Author Interview: Jessica Burkhart

 

I'm so excited to be talking with Jessica Burkhart today. 

I loved her Canterwood Crest series and I was so happy to learn about the Saddlehill Academy books.

Currently there are four books out in the series AND I will tell you that there are mentions of Canterwood Crest characters! 

Read my reviews of all four books here. 

How many books could there be in the series?

Right now, I’m contracted for four books, but if readers pick it up and it sells well, there could be more. I’m hopeful there will be, but I don’t have any answers yet about the series continuing. It’s sad not to know already because with Canterwood, there were 20 books, and that’s what I’d hoped for Saddlehill Academy. But I’m afraid pushback from some bigots about the main character being queer in a sport that’s historically been incredibly straight and white has impacted the sales. Plus, It’s a really rough climate to be writing LGBTQ+ middle-grade novels. 

Still, I hope there will be additional novels, and I’ll write as many more as my publisher wants! 

I hope there are many more because I NEED to know what happens next! 

How much fun was it to go back to the Canterwood Crest characters?

So. Much. Fun. It’s a lovely blast from the past to see these characters that I’ve lived with in my head for so long. They’re all adults (!) now, which is wild. Returning to Canterwood Crest and some of my favorite characters has been a dream, and I hope OG Canterwood readers are having fun with their cameos in Saddlehill!

I am loving hearing about favorite characters. 

Is it hard or fun to write a mean girl scene? And why?

It’s…shockingly easy for me. I don’t know what that says about me as a person, haha. But I love writing mean girls and coming up with the sabotage and their arguments is such a fun part of the job. 

Are you the type of person who holds a grudge? 

Not usually, no. If a person wrongs me and apologizes, I’ll typically give them another chance. Most of my mean girls in Canterwood and Saddlehill sure do hold grudges, though! 

How do you come up with all the wonderful ideas for the drama?

 

I try to ask myself “what’s the worst that could happen?” within the framework of a scene and go from there. I pull ideas from media I’ve consumed and then put my own spin on them to fit the scene. 

The drama is so good. I never want to put these books down. 

Thank you so much for interviewing me, Jen! And happy Pride Month to all! 

Happy Pride everyone! 

Middle Grade Review: Perfect Revenge

* Book 4 in the Saddlehill Academy series * 

Abby was shocked to learn that Ava and Olivia are attending Saddlehill Academy. They seem excited to befriend her and happy to join the team. But things might not be all that they seem.

Abby's too busy worrying about her grades to deal with more team drama. If her grades don't improve in the next few weeks, her father will pull her from the riding team. Abby will be devastated if that happens, especially as she's waiting for word on the clinic from Sasha Silvers and Heather Fox.

My Thoughts: I love this series for the horses, the drama, the friendships, and the romance. Abby and Mila spend more time together in this book and couldn't be cuter. Even though I don't like the reasons, I love how the team starts coming together. I loved seeing Abby and Emery at their house and more family time due to Thanksgiving. I really love learning about the characters from the Canterwood Crest series. The drama in this book ends on a wicked Canterwood cliff-hanger. I need more books in this series! 

Cover Thoughts: Perfect. I love these covers

Source: Book sent for review

Library Recommendation: A must have series for your school and public libraries

I'm chatting with the author later this week, be sure to check back in! 

Top Ten Tuesday: Book Wishes

 This week's topic is book wishes for 2024 ARCs - I need to add more books to my 2024 list, so I'm eager to see what you all are sharing!

Adult:

YA:

Nonfiction:

Middle Grade:

Children's:

Review: The Showdown

 

* Book 2 in the Saddlehill Academy series * 

Abby's still having a hard time. She learns the identity of the person harassing her. But it doesn't help anything as the person knows her biggest secret - the one secret she doesn't want getting out. Abby hasn't even told her two best friends the secret.

On top of everything, horse shows are starting back up and Abby needs to be a team player. It's hard to be supportive when you don't trust your team. As Abby attempts to bottle everything up, everything explodes. Her friendships, her future, and everything she's worked for is now in jeopardy. 

My Thoughts: I couldn't put this book down; I loved it. I loved the drama, the friendships, the family issues, and of course all the horse moments. I love the Harvest Dance. I loved Abby's interactions with Mila. They were cute and funny. I did feel a little bad for Emery and I hope that relationship can heal. I can't wait to read what happens next....

Cover Thoughts: Adorable and right out of the book

Source: Book sent for review

Library Recommendations: Highly recommended for your school and public library collections.

Review: Sweet & Bitter Rivals

 

* First in a new series *

Abby St. Clair can’t wait to start another season with her elite riding team at her boarding school. She has something to prove after literally falling on her face during the biggest competition of the year the previous season. And she could really use a win after her mom left her family, her dad remarried, and Abby’s new stepsister, Emery, proved to be a strong rider and stiff competition.

