The Lovely Lisa Van Allen and The Night Garden

So I've been promising something exciting and the day has finally come when I can share!! :)  As I've posted about before, I am a huge fan of the genre "magical realism" which is a fiction genre that incorporates fantastic or mythical elements into an otherwise realistic story.  
Last summer I was paging through an advance magazine at work and saw a cover that caught my eye (how can these covers not catch your eye??!).  The title was The Wishing Thread and I'd never heard of the author before…

I read the description and told my coworkers, "We have to order in this book and sell it!"  It was the perfect read to kick-off fall... a story of sisters who are left the "Stitchery," a yarn shop that offers more than just plain hats and scarves, by their aunt when she passes.  The Van Ripper sisters—Aubrey, Bitty, and Meggie—are said to knit people’s most ardent wishes into beautiful scarves and mittens, granting them health, success, or even a blossoming romance. But for the magic to work, sacrifices must be made—and no one knows that better than the Van Rippers.

The The Wishing Thread was Lisa's debut novel, and I loved it.  Lisa Van Allen's writing created a perfect story of family, love, and the choice of sacrifice... with a *hint* of magic.  I recommended it to lots of friends and family members as well as customers, and so many have told me how much they enjoyed it... it's the perfect read for a cool fall day, cup of coffee/tea/hot cocoa in hand :)

Skip forward to a couple months ago... a new Lisa Van Allen book on the horizon!!  The Night Garden... due out October 7th!  The Night Garden is a novel about the Pennywort farm and its beautiful enigmatic caretaker Olivia.  Olivia has spent her entire life immersed in the farm and its incomparable garden while harboring a secret.  But when her childhood friend, Sam Van Winkle, returns she just might finally have a reason to let someone into her world...

After the wonderful feedback I received from people about The Wishing Thread, I wanted to see what I could do to help promote Lisa's new book.  Lucky for me Lisa (and her publishing company) are incredible and offered to let me feature Lisa on this blog and feature a Q&A that was created just for this post!  (Yes I did a happy dance.  No I'm not embarrassed.)

I asked Lisa five questions about her books, writing and recommendations... here they are (even her answers are perfectly written!):

1. In your new novel, The Night Garden, one of the main characters, Sam Van Winkle, has a last name that connects him to Washington Irving's "Rip Van Winkle."  Why did you incorporate this legend in your book?

Part of my love for the Hudson Valley and the Catskills regions stems from the countless folk tales and ghost stories that abound in the rolling mountains. THE NIGHT GARDEN is set in the western Catskills near the site of the Woodstock festival; the regions green hills and acres of blue sky give it a sleepy, serene feeling. Sam's last name certainly calls on the traditions of the region and evokes a simpler, less frantic time. I hope THE NIGHT GARDEN is a quirky little vacation from real life. 

2. How do you come up with the "magical" elements in your novels?  Do you create the character first and then discover their "magic," or do you think of a situation, a "talent," or "curse" and then the character is formed from this idea?

For THE NIGHT GARDEN, Olivia's particular "curse" (if you can call it that) came about because of a short story by Hawthorne that I'd read waaaaay back when I was a sophomore in high school. I don't want to give away too much, but I'll say that I've wanted to do a story about a woman with her particular magical affliction for a very long time. The other magical elements arrive in the simplest way possible; it's me, sitting with me hands hovering over the keyboard, thinking "what would be really fun and surprising to write about right now?" I just follow where my interests lead--and yes, the results can be pretty unusual. 

3. This past year your debut novel, The Wishing Thread, accomplished amazing feats including making both the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists.  What was it like to achieve this, and what advice do you have for writers who are striving for similar recognition? 

It was the greatest thrill of my writing life so far. But I still have a long way to go and many more stories to tell. My advice to writers would simply be this: Set outrageous goals for yourself. But always focus on the joy of writing--love of the act has to be first, central, and last. It's the only thing that will keep you moving toward your goals. 

4. Who are some authors or what are some books you've enjoyed and like to recommend to readers?

I always like to recommend Alice Hoffman to anyone who has never read her. Sarah Addison Allen too, of course! These are both magical writers who speak strongly to me. 

5. Considering your novels have "magical" elements, do you believe that "magic," in some form, exists in our world?  Or is it all coincidence/chance? 

