this exchange doesn’t give you insight into the main plot, I always crack up when I read it. Hopefully, you’ll enjoy it, too.

“And Erin looks great, too. Diane, have you sent her a card yet?” My mom asks. I move my legs as she takes back her place on the bed.

“For what?”

“Congratulating her for having the baby.”

Diane rolls her eyes. Leave it to my mom to turn a bonding moment into a nag session. “Why am I congratulating her for giving birth? She probably had an epidural.”

“He’s about to turn one, and you haven’t even acknowledged him.”

“I don’t think it’s right to congratulate someone for having an ugly baby. It will only encourage her to have another one.”

J: Ha! I can't wait to read more! Can you share a secret about THE BREAK-UP ARTIST?

P: Becca’s last name, Williamson, is an homage to writer Kevin Williamson, who created one of my favorite shows as a teen, DAWSON’S CREEK, as well as SCREAM and I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER. (He also created THE VAMPIRE DIARIES.)

J: Thank you, Phil! I'm so glad you were willing to chat with me about The Break-Up Artist! I hope this has made everyone else as excited as it has made me!

About the author:

Philip Siegel grew up in New Jersey, which he insists is much nicer than certain TV shows would have you believe. He graduated from Northwestern University and promptly moved out to Los Angeles, where he became an NBC Page (proof below). He likes to think that the character of Kenneth on 30 Rock is loosely based on his life rights. Currently, he lives in Chicago and does his best writing sandwiched in between colorful characters on the El.

Find Phil:
Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads / Website / Blog / YAValentines

Pre-order THE BREAK-UP ARTIST:
Amazon / B&N / Chapters Indigo / The Book Depository

2014 Feature: The Art of Lainey by Paula Stokes

Today is an especially exciting day for me because I get to welcome one of the loveliest people I know to the blog, Paula Stokes. Paula wrote the Secrets of the Eternal Rose series (which I adore) under the pen name Fiona Paul, but today she's here to talk about her contemporary debut under her own name, The Art of Lainey! I am crazy excited to get the chance to read this one and today Paula's here to give us some background on how the book came to be.

First, a bit about the book:

The Art of Lainey by Paula Stokes.
To be published: May 20, 2014
by: HarperTeen.

I'll skip the blurb because Paula's going to tell you about the book in her own words as she tells the story of where it all came from. So without further ado, here she is:

Hey everybody. What’s up? The fantastic Jessica Reid invited me over to talk about my first contemporary novel, The Art of Lainey. One of the questions everyone asks is always “Where did the idea come from?” so I thought I would share that with you today. The Art of Lainey is the story of Lainey Mitchell, a seventeen-year-old girl whose charmed life starts to fall apart when her boyfriend, Jason, suddenly and inexplicably breaks up with her. Desperate to restore the status quo, Lainey hatches a plan with her friend Bianca to win Jason back. When the online dating advice seems lame, the girls turn to Bianca’s copy of The Art of War for strategy. After all, love is a battlefield, right? Sun Tzu’s military strategies lead Lainey down a path that results in her not just discovering the person she’s meant to be with, but also discovering the person she’s meant to be.

This story was ripped straight from the headlines of my own life :-) I was living a fairly charmed existence with a great job and a book deal on the side. I was seeing a guy I was absolutely crazy about and for once everything felt perfect. And then, after almost a year, the guy just quit talking to me. Perhaps both Lainey and I would have been more enlightened if our response to this sudden and hurtful disappearance was to “Whatevz. I deserve better.” But that’s not real life to me. When you care deeply for someone and they behave erratically, you tend to give them the benefit of the doubt, don’t you? I do. My immediate response was to think the guy was “going through something” or maybe that I had done something wrong. So just like in the book I googled things like “how to win him back.” And just like Lainey, I found the tips to be rather unhelpful. And that’s where real life and the story diverge. Alas no, I did not pursue him Warlord-woman style. I wrote a book instead :-)

But before I decided to write The Art of Lainey, I did a freewriting exercise for a local writers’ group I was attending. It was this short passage that helped me to see the possibility for fun and humor and love in something I had been experiencing only as sad. The prompt was “community and communication.” Here it is: the writing assignment that gave birth to an idea that became a “book of my heart.”

********************************************************************

I haven’t talked to him in eight days, unless you count a one-word text message reply as talking. I don’t. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not the needy type. He’s busy. I’m busy. I could go weeks without seeing him and be okay. Weeks without talking, well, I’m less okay with that. I mean, experts at both glamour.com and cosmo.com clearly state that a week without contact is a bad sign.

