Review: Week of Mondays

Ellie has a serious case of the Mondays! It's the worst day ever: she runs a red light by accident and gets a ticket, softball tryouts go poorly, her class election speech goes worse, and her boyfriend dumps her.

She wakes up the next day - only to do it all over again. She's stuck on an endless loop of Mondays trying to get the day right.

Ellie rushes around trying to make different choices that will change the outcome of the day - most important Tristan breaking up with her. 

How long will it take her to make things right?

My Thoughts: I adored this book. I'm so happy to be part of the tour because I love Jessica Brody. Her books are funny, sweet, and entertaining. I loved the book club. I love the music. I adored the yearbook photos. I enjoyed the moments between Owen and Ellie, I love her interactions with her sister and how it all works out. I love Ellie's real me and how she's brave enough to come out of her shell and doesn't fit into the mold anymore. I loved the crazy adventures, the desperate measure, and the in betweens. This book is the perfect summer reading novel, fun, flirty, light-hearted, and with a strong character who has the guts to just be herself.

Cover Thoughts: Cute
Source: ARC sent for Review
Library Recommendation: A must buy for all YA collections, but read it first before it goes on the shelf.

Blog Tour: Introducing A Week of Mondays

BOOK SUMMARY

Ellie is having the worst Monday of her life. She messes up her school  speech for the class vice presidency position, she manages to take the world's  worst school picture, she bombs softball tryouts, and the icing on top  of this awful cake: her perfect boyfriend who is in a high school rock band dumps her. At the end of  the day, Ellie wishes she could redo everything. When she wakes up the  next morning, she discovers that it's Monday again! She has six more chances to redo the day in the hopes of having everything go exactly the way she wants. But in the process, she just may find out that what she really wants and what she actually needs are two very different things.

AUTHOR BIO

Jessica Brody is the author of several popular books for teens, including the Unremembered trilogy, 52 Reasons to Hate My Father, and The Karma Club, as well as two adult novels. She splits her time between California and Colorado. Find out more at jessicabrody.com.

GUEST POST

ELLISON “ELLIE” SPARKS: An idealistic, ambitious sixteen-year-old junior with a lot on her plate.

Those were the first words I ever wrote about Ellie Sparks. They were written in a synopsis for my publisher when I was first trying to sell them on the idea for a book called A WEEK OF MONDAYS.

Of course, you can’t write an entire book about a one-sentence character. Just like you can’t live your entire life as a one-sentence person. But every character has to begin somewhere. And this is where Ellie began for me.

As an idealistic, ambitious sixteen-year-old junior with a lot on her plate.

In my mind, this is who she had to be. I thought, if you’re going to write about a girl who relives the same horrible Monday over and over again, trying to “get it right,” these are the adjectives that must describe her. She has to be idealistic enough to think she can fix everything in her life. Yet, she also has to be ambitious enough to try it. And how else are you going to fill seven Mondays with interesting storylines if the main character doesn’t have a lot on her plate.

So there was Ellie. And there was me, ready to write her, thinking I understood her. Thinking I knew everything I needed to know about her.  

This is the writing process for me. I start with an idea of who someone is. I draw a box around them, like an identity fence. I stuff them inside and I lock the gate. I tell them, “This is who you are. Don’t try to change that. Don’t try to be or do anything else. I don’t have time for detours. I’m on a deadline.”

I never learn.

A WEEK OF MONDAYS is my tenth published novel and I’m still trying to lock characters inside fences. Eventually, though, they always break free. They always get bigger than their boxes. And even though I try to adjust, I keep drawing bigger and bigger boxes around them, trying to contain them to the world I built, the world I envisioned, they never quite want to stay inside. Just like people. You can try to identify them, label them, build a fence around them that makes you feel safe, and yet they’ll always surprise you. Because no character—no human being—fits inside a box.   

One of my favorite reviews of A WEEK OF MONDAYS says, “Watching Ellie relive her horrible day is something like peeling an onion. Each Monday, a piece of her people-pleaser facade melts away, revealing more of her real self.”

I smiled when I read that because it wasn’t until then that I realized exactly what had happened in the writing of this book. I had done it again. I had tried to put yet another character in a box, and she had slowly, word by word, page by page, Monday by Monday broken free.

