Breathless Reads Week: Jessica Khoury

Today, Jessica Khoury has answered a few questions! Jess is the author of Origin, which is a sci-fi/romance mix that sounds amazing!

Fiction Freak: You can never avoid this question--what inspired Origin?

Jessica Khoury: One day last summer, I was in the middle of querying a high fantasy I'd been working on for four years. It was going okay, but not great, and I went for a walk to think about what to do if it didn't sell. I realized I'd never really written anything besides high fantasy, and it dawned on me Hey, I can totally write in another genre...Which was kind of eye-opening. It was something I'd never even considered before. So I kept walking, and then BAM. The idea for Origin smacked me in the face. It started with an image of a crying girl trapped by glass walls in a jungle, and I asked Why is she crying? One question led to another, and I ran back home and wrote the first chapter and the outline for the rest of the book.

FF: What's your funniest moment?

JK:I really struggled with some of the romance scenes. I'd get halfway through one and just bust out laughing because it was so cheesy. Then I'd erase it all and start over. That part wasn't funny at all.

FF: Reactions. What was your reaction when you found out Razorbill was publishing Origin? What was your reaction when Origin became a Breathless Reads?

JK:This.

Seriously, though. First, when I found out Razorbill had offered for Origin, I was in the middle of an eye exam. My optometrist sat patiently by while I hyperventilated, cried, and squealed. Then I had to sit in the waiting room for the longest fifteen minutes of my life waiting for my eyes to finish dilating, trying not to flail with happiness. Then I drove like a maniac across town to my husband's office and proceeded to jump up and down as I screamed the news at him. When I found out I was part of the 2012 Breathless Reads, I nearly went into cardiogenic shock. I'd just been to one of the 2011 BR tour stops and met Marie Lu, Beth Revis, Andrea Cremer, and Jessica Spotswood, and totally fangirled all over them, so it was incredibly exciting to hear I'd be part of the next BR group. Also, I wondered if maybe they'd made a mistake and picked the wrong book, because c'mon--me? On Breathless Reads??--but if so, I guess no has noticed yet. Which is cool by me. =)

FF: Have you ever visited the Amazon? If so, how much fun was it? If not, do you want to?

JK:I haven't--which meant I had to do TONS of research for Origin. And I'd love love LOVE to go! It's definitely on my radar!

FF: When did you decide to write and why?

JK:When I was four. I read the book Danny and the Dinosaur by Syd Hoff and was so overwhelmed by its awesomeness I knew it had to have a sequel, and decided I was the perfect one to write it. Needless to say, Danny and the Building Blocks by Jessica Khoury was never published... but yes. My writing career started with four-year-old fan fiction.

FF: What's your favorite part of being an author?

JK:EVERYTHING. But okay, if I had to pick one thing, I think my favorite part is that I get to what I love, simple as that. Is there a better life than getting to tell someone a story they've never heard before, possibly capturing their imagination for a little while, maybe even changing the way they see the world? I submit there is not. =)

FF: What was the most fun part to write in Origin?

JK:The animals! I luuuurve animals. Zoos are my absolute most favorite places on the planet. In Origin, I got to put in all kinds of cool, exotic animals. Pia even has a pet jaguar. I'm so jealous of her, Nikki, you don't even know.

FF: Can you describe Origin in 7 words or less?

JK: SEVEN WORDS?? Okay, you asked for it: Girl. Jungle. Laboratory. Secrets. Boy. Escape. Danger.  

FF: What are you reading now? What do you think of it so far?

JK:Right now I'm in the middle of writing my next book, and I have a strict no-reading-while-drafting policy (but sometimes when I am away from my computer and can't write, I sneak a few pages from A Feast for Crows. I confess, I'm skipping most of the chapters, because I don't like many of the characters in this installment [Sorry, George] and I really just want to get to A Dance with Dragons.)

