Friday, January 20, 2012

Interview: Brodi Ashton + Everneath


Today I'm beyond thrilled to welcome young adult author Brodi Ashton to the blog! Her debut novel, Everneath, releases from Balzer + Bray on January 24th and I cannot adequately express in words how much I loved this book. My review took me 2385729834 hours to write (that may be a touch exaggerated) because the sentences I typed seemed to pale in comparison with how I actually felt so I kept deleting them. Needless to say, it's one I highly recommend and I hope everyone adds it to their lists if it's not already on there!

If you were facing the same fate as Nikki and only had a short amount of time left on the Surface, what are the top 3 things you would make sure to do before you had to go back?

Oooh. That's a good question. Hmmmm. I would eat my mother's meatloaf. As much as I wanted! Okay, I'm just now realizing that I should've said "hug my children and my hubby" first. So that's two... Number three would be to take my entire family to a beach house. Ugh, I'm so boring. :)

Given the experiences Nikki has when she returns–seeing the pain her disappearance caused friends and family–do you think she would make the same choice again after waking up from the Feed if she had to do it over?

Wow. Another good question! I don't know for sure, but deep down I think Nikki already knew how difficult it would be, but she didn't want to face it. I think ultimately her love for Jack would've overwhelmed any other feelings. But I'm not sure. What do you think?

*I honestly have no idea! If I were in her shoes I would want so badly to Return to say goodbye to my family, but at the same time, seeing how much pain it caused her loved ones makes me reconsider. SO HARD*

There are two very intriguing boys in this story, both of whom know Nikki in their own unique way. If they were both asked to describe her, what might each of them say?

Jack would say she's smart and sexy and everything he wants for forever. She's someone he could say anything to, but she's also powerful because she has a way of making him feel more vulnerable than he ever has.

Cole would describe her as bewildering, self-sacrificial and stubborn. But those are also the same qualities that make her so bewitching. He's not sure if what he feels is love, but he's never felt it before.

Were there any other names for Cole’s world you went through before finally deciding Everneath fit it best?

Originally I called it the Underneath. But I realized I wanted a name that would encompass what exactly this place is, so my critique partner Bree Despain and I came up with a mixture of the words "Forever" and "Beneath". I think it really brings up the right picture, even though readers might not see it right away.

Is there anything about your characters or world that surprised you when it got on paper? Perhaps something about their personalities or pasts? Or details with regard to the Everneath that existed one way in your head but changed as soon as your fingers hit the keys
?

Oh, so many things were unplanned for in this book. I don't want to give away many details, but I will say that the ending I envisioned was drastically different than the one that came out. But as I was writing it, I realized it couldn't end any other way. Oh, and I always thought Jules would be meaner to Nikki than she actually is, but she turned out to be a true friend who was facing her own pain because of Nikki's decisions.

Okay, that last one was totally a run-on sentence. Sorry. Thanks for having me!!

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer my questions Brodi! More information on Brodi and the Everneath trilogy can be found here:

Website
Twitter

31 comments:

  1. Tina~ said...

    Um excuse me but that trailer gave me chill bumps....:)

I love Greek mythology CANT WAIT TO BUY THIS....!!!!

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  2. Candace said...

    I'm really glad that Jules wasn't meaner. I thought she was just right. Of course she's angry and hurt but I appreciate she didn't get all mean about it. 
I think Everneath is the perfect name. It's beautiful but describes things perfectly!

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  3. Heidi@Rainy Day Ramblings said...

    Hi Jenny! I have to admit that most interviews tend to bore me, but yours are always great and not too lenghty. I am really looking forward to this one. Your review was fabulous. The cover is gorgeous. Greek Mythology check...sounds like a great read! Have a great weekend lovely.

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  4. Danny said...

    Seriously the trailer creates such a phenomenal atmosphere . I looved Everneath -I liked the story telling, the back and forth between before and after was exciting and kept me on edge the whole time! 
Thank you so much for this wonderful interview!

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  5. Okay, so I had a ton of trouble with this post and had to delete it a couple times which deleted all the comments, so I copied and pasted them and now it looks a little like I've commented on the post 4 times. Win.

    Tina - Right? LOVED this book, can't wait to see what you think!

