Author Interview : Suzanne Selfors

Suzanne Selfors

Website

Teen Titles

Mad Love | Coffee House Angel | Saving Juliet

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Today I have the pleasure of interviewing Suzanne Selfors about her writing and about her recent novel that I reviewed, Mad Love, which I recommend you guys get out and read. Here is what she had to say!



1. If you had to describe Mad Love in three words, what would you use?

Girl meets Cupid

2. Why choose Cupid? What initially made you want to write thew story?

I love Greek and Roman mythology. In my book, Coffeehouse Angel, I reimagined Hermes, the messenger for the gods. I knew that I wanted to do something with Cupid. And so I turned him into an eternal teen who may or may not be facing the end of his existence. And he's got a love story to tell.

3. What essentials did you need for writing Mad Love?

Not sure I understand this question. If you mean, what elements are part of my writing routine, I'd say that I almost always write in a coffeehouse, I usually drink a latte while writing, and I write directly onto my laptop, rarely do I write longhand.

4. What was the hardest part about writing Mad Love? Or was there one?

Revision is always the hardest part. I got rid of a couple of characters. I got rid of some time-traveling stuff I had in the first draft. It can be a rough process.

5. What can we expect from you next? Or do you know right now?
I'm working on my next teen novel, which will publish in 2012. I'm not going to reveal the plot just yet but it's a fairy tale complete with a prince, a farmboy and a peasant girl. It's very romantic.



Well there you have it guys. Not a lot but I thought it was very interesting to know a little behind the book and the process. And from the tid bit she gave us about whats next and from what I now know of her writing, I am very excited.

Review: Mad Love - Suzanne Selfors

Release Date - January 4, 2011

Publisher - Walker Books for Young Readers

Age Group - Young Adult

Hardcover - 336 pages

Rating - 4/5

When you're the daughter of the bestselling Queen of Romance, life should be pretty good. But 16-year-old Alice Amorous has been living a lie ever since her mother was secretly hospitalized for mental illness. After putting on a brave front for months, time is running out. The next book is overdue, and the Queen can't write it. Alice needs a story for her mother—and she needs one fast.
That's when she meets Errol, a strange boy who claims to be Cupid, who insists that Alice write about the greatest love story in history: his tragic relationship with Psyche. As Alice begins to hear Errol's voice in her head and see things she can't explain, she must face the truth—that she's either inherited her mother's madness, or Errol is for real.

Review - Let me just start off by saying I have not read any of Suzanne's other novels, although I have wanted to. And now after finishing Mad Love, I can say I really want to read her others.

Im usually not into the chick-lit kind of book but something about this one had me hooked! When I started I thought I wasnt going to like it and it was pretty slow. But do not let that fool you. This nocel gets SO much better!

So your introduced to Alice, daughter of "The Queen of Romance" novels.  But her life isnt perdect, in fact it is far from perfect. Her mother is mentally ill and she is left to take care of things at home. One of those cases is being, going to her mothers book signing. The event that changes everything for Alice.

Enter, Errol, aka Cupid. He wants his story to be wrote and he wants Alice to do it , but she is refusing. Errol takes Alice on a life changing adventure. But along the way it is not only her life that is being changed.

Along the way Alice has to deal with pain in the butt Realm, who wants to prove herself but goes about it in the wrong manner.

I love this book and everything about it. The plot was AMAZING! It made me laugh, it made my heart ache, it made me wanna cry. The characters, at times I  loved them all, at others I wanted to slap a few into reality! Ms. Selfors' writing kept me hooked until the very end. I didnt want to put it down! For ANYTHING! And the ending was very well written to wrap everything up. It was everything that I wanted it to be.

I think I can say Suzanne Selfors is now one of my favorite authors and I would and will recommend this novel to many people!

Amazing, enthralling, and a MUST - READ!!

Cover - 4 stars

Plot - 5 stars

Characters - 5 stars

Writing - 5 stars

Ending - 5 stars

 Other places to find Suzanne

Website

Review - Captivate by Carrie Jones

Release Date - January 5, 2010
Publisher - Bloombsbury
Age Group - Young Adult
Pages - 288 pages
Rating - 3/5

Summary - Zara and her friends thought they had solved their pixie problems… but it turns out that their problems are just starting. Now that the previous pixie king is no longer in power, other pixies are moving in to the area, looking to claim his territory and his followers. Zara and her friends are the only ones that can stop them, but they’re also means they’re in the most danger. And when Zara meets a pixie who starts to convince her that the fae might not all be as evil as she thinks, she’s going to have to come to terms with what she’s done, and who she is… and who she’s becoming.

Review - As much as I wanted to love this book, I am sad to say I didn't. Now I am not saying that I hated it cause I didn't but it wasn't a favorite.

First off I felt like there was too much going on in the plot line in
too little time. The book took place over a few days and it was all
crammed in there. I do like where the series is headed but I feel like
it could have been put into one book instead of three.

Moving onto the characters. Loved Zara. Zara and Nick on the other
hand annoyed me. I cannot pin point why but I didn't like their
relationship. I didn't feel like there was much there. They loved each
other... just because. I do however, like the other characters and the
progression they have made.