FF: Which character can you identify with (in Origin or any other book)

JK:The literary character with whom I've always most identified is Jo March from Little Women, which is predictable, I know. But hey. She's this struggling young writer often defined by her hair, she has three sisters, and she marries a guy older than she is and wants to raise a bunch of boys--I'm so there. High five, Jo!

FF: Anything you want to say to readers/bloggers/aspiring writers?

JK:Yes: First of all, did you know that pineapples grow out of the ground and not on trees? Because I totally didn't know that until recently and it kind of changed EVERYTHING about how I see the world. Secondly, you guys are awesome! I know this because you're here reading this interview from some babbling debut author when you could be watching reruns of MacGyver or climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, and I respect that. You rock. Keep it up. Now go read lots of books!

Short Author Bio

Jessica Khoury is 22 years old and was born and raised in Georgia. She attended public school followed by homeschooling, and earned her bachelor's degree in English from Toccoa Falls College. She lives in Toccoa, Georgia with her husband Benjamin, two terrible dogs, and an abundance of books, shoes, and sweet tea. When not writing, she's usually directing stageplays or coaching soccer. Origin is her first novel.

Origin Blurb

Pia has grown up in a secret laboratory hidden deep in the Amazon rain forest. She was raised by a team of scientists who have created her to be the start of a new immortal race. But on the night of her seventeenth birthday, Pia discovers a hole in the electric fence that surrounds her sterile home—and sneaks outside the compound for the first time in her life.

Free in the jungle, Pia meets Eio, a boy from a nearby village. Together, they embark on a race against time to discover the truth about Pia’s origin—a truth with deadly consequences that will change their lives forever.

Contact Info

Jessica Khoury's Goodreads

Jessica Khoury's Blog

Jessica Khoury's Website

Jessica Khoury's Twitter

Jessica Khoury's Facebook

Breathless Reads Week: Morgan Rhodes

Next up? Morgan Rhodes, author of Falling Kingdoms, a high fantasy told from the views of four very different people during a time when no one knows where to look next or who to trust.

Fiction Freak: You've probably answered this a thousand times but...What inspired Falling Kingdoms?

Morgan Rhodes: As someone who's loved movies and books with swords and sorcery, princes and princesses since I was just a kid, I've always wanted to get the chance to write high fantasy -- especially high fantasy for teens --  and feel very lucky to work on this series, which is a fabulous creative collaboration with Razorbill. It's been so much fun to stretch my imagination in these new and exciting directions!

FF: What's your funniest moment?

MR: I'm fairly horrible about remembering faces and names, so sometimes I'll try to be really friendly to someone I actually don't know because I think I DO know them. I don't find this very funny, but my friends seem to think it's hilarious.

FF: How did you feel when you sold your first book? When Falling Kingdoms got in the Breathless Reads?

MR: 1) I sold my first book in late 2004 and -- well, I felt rather overwhelmed and terrified, actually! LOL! It happened really fast from the point I got an agent, so I think I was kind of unprepared for the next step! Happily, I have since recovered and written over twenty books under my other pen name. 2) When Falling Kingdoms was selected to be a part of Breathless Reads I was elated, of course. It's a huge honor and incredibly exciting!

FF: Which of your books was the most fun to write?

MR: I have a lot of fun writing ALL of my books (although they're a lot of work, too!) no matter what genre they're in. I can't pick only one! Sometimes when I get overwhelmed or bogged down with plot, frustrating characters, deadlines, etc., I remind myself to have fun with it. Even my most serious novel is meant to be entertaining, so if I'm not having fun I can't expect the reader to!

FF: Think you can describe your writing process in 10 words or less? :D

MR: Write it fast, then take time to make it better. :)

FF: Do you have a favorite character in Falling Kingdoms? If so, why that character?

MR: There are four main characters in FK that we get to follow and I love them all. If there's one who pulls out just a bit ahead, it's Prince Magnus since he's so complicated and tortured and his scenes are truly a delight to write.

FF: What has been the best part of being a Breathless Reads author? Any new experiences yet?

