Shadow and Bone Blog Tour: Interview & GIVEAWAY

Thanks to Ksenia from Macmillan for putting together this blog tour and asking me to take part in it,a and thanks to Leigh Bardugo for writing an amazing book and doing an interview with me. Check out my review for Shadow and Bone HERE.

Go HERE to follow the Shadow and Bone blog tour! Don't forget at the end of this post is a giveaway sponsered by Macmillan.

Favourite Colour: Red. Everything I buy is red. I can't stay away from it. I'm like one of those monsters in The Village.

Favourite Band/artist: Stevie Nicks. I adore her.

Favourite Book: That's impossible to answer! Today, we'll say it's Many Moons by James Thurber

1. How did you get the idea for the Grisha and the world they live in?

I've always been interested in the functionality of magic. What happens physically when you mutter a curse or wave a magic wand? I thought it might look a lot like a version of molecular chemistry where matter is manipulated at its most fundamental levels, but by magical means. This became the basis of the Small Science and the foundation for Grisha power. As for the world, it evolved as I built the story, but I knew early on that I wanted to use Tsarist Russia as a kind of cultural touchstone. It just made sense in terms of the power dynamics that were already emerging in the narrative. 

2. Alina has some pretty interesting love interests, if you were Alina who would you choose?

 Mal or The Darkling? If I were Alina, I'd wait until Book 2 before I made any rash decisions. But mercenaries and privateers are a particular weakness of mine.  
3. For those who don't know, what exactly are Grisha?

The Grisha are the magical elite of Ravka, the soldiers of the Second Army. Though their powers are vital to the kingdom's defense, they're viewed with suspicion, envy, and even hatred by much of the population. Still, they have it better in Ravka than anywhere else. In other countries, they're burned at the stake, experimented on, and sometimes sold into slavery. They're divided into three Orders-- Corporalki, Etherealki, and Materialki.

4. Did you always want to write a fantasy book, or did it just sort of happen?

I always loved reading fantasy and science fiction and what I suppose would be referred to as "magical realism" in literary fiction, so it's probably not surprising that I ended up writing fantasy. But I was never that hung up on genre as a reader, and I don't worry too much about it as a writer either. I just write the story I find interesting and hope the genre will work itself out.

5. What can readers expect to see in the next instalments of The Grisha Trilogy?

In Book 2, we'll get to travel a bit more beyond Ravka's borders, and my favorite character of the entire series makes his first appearance. I don't want to give anything away, but I can tell you that the Darkling will be back and that the most sacred boundaries of Grisha power will be tested.

6. Do you have a playlist for Shadow and Bone or a song you think fits it?

I have a few playlists out there, but there are three songs I keep on heavy rotation:

Running Up that Hill (Placebo's Cover of Kate Bush) has a cool, driving intensity that I've always associated with the Darkling.

Winter Song (Sarah Bareilles & Ingrid Michaelson) perfectly describes both the bond and the growing distance between Mal and Alina.

Cosmic Love (Florence + the Machine) I know, I know. This is everyone's song. But the lyrics so perfectly suit all three of my main characters that I can't resist it. Plus, the map reference always makes me think of the fact that Alina is a cartographer (though not a very good one).

If anyone is interested in some of the music I associate with Ravka, they can check out this clip of one of my favorite folk songs or Polegnala e Todora from Le mystère des voix Bulgares. Not everyone likes this type of sound, but I'm a sucker for a Slavic chorus.  

(Hey Hayley! I just wanted to thank you for having me by to talk about Shadow and Bone!)

Macmillan has offered up a finished copy of Shadow and Bone as part of the Shadow and Bone blog tour. This giveaway is for CAN/US Residents only and will end on July 3rd. Fill out the rafflecopter below to be entered to win.

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