Abby wants to return to some semblance of normal but is hiding a secret: she accidentally cost her biggest rival, Selly, a chance at team captain. Then Abby begins to receive anonymous messages, threatening to expose her unwitting sabotage and a video that makes it look like she’s trash-talking Emery. With an important competition on the horizon and the knowledge that someone in her circle knows way too much about her, the pressure is on.

Abby tries to put on blinders and have the perfect meet with her horse, Beau, but she’s about to find out the hard way that secrets don’t make friends at Saddlehill Academy. - summary from the publisher

My Thoughts: As soon as Jessica Burkhart announced this, I was SUPER excited! I LOVED the Canterwood Crest series. I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book. It was everything I wanted it to be - it had all the classics from the Canterwood Crest books - friendship drama, family drama, crushes, and of course horses. I loved the horse moments in this book. I felt bad for Abby as she struggled with the changes in her family on top of going back to school and trying to keep a secret. I loved the easter eggs from Canterwood Crest and learning more about our favorite characters. And of course, that cliffhanger ending makes me NEED the next book immediately. Luckily, I only have to wait less than two months!

Cover Thoughts: Adorable

Source: Book sent for review (I asked the publisher for this one, which is rare for me)

Library Recommendations: A must have book for your school and public libraries!

Top Ten Tuesday: If You a Fan

 This week's topic is if you're a fan of X. I'm choosing horse books as my X because I'm SUPER EXCITED that Jessica Burkhart has a new book coming out on May 30th.

If you're waiting for it like me, here are some books you might want to read in the meantime.

Obviously the Canterwood Crest series

Children's Books:

Graphic Novels:

Middle Grade:

YA:

Old School Children's Book:

Top Ten Tuesday: Santa Please Bring Me

 This week's topic is all about books we wish Santa would bring us. 

These are all books I can't wait to read next year from some of my favorite authors.

It's going to be a great reading year!!!

Are any of these on your reading list???

Top Ten Tuesday Spin-off

 This week's topic was all about books from the past. I shared a TikTok video of my YA reads, here are my middle grade reads and my adult reads. 

Middle Grade Reads:

I read several Babymouse graphic novels, the Sleuth or Dare trilogy, the On the Run series, and was addicted to the Canterwood Crest series. (PS. if you were too, there's a spin-off series coming soonish)

Adult Books:

I read all the Bridgerton books, thanks to someone in the Sarah MacLean line at BEA, started by adoration of Jill Shalvis books, loved the Shana Galen series, and was still big into cozies.

It was super fun going down memory lane!

What books do you remember reading 10 years ago?

Review: Life Inside My Mind

31 YA authors share their personal stories in small essays.

My Thoughts: Oh boy. This was a great book to read and to start conversations, but it was also hard to read because of the subject matter. I love that so many authors shared their stories and I hope that this book spurs conversations among teens. I hope they see they are not alone. I hope they find themselves sharing their own stories. There isn't any judgement here, it's all very matter of fact. I love that so many of the essays talked about what worked for them and how it won't work for everyone. I love how they advice readers to get help and figure out the method that might work best for them. This book is so powerful - from the number of authors sharing their stories to the range of mental illnesses shared. It's an eye opening read.

Cover Thoughts: Cute
Source: ARC sent for review
Library Recommendation: A must have for middle school, high school, and public libraries.

Wild Hearts Tour with Jessica Burkhart

I really loved this book, you can read my review here.

Let's start chatting.

Thanks, Jessica for stopping by the blog.

What's your favorite horse book from childhood/teen years?

So tough to answer this one! I would have to kinda cheat and say the THOROUGHBRED series by Joanna Campbell. Those books are ones I still read every once in a while for inspiration. I owned every single one as a kid and recently bought the series on eBay. 

What's your favorite moment on a horse?

I was riding this small appaloosa gelding and I jumped him across a creek with a 3-4 foot spread. It was amazing and so fun! 

What are you working on right now?

I just finished HEATED--the first Canterwood Crest e-novella. I'm working on a secret (for now!) project and am also just beginning to write SANCTUARY--the second Canterwood e-novella that will follow Sasha Silver adopting an off the track rescue thoroughbred. I can't wait to delve into it!

Why YA?

I'd written 20 tween novels and four chapter books and it felt like a natural progression to try YA. I absolutely love it and hope to write more YA in the future. 

What's the best writing advice you can give?

Write. Ever. Single. Day. 

What's something cool that would be found in Amy's room?

Since she's obsessed with all things Southern and shops on eBay, I imagine she has a super cool desk lamp made out of a giant conch shell. 

Great interview, Jessica, thanks again. 