MR: We're still very early in the game since none of the books have been released yet, and it's still several months till Falling Kingdoms hits the shelves, but being a part of Breathless Reads has been a fabulous opportunity to get more exposure and early word-of-mouth for the book.

FF: Falling Kingdoms is called "Breathless Rebellion" so what is the most rebellious thing you've done?

MR: I'm not that rebellious, I'm afraid! I suppose quitting a perfectly good day job (I was a graphic designer) four years ago to become a full-time writer was pretty rebellious! Also, I once died my hair dark red, but that was a biiiig mistake.

FF: Is it different writing High Fantasy instead of Paranormal? If so, how?

MR: Very much so. High Fantasy tends to have a medieval flavor, so I had to do historical research. Since it IS fantasy and set in a "different world" I am able to take some liberties with my world-building, but it still needs to feel authentic, so this can be a fun challenge. Also, I am unable to rely on modern slang or cultural references, which I use rather frequently in my modern-day paranormals. Both genres are major fun to write, but with high fantasy I need to be a bit more conscious about what's going on the page and how my characters would think and act, and how they're different from "modern" teens -- but also how they're exactly the same! It's a fine balance.

FF: Any words to say to readers/bloggers/aspiring writers?

MR: Just that I absolutely adore the YA online community that's developed over the last few years -- anyone who's passionate about books and reading (and writing) is AWESOME. I really hope you enjoy Falling Kingdoms and the rest of Penguin's Breathless Reads!

Short Author Bio

Morgan Rhodes lives in Ontario, Canada. As a child, she always wanted to be a princess -- the kind that knows how to wield a sharp sword to help save both kingdoms and princes from fire-breathing dragons and dark wizards. Instead, she became a writer, which is just as good and much less dangerous. Along with writing, Morgan enjoys photography, travel, reality TV, and is an extremely picky, yet voracious reader of all kinds of books. Under another pen name, she’s a national bestselling author of many paranormal novels. Falling Kingdoms is her first high fantasy.

Falling Kingdoms Blurb

In a land where magic has been forgotten but peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly unrest is simmering. Three kingdoms grapple for power—brutally transforming their subjects’ lives in the process. Amidst betrayals, bargains, and battles, four young people find their fates forever intertwined:
Cleo: A princess raised in luxury must embark on a rough and treacherous journey into enemy territory in search of a magic long thought extinct.
Jonas: Enraged at injustice, a rebel lashes out against the forces of oppression that have kept his country impoverished—and finds himself the leader of a people’s revolution centuries in the making.
Lucia: A girl adopted at birth into a royal family discovers the truth about her past—and the supernatural legacy she is destined to wield.
Magnus: Bred for aggression and trained to conquer, a firstborn son begins to realize that the heart can be more lethal than the sword...
The only outcome that’s certain is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when all they know has collapsed?

Contact Info

Morgan Rhodes's Facebook

Morgna Rhodes's Twitter

Morgan Rhodes's Goodreads

Breathess Reads Week: Lili Peloquin!

***(SCROLL DOWN TO SEE MY STOP FOR PRESERVATION BY RACHAEL WADE)***

First up on the Breathless Reads platform is Lili Peloquin! Her debut is The Innocents, a contemporary novel about secrets, lies, and we all know that always ends with a betrayal!

Fiction Freak: A must-ask question: What inspired The Innocents?

Lili Peloquin: To me the most seductive genre combination in books as well as in movies and TV is the whodunit and the soap opera.  I love a story that’s able to mix narrative suspense and hairpin turns of plot with nuanced characters and complex emotion.  And mood, mood is important, too, haunted and smoldering being the ideal.  In other words, scary plus sexy equals the best!  The television show Veronica Mars was great at this.  So is Revenge.  So was the Daphne du Maurier novel Rebecca.

FF: What was your reaction when you got selected as a Breathless Reads?