Only one way to clear things up. I type the words “he quit calling me” into the search box. 400,000 hits. At least I’m not alone. Alanna416 at dearcupid.com informs me he’s not that into me. Over at girlsaskguys.com, Optimus_Prime replies “Get over him. He’s hooking up with someone else.” I refuse to take relationship advice from a Transformer. Next. Some British chick on yahoo answers tells me I’m too good for him.

They’re probably all right, but none of them gave me the answer I really need. None of them told me how to find the off switch, you know, the one for my feelings.

My friend Connie watches me google with a mixture of amusement and dismay. She steps in before I can spend 27 bucks on some chiseled dating coach’s “how to win him back” handbook. 
“Tell me again why you’re pining over this moderately attractive man-child?” she asks.
“Because he makes me laugh?”
Connie takes note of my puffy eyes and the crumpled tissues spread across the floor of my bedroom. “Obviously.” She grabs his picture out of my hands. “I think I’ve seen him before. Yeah, I’ve seen his pic online.”
“Where?”
She wrinkles up her tan forehead. “Hmm…”
“Where?” I repeat, a bit more forcefully. I have to know. Maybe it’s a clue.
“Oh I remember,” she says. “On urbandictionary.com. Right next to the entry for loser.”
I slug her, but not before cracking my first smile in days. “Pretty sure I saw your picture next to the entry for unsupportive bitch.”
“Here’s me being supportive,” she says. “Why don’t you just call him? Demand to know what’s up?”
“Worth a try, I guess,” I say. “But what if he still ignores me?”
“Then he’s not the guy you want to be with anyway.”

************************************************************************

In case you’re wondering, that guy was not a bad guy, and I did understand his reasons for bailing, once I extracted them by force ;-) One thing I really wanted to do with The Art of Lainey, was to portray the complex reasoning that often exists for people’s seemingly impulsive decisions. Maybe it’s naïve, but I believe that most people don’t want to hurt other people, and that when they do so it’s because they feel like no matter what they do it’s going to hurt someone (or themselves) so they take what appears to be the least painful path. Jason’s reasons for bailing on Lainey are completely different than the real-world reasons, but no less complex.

Thank you, Paula, for sharing that! It sounds like Lainey was really helpful in your process of working through that. I'm sure it wasn't easy, but at least you have a story to tell when people do ask you where the idea came from! I'm just so glad you've turned it into what sounds like it's going to be a wonderful book.

Does The Art of Lainey not sound fabulous? I know I'm just about bursting at the seams waiting to read it!

About the author:

Paula Stokes is half writer, half RN, and totally thrilled to be part of the world of YA literature. She started out writing historical fiction under a pen name and is now branching out into other genres.

When she's not writing (rare), she's kayaking, hiking, reading, or seeking out new adventures in faraway lands. She's petted tigers, snuggled snakes, snorkeled with stingrays, and once enjoyed the suction-cuppy feel of a baby elephant's trunk as it ate peanuts from her palm. Her future goals include diving with great white sharks, learning Krav Maga, and writing a whole slew of novels, not necessarily in that order.


Find Paula:
Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads / Blog / Pinterest / YAValentines

Pre-order THE ART OF LAINEY:
Amazon / B&N / The Book Depository

Also, just a note, if you're a Canadian blogger and you want to help promote The Art of Lainey, Kathy from A Glass of Wine and I have teamed up with Harper Collins Canada to run a Canadian blog tour! You can sign up here and you may get an early review copy!
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/10B8twXQJakztSaQX9UjcE9_A-oxVBh2ubLWyZHlQtxI/viewform

2014 Feature: Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman

I am so, so happy to welcome the wonderful Anne Blankman to the blog today to chat about a book that is right up there on my list of 2014 books I MUST HAVE! Seriously, this book sounds like it was meant for me. Read on to learn a little more about why...

First, a bit about the book:

Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman.
Prisoner of Night and Fog #1.
To be published: April 22, 2014
by: Balzer + Bray.

Goodreads Blurb:
In 1930s Munich, danger lurks behind dark corners, and secrets are buried deep within the city. But Gretchen Müller, who grew up in the National Socialist Party under the wing of her "uncle" Dolf, has been shielded from that side of society ever since her father traded his life for Dolf's, and Gretchen is his favorite, his pet.

Uncle Dolf is none other than Adolf Hitler.

And Gretchen follows his every command.