The rest of you, go grab the book - it's perfect for summer with a hot boy, great best friend, horses, and a forbidden romance.

Review: Wild Hearts

* Book 4 in the If Only... series *

Brie's lived all over the world because of her father's business. Usually settling into a new town and seeing the sights is fun, but not when the whole town hates your father without meeting him.

They think Mr. Carter's going to destroy the town with the new hotel he's planning to develop. Plus wild mustangs roam on the land to be developed. Now the town's protesting his arrival outside his new house. Her father's a workaholic who's not going to stop because of some protesters.

Brie, on the other hand, starts talking to Logan - the boy she met on the first day into town. He's a protester, but he's not the jerk she imagined him to be. As they get closer, the tension between their fathers heats up. How can think about a possible romance when their families are enemies?

My Thoughts: While it's technically Book 4 in the series - this series isn't connected except in the concept of contemporary romance - so it's basically a stand-alone novel. But that isn't to say you won't enjoy the other books in the If Only line.

I like how the romance started out snarky but grew into something much more. I loved how it built slowly and then burned brightly. 

I loved how Logan and Brie (and others) worked together to save the mustangs. It's amazing how they pulled things together.

I felt horrible for Logan - taking on so many responsibilities with his mom leaving, the economy, and this dad's health. I loved the moments between Logan and Holden.

I loved Amy. I loved her room and her mindset towards Southern charm. I like how she and Brie overcame their first meeting to become friends. I love how she goes after what she wants - on eBay and it's afraid to show off her style. She's a really great friend.

I loved the Brie wanted to find something she was passionate about - and not something that she was doing because of someone else. This had to be something for her. 

Cover Thoughts: Amazing - I love the pop of the colors against the black and white sketch.
Source: Sent for review

Final Thoughts: I loved Jessica Burkhart's middle grade series Canterwood Crest, so I was super excited to hear about her debut YA novel - and it's everything I wanted: great romance, great friendship, a fantastic main character, drama, and of course more horses. If you like forbidden love stories, then this is the perfect read for summer.

Tween Tuesday Review: Famous

 *Book 18 in the Canterwood Crest series*

Lauren's BFF from home surprised her by transferring to Canterwood.  Now both Brielle and Taylor will be at school with her. Lauren's beyond happy. Brielle's rooming with Clare and things couldn't be better.

Until Clare catches Brielle acting strange. She mentions it to Lauren, but Lauren dismisses it. Clare mentions her fears to Khloe. Khloe talks to her roommate until Lauren has no choice but to bring it up with Brielle.

What she learns changes EVERYTHING. Now, Lauren's shell-shocked and buries herself in school work and riding. There's a new girl from Sweden who could rule the upcoming riding competition. Can LT get her emotions under control in time for the competition? 

My Thoughts: This is the last book that take places at Canterwood before the Super Special that ends the entire series. It's set up perfectly for the next book, which will take place in LT's hometown. I loved the ending of this book and the moment between Lauren and Sasha Silver. I liked the addition to Brielle to the group - even though it forced Lauren to work through some major issues. I wasn't all that surprised when the secret came out, but she handled it pretty well.  As sad as I am that this series will be ending, I can't wait to read the final book!

Cover Thoughts: Amazing as always
Source: My Library

Tween Tuesday Review: Jealousy

 *  Canterwood Crest Series #17 *

**Tween Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at GreenBeanTeenQueen to highlight great reads for tweens. Join the fun! **

LT had the surprise of her life at her masquerade birthday bash when an old friend from home showed up. LT wasn't expecting her ex-boyfriend. She certainly wasn't expecting to hear that he's a new student at Canterwood Crest. 

Even though they broke up, Taylor and LT have done their best to remain friends. LT doesn't want to that to change, but neither does she want to make her new relationship with Drew strained.

On top of all her relationship drama, she's dealing the pressure of Parents Weekend, horse lessons, Khloe's play, and her own performance. Can't a girl catch a drama free moment?

My Thoughts: I adore this series, it's fresh, funny, and full of relationship and friendship drama. The last book ended on a wicked cliff hanger as does this book. While this installment of the addictive series centers around boy drama, LT and Khloe have their bonding moments. I love how loyal these girls are to each other and how their friendship has become so close in such a short time.  I can't wait to see what happens next when LT's worlds collide.

Cover Thoughts: Charming - as usual
Source: My Library

Teen Book Character's Outfits

Earlier in the year, the Otis Library hosted a contest on Pinterest, posting pins of character's outfits from Polyvore. I've made several of these and quite enjoy it. I hope to start making more. In the mean time, here's a look at the ones I created.

Bright Young Things 

Hermoine Granger 

Lauren Towers 

Princess Mia

If you want to see more from the board - check it out. If you want to make your own and be added to the board, let me know!