You've hit on the central question of THE WISHING THREAD, the story of three sisters who are said to "knit" magic spells. I believe in magic (and really, I mean miracles, and I mean God) because I want to, because I can't not. I believe life is a gift, a very real gift, and our life's work is to walk in gratitude and humility. But I won't tell you how to read THE WISHING THREAD. Every reader has to make her own decisions about what's really going on in that story. 

As if I didn't adore Lisa Van Allen enough.  Seriously such beautiful words!

Soooo even more big news.  Lisa and her publisher (Penguin Random House) are letting me give away not one... not two... but three copies of The Night Garden!!!  This means you have a chance to win one of these lovely copies of Lisa's new book!

All you have to do is like my facebook page and enter below!  You can even get additional entries by liking Lisa's facebook page and sharing this giveaway on your own facebook page!  You can actually get an additional entry each day you post about this giveaway on your facebook page!  Winners will be chosen in one week... good luck!

A huge thank you to Lisa Van Allen and the folks at Penguin Random house for giving me the opportunity to share Lisa's incredible novel!  And thank you to all of you for participating and sharing with your friends! 


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Lori M. Lee and Erica O'Rourke Author Event

I love reading YA books and discovering new YA authors, so imagine my glee when I found out there is a YA author who lives right in the Fox Valley!  She just published her first novel GATES OF THREAD AND STONE, and was having a book signing at the local library.  I had to check out her website and see if she was willing/able to do other events!  Google Lori M. Lee and this wonderful website appears.  

Lori is the sweetest person you will ever meet... she writes a badass leading female, but as a person, she is nothing but lovely.  After meeting with her, we talked about having her do an event... to which she responded, "Can I bring a friend?"  Anytime an author wants to bring a fellow author to an event... the answer is always yes.  I mean come on, as if it's not awesome enough to meet one incredible author, two just makes it double the fun!

Google Erica O'Rourke and this amazing website appears.  I'm going to be honest, I hadn't heard of Erica until Lori told me her name... but now I've come to find out what I'm missing (love discovering new authors!).  Erica's latest book is DISSONANCE, and before that she wrote the TORN TRILOGY.

Prior to their event, I wanted to read both of the author's newest books (obviously always a good thing to try to do!), and I have to say they were hard to put down, making this an easy "homework" assignment to give myself.  I started with Lori's book GATES OF THREAD AND STONE, and my review ended up being:

4 of 5 Stars

The world that Lori Lee creates is very interesting, and the backstory behind the citizens and their ruler unravels as the story goes on, but it took a bit to get there. The main character, Kai, is a pretty awesome chick with powers that can toy with the threads of time, causing time to slow or even stop. She doesn't know why she has this ability, but knows that she shouldn't let anyone know about it. When her adoptive big brother, and only "family" that she knows, goes missing, she decides to seek answers with her friend Avan (a boy she just happens to have a slight crush on) and bring her brother home. This leads to interesting plot twists as the journey through different parts of the world that they have never been to, especially through the last third of the book. Lee did throw some great surprises into her work that I did not see coming, and that I really enjoyed.
That being said, I am glad that I kept going with this book. Once the history of the world and Kai's family tree are unearthed, it really makes for a great story. This is book one of a series/trilogy, and I am curious where Lori Lee is going to take these characters.  I'm looking forward to the sequel next year!  I'd recommend this book for anyone who enjoys YA fantasy with a bit of romance thrown in.

The more I thought about this book, the more I loved it.  The world-building that Lori must have put into Kai's world is crazy.  To develop the powers for each character and lace them all together... be sure to check this book out!

Next up, Erica's latest book DISSONANCE.  

5 of 5 Stars

I was slightly hesitant about this book since it's classified "teen romance," which can be a bit much to take (think the neediness of Bella in Twilight). But man can Erica O'Rourke write an independent, dominant female! I absolutely loved Del's character and the way O'Rourke uses string theory and music to help develop Del's world. I've been a huge music person since I was young, and dissonance in music is used as a way to tell if an alternate world is stable or unstable. Del is a "walker" who are individuals that can go between worlds and "tune" or destroy them in order to keep the Key World (our world) safe. When the boy Del has a crush on begins appearing in almost all of the world she visits and causes some interesting fluctuations in these worlds, she knows something is wrong... but once he notices her in school, does she really want to make it right?
This book is full of interesting characters, who you're never quite sure you can trust, and a family story at its core (who can Del really trust in her family?). But, the thing I was most impressed with was O'Rouke's world-building. The idea that a new world is created each time someone makes a choice, and the choice you do not choose becomes an alternate universe that plays out differently is so fascinating to me. I definitely recommend picking up a copy of this book... now I just have to impatiently wait for the sequel...

