The Evolution of Mara Dyer Blog Tour

Hello everyone! Today I have a super special post put together by Michelle at Simon and Schuster Canada. Below you will find a brief interview I did with the amazing Michelle Hodkin, author of the Evolution of Mara Dyer.

If you haven't check out my review of the highly anticipated sequel, go HERE!!

 

 

 

 



How did you come up with the idea for Mara's story?

The short answer is that it was inspired by true events; I met a teenage girl in 2008 who inspired the main character. The longer answer is here.


Are you working on any other side projects that we should be looking forward to in the future?

Right now, I'm hard at work on The Retribution of Mara Dyer, the third book in the series; but I can't help but sneak in some writing time on another book I've been tinkering with. It's a total secret right now, so all I can say is: It's YA.


Who's was your favourite character that you created for the series? Why?

I truly and honestly enjoy writing all of them. I have a blast writing Daniel and Joseph for reasons completely unrelated to the actual books, and Mara, Noah, and Jamie are all interesting to write about in their own ways. Jamie's dialogue practically writes itself, Mara tends to be the most complicated, because of reasons that become apparent by the end of the first book, and Noah is the most surprising (and therefore tricky). His thoughts rarely match up with his external reactions, which readers will see when they read The Evolution; a slice of it is written from his point of view!

 

I grew up in South Florida, went to college in New York, and attended law school in Michigan. When I'm not writing, I can usually be found prying strange objects from the jaws of one of my three pets. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer was my first novel.

 

http://www.michellehodkin.com/

@michellehodkin

 

 

 

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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Interview: Elizabeth Richards Author of Black City

Yay, so today I have an awesome interview of Elizabeth Richards the auhtor of Black City. If you haven't added it to your "to read"list, do so! Black City releases in mid November and you definitely won't want to miss it.

1. What exactly are Darklings? And how did you come up with the idea for them?

Darklings are my interpretation of vampires, although in my universe Darklings are a race in their own right –they’re not humans that have been sired. They live openly among us – albeit as second-class citizens forced to live in walled ghettos. The character of Ash has always been vivid in my mind, so right from the start I knew what the Eloka Darklings would look like (he’s half-human, half-Eloka Darkling). But the look of the Nordin and Shu’zin Darklings happened organically as I was writing the book – I wanted to have different breeds of Darklings, because I thought it would make sense that they would have evolved to adapt to their environments.

2. Do you have a playlist the goes along with Black City? If so why do these songs go with the book?

I don’t really have a playlist, but the song Freedom Fighters by Two Steps From Hell has become my unofficial theme for the book. Not only is the tune really rousing, it’s so fitting for Ash, because he starts off the story as this troubled, broken boy who is too afraid to stand up for himself and becomes someone who is brave and fights for his right to be with the girl he loves.

3. What makes Ash a swoon worthy love interest for readers and Natalie?

Physically, Ash is very good looking (*dreamy sigh*), not that he really cares – Ash isn’t interested in his looks; in fact, they bother him, as he’d rather just blend in with everyone else. He’s very tall, broad shouldered, with rippling hair that looks like black fire and sparkling black eyes. But it’s not just his looks that Natalie finds swoon worthy – Ash may be a bad boy on the surface, but underneath that he’s very respectful, loyal and charitable and has a brave, kind heart.

4. What do you hope people will experience as they read Black City?

Well, as an author you want to take the reader on an emotional rollercoaster ride. So I want the reader to be kept surprised, I want them to be happy one minute, sad the next. To feel a sense of peril, excitement, to have their heart racing as they turn each page! That’s really what I hope people will experience when they read Black City.

5. Lastly, how excited are you that Black City will hit shelves in a matter of months? What thoughts are going through your mind?

The main thought that goes through my head each day is *SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!*

 

As you can tell, I’m very excited about the fact Black City will be out in November. I keep having to pinch myself – it’s been my lifelong ambition to have a book published, so I’m desperate to see it on the shelves and for people to read (and hopefully love) the story.

Thanks so much to Elizabeth for doing an interview with me, know I only want to read Black City even more than I already did. Hope you enjoyed the interview everyone.