This book is ultimately a story of self-discovery.

Seven days. Seven chances to completely reinvent yourself. Wear different clothes, make different choices, explore different paths, say different things, be different people.

Because sometimes it takes a whole week of Mondays to figure out who you really are. And when you finally do, you may find yourself thinking 'Thank God It's Monday' after all.

For the next five Mondays, blogger friends across the internet will be sharing their best and worst Monday. Follow along with us online with #TGIM and #AWeekofMondays, because whether a Monday is memorable for good reasons or memorable for bad reasons, we stand to learn a lot about ourselves.

Upcoming Review: I'll Meet You There

Skylar can't wait to leave her hometown behind and spread her wings. She's headed to art school and she couldn't be happier.

Until her mother goes in a downward spiral and looses her job. Skylar tries to get through to her mother, but she's stuck in a deep depression and nothing works. Could her future plans be in jeopardy?

The only person who can take her mind off her troubles is Josh - a marine veteran who just returned home after losing his leg. Together they attempt to weather the ups and downs of their small town.

My Thoughts: I loved this book. It made me feel EVERYTHING. I felt horrible for Skylar - being stuck in a rut and desperately trying to escape. I felt horrible for her relationship with her mom - and growing up too fast and for having to play the role of the parent herself. I loved her creative outlet and her collages. I cheered her on as she fought for her freedom and her escape to create a better life for herself.

I loved her relationship with Josh - how they were drawn to each other, how they were friends first, and how the sexual tension built until you just wanted to them to kiss already.

I loved Josh - he was dealing with so much from coming back home. Not just his time away and how it changed him but how he was left to get away and was stuck back where he started. I felt horrible for him dealing with his sense of loss and survivors guilt. 

This book was inspired by the author's life and I"m so glad she shared her family's story with us. It was touching, heartbreaking, and hopeful all at the same time.

Cover Thoughts: Cute
Source: Sent for Review
Release Date: February Third
Similar Reads:

Overall Thoughts: This is one of those books that people having talking about for ages. Believe the hype and get yourself a copy of this book. You won't  be sorry.

Blog Tour: Body in the Woods

How many books will there be in the Point Last Seen series?

I'll keep writing books as long as the publisher will have them. Book Two, with the working title Blood Will Tell, is turned in but not edited. I'm starting on Book Three.
Very nice! I'm so looking forward to reading this one!

If you had to, could you track someone?

In mud and if they were the only person who had walked through it, then yes. Realistically, no way. You have to be so detail oriented and focused. A really good tracker has been doing it for years and will pick up on things like two grains of sand on a twig. I'm sure I'd be like a hyperactive dog: "Squirrel!"

Do you use your kung fu training in your books?

For The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die, I had my kajukenbo instructor drag me around the floor with his hands under my arms and we figured out how I could fight back.  (Kajukenbo, a mixed martial art, is what I took before I started my kung fu training.)  I'm thinking of having a character in the series take a kung fu class, because it would really come in handy in fighting off bad guys. 

I love kung fu!  I spar, grapple, and take a special weapons class.  Once we even practiced with a "live" (AKA real) knife. 

What's the most exciting or scariest thing you've done to research an idea for your books?
Last year I took a class on how to fight back in close quarters. I signed up. The other dozen students were male cops in their 30s who were all SWAT team members at various agencies. (It was definitely a “One of these things doesn’t belong here” moment.)

At the very end of class, you sat in your own car and someone sat behind you with a training gun, a training knife, a length of rope, and a plastic bag. They attacked you with these one by one and you had to fight back using what we had just learned. For example, if a plastic bag is ever placed over your head, what you do is suck it in, bite it with your front teeth, and stick your tongue out the hole. You still have a plastic bag over your head, but you can breath.

The first time, I panicked when I felt the plastic clinging to my face. I sucked it into my mouth, but then I tried to gnaw it with my molars. Not only did I not succeed, but I started to get pretty low on oxygen, which raised my panic level even further. The second time, though, I remembered my training.
Impressive! Sounds fun, and yet a little terrifying 

Do you have a favorite library moment?

When I was a kid, my dad took me to the library every Saturday. It was a magical place for me. I loved words and books so much.

