Our Sweet Six: an interview with Elizabeth Richards, author of BLACK CITY and PHOENIX

Hey guys, Paula here to share with you one of my favorite authors, Elizabeth Richards. Her debut novel, BLACK CITY, was one of my top reads in 2012. It was dark and gothic and sexy and forbidden and did I mention sexy? If you're a fan of forbidden love, action, and mystery set against a dystopian backdrop, the Black City Chronicles are for you! PHOENIX, the second book, released in June and I am already clamoring for the final installment, due out next summer. Bonus factor--Elizabeth has the prettiest covers of any series I've ever seen. Look, I made it extra-giant for you to enjoy :)

1. Tell us about your book.

 Here's PHOENIX’s official blurb, as I think it explains it the best!

Engaged to be married, Ash and Natalie are just starting to build a life together when things in the United Sentry States go from bad to worse. Ash and Natalie find themselves at the center of turmoil when dictator Purian Rose threatens Natalie’s life unless Ash votes in favor of Rose’s Law—a law that will send Darklings and other dissenters to a deadly concentration camp known as the Tenth.

When Ash can’t bring himself to trade Natalie’s life for those of millions of Darklings, her fate is sealed. Enter Elijah Theroux, the handsome Bastet boy Natalie once saved from her mother’s labs, where he’d been experimented on and tortured. It was his venom the Sentry used to create the lethal Golden Haze, the heart of the government conspiracy that led to Black City’s uprising and Ash’s rebirth as the Phoenix, the face of the rebellion. Elijah is back and Ash doesn’t like him; it’s clear he’s taken with Natalie, and Ash fears she may have feelings for him as well.

But Elijah also may have the answer to taking down Purian Rose for good—a powerful weapon called the Ora. Ash, Natalie and Elijah just have to escape Black City undetected to find it. But fleeing the city and finding this weapon (if it even exists) are easier said than done, and the quest could tear Ash and Natalie apart, even pushing them into the arms of others.

This enthralling sequel to Black City is just as absorbing, delicious and steamy as the first book, leaving readers hungry for the series conclusion.

2. What scene in your book do you LOVE the most?

 Hee hee, that's easy. The scene in the Barren Lands where Elijah's in the water with his shirt off...mmmmm.

3. If you had to pick a YA character you LOVE (and not your own!) who would you pick and why?

 Ooooh....it's so hard to choose just one character, as I have so many book boyfriends (I'm a book boyfriend slut). I think I'd pick Four from Divergent. He's tough, handsome and brave, but he's also vulnerable too. The perfect combination!

4. What's the craziest/most memorable Valentine you've ever received?

 I haven't received any crazy Valentine messages, however one Valentine my husband surprised me with a trip to Barcelona! I thought we were going up to London for a wedding reception, and when we got to London he whisked me off to the airport. It wasn't until we were there that he told me where we were going. It was an AMAZING Valentines, and one I'll never forget. My hubs is the best.

5. If you were a Brach's candy heart, what phrase would be written on you?

 Blood Mates!

6. And finally, the all-important choice: flowers or candy?

 Flowers! My husband always gets the best bouquets for me, with really unusual and gothic flowers, like black tulips with thistles and fiddlehead ferns, and I love them. He knows me so well! Of course, if they come WITH a box of chocolates, then that's even better...

YAY! Those sound like the most epic flowers ever and I might even decide to like flowers too if I ever got any that cool. I mean, they still would never top candy, but you're right, why choose when you can demand both? Thanks for stopping by the YA Valentines blog, Elizabeth!

Elizabeth Richards is an award-winning journalist, who spent her early career reviewing videogames before making the bold (or crazy) move into travel writing, despite suffering from terrible travel sickness.

In her spare time, she ran a successful lifestyle website aimed at teenage girls, where she got to interview many of her favourite bands, go to gigs and basically blag loads of free swag all in the name of ‘research’.

Elizabeth lives in Buckinghamshire, England, with her husband. 

Website        Twitter        Facebook        Goodreads

BREAKING NEWS!! I have just been informed that the winner of the BURN OUT cover reveal contest is Alyssa Susanna!! Alyssa you have just won DEFY THE DARK and a YA book of your choice! Congratulations. Kristi Helvig will be contacting you :)

Sweet Six Interview with Brigid Kemmerer!

Happy Tuesday! There's more excitement in the world of the YA Valentines! In fact, the news was so fabulous that each of our email inboxes exploded last night! (Many whoops, hollers, and exclamation points were exchanged!) 

You're curious?

Tune in next Tuesday for an announcement...  *smiles sweetly* Yes, you have to wait.


I now bring you a Sweet Six interview with the incredibly talented Brigid Kemmerer! She's a fellow Marylander and YA author, whom I had the pleasure of meeting during Read Across America this past March. Spirit, the third installment in The Elemental Series, released in May! 

1) Tell us about your book!

I write The Elemental Series for Kensington Books, about four brothers who control the elements of earth, air, fire, and water, and their battle with those who want them dead. While the stories are paranormal on the surface, they're really about family and brotherhood and growing up. 

2) What scene in your book do you LOVE the most?

Michael Merrick is the oldest brother, and at twenty-three, he's been raising his younger brothers for five years, since his parents' death during his senior year of high school. He's bitter, and jaded, and exhausted from working all the time. Throughout much of Storm, he's surly and snappish. But there's a scene where he's been hurt, and he goes to the home of his youngest brother's girlfriend, and her mom starts patching him up. He's eating pancakes, and he basically says, "I forgot what it was like to have a mother." It's one of the first times in the book where Michael shows his vulnerability, and I loved writing it. 

3) If you had to pick a character you LOVE (and not your own!), who would you pick and why?

I just finished reading Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg, and Rafe, the main character, was probably one of the best written YA boys I've read in a long, long time. I loved it. 

4) What's the craziest/most memorable valentine you've ever received?

I don't know that I've ever received a Valentine. But the most memorable Valentine's Day was this one year when I didn't have a boyfriend, so I went to the bookstore. I was sitting in the cafe reading, and this guy came up and asked if he could join me. We started talking books and hit it off immediately. I started thinking, "OMG, this is going to be the cutest how-we-met story EVER. We met in a bookstore on Valentine's Day, because we were both single and lonely. This is SO AMAZING." And just as I was completing that thought, he finished his coffee and said, "Well, it was nice meeting you." And he walked out.

(Don't worry. I later met my amazing husband.) 

5) If you were a Brach's Heart, what phrase would be written on you?

I ... have no idea. BAMF? :-P

(Note: I asked Brigid if BAMF meant what I thought it meant... it sure does!)

6) The all-important choice: flowers or candy?

Candy! Come on. No contest. 

I completely agree! Brigid, thank you so much for swinging by!

You can visit Brigid online via her website, Goodreads, Amazon, or Twitter!