Interview: Kim Harrington

As part of the promotional tour for Perception, I'm extremely excited to welcome author Kim Harrington to the blog to answer a few questions! This tour kicked off February 27th and continues through the end of this week, and you can find all the participating blogs and their posts here. I absolutely adored both Clarity and Perception, and I definitely encourage everyone to pick them up if you haven't had a chance to read them yet!

Let’s say some sort of Freaky Friday-type event occurs and both Gabriel and Justin find themselves with Clare’s gift of psychometry. What is the first thing each of them would do once they realized what happened?

They would probably rummage through Clare’s things hoping to have a vision with clues to how she really feels.

If you could reads minds as Clare’s mom can, which fictional character, celebrity, friend, or family member would you most like to test your gift with? If someone were to peek into your mind at this very moment, what might they find running through it?

I would be tempted to use the gift on everyone, but it’s a bad idea. I’d end up with my feelings hurt somehow and hear something I’d never be able to un-hear. So I would pass on using Starla’s gift.

If someone were to peek into my mind right now, they’d start to crave Cadbury Eggs.

*Jenny dies of Cadbury craving here*

Clare deals with the Gabriel/Justin situation with refreshing maturity and very little angst. If you found your teenage self in a similar romantic situation, do you think you’d handle it as she does?

Probably, because Clare and I are similar in many ways. She’s not a hopeless romantic. She’s a realist with trust issues. So she’s very careful with her heart.

Perry’s best friend Nate makes only a brief appearance in Perception, but it seems as though there’s a great deal of potential for him to be a larger part of the story. Can you tell us if we’ll be seeing a lot more of him in the future?

In my original draft of Perception, he did have a larger part. But, sadly, I had to cut Nate scenes for the greater good. I needed this book to be able to stand alone. If there were future books, Nate would play a big part. Big.

Perry is unable to conjure spirits; instead, he can only communicate with the dead who are attached to a living person in his physical presence. If he could call forth any spirit of his choosing however, whom might he most like to speak with?

Probably an ancestor who would be willing to give him insider information about his family’s history. Either that or Ted Williams from the Boston Red Sox. ;)

What was the most exciting part of writing this second installment of Clare’s story? The most intimidating?

The most exciting part for me was the final chapters. I loved writing the action scenes! And the final scene, too, was fun. ;)

The most intimidating part was the love story. As in real life, it’s complicated and there’s no easy answer. But I tried my best to craft the book in a way that the reader realizes a few things as Clare realizes them. And hopefully the reader will understand and appreciate the decision she makes, even if it’s not the decision they would make. :)

Perception is one of those books you devour in one sitting, completely disregarding anything else you might have to do that day in favor of finishing the story. What’s the last book that kept you glued to the pages from beginning to end?

Thank you! I love hearing that. I recently read Fracture by Megan Miranda in one day. Loved it!

Can you give us a few nuggets of Fern family trivia? Things about them that ended up on the cutting room floor so to speak?

Absolutely! I know them so well in my mind they’re almost real. How about what they like to do in their downtime? When they’re not solving a dangerous mystery: Perry loves to play video games, especially first person shooters, Clare loves watching cheesy old horror movies, and Starla is addicted to reality television. Also—how Perry thinks he got the scar is his eyebrow is not how he really got it. But, for now, the truth is stored only in my mind.

THANKS!

Thank you so much for taking the time to visit Kim! More information on Kim and her amazing books can be found here:

Website
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Review: Clarity

CLARITY (Clarity #1)
Kim Harrington
Paranormal Young Adult
242 Pages
Scholastic Point
Available now
Received from publisher for review

THE STORY
Clarity Fern is a member of what some may call an unusual family. Her mother can read minds. Her brother speaks to the dead. Clare herself possesses the ability to touch objects and see certain events related to that object, a gift that let her know her boyfriend Justin had cheated on her when she brushed her hand over his jacket. Sometimes her gift really isn't a gift at all.