At the time, the Jackson County library had a rule that you could only check out six books at a time. Six! That was not nearly enough. And luckily for me, the children's librarian, a woman named Myra Getchell, said the rules did not apply to me and I could check out as many as I wanted.

When I turned 16, I got my first job at the library. I still remember what I bought with my first paycheck: a half pound of caramels, a basket, and most importantly, red-striped Adidas so I could look like all the other kids whose parents could afford red-striped Adidas.

I worked in the children's department, and I was so young, I used to hide in the stacks when I should have been shelving and read Judy Blume books. So young I once slipped and called my boss, whose name was Pat Blair, "Mom." I can still feel the blush on my cheeks!

Love this story

What's the last book you read that you think everyone else should read too?

I think every adult should read Kate Atkinson's Life After Life. Sublime. It's a great book for a writer to read, to think about the choices she made as she told the story. It's a great book for a human being to read, to think about the meaning and purpose of life.

For middle grade, teens, and adults, I would recommend Wonder by RJ Palacio. I loved that book. I bought my 78 year old mom a copy. I talked it up to strangers at Costco. Moving and beautiful.

Thanks April for chatting with me! I just wanted to mention this:

I LOVED the story on your website about Roald Dahl and how he made you a writer! Everyone- check it out.

Body in the Woods sounds great right?
Check out the first chapter

Author Links/Info

·         Check out April Henry’s website, full of research information!

·         Follow April Henry on Twitter!

·         Become a fan of April Henry on Facebook!

·         Read an excerpt of The Body in the Woods on the book page.

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       A copy of the book plus a whistle

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Review: NIL

Charley goes to Target one day and finds herself melting in the parking lot. She wakes up in a rock field - without her clothes.

With no one in sights, she does her best to survive on an island. She builds shelter, finds something to eat, and passes the time. Twelve days later, she sees two guys. Thad and Jason bring her to the city.

Thad becomes her island guide, explaining the rules of NIL. You get 365 days to get off the island from on of the dates. Everyone counts their days. You must contribute something to society while waiting for your turn to go hunting gates.

As Thad shows Charley around, their feelings for each other starts to grow. Can love last on the island?

My Thoughts: I really liked this one, it reminded me of LOST - but with a way off the island. I liked the beauty of the island. I loved how Charley thought about the island as a whole and attempted to figure out it's secrets. A wonderful debut novel with a great visual scene, action, danger, betrayal, friendship, and romance. I can see this one going out a lot in my library. 

Cover Thoughts: Great
Source: ARC for review

Review: Love Letters to the Dead

An assignment in English class turns into something SO much more when Laurel starts writing to Kurt Cobain. She writes to him because he died young - just like her sister. Laurel doesn't hand in her assignment, but she keeps writing about all the emotions swirling through her. 

My Thoughts: So many emotions run through this book: pain, grief, guilt, loss, and moving on. I felt horrible for Laurel and all that she went through. I love that she started writing to people because of a school assignment and I enjoyed the various people she shared her feelings with: Kurt Cobain, Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, Amelia Earhart, Heath Ledger, Judy Garland, River Phoenix, Jim Morrison, Elizabeth Bishop, Allan Lane, John Keats, and ee cummings.   A powerful debut novel that made me cry (at work) and kept me thinking about it for days afterwards.

Cover Thoughts: Great
Source: ARC
Release Date: April 1, 2014

Review: Something Real

Chloe (Bonnie™) Baker used to be part of the TV hit series Baker's Dozen. Since the cancellation, she's been trying to lead a normal life. She has friends - and maybe even an potential boyfriend.

Then, she comes home from school one day to see a TV crew. Immediately, she realizes that something big is about to happen - but she never imagines that the show is coming back.

Her mother and step-father signed a contract - there's nothing that Chloe can do. As much as she hates it, she can't win. Everything she loves is about to become fodder for their reality show. Is it possible to keep anything from the cameras or will they ruin her life - again?