    Candace - I agree on the name, I think it really suits the environment and has a mythological feel without just calling it "the underworld"

    Heidi - So glad you enjoyed it! And I'm with you on the cover, it's one of my favorites:)

    Danny - Doesn't it? I loved Everneath too, I know the wait for the second book is going to be almost more than I can deal with:)

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  6. Aha, I wondered why I just saw posts from you, but got it now :)

    Anyway, I like how she came up with the name for the realm :)

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  7. I loved this book :) Great interview and loved her take on the ending :)

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  8. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS BOOK! Just wanted to get that out there first haha! x) <3

    And I know EXACTLY what you mean when you say that the final book that you actually finished was so different from you'd imagined when you started writing it, Brodi! I'm writing a book now too and although I'm only a couple chapters in, the purpose of it has already changed completely! But thankfully for the better! ;)

    Awesome guest post, you two! I already pre-ordered this book even though I read it earlier LOL, and I can't wait for my GORGEOUS copy to arrive! :D

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  9. Cool Interview! And beautiful cover :)
    Definitely getting this one on my TBR list.

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  10. Linda - For some reason the interview posted but nobody got any updates that it did. It was weird.

    Julie - Me too! That ending just about destroyed me:)

    Mimi - ME TOO! Love your enthusiasm! And yay for you writing your own book, that's so exciting:) I need a finished copy of this one too, I loved it too much to not buy one.

    Jordan - Yay! I can't recommend this one enough:)

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  11. Great interview!!! Jenny I value your opinion on books so this must be a great read. Looking forward to doing so.

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  12. Ah... blogger strikes again? LOL

    Oh what a great interview. I loved this book and I so want to know about it. I wonder if the lack of most of her memories also made it easier to come back. Hm... *ponders*

    Jenny... you rock the interview!

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  13. I just love how Everneath is a combo of forver and beneath... it totally works! I really enjoyed the book, so it's cool to hear some of Brodi's thoughts on the characters, etc. =)

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  14. Great post! I just reviewed this today and I loved it! That trailer of awesome too!! <3

    Giselle
    Xpresso Reads

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  15. Cathy - LOVED this book, I'll add it to the list of books I must make you read:)

    Melissa - Yes, Blogger decided to be super difficult today and didn't want to let me post my interview:) So glad you enjoyed it now that it's up!

    Ashley - I just adored this book, so glad you did as well:)

    Giselle - Yay! It's definitely on my list of "favorite reads ever" :)

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  16. What an engrossing interview! I loved hearing about the creation of the title. Jenny, thanks for the recommendation and Brodi, good luck with your writing.

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  17. What an awesome book trailer! I'm really excited to read this one. Great interview, Jenny!

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  18. This was a really good story--very unexpected and creative. I love hearing how the characters surprised even their own creator. Nice interview!

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  19. Jennifer - Oh good! Glad you enjoyed reading it:) I highly recommend this one, so I hope you add it to your ever-growing YA list:)

    Rummanah - It gave me chills. Especially after having already read it because it's all dark and tragic:)

    Mary - I agree, I just couldn't get enough of it:) I definitely want to know about this other ending now!

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  20. Great interview! I love that Brodi would make sure she ate all the meatloaf. Hilarious! :D The trailer for Everneath is truly stunning.

    Sam @ Realm of Ficton

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  21. I have to say this is one of the most interesting interviews I've ever read! Great job with the questions, Jenny! And wow on the do over question... Hard! I also love how Everneath came too and the surprises. Super interesting and good!

    I so loved this book! I need to get my review up next week. It's so hard to write though... o:

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  22. Loved this book! I can't wait to get a fc on my hands! This book is so going on my shelf!!! Great interview!

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  23. OMGosh, I love the answer Jack gives about what he would say about Nikki! He's soooooo sweet!

    Great interview! I really enjoyed this book!

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  24. This book sounds awesome !! Great interview :) !!
    I can't wait to meet both Jack and Cole now !

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  25. Oo, I like the way the guys describe Nikki. It makes me so curious to get to know her and see whose view I agree with more. Lol, and obviously I also need to figure out who I like more.

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  26. I've been hearing simply gorgeous things about this book. If the book cover and trailer are anything to go by, I think I'll love it! :)

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  27. I'm late to the game, here, but I'm SO glad to learn this is a trilogy. I got the end of Everneath and went "Noooooooooooooooo!"

    Oh, and it's true! You do rock the interview!

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  28. Ooh, nice Q&A! It makes me even more curious about this book,

    Sorry to hear that Blogger's being a pain. Blogger seems to like keeping us book bloggers on our toes ;)

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  29. Oh! The unplanned elements of the story are usually the best parts!

    And it's interesting to wonder if anyone would make the same choice again after seeing the consequences for themselves.

    I'm looking forward to meeting these very different boys. ;P

    Thanks for the interview, ladies.

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  30. Oh, now I'm even more excited to read the book! Just cannot wait for it to come!! Always such a great interviewer, Jenny! And great answers Ms. Ashton!

    Heather

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