As far as Carrie's writing, I do not have any issues with other than
too much crammed in too little time and spread out in too many books.
If that makes any sense. I do like some of the detailing she puts into
her writing. It makes my visual that much better.

And the Ending. I was left wanting to know more and wish it would have kept going. Also love the new character twist thrown in. Never saw it coming but loved it! I do plan on reading and reviewing Enticed so keep your eyes peeled.

Cover - 4 stars

Plot - 3 stars

Characters - 3 stars

Writing - 4 stars

Ending - 3 stars

Madame Tussaud - Michelle Moran Giveaway

Have you read Cleopatra's Daughter by Michelle Moran? How bout The Heretic Queen or Nefertiti??? Did you love them? Well her newest novel, Madame Tussaud, is out February 15 and I have a chance for you to win your own copy!

The world knows Madame Tussaud as a wax artist extraordinaire . . . but who was this woman who became one of the most famous sculptresses of all time? In these pages, her tumultuous and amazing story comes to life as only Michelle Moran can tell it. The year is 1788, and a revolution is about to begin.

Smart and ambitious, Marie Tussaud has learned the secrets of wax sculpting by working alongside her uncle in their celebrated wax museum, the Salon de Cire. From her popular model of the American ambassador, Thomas Jefferson, to her tableau of the royal family at dinner, Marie’s museum provides Parisians with the very latest news on fashion, gossip, and even politics. Her customers hail from every walk of life, yet her greatest dream is to attract the attention of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI; their stamp of approval on her work could catapult her and her museum to the fame and riches she desires. After months of anticipation, Marie learns that the royal family is willing to come and see their likenesses. When they finally arrive, the king’s sister is so impressed that she requests Marie’s presence at Versailles as a royal tutor in wax sculpting. It is a request Marie knows she cannot refuse—even if it means time away from her beloved Salon and her increasingly dear friend, Henri Charles.

As Marie gets to know her pupil, Princesse Élisabeth, she also becomes acquainted with the king and queen, who introduce her to the glamorous life at court. From lavish parties with more delicacies than she’s ever seen to rooms filled with candles lit only once before being discarded, Marie steps into a world entirely different from her home on the Boulevard du Temple, where people are selling their teeth in order to put food on the table.

Meanwhile, many resent the vast separation between rich and poor. In salons and cafés across Paris, people like Camille Desmoulins, Jean-Paul Marat, and Maximilien Robespierre are lashing out against the monarchy. Soon, there’s whispered talk of revolution. . . . Will Marie be able to hold on to both the love of her life and her friendship with the royal family as France approaches civil war? And more important, will she be able to fulfill the demands of powerful revolutionaries who ask that she make the death masks of beheaded aristocrats, some of whom she knows?

Spanning five years, from the budding revolution to the Reign of Terror, Madame Tussaud brings us into the world of an incredible heroine whose talent for wax modeling saved her life and preserved the faces of a vanished kingdom

But your not just your own copy, one lucky person, anywhere in the WORLD, is getting a signed copy along with a pair of these adorable Marie Antoinette cupcake earrings. 

All you guys have to do is fill out this form! The Contest ends February 22!

Dreaming Anastasia & Haunted - Joy Preble

Hey guys I have something amazing to share!!! Have you heard about the upcoming sequel to Dreaming Anastasia??? If not here is a look at it.

(From Goodreads)Anne Michaelson’s world turned upside down last fall when a handsome, blue-eyed and temporarily immortal Russian named Ethan informed her that she had a destiny to save the Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov, held captive for decades by the witch Baba Yaga. But Anastasia had her own thoughts about destiny. And Anne and Ethan discovered that some things aren’t so easily undone. Now, six months later, the craziness in Anne’s world hasn’t gone away. Neither have her feelings for Ethan. Anne still has powers she doesn’t fully understand. She’s still dreaming about Baba Yaga’s forest. And she’s got a new boyfriend – very normal and very sweet lifeguard, Ben Logan. As for Ethan, well, he hasn’t quite gotten over the events of last fall, either. And he definitely hasn’t gotten over Anne. In short, everyone’s haunted by something – or someone.

Enter the rusalka – a Russian folklore mermaid with a malevolent streak - and a particular interest in Anne. When Ethan suddenly returns from Europe, Anne’s world collides with the paranormal once again. Her heart torn between Ben and Ethan, Anne’s search for the rusalka’s identity reveals deep and startling secrets - including the true source of Anne’s powers.

Like Dreaming Anastasia, Haunted is a wild adventure of a tale, a genre blend of fantasy, folklore and romanc

Now doesnt that sound like a really good read??? But you havent read the first one. Well in celebration of Haunted's release Sourcebooks is making it available for free - where ever e-books are sold - from February 1st to February 7th!!!! How awesome is that?? So I think if you haven't read it you should get out there and get your copy so that you will be ready for Haunted, when it is out. 


Also if you guys come back in a few days I will have a review of Haunted up so you guys can see what I thought about it.