My Thoughts: I confess I'm not a reality TV watcher, but I LOVED this book. I couldn't put it down. I loved watching Chloe struggle with the show coming back on the air. I felt horrible for her - for having to give up a normal life, for the manipulation of the TV show, and for all the family drama. I wasn't a huge fan of her mom or her step father. I loved Benny and their sibling relationship. I can't imagine having 12 brothers and sisters nor could I imagine having my life plastered all over the TV in "entertainment." I love how Chloe tried to maintain her own life outside the cameras and how she fought to keep her relationships. A brilliant debut novel and I'm so looking forward to reading the author's next work. 

Cover Thoughts: I kinda like the cover on the ARC better - more simplistic.
Source: ARC sent for Review
Similar Read: Reality Check

Author Interview with Heather Demetrios

I was lucky enough to read an ARC of SOMETHING REAL - and I devoured it. It was amazing! I just
came out and you have a chance to read it too - check out the end of the post for a contest.

Thanks for stopping by Heather to answer some questions! 

1. What made you choose to write YA?  I love the idea of there being the possibility that my book could change someone’s life. That’s not to say that books for the adult market can’t change an older reader’s life, but when you’re a teen, you’re on the cusp of adulthood. You’re still figuring out your path and who you are. And even though you’ll likely be on that quest to some degree your whole life, it’s when you’re a teen that the groundwork gets laid. As a reader, I love YA because there’s always hope in it. No matter how desolate a landscape or how desperate the conditions, most YA novels have an end that looks the future in the eye and isn’t totally freaked out by what it sees. And I love “firsts”: first kiss, first jobs, first time you spread your wings. Those moments are fun to read and a blast to write. It never gets old for me. - LOVE this answer! It's one of the reasons I'm a YA Librarian. 

2. How do you get your ideas?  Do you use real events in your novels and if so, can you describe one?  I get my ideas from pretty much everywhere. It could be a magazine article, a song, a current event—even dreams. I think as a writer you have to keep your eyes and ears open. This is harder than it sounds because I’m always daydreaming, lost in my head. I forget to look at the world around me because I’m often hanging out in ones of my own creation. You need a balance between those things. When I get an idea, I write it on an index card and put it in a cigar box I bought at a voodoo shop in New Orleans. Then when I’m stuck, I flip through the cards. I sometimes use scraps of real events in my novels—like, something from my past might be the spark for something totally new and fictional. In Something Real, Bonnie™ and Patrick go to the local park, after hours. This is totally something my friends and I used to do and my high school boyfriend and I hung out there a lot. It’s weirdly awesome. And I talk about Pepsi Freezes—those are very real and the only ones in the country that are worth your time are in Clovis, CA, at the gas station on Shaw Avenue. So, if you’re up for a road trip…I definitely use real places that I’ve been to or lived in. Setting is huge for me. The settings in some of my other books are almost like characters themselves.

3. How did you come up with your title?  There was major title drama. We couldn’t come up with one for the longest time! My editor will tell you that titles are the bane of my existence. It was hard to come up with something that suggested the two big things in the story: the whole reality TV context for the events, and the love story. I came up with Something Real while eating tacos in Boston. My husband and I were brainstorming and it just came to me. Thank God! The cover designer was like, please give me something!! It was important that the title feel emotive, rather than cerebral, and that was hard to do at first because reality TV is all about fabricating reality. I’m really happy my editor held out for the right one.  - And it's a great title. 

4. Can you tell us a little bit about Something Real?

Why, I’d love to! This is a book about a girl who’s realizing, maybe for the first time, that she has no control over her life. And she wants that to change. A lot of my readers have said that they can really empathize with Bonnie™, my protagonist, and this seems to surprise them, since she’s living this life that seems—at first—so far from our own. She has paparazzi chasing her, cameras in her house…But at the end of the day, it’s about someone finding out she has some guts and she can be a little fierce when she needs to be. She learns to stand up for herself and for the people she cares about. I think it’s a fun book in that we get this insider’s view of what it would be like to have your family on reality TV. But we also see how much that sucks. It’s got romance, car chases, and on camera drama, but it also has real relationships and choices that we’ve all had to make. It's SO Super Good. I'll have a review coming later this week.