LP: That’s an easy one: thrilled.  It was such an honor to be chosen alongside writers like Morgan Rhodes, Jessica Khoury, Fiona Paul and Elizabeth Richards.  Books in the Breathless Reads Campaign tend to do very well both commercially and critically, so, yeah, I was beyond delighted when I got the news!

FF: What's your most HILARIOUS moment?

LP: Do you mean in life in general or while writing The Innocents?  I’m going to assume the later, Nikki!  Earlier in the summer I was at a party at BookExpo America thrown by Penguin.  It was a swanky affair, on the top floor of The Standard in the Meatpacking District.  The actor, Bob Balaban, was a guest.  (He’s written a children’s book that’s going to be released by Penguin in the fall.)  The night before, by strange coincidence, I’d gone to a revival house to see Midnight Cowboy, which came out in 1969.  Bob Balaban has a small role in the film.  He plays a nerdy little pervert hanging around a porno theater and sexually harasses the hero.  I was going to go up to him, ask him if he’d seen any good dirty movies lately.  But I chickened out at the last minute.

FF:Which sister do you think you're most like? Alice or Charlie?

LP: Alice, for sure.  Alice is the quieter, more bookish type.  Charlie is looser, more fun, more up for a good time.  I admire girls like Charlie, but am strictly a fan, have never been one myself.  Too bad for me!

FF: Can you describe Alice and Charlie in 5 words?

LP: Alice: smart, thoughtful, observant, careful, romantic.

Charlie: impulsive, headstrong, passionate, fun-loving, loyal.

FF: Since Goodreads doesn't give us as much details as I'd like...what happens when the girls get to Serenity Point? And since it only mentions Charlie and Alice...who's Camilla? The one mentioned so much in reviews?

LP: This is a tough question to answer, Nikki, because I don’t want to give too much away!  What happens when the girls get to Serenity Point?  Romance and intrigue happen!  The sisters grew up without a lot of money in a working-class section of Cambridge.  Now their mom is married to Richard, a rich-beyond-your-wildest-dreams guy with a romantic, tragic past (his wife and only daughter died the year before), and the family’s moving to his beach house on the Connecticut shore for the summer.  It’s a whole new world Alice and Charlie are being thrown into.  Serenity Point is glamorous and it’s elegant, and so are the people in it. But Alice senses menace, senses sinister forces under the lush, glittering surface, and the possibility simultaneously horrifies and excites her.  Oh, and I’m not even mentioning the Serenity Point boys—all gorgeous, all tormented.

Camilla happens to be my favorite character in The Innocents.  She also happens to be dead!  She’s Richard daughter and was supposed to be very beautiful and very wild.  Alice feels an eerie, almost otherworldly connection to her.

I’d like to say more but I just can’t!

FF: Can you share your favorite quote in The Innocents with us? Non spoilery of course!

LP: Here you go!  My favorite passage:

“Alice wondered if there’d ever been a time when she’d felt so alone.  She knew it was weird—beyond weird, sick, really—to blame a dead girl for her troubles, but she couldn’t help herself.  This was all Camilla’s fault.  Camilla, no longer living and yet the most alive person she knew.  The most powerful, too.  Camilla could come between people even if she wasn’t in this world anymore.  Could do it easy, without even breaking a sweat.  A ghost who taunted as much as she haunted.  And as Alice was thinking these thoughts that she heard it: the high, silvery tinkling.  It might have been the wind chimes hanging above the sliding glass door, reacting to a breeze coming off the ocean.  Might have been but wasn’t, Alice knew.  It was Camilla laughing at her from the other side of death, from beyond the grave.”

FF: What's one 2012 Fall release you've anxiously awaited? Why?

LP: Falling Kingdom by Morgan Rhodes, Origin by Jessica Khoury, Venom by Fiona Paul, and Black City by Elizabeth Richards.  All four are part of the Breathless Reads series.  This answer is a bit of a cheat, though, since I got the Breathless Reads box set a couple months early!