Until she meets a fearless and handsome young Jewish reporter named Daniel Cohen. Gretchen should despise Daniel, yet she can't stop herself from listening to his story: that her father, the adored Nazi martyr, was actually murdered by an unknown comrade. She also can't help the fierce attraction brewing between them, despite everything she's been taught to believe about Jews.

As Gretchen investigates the very people she's always considered friends, she must decide where her loyalties lie. Will she choose the safety of her former life as a Nazi darling, or will she dare to dig up the truth—even if it could get her and Daniel killed?

From debut author Anne Blankman comes this harrowing and evocative story about an ordinary girl faced with the extraordinary decision to give up everything she's ever believed . . . and to trust her own heart instead.


Here's Anne:

J: Welcome, Anne! To start us off, if you were to describe PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG as a mash-up of any two things, what would they be?

A: Can I name three? :) PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG doesn't fit neatly into one genre--that is, it isn't only a mystery or only a coming-of-age story. The best description is probably romantic historical thriller.

J: Come on, how irresistible does that sound? I love it already! What draws you to historical fiction from a writing perspective? Do you see yourself writing more of it in the future?

A: I want to sweep my readers into a world that's completely new to them. Sure, fantasy novels are a great way to take readers on foreign experiences, but for me, there's nothing more alluring than discovering an era that's real but feels strange and distant because so many years have passed. Plus, I like the challenge. You can't dress your characters in the appropriate clothes, drop them into another time, and expect them to act like modern people. You need to understand the mindsets of those who lived during your book's setting. What did they believe? What were they afraid of? What did they cherish? Why?

And, yes, I definitely see myself writing more historical fiction--and not just because I have two more on contract, one being the forthcoming sequel to PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG! I want to write other genres, too, but right now, nothing gets me more inspired than reading about other time periods.

J: I'm so, so glad to hear you say that! It's my favourite genre and I always love finding more! How much research did you have to do for the novel?

A: The research for this book was intense. I felt a tremendous responsibility to portray Hitler accurately, not just because he was a real person, but out of respect for his millions of victims. I read everything I could find: biographies, memoirs, social histories, psychological profiles, essays, textbooks, you name it. I studied Hitler's autobiography, Mein Kampf, and his early speeches. I had to be careful not to look too much at his later speeches because he changed quite a bit during the final years of his life, and I wanted to present him as he was in 1931, when he was still an emerging politician and had a tight grip on his self-control.

Primary sources, such as maps and photographs, helped me envision the setting and trace my characters' routes throughout Munich. I watched lots of old videos, too, including the Nazi propaganda film "Triumph of the Will." I found a lot of footage of Hitler on YouTube, as well, and it was incredibly helpful to study the way he walked or used his hands during speeches.

J: If you could introduce one of your characters to any character from another book, who would it be and why?

A: Oooo, what a fun question! I'd want my main character, Gretchen, to meet Mattie, the protagonist in Jennifer Donnelly's A NORTHERN LIGHT. They're both smart, sensitive girls from rough backgrounds, struggling to figure out what they believe and what kind of lives they want. I think Gretchen would find it comforting to meet someone experiencing similar feelings.

J: Was there a specific book that inspired you to start writing?

A: I've been fascinated by World War Two, and I wrote my honors thesis in college on Hitler, so over the years I've read lots of books on this era. But the one book I couldn't get out of my head was Hitler & Geli by Ronald Hayman. It's about Hitler's beloved half-niece. After I finished it, I couldn't stop thinking about her and what it must have been like to have grown up adored by the man whose name has become synonymous with evil. Wondering about her, and if it would have been possible to break free if you'd been raised on Nazi propaganda, led me to create my main character and the horrifying secret she uncovers.

J: I will definitely have to get my hands on that one. That's completely a story waiting to be told. I'm so glad you're telling it! Can you share a favourite quote from PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG?

A: I can't share my favorite without giving away a major plot spoiler! So I'll share my second favorite, which occurs when Gretchen and Daniel, the off-limits mysterious Jewish reporter, have their first kiss:

“...Then he cradled her face gently, touching her so tenderly she could scarcely breathe, and brought his face to hers until their lips met in a kiss that burned her mouth.”

J: Oooooh what a tease! I want more of them for sure! Can you share a secret about PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG?

A: I have to be careful how I answer this so I don't give away any surprises--and PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG has lots of twists! What I can tell you is this: Pay close attention to everything Hitler says to Gretchen. His advice becomes vitally important in the forthcoming sequel (which comes out in April, 2015 from Balzer+Bray/HarperCollins).