5. Have you ever been on TV?  No, thank God! I’m as camera shy as Bonnie™. I hate seeing myself on camera. My husband used to be on TV, so he’s my go-to guy on all things film and TV related. He also has a film degree, so he gave me the technical terms I needed. I used to be an actress, when I was in high school and college (I have a theatre degree from USC). I thought I wanted to be on TV, but about halfway through college I realized I wanted to be behind the camera (so to speak—I was all about theatre). So I went from acting to directing to writing. Writing’s totally where it’s at for me.

6. What will you did you do on your release day?  I’m getting a tattoo! I already have several, so this isn’t some huge daredevil thing for me. But I wanted to commemorate the day in an extra-special way, since it’s my debut novel. I’m getting one of Bonnie™ and Patrick’s favorite words (in the book, they come up with a list). I think champagne might be involved, as well. And spending way too much time on Twitter and Facebook. I have three big events throughout the week to launch the book, but I wanted to keep the release day mine.

7. If you could guest star on any show, what would it be? These are awesome questions! Hmmm…I think I’d want to be on Game of Thrones because the costuming and set would make me feel like I really was in a place where magic could happen. But if I could be a badass assassin or spy on Homeland or something like that, I’d take it. Oh! Or maybe Dance Academy, so I could get a free trip to Australia. - Oh, GOT would be very fun, but so would a spy/assassin or dancer. 

8. Do you have a favorite reality show? I don’t watch reality TV often (I did to research this book and I had a brief period of time when I lived in South Korea, where I watched a few shows because they were the only things in English). Out of all of them, I like The Amazing Race the best because my husband and I are hardcore travelers. I think I broke my grandma’s heart when I decided I was too lazy to do the audition for it (too lazy and also…what if I yelled at my husband on camera because I was sleep-deprived and wanted to win a million dollars?!). I think she’s forgiven me, though.  Great story! 

9. What are you working on next? About five-thousand things! Well, not really, but it feels like it. I’m currently working on the second book in my YA fantasy trilogy about jinn with HarperCollins / Balzer+Bray (The Dark Caravan Cycle). The first book, Exquisite Captive, comes out this October. I have a second YA contemporary coming out from Holt next year. It’s a love story that features a nineteen-year-old Marine who loses a leg in Afghanistan and comes home to his small town. So, you know, a comedy. ;) I’m also working on a super-secret project (super-secret because I have no idea where it’s gong) to finish up my MFA at Vermont College of Fine Arts (I’m graduating this July!). It’s a YA that’s very different from my others. A little The Grapes of Wrath, a little The Road. I think. They all sound fantastic - and early congrats on your graduation!

10. Do you have a favorite library story? Yes! When I was a little girl, the main branch of the Los Angeles Public Library in Downtown LA was renovated and then had a kind of grand re-opening. My mom took me and I got my library card and spent loads of time in their absolutely gorgeous children’s room. It’s crazy to think my books might be in there soon. It’s a beautiful place, made even more special to me because my mom turned it into this adventure with my sister and I. We were the three Musketeers and the library felt magical. It is magical. - LOVE it!!!

11. What was the last book you’ve read that you’ve been recommending to everyone? Eleanor and Park (YA) and The Night Circus (adult). Both of these books are gorgeously written and the stories are powerful in their own different ways. I also love Dear Sugar. My agent got me that for Christmas a couple years ago and I fell in love with Cheryl Strayed.

12. Are there any authors you’d love to meet?  Um…yeah! So many. I’d love to sit down and chat with Laini Taylor about her process – she’s such an interesting person and one of my very favorite writers. Anne Lamott, because Bird by Bird is my writing bible. I recently got to meet Lucy Christopher and she’s a fabulous person and her approach to her work is so interesting. And, of course, I’d love to meet J.K. Rowling (who doesn’t?). The great thing about the YA community is that there are lots of opportunities to meet writers you admire and talk shop with them.

13. Do you have a favorite literary quote? I have to limit it to just one?! Actually, this is very easy for me. It’s by Walt Whitman and is pretty much my artistic statement: “I too am not a bit tamed, I too am untranslatable. I sound my barbaric yawp from the roofs of the world.” When in doubt, open up Leaves of Grass. It will save your soul every time.  

