Interview: Roxanne St. Claire + They All Fall Down

I'm thrilled today to welcome author Roxanne St. Claire to the blog as part of the promotional tour for her newest release, They All Fall Down. Roxanne was nice enough to answer a few questions for me about high school, murder mysteries and her teenage self, so I hope you all enjoy the interview!

To help us get to know Kenzie and her newfound friends a little bit better, could you assign each of them a typical high school yearbook superlative (best dressed, most likely to succeed, etc.)?

Kenzie Summerall – Most Changed
Molly Russell – Biggest Band Geek
Josh Collier – Sexiest Smile
Levi Sterling – Most Wanted by Administration

Confession: I live for lists. I love them and can’t get through my day without making one. Instead of a list like the one circulating at Kenzie’s high school, please give us a list of your top 5 favorite high school-centric movies.

Mean Girls
A Cinderella Story
The Breakfast Club
Clueless
Perks of Being a Wallflower

If Kenzie could invite a character from any piece of fiction (aside from Sherlock Holmes) to help her uncover the secrets behind the list and the death of her classmates, who would she most want to work with?

Why not Sherlock!?! He’d be perfect. Okay, then I’d have her pick someone from either the Guardian Angelinos or the Bullet Catchers, two incredibly talented teams of protection and security specialists…all invented by me!

If Kenzie had the chance to sit down and interview you, what do you think the first question out of her mouth would be?

“Why did I have to wait so long to find out the truth about my brother?”

I love a mystery that can keep me guessing. What book had the biggest/most surprising twist you’ve ever encountered?

I admit that I didn’t see the sad ending of Fault in our Stars coming. I read the book very early, before the big buzz, and when Augustus flinches in pain in Amsterdam for the first time, I gasped loudly in shock. No! He wouldn’t do that! He wouldn’t…he did. Sigh. Also, there’s a death at the end of Mockingjay that stunned (and infuriated) me. 

If, like Kenzie, the teenage version of you suddenly found herself the center of the popular crowd’s attention, what would her reaction have been?

I’d like to think I’d be more like Kenzie than Molly. Kenzie was not overwhelmed by it all, because she never really sought seek the attention and didn’t place any value on it. Her best friend, Molly, on the other hand was seduced – so it was a good thing that Molly wasn’t on the list. That was a big reason Kenzie didn’t get sucked into the power of the list, and was able to stand back and see what was happening objectively. 

What’s one thing your high school self never would have guessed about the direction your career as an adult has taken?

My high school self went 3,000 miles away from home (from Pittsburgh to UCLA) with the intention of being a high-powered attorney. But after one semester of college, I knew I wasn’t cut out for law school. I think my high school self would be surprised that those little “stories” I wrote for fun and to amuse my friends ended up as the way I make my living.

Thanks so much for these awesome questions. I’m happy to pop in today and answer more!

My pleasure Roxanne, thank you so much for taking the time to stop by!

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THEY ALL FALL DOWN

Every year, the lives of ten girls at Vienna High are transformed.

All because of the list.

Kenzie Summerall can't imagine how she's been voted onto a list of the hottest girls in school, but when she lands at number five, her average life becomes dazzling. Doors open to the best parties, new friends surround her, the cutest jock in school is after her.

This is the power of the list. If you're on it, your life changes.

If you're on it this year? Your life ends.

Amazon • B&N • Goodreads

• • • • • • • • • • • •

ROXANNE ST. CLAIRE

Roxanne St. Claire is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than thirty novels of suspense and romance, including three popular series (The Bullet Catchers, The Guardian Angelinos, and Barefoot Bay) and multiple stand alone books.

In addition to being a six-time nominee and one-time winner of the RITA Award, Roxanne’s novels have won the National Reader’s Choice Award for best romantic suspense three times, as well as the Daphne du Maurier Award, the HOLT Medallion, the Maggie, Booksellers Best, Book Buyers Best, the Award of Excellence, and many others. Her books have been translated into dozens of languages and are routinely included as a Doubleday/Rhapsody Book Club Selection of the Month.

Website • Facebook • Twitter

And don't forget to check out the rest of the participating blogs!

10/14     Icey Books                                         

10/15     Bumbles & Fairytales                     

10/16     Across the Words                           

10/17     Bookish                                               

10/18     A Dream Within a Dream

10/19     Good Books & Good Wine          

10/20     Jean Book Nerd                           

10/21     Pandora’s Books                             

10/22     Anatea’s Bookshelf                        

10/23     Supernatural Snark                        

10/24     The Children’s Book Review       

10/25     Unofficial Addiction Book Club  

10/26     Live to Read

10/27     Winter Haven Books / Rather Be Reading YA      

10/28     Peace Love Books                           

10/29     Christy’s Book Addiction              

10/30     Stories & Sweeties

10/31     Wondrous Reads