Thanks so much for having me on the blog, Jess!

J: Thank you, Anne! It's plain to see that I am impatiently anticipating Prisoner of Night and Fog and hopefully others are too, especially after hearing your fantastic answers!

About the author:

Anne Blankman may have been meant to be a writer because her parents named her for Anne of Green Gables. She grew up in an old house with gables (gray, unfortunately) in upstate New York. When she wasn't writing or reading, she was rowing on the crew team, taking ballet lessons, fencing and swimming. She graduated from Union College with degrees in English and history, which comes in handy when she writes historical fiction.

Find Anne:
Twitter / Goodreads / Website / YAValentines

Pre-order PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG:
Amazon / B&N / The Book Depository

2014 Feature: Landry Park by Bethany Hagen

I'm so excited to welcome another debut author to the blog, Bethany Hagen! She's here to chat with me a bit about her February release, Landry Park.

First, here's a bit about the book:

Landry Park by Bethany Hagen.
Landry Park #1.
To be published: February 4, 2014
by: Dial Books.

Goodreads Blurb:
Downton Abbey meets The Selection in this dystopian tale of love and betrayal

In a fragmented future United States ruled by the lavish gentry, seventeen-year-old Madeline Landry dreams of going to the university. Unfortunately, gentry decorum and her domineering father won't allow that. Madeline must marry, like a good Landry woman, and run the family estate. But her world is turned upside down when she discovers the devastating consequences her lifestyle is having on those less fortunate. As Madeline begins to question everything she has ever learned, she finds herself increasingly drawn to handsome, beguiling David Dana. Soon, rumors of war and rebellion start to spread, and Madeline finds herself and David at the center of it all. Ultimately, she must make a choice between duty - her family and the estate she loves dearly - and desire.

And now, here's Bethany!

Jessica: Welcome, Bethany. Thank you for sharing a bit about Landry Park with us! First off, describe Madeline in 5 words or less.

Bethany: Smart, concerned. mistrustful, prescient.

J: What is your favourite part of the world you've created?

B: I have to say it's the atmosphere--marble floors, swishing dresses, clinking china, all lit by blue nuclear lanterns and powered by nuclear power. It's the past and the future, all mingling together.

J: Ooh, that sounds so intriguing. Based on that description alone, I think I'd love to experience living there, if only for a little while. Which of the characters (aside from Madeline) are you most excited for readers to meet?

B: Without a doubt, Cara Westoff. I love my protagonist and the cute boy (David Dana) but I think Cara is the most fun to write. She's sassy and selfish and smarter than people give her credit for.

J: Sassy is always fun! I can't wait to meet her. Madeline seems to have a lot of challenges to face in the book. Which would you say she is most scared of, or what is her biggest fear?

B: Madeline has grown up with her estate as the be-all, end-all of her life. Every decision that's made in her family revolves around the estate. And Madeline's choices lead her in conflict with her father, who holds all the power in his hands. If she chooses to stand against him, she would never inherit the estate and I think that's her greatest fear. Without her estate, she feels like nothing.

J: Sounds like she's going to have some tough decisions to make. I'm so curious to see how it turns out for her. What has been the best part of the writing and publishing process for you so far?

B: This will sound frivolous, but getting a cover has been amazing. It helps that I had a marvelous agent and editor to shape my book into a much better thing to go with the cover, but still. When I saw it for the first time, I did a little jig. It's gorgeous and futuristic and speaks to so many things with in the book. It still blows me away.

J: It is a pretty fantastic cover! And the ARC has a kind of velvety texture... I hope they do that on the finished copy too because it's lovely! Do you listen to music while you write/edit? If so, can you share one song you listened to a lot while working on this novel?

B: I ALWAYS listen to music, which I think comes from working in public places like Starbucks. There's only so much awkward first date chatter you can handle when you're trying to write an epic battle scene. I listened to a lot of different songs for Landry Park, but one of my favorites is still Primavera by Ludovico Einaudi. It's something I could see playing in the ballroom of Landry Park.

J: Can you share a favourite quote from LANDRY PARK?

B: This is from a bust of Madeline's ancestor that sits in the foyer of Landry Park. It's one of my favorite quotes because it's been in the book for such a long time, and it was the first germ of where the gentry came from that I ever wrote. From this snippet of a famous speech this ancestor gave, I was able to unpack and extrapolate the entire history of the gentry and the Rootless.