So, now that I've finished this book... I had to go on my nook and download a copy of TORN while I await DISSONANCE's sequel next year.

I already knew Lori and Erica's author event was going to be wonderful because their books offer lots of opportunity for questions... but it was such a blast!  Both women were so fun and had such great answers and advice to share with everyone who attended.  

They were asked questions about being a budding author... L: "Just keep writing, and never stop."  E: "Read critically... find what you love about a book and dissect it... use what you learn from books you love to make your own works stronger." About how they come up with character names... E: "I typically don't name characters after anyone I know, especially not bad characters... you don't want to give them that power over you." L: "I pick names I like... and have a name for my characters before I start writing."  Books/authors they'd recommend... L: "Leigh Bardugo's Grisha Trilogy, Otherbound by Corinne Duyvis, and anything by Neil Gaiman" E: "Anything by Libba Bray, The Divergent Series by Veronica Roth, and The Testing Trilogy by Joelle Charbonneau."  

Along with solid advice and fun trivia/facts they talked to everyone who came and signed copies of their books.  They were both so encouraging to the teen readers and writers who came... their young fans will definitely remember meeting such inspirational authors.

I have nothing but gratitude and admiration for both of these women.  Be sure to pick up a copy of their books and enjoy!  

P.S. They *might* both be coming back to do another event this December!!  Possibly on December 14th!  Perhaps at 1:00 in the afternoon! :)

Mary Kubica Author Event (and some of her recommendations!)

What an amazing start to the week!!  Mary Kubica, author of THE GOOD GIRL, came to Appleton!  I know I already mentioned her book in a previous post, but in case you missed it... here's my little blurb about THE GOOD GIRL: 

5 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book!!! It's been getting a lot of comparisons to "Gone Girl," and I can see why, but I liked "The Good Girl" more. I felt the storyline was more realistic, and the reader actually has a reason to care for the characters. And I must say... the ending... perfect. Can't wait to read more of Mary Kubica's writing in the future!

To expand on this "review," the book is about a girl in her early 20's named Mia who is kidnapped.  The novel is told from multiple perspectives (including Mia's mom, the detective in charge of her case, and her kidnapper), and the chapters fluctuate through time from both before she is found and after she comes home (this is not a spoiler... you find out she comes home very early on!).  Throughout the novel the true story of what happened to Mia unravels, and just wait until you find out the whole story!  Seriously... so good.  This book deserves all of the wonderful press and publicity it has been receiving.

Tonight, I was fortunate enough to meet Mary Kubica (and the wonderful readers who came to her event!) and hear her talk about her book as well as her writing process and future plans.  She talked about how THE GOOD GIRL was written over the course of many years while her children were young.  It then took a few years before she got a wonderful phone call that changed her life: someone wanted to publish her book!  

Now that THE GOOD GIRL is out in the world for all to read, Mary has been working on finalizing her next novel which should be released sometime next fall (seriously cannot wait!).  She told the audience that her new book is about a young, homeless mother who meets a woman one day who decides to take the homeless mother and her baby home.  Both characters then realize the impact this decision will have on their lives.  I can't wait to see where this storyline will go!

After a reading from her book, Mary was asked so many wonderful questions by the audience.  Including:  How do you write? (Whenever she has time, on a computer... and if she's stuck she puts it away for a while and comes back after some time away which seems to help);  Did you write each character's chapters in order? (She wrote the book in different chunks... she wrote one character's section and then moved on to a different one.  After each was done, she reorganized the stories into chapters and moved the time sequence around);  What books have you enjoyed reading lately? (The Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline, Little Mercies by Heather Gudenkauf, Forever Interrupted by Taylor Jenkins Reid, and The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien (one of her all time favorites)).

Mary will be back next spring in the Fox Valley area for the Fox Cities Book Festival, and I highly recommend seeing her if you get the chance!  For more information on Mary and her upcoming events and books visit her website here.

I hope everyone had a wonderful beginning to your week!