14. Listing of your favorites: 
1. Candy: sour Jelly Bellies and chocolate
2. Pizza topping: Pepperoni and olives and, also, this is a weird Cali thing, but I love dipping my pizza in ranch dressing. I know, it’s so weird but SO GOOD.
3. Genre of books: YA (which there is actually a big debate about whether or not it’s a genre), and, to be more specific, fantasy. But it kinda depends on my mood, too.
4. Singer and/or Song: Radiohead/Thom Yorke…I can’t choose a favorite, I love everything they do, but I will say that Paranoid Android is probably as close to a perfect rock song as you can get. I generally prefer their later stuff and, of that, two of my favorite songs are Packt Like Sardines in a Crushed Tin Box and Idioteque. I use a Radiohead quote in the beginning of Something Real.
5. Restaurant: El Cholo, which is, hands down, the best Mexican restaurant in Los Angeles. Nobody does Mexican food like LA, except, perhaps, Mexico.
6. TV show /Movie: My favorite movie is Love, Actually and White Christmas is a close second. They both take place over Christmas, but they’re way more than holiday movies. I love them. There are so many TV shows that I like for different reasons. It’s funny—I didn’t start watching TV at all until about seven years ago. I blame Netflix. I loved Friday Night Lights, Battlestar Galactica (the one with Edward James Olmos), Six Feet Under, Sex and the City, The West Wing, the first few seasons of Alias…Right now, I’m really into Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones. 
7. Color: Dark Red
8. Shoe: My Frye boots, my Saucony jazz tennis shoes, TOMS, and my Dansko clogs—I’m all about the comfort. In NYC, you walk everywhere.
9. Video Game: Nope, I don’t go there. The dudes I hung out with in high school used to think it was fun for us girls to sit around and watch them play Bond. So not. I know a lot of girls and YA writers are gamers, but I just could never get into it. Give me a book and I’ll be happy.

15. Anything I didn’t ask? These were awesome, thoughtful questions – thanks so much for having me!

Thanks for chatting with me! I'm giving away a copy of SOMETHING REAL to one lucky reading (US and Canada only)

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Review: Winner's Curse

* Out March 4th*

Kestrel's the General's daughter is in a land recently overthrown. She might live in a nice house, but she's different. She doesn't seem too interested in parties or fashion, and she plays her part reluctantly. Her father wants her to join the military, but Kestrel isn't keen on the idea.

One day, while in town, she comes across a slave auction. Without thinking, she bids on a boy and wins. As she comes to know him, she begins to rebel even more
against normal society. Could she possibly have feelings for him?
Then in a blink of an eye everything changes. Kestrel's world is turned upside down and her friendship with Arin might be the only thing that saves her life.

My Thoughts: I've heard a lot of buzz about this book and wasn't sure what to make of it and then I started reading it. It starts off a little slow but pulled me in fast. I liked how Kestrel was different - how she didn't play by society's rules (even thought that got her into trouble). There was horror, sadness, and disbelief in times of war.  The main pull of the book was the friendship and loyalty between Kestrel and Arin. Their friendship and further feelings were forbidden, but also visible to everyone - no matter how much they tried keeping their feelings hidden.  I enjoyed reading their dual perspectives. The plot twists kept surprising me until the very end. I can't wait to see what happens next. 

Cover Thoughts: Love the different perspective
Source: ARC sent for review (GREAT packaging)

Fierce Reads Tour

On Sunday, I attended the CT stop at RJ Julia's and it was a blast! Lots of laughter and lots of talking. Here's some notes on the tour. Sorry - the pictures I took came out terrible. 

Emmy Laybourne:

Can't stop smiling when describing her book about death and destruction. Blood type determines course of action. Intruders. Trying to escape to a evacuation site. Put aside issues (drama/romance) to find a way to survive. The storefront came from Target (because she's there a lot with her kids). Inspired by an article on blood types in Asian countries where blood determines your personality (kinda like horoscopes)

On Writing: She tries to write 5-8 pages a day - following a system. Inviting her characters each day to come chat with her, so she had to be there to to listen to them. Last thing she does each day is to read ahead on the outline to get her mental prepared for the next day.