Typically not too much exciting happens in Clare's small tourist town, but that quickly changes when a young woman is found shot to death in her hotel room, and the current mayor's son, also known as Clare's ex-boyfriend Justin, asks Clare for her unofficial help in the investigation. Her work will pair her with Gabriel, the new sheriff's very good-looking son, as neither the Mayor nor sheriff want it to be known they're working with someone like Clare on such a high profile case.

Despite Gabriel's obvious distaste for her ability, Clare still finds herself attracted to him and spends more and more time in his presence as they uncover new leads. Unfortunately for Clare, the new leads point in a variety of different directions, some unsavory and some a hitting a little closer to home than she'd like, and soon the gift Gabriel so mocks puts her right in the line of fire.

MY THOUGHTS
Clarity is a stunning debut, one that combines humor with mystery and dynamic characters with a well-paced plot, using each of these elements in a blissful combination that holds us transfixed the moment we begin reading and keeps us in place as we find ourselves anxious to join the hunt for a murderer. Ms. Harrington has written a crisp and concise story that could have easily been bogged down by overused plot devices, but in her skillful hands we are not tiredly wondering why we're being exposed to yet another love triangle nor do our thoughts drift aimlessly with a sense of deja vu, instead our focus remains glued to Clare's unique ability, her close-knit family, and the ramifications of her first broken heart. Clarity is easily devoured in one sitting, leaving us satisfied upon conclusion but still undeniably curious–not wanting our exposure to these new and memorable individuals to be over just yet–and we add this title to the pile of books that have charmed us, intrigued us, and led us to mark their creators as auto-buy authors.

Clare is an outspoken, snarky young woman who often finds it difficult to keep her mouth shut when those around her hurt or offend either her or those she cares about, and we sit back and quirk our lips in amusement as she fights her own battles, wishing we possessed her ability to say what she means the moment she means it. She handles the two young men in her life with a refreshing maturity, dealing with her hurt and lingering attraction to Justin with a realistic honesty as she fully acknowledges her desire to inflict the same pain she suffered at his betrayal, but also refusing to to be naive and deny her feelings for him entirely. With Gabriel she exhibits an admirable sense of caution, recognizing her growing affection for him but not so blinded by his good looks that she ignores his imperfections and loses herself in a haze of hormones.

In addition to a main character who earns our instant and unwavering support, Clarity illustrates Ms. Harrington's adeptness at weaving a complex murder mystery. While we may initially have a suspect in mind, each new clue expertly shifts our focus to someone new, and sometimes to someone whom we desperately hope is innocent but remains just suspicious enough to keep us on our guard. When we reach the conclusion we look back and realize each piece of information played a unique and vital role, blending together to create a story free of extraneous details and overly verbose descriptions, and leaving behind characters whose specific actions throughout come together at the end to paint an entirely different picture of the people we thought we knew in the beginning. Every element in this tale seems to be perfectly balanced, allowing us to absorb fully the emotional interactions, engaging characters, and effortless suspense all at one time as opposed to having our attentions split when certain aspects of the the story are given more weight than others.

Though this story isn't one that takes a toll on our feelings or leaves our hearts in tatters so it's forever branded in our minds as unforgettable, it's a quick and enthralling read that delivers solid entertainment on all fronts. The attention given to Clare's gifted mother and brother and their unique relationships with Clare is a welcome reprieve from the prevalent trend of focusing primarily on romantic connections or friendships–a trend that leaves the vital familial bond painfully neglected. With a little paranormal activity, a smidgen of romance, and a large dose of mystery, Clarity has a little something for everyone and truly is one that should not be missed.

Rating: 4/5

In My Mailbox #20

In My Mailbox was created by Kristi over at The Story Siren and is a great way to see what other bloggers are reading and reviewing. I always love seeing what everyone else got for their week!




FOR REVIEW:
Clarity by Kim Harrington
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
Red Riding Hood by Sarah Blakely-Cartwright, Catherine Hardwicke
Fairy Bad Day by Amanda Ashby
Raw Blue by Kirsty Eagar (just finished this one and LOVED it)
The Samaritan by Fred Venturini

An enormous thank you this week to Scholastic, Little, Brown books for Young Readers, Penguin, Linds from Bibliophile Brouhaha and Kristy Eagar, and TLC Book Tours for sending me such wonderful books for review!