"We will create order, elegance, and prosperity in our world. However, there is one class of people we deny this new ordered life. Those who fought the most viciously against us, who killed our women and children, and who didn’t surrender at the end. They shall never own land or a house, they shall not benefit from our schools or our doctors. They will be like bugs on the ground, without a future and forever rootless. . ."

J: Can you share a secret about LANDRY PARK?

B: A long, long time ago, I was writing a paranormal romance with angels and demons, and elements of Landry Park started springing up--the big houses, the debut balls.  At the time, I was working at a local history museum where I was exposed to pictures of debutantes and 1950s fallout shelters, and I realized that was the story that was trying to emerge from the paranormal book. So I stripped all that away, and started with a girl on a beautiful estate fueled by nuclear power...and the rest is history.

Wow, what an interesting way for it to come about. I love that those parts are what came through as the story you wanted to tell because they are certainly things about which I want to read! Thank you, Bethany! Needless to say I am so excited for Landry Park!

Find Bethany:
Twitter / Goodreads / Website / Blog / YAValentines

Pre-order LANDRY PARK:
Amazon, B&N, Chapters Indigo, The Book Depository

2014 Feature: Defy by Sara B. Larson

I'm so excited to welcome Sara B. Larson today to chat about her debut novel, DEFY, coming out in January. Sara is the first of many authors I'll be featuring this month to help get people excited about the books coming in 2014 that I'm most looking forward to!

First, here's a bit about DEFY:

Defy by Sara B. Larson.
Defy #1.
To be published: January 7th, 2014
by: Scholastic Press.

Goodreads Blurb:
A lush and gorgeously written debut, packed with action, intrigue, and a thrilling love triangle.

Alexa Hollen is a fighter. Forced to disguise herself as a boy and serve in the king's army, Alex uses her quick wit and fierce sword-fighting skills to earn a spot on the elite prince's guard. But when a powerful sorcerer sneaks into the palace in the dead of night, even Alex, who is virtually unbeatable, can't prevent him from abducting her, her fellow guard and friend Rylan, and Prince Damian, taking them through the treacherous wilds of the jungle and deep into enemy territory.

The longer Alex is held captive with both Rylan and the prince, the more she realizes that she is not the only one who has been keeping dangerous secrets. And suddenly, after her own secret is revealed, Alex finds herself confronted with two men vying for her heart: the safe and steady Rylan, who has always cared for her, and the dark, intriguing Damian. With hidden foes lurking around every corner, is Alex strong enough to save herself and the kingdom she's sworn to protect?

Sounds pretty fantastic, right?
Sara's here today for an interview, so without further ado... here we go!

Jess: Welcome, Sara! To start us off, let's focus in on your main character. Describe Alexa in 5 words or less. 

Sara: Fierce, determined,  guarded and strong-willed, but still vulnerable.  

J: I like her already! What drew you to fantasy from a writing perspective?

S: I don't know that I've ever consciously thought "now, I want to write fantasy"--the stories I come up with just always seem to have some sort of magic or something fantastical about them. I did try to write an adult fiction once, complete with very sad, real-life experiences, and then something difficult happened to me (almost exactly like a scene in my book) and I swore I'd never write anything that could ever actually happen to me again.

J: Was there a specific book that inspired you to start writing?

S: No, because I've been writing for as long as I can remember. I have notebooks from 2nd and 3rd grade that are full of my "books" that I wrote way back then. Reading and writing have always been an integral part of who I am, so I can't pinpoint any one moment that led me to want to write. However, there have definitely been books along the way that have inspired me to want to write better. In 2nd and 3rd grade I loved THE BABYSITTERS CLUB, I even dotted all my i's with a heart like Stacey. As a teenager, some of the books I read and read again were A RING OF ENDLESS LIGHT by Madeleine L'Engle, and THE POISONWOOD BIBLE by Barbra Kingsolver (what an amazing lesson on voice!); now there are too many favorite books to list, but some of my contemporaries who I could only dream of being able to write like include Maggie Stiefvater, Laini Taylor, and Kristin Cashore. There are so many more I love, but I don't want to go on and on and on... 

J: So many fantastic books! Say I wake up in the middle of the kingdom in which DEFY is set. What do I experience when I first awaken?

S: The first thing you'd notice would be the oppressive heat, the way the humidity in the air feels like a living thing, wrapping around you, slicking your skin with perspiration, even though you haven't moved yet. You'd smell the lush heaviness of the jungle and the hint of flowers on the air. If you are in a village or smaller town in Antion (the jungle kingdom where DEFY is set), you'd probably also wake with the tang of fear on your tongue, because you're never completely safe in the jungle, no matter how well you know it. Predators can lurk behind any bush, around every tree--or even in them, above your head--and you never know when you might become the prey. If you lived in the palace, you would feel a bit more safe from jaguars and snakes, because of the massive wall that surrounds it, but the fear would still be there, beating in time with your heart, because there are plenty of threats within the palace walls as well. 