Details outlines and send publishers and then starts to write the book when agreed but still surprised by the HOWs

Next book (after the last book in the trilogy) will be a fantasy

Jessica Brody: Wanted to try something different - a scifi suspense. Blank slate  for her character that's inspired by Bourne. It's about a girl who wakes up in the middle of a plane crash wreckage (there's a hidden significance to Flight 121) - unharmed except for the loss of her memories. She has no idea who she is - and no one else seems to either. The sequel will be out in February. 

When Writing: She only drinks coffee when she writes and she uses the computer without battery so she must finish writing before it dies. She follows a screenwriting writing technique where she has 15 plot points figured out and starts with those. If something changes (often happens), she replots from that change before starting to write again.  

Inspirations: Any book that was done well as you knew you couldn't write it is inspiring, Sophie Kinsella, and 

Christopher Pike

She didn't expect to like twitter - but treats it like a game. How can I say something significant in 140 characters or less!

Anna Banks: Mermaids! Merman prince searching for a girl who can communicate with fish. This girls seems to have the Gift of Poseidon, but she doesn't know why she has this rare gift.. He tries to help her figure out who she is, knowing that if she's the girl he thinks she might be - she will have to marry his older brother. 

On Writing: Recently quit job and realized that in order to focus, she must actually get dressed and leave the house. She doesn't rely on outlines because she without them. She started reading romances at the age of nine and every book she writes will always have kissy scenes and a love story. 

Gennifer Albin: All the names in book have double meanings and she tried to make them easy to pronounce. Space and time can be seen manipulated and changed by young girls. Adelice has that gift, but her parents have been training her to hide it. They don't want her using her power, but they haven't told her why. On the day of her testing, something goes wrong and Adelice life changes.

On Writing: Used to be creature of habit, but since having kids, she has learned to write anywhere. She completed the first draft of Crewl in November for Nanowrimo. However, when she tried to write the next book in the same manner, she found that it really needed an outline. Each book needs something a little bit different in terms of planning.

Would love to meet J.K. Rowling - who inspired her greatly.

Leigh Bardugo: Her Fantasy novels were inspired by czar Russia. Where Darkness comes with monsters. Alina is the orphan underdog. She a huge fantasy fan. Most fantasy worlds take after Medieval Europe (mainly England) and she wanted to change that - so she made her world Russian. 

On Writing: For her first draft, she needs noise, but in revising she using her computer without the internet so she won't be distracted. She sometimes skips ahead in the book to avoid writer's block. 

Inspirations: Dune, Wrinkle in time, and George R. R. Martin (whom she's met)

UNREMEMBERED Blog Tour: Guest Post

I'm SUPER happy to be a part of this tour as I adore Jessica's books. Her previous books are funny, sweet, and charming. This one is a little....different (but not in a bad way) I was lucky enough to find Unremembered in the mail a few months ago. Check out my thoughts on this fantastic book.

Brains, Brawns, and Beauty: Creating the “Perfect” Sci-Fi Heroine

By Jessica Brody

“Okay,” Cody says, his voice serious. “First of all, don’t talk to random people in bus stations. It’s sketchy. Especially given your . . . well, celebrity status.” 
“She asked me about the bus to San Francisco.”
“And secondly,”he continues, ignoring me, “and probably more important, um, hello? You speak Portuguese?”
“I don’t know.”
“How could you not know? I heard you back there.”
“Heard me what?”
“Speaking Portuguese,” he clarifies, sounding exasperated. “To that woman.”I glance over his shoulder at the young woman in the blue dress. She’s taken the seat I just vacated. 
I think back to our conversation, suddenly hearing it differently in my memory.
“Você sabe quando o ônibus para São Francisco chega?”“
Cinco e quarenta e cinco.”
“I speak Portuguese?” I repeat Cody’s question.
“It would appear so.”

Some parents like to live vicariously through their children. I like to live vicariously through my book characters. In 52 Reasons to Hate My Father, I got to be a spoiled heiress, in My Life Undecided, I got to put all the decisions in my life up to a vote on the internet and now in Unremembered, I get to speak foreign languages, solve complex math problems in my head, run faster than a car, look like a supermodel, and read an entire book in less than three minutes.

Who is Seraphina? That is the question of the day.

But in my mind, the answer is easy. She’s Jason Bourne meets Sydney Bristow meets Heidi Klum. The perfect blend of brawns, beauty, and brains.  And I had more fun creating her than any of my other characters.