FF: What is your ABSOLUTE favorite book?

LP: Wow, I don’t know if I can pick just one.  I guess if you’re going to force the issue, Nikki, I’d have to say Lolita is my all-time favorite.

FF: Anything else to say to readers/bloggers/aspiring writers?

LP: Hang tough!  The publishing industry’s a notoriously difficult one to break into but the only way to do it is with persistence and hard work.  Also—and I know you’ve probably heard this a million times before—you should be writing every single day.  Even if it’s only for an hour.

Short Author Bio
Here's the official bio: Lili Peloquin grew up in New England, where the first breeze of summer still reminds her of a whispered secret. The Innocents is her first novel.

The Innocents Blurb

Nothing ever came between sisters Alice and Charlie.
Friends didn't.
Boys couldn't.
Their family falling apart never would.
Until they got to Serenity Point.

Contact Info
Lili Peloquin's Twitter

Blog Tour: Preservation by Rachael Wade (Adult)

Goodreads Blurb:

Fear is sabotage’s sweetest weapon.
Kate has no time for meaningless romantic charades, and definitely no time for hot college professors who are full of themselves and smitten with her. Constantly battling eviction notices, tuition she can’t afford, and a sick, dependent mother, the last thing she needs is to be distracted with someone else’s complicated baggage.
When she stumbles into Ryan Campbell’s creative writing class, he is only “Mr. Campbell” to her, until Ryan finds himself captivated by her writing and she is forced to face their mutual attraction. His cocky know-it-all syndrome is enough to send her running in the other direction, and his posse of female admirers and playboy reputation are enough to squander any odds in her favor.
But underneath Ryan’s abrasive facade is something to behold, and she can’t stay away for long. Ryan and Kate must decide who they’re willing to become and fight against their former selves if they want to make things work. That’s if academia, vicious vixens, old skeletons, and their own mastery at self-destruction don’t pummel their efforts first.

Excerpt:

KATE POV:

 “How about we stick to talking about writing?” I

folded my arms across my chest, my eyes darting toward

the towel on my chair again. He was sexy, full of himself,

and maddeningly right, all at the same time. I wasn’t

sure whether to smile back or slap him.

“I think that’s an excellent idea. But first,” he glanced

around briefly, then moved closer, positioning himself at

my side, just slightly behind my left shoulder, “promise

me you’ll try this. You’ll feel the difference, I swear it.”

I stood still, goose bumps springing up over my arms

when his fingertips made contact with my elbow, hyperaware

of his skin on mine.

“When you roll your shoulder,” his hand slid up my

arm and gripped it, “just let it roll in one fluid movement

when your body shifts.” He looked down at me and

swallowed, his eyes lingering on my lips for a second. He

stepped back a hair when his chest brushed mine, gently

pushing my shoulder down and then around, pulling on

my arm as he showed me how to move.

“Like this?” I repeated the motion, eyes still frozen

on his fingers’ grip around my shoulder. His skin set fire

to mine with each light brush."

RYAN POV:

 .

more like a perpetual yellow light. And something told

me she was borderline trigger-happy red. Still, damned

if I wasn’t going to try. I wanted to taste those lips. And

her writing was smart. Really fucking smart. I couldn’t

stop thinking about her work since she let me read it.

Think of something quick, man.

I moved in closer.

“I think that’s an excellent idea. But first, promise me

you’ll try this. You’ll feel the difference, I swear it.” She

stood still as I positioned myself at her side, just behind

her left shoulder, and tensed up slightly when I gripped

her elbow. “When you roll your shoulder, just let it roll

in one fluid movement when your body shifts.” My eyes

rested on her full red lips and fine China skin. Slowly and

evenly, I pushed her shoulder down and then around,

gently pulling on her arm, watching her committed

focus with admiration. Damn, she really was beautiful.