J: Ooh, wow. I can't wait to dive deeper in! Why will I swoon for Rylan and Damian? Who would you personally go for, a "safe and steady" guy or a "dark, intriguing" one?

S: Oh boy, what a question! Not sure I can completely answer it, because I definitely don't want to cause any spoilers. But I will tell you what will make you swoon for them both. When you look into Rylan's warm, chocolate-brown eyes, you feel safe and protected. He's strong and kind, a lethal combination to any girl's heart (even one who's pretending to be a boy). He's loyal and brave and an excellent swordsman and somehow still gentle. He's also the only guard who has come close to beating Alexa in a sparring match. But Prince Damian, on the other hand, is more like the jungle kingdom that his father rules. He's dangerously beautiful, and deceptively calm, with intense blue eyes that can be as cold as the jewels they resemble. But, just like the jungle, beneath the tantalizing exterior lurk many secrets. Secrets that could pull you in and save you--or lead to your demise. 

J: So intriguing! I must admit, I'm already feeling drawn to Rylan. Can't wait to meet him for myself! Do you listen to music while you write/edit? If so, can you share one song you listened to a lot while working on this novel?

S: I absolutely HAVE to have music. Especially since I often write while my kids are napping/watching a movie, or after a long day when they're finally in bed, I rely on the music I pick to help me quickly immerse myself in the emotions of my story, so I can write faster and more effectively. I envision my books like movies in my head, so it's not surprising that I LOVE to use soundtracks to write to.  One of the songs I had on repeat a lot was RISE by Hans Zimmer (from The Dark Knight Rises) --but I'd skip the first 45 seconds to get to the good part. ;) I also listened to BREATHE ME by Sia a LOT. 

J: Excellent choices! Can you share a favourite quote from DEFY?

S: "As I gripped the hilt of the sword, my mind calmed and my body filled with purpose. This is who I was--this was what I knew how to do. I was a fighter." 

J: Can you share a secret about DEFY?

S: I almost quit writing this book. The inspiration came from a very dark place in my life, when someone I loved (my cousin's husband) had just passed away from cancer. He was just 24. The very first scene I wrote stemmed from that grief, and for a long time I thought that was all it was--an exercise in grief. But the characters wouldn't leave me alone so I kept going. However, about 7 or 8k words in, I hit a wall. I couldn't figure out where the plot needed to go. So I put it down. But again, the characters wouldn't leave me alone. When I finally figured out that one of them was keeping a major secret from me, the rest of the plot suddenly clicked into place and the rest of the book flew out of me. (I finished writing it 2 weeks after I figured out that one, integral secret.) 

J: That's amazing. Thank you for sharing that with us, Sara. And thank you again for taking part in the interview! I loved having you here on the blog!

S: Thank you for having me, these were fun questions to think about!

Doesn't this make you want to pick up DEFY right this second? I know I'm itching to read it! Make sure you keep an eye out for it early next month!

About the author:

I love writing, reading, and dessert--but the order varies by the day. I write books that have magic and romance and kick-butt girls and a whole lot more. My husband and I live in Utah with our three children. I write during naptime and the hours when most people are sleeping. My husband claims I should have a degree in "the art of multitasking." On occasion you will find me hiding in a bubble bath with a book and some Swedish Fish. I am represented by Josh Adams of Adams Literary and my YA debut DEFY is coming Spring 14 from Scholastic!


Find Sara:
Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads / Blog / YAValentines

Preorder DEFY:
Amazon / B&N / Chapters Indigo / The Book Depository
Or pre-order a signed copy from Sara's local indie, The King's English.

Introducing Most Anticipated of 2014

Today it is officially December, which means in just one month it will be 2014! Kind of hard to believe, but it is almost here. I've been pining over 2014 books for months now, so I'm excited to announce that I'll be spending this month getting the rest of you excited for these books too! 

I have lots of wonderful authors on board to share some secrets and behind-the-scenes info about their 2014 releases and we're all looking forward to sharing this with you. There are interviews and guest posts and other fun things coming, as well as a few other end-of-year type posts celebrating books from this year and books to come, so I hope you stick around and enjoy everything I have planned!