The scene above is when Seraphina first learns that she can speak Portuguese. Other languages will soon follow. As well as other unique skills. Just the idea of writing a story about a girl with superhuman abilities who gets to discover them along the way (because she has lost all memories of who she is) was such an exciting idea for me.

I mean, how many of us have ever fantasized about accidentally stumbling upon some mad skill we didn’t know we had. For me, personally, every time I try out a new sport, I’m convinced that I’m going to turn out to be some hidden prodigy that the U.S. Olympics team has been waiting to find for centuries. I’ll pick up a tennis racket, take one swing and reveal myself as the next Serena Williams. Or I’ll take a single ballet class and the next day a scout from the New York City ballet will be knocking at my door, wondering where I’ve been all his life.

Sadly, however, that has yet to happen. I’m not deterred, though! After all, I haven’t tried every sport. And once I do, I’m fully prepared to start up again with musical instruments.

But I know, I know, enough about me, the boring writer. Back to the book!

When I first sat down to brainstorm Seraphina as a character and what kind of abilities she has hidden, I went nuts. I’m talking total geek out moments complete with squeals and girlish giggles.

My list of “abilities” was like pages long. And each one made me giddier than the last. Of course, not all of these skills made it into the final book. Some of them—like flying and invisibility—were a bit much and sadly had to go. (Perhaps saved for my next trilogy.)

Nonetheless, I had a blast creating Seraphina in my mind. I got to take pieces from all my favorite kick-ass characters and blend them together. I literally set out to create the “perfect” human being.

Then came the hard part.

Going beyond the simple act of cutting and pasting together the perfect heroine and actually placing my amalgamation within a story. Giving her real emotions and real reactions and real conflicts. This was the part of the process when I got to ask the more serious questions. Questions like: “What would your life be like if you were perfect? And “What is perfection?”

Is it having the highest IQ? The prettiest face? The strongest muscles? All of the above? And what if the price for all those perfections was your own freedom? Your own free will? Suddenly life doesn’t seem so perfect anymore, does, it?

And how far can you push perfection before you reach the edge of humanity? Is it possible to modify someone to the point where they fall off that edge?

But yeah, back to the “fun” part. Here’s where we do a nod back to My Life Undecided and poll the audience. Which of Seraphina’s traits would you most like to have? Vote below!

And I hope you enjoy the book!

Poll:

survey software

Cool Links:

Unremembered Book Trailer

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See Jessica Brody on tour!

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Review: Unremembered

*** This book will be out March 5th ***

In the Pacific Ocean, Freedom Airlines Flight 121 crashes. The world is stunned to find an unharmed 16 year girl among the wreck. She has NO memories -not of boarding the plane, not of her name, and not of her life before the crash.

She's being held in a medical facility undergoing tests while the media waits for more news. Her tale is the hottest news story around the world. She's famous.

No one comes to claim her and because she's under age, she needs a foster family - a temporary home until a more permanent solution can be reached. One family takes her in and she spends a little time getting used to the world.

Then she spies a familiar face and all these questions pop into her head. How far is she willing to go to discover the truth of her identity?

My Thoughts: I adored Jessica Brody's previous novels: Karma Club, My Life Undecided, and 52 Reasons to Hate My Father. She's one of  my must read authors. So I confess, I didn't really look too deeply into her new book because I already knew that I was going to read it. I was unprepared for the genre switch.

It's no surprise that I loved this book, even though it through my for a loop.

At first it reminded me of LOST: the airplane crash and figuring out how to survive without knowledge. UNREMEMBERED is the story of Seraphina attempting to uncover her past while trying to understand her future. She's acclimating to pop culture and having a family watching over her. The more she digs into her past, the more layers we also uncover with her. Science and technology play an important role, changing the boundaries of the world. Science and technology are also responsible for the danger that Seraphina finds herself in. Plus, a romance is at the heart of the story. While there are several plot points, they come together naturally. They also unravel like onions, revealing more questions than answers at times. 

It's the first book of a trilogy and I can't wait to read more!

Cover Thoughts: I Love it - the blurriness of the girl's face matches her thoughts perfectly.
Source: ARC