Like some elusive, rare diamond. And so intent on getting

it right. I skimmed my thumb over the crease of her

elbow, studying her graceful strength and the way she

yielded to my instruction, wondering how accurate the

accounts were in her short story.

by some druggie asshole boyfriend? Who would do those

things to this gorgeous, gentle woman? And was her dad

really in jail? Did she really leave home as a kid when he—

Was she really abused

“Like this?” she stirred my thoughts, repeating the

motion. The brush of her skin on mine made me shuffle

closer, her body responding with a warm flush under

my touch. Pleased by the pink color spreading over her

skin, I leaned in, nudging her earlobe with the edge of

my nose, feeling her shiver.

"How about we stick to talking about writing?"
Damn. Not liking where this was going."

Buy it as a Paperback!
Buy it as an eBook!

 

Little Miss Tardy made it clear the few times I’d

talked to her in class that she wasn’t like the others, who

normally rolled out the red carpet and gave me the green

light the second they were alone with me. She seemed

Announcing the Breathless Reads Week!

As you can see in the banner, this week is BREATHLESS READS WEEK! According to me at least. I'll probably be doing this next year too (maybe with a giveaway) so keep an eye out! This week there won't be any giveaways (sorry!), but there will be an interview with each Breathless Reads author in random order! So a few questions may be similar, but each answer is different and all of them had hilarioius or just plain fun answers! For the Breathless Reads I've read so far I absolutely LOVED them and the ones I haven't? Ugh. I can't wait to get my hands on them! *grabby hands*

And, just so no one gets confused, all the little banners were from the Breathless Reads Tumblr! I just edited a bit!

Goddess Legacy by Aimee Carter

Goodreads Blurb

For millennia we've caught only glimpses of the lives and loves of the gods and goddesses on Olympus. Now Aime e Carter pulls back the curtain on how they became the powerful, petty, loving and dangerous immortals that Kate Winters knows.
Calliope/Hera represented constancy and yet had a husband who never matched her faithfulness....
Ava/Aphrodite was the goddess of love and yet commitment was a totally different deal....
Persephone was urged to marry one man, yet longed for another....
James/Hermes loved to make trouble for others-but never knew true loss before....
Henry/Hades's solitary existence had grown too wearisome to continue. But meeting Kate Winters gave him a new hope....
Five original novellas of love, loss and longing and the will to survive throughout the ages.

Goddess legacy is possibly my favorite book in the Goddess Test series! And this is my first short story collection so…this will be very vague and a short!

The thing about Goddess Legacy is that I ended up loving characters I thought I hated and hating characters I originally loved. It shows us new sides of these characters and I loved that! James (Hermes) was originally one of my least-favorite characters, but after reading what happened to him made me realized and understand why he kept giving Kate the option to run. Goddess Legacy isn’t so much as fun-reading as it is to help you understand a character’s actions. I even softened toward Hera but…

I think the writing in this one was a bit smoother and flowed better than in the others, honestly. Aimee Carter wrote the Greek Gods of old perfectly so that with all those relationships between them, it didn’t seem too awkward, just something that was bound to happen.  Aimee definitely has a talent for re-writing legends into detailed stories, and while Goddess legacy did satisfy me somewhat while I wait for Book #3, I still can’t wait for it! I’ll probably reread the other books with new eyes (I was serious when I said that this book made you relook at everything!)

But Hera! I know I said I softened towards her, but just a bit. Even if we were supposed to be understanding her, I found that she just seemed a more selfish than before, though we could understand a bit of her pain. And Aphrodite just seemed more childish like…UGH

Pages: 395

Series: Goddess Test Series #2.5

Genre: Greek Mytholygy/Novella

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Released Date: July 31

Rating: 4 stars

 

“’I’ve been alone for a long time, and I’m sick of it. I won’t take advantage of you or rob you blind or ditch you, I promise. I help you, and in return, the lot of you won’t give me the cold shoulder whenever I do something wrong. Which will be as infrequent as I can manage,’ I added. ‘That’s all I want. Friends. A family. Somewhere to belong.’” –Hermes (James)