Interview: Cassandra Rose Clarke + The Wizard's Promise

Today I'm thrilled to have author Cassandra Rose Clarke stopping by the blog as part of the promotional tour for her upcoming young adult novel, The Wizard's Promise, which releases May 6th from Strange Chemistry. Cassandra was nice enough to answer a few questions for me, so I hope you all enjoy the interview. Welcome to Supernatural Snark Cassandra!

Hanna wants nothing more than to learn how to be a witch. What’s one particular spell or aspect of witchcraft she’s most excited to get a handle on?

Hanna just wants to be able to do magic, rather than spend her days out on a fishing boat. Although she doesn’t think of it this way, it’s almost like she wants witchcraft to be her job, the way people hope to turn their art or writing into jobs. So probably the aspect of witchcraft she’s most excited to learn is one of the more difficult, complicated spells that would prove to people she’s capable of spending her life as a witch rather than a fisherwoman.

To help those of us who have yet to meet Hanna get to know her a little bit better, how might her apprentice master describe her or her dedication to her craft?

If he was speaking where Hanna couldn’t overhear, he’d say she was hardworking and skilled—not just at magic, but at fishing too, since fishing is what she’s currently apprenticed for. Of course, he’d also complain that she doesn’t take her fishing duties seriously, and that she needs to be more practical.

Now, if Hanna could overhear, he’d probably leave off the parts about her being hardworking and skillful. He doesn’t want to be too generous with the compliments.

If Hanna could live in another fictional world (book, movie or TV show) dominated by witches, which one would top her list?

I think Hanna would appreciate living in the world of Once Upon a Time, in particular the parts set in the Enchanted Forest. There would be adventure galore for her, and she’d have plenty of opportunities to test out her powers.

There’s mention of a beautiful non-human boy in the synopsis, and lover of romance that I am, his presence has me absurdly excited to dive into this story. What are three characteristics you think make a love interest swoon-worthy?

Pretty big doses of mystery and broodiness, both tempered by a generous splash of kindness. I love tortured, angsty love interests, but not when their angstiness goes too far and they become jerks!

Let’s say you wake up tomorrow in an unfamiliar world. Which character from any of your books would you call on for help in facing whatever this world might throw at you?

Definitely Ananna, from The Assassin’s Curse. She’s got the street smarts that I sorely lack, plus she knows how to fight and use a sword. I’m pretty sure the two of us could take on anything.

What’s one question you wish you would be asked in an interview and how would you answer?

Okay, technically I have been asked about this, but not since I moved to a new house! The question is about where you write and what your writing set-up looks like. Since my laptop broke, I’ve been chained to a desktop, so no more writing in a Starbucks or in the park for me. However, I have set up an entire writing room in my new house, and I just love it. I re-acquired my childhood desk and set my computer up on that, and I even put in a daybed—which I used to beg my parents for when I was kid. Finally got one! I’ve installed shelves to keep all my papers and things organized. Oh, and the walls are mint green! I just need to add some artwork and the room will be sweet writing perfection.

If you could promote The Wizard’s Promise using only a single quote from the book to entice readers, which one would you choose to share?

“I don’t make a habit of trusting boys who can swim in ice water,” I said.

Isolfr gave me one perfect, dazzling smiling. “I’m not a normal boy.”

• • • • • • • • • • • 

THE WIZARD'S PROMISE

All Hanna Euli wants is to become a proper witch – but unfortunately, she’s stuck as an apprentice to a grumpy fisherman. When their boat gets caught up in a mysterious storm and blown wildly off course, Hanna finds herself further away from home than she’s ever been before.

As she tries to get back, she learns there may be more to her apprentice master than she realized, especially when a mysterious, beautiful, and very non-human boy begins following her through the ocean, claiming that he needs Hanna’s help.

Amazon • Goodreads

• • • • • • • • • • • 

CASSANDRA ROSE CLARKE

 Photo: Brittany at Flashbox Shop

Cassandra Rose Clarke grew up in south Texas and currently lives in a suburb of Houston, where she writes and teaches composition at a local college. She graduated in 2006 from The University of St. Thomas with a B.A. in English, and two years later she completed her master’s degree in creative writing at The University of Texas at Austin. In 2010 she attended the Clarion West Writer’s Workshop in Seattle, where she was a recipient of the Susan C. Petrey Clarion Scholarship Fund.

Cassandra’s first adult novel, The Mad Scientist’s Daughter, was a finalist for the 2013 Philip K. Dick Award, and her YA novel, The Assassin’s Curse, was nominated for YALSA’s 2014 Best Fiction for Young Adults. Her short fiction has appeared in Strange Horizons and Daily Science Fiction.

Website • Facebook • Twitter • Goodreads

Stolen Songbird Blog Tour: Interview + Giveaway

Today I'm absurdly excited to welcome author Danielle L. Jensen to the blog to celebrate the upcoming release of her young adult fantasy novel, Stolen Songbird. I couldn't have loved this book any more if I tried, it simply blew me away with its rich storytelling and characterization, and I need the next book in my hands like I need chocolate on a bad day. Danielle was nice enough to answer a few questions about Stolen Songbird for me, so I hope you all enjoy the interview, but even more so I hope you add this book to your lists!

If Cecile were starring in a musical production or opera about her time in Trollus, what would the titles of her opening and closing numbers be?

She’d open with My Day Went From Bad To Worse and close with Feeling All The Feels.

You wake up one morning and find yourself in the labyrinth surrounding Trollus. What character from any book, movie or TV show would you most want with you to help you navigate your way through?

Ack! Waking up in a dark enclosed space is one of my worst nightmares! Hmmm, surviving the labyrinth requires intelligence more than anything, so I think I’d want to be there with the BBC’s Sherlock Holmes. I’m confident he could find his way out, and if not, meeting my end with Benedict Cumberbatch wouldn’t be the worst way to go. 

We don't know too much about the witch who cursed the trolls by the end of Stolen Songbird, but what we do learn raises some interesting questions. Who is your all-time favorite witch, good or evil, from any piece of fiction?

Right now, my favourite witch is absolutely Angelina Jolie as Maleficent. Have you seen the most recent trailer? The little laugh she does at the end pretty much epitomizes evil. I really enjoy when the bad guy/gal is the protagonist, because I think it’s a mark of great storytelling when you find yourself wanting them to succeed in their diabolical plan. 

Cecile knows Tristan is keeping some big secrets from her, but she holds out hope that in time he'll trust her enough to share them. What's one small thing–a quirk or habit of his–that Tristan would prefer Cecile never know about?

That he can’t sing a note :) Tristan totally has a Type-A personality that drives him to be good at everything he does, but despite his best efforts even his whistling is out of tune. It’s one of the reasons he admires her abilities so much. Not that he’d ever confess to it. 

If you lived in the palace with Cecile and had access to the extensive library, what books would you most wish were on the shelves?

That depends. If I were a human prisoner like Cecile, I’d probably go searching for books that explained the trolls’ mysterious history and origin – a secret book full of answers. But if I were a troll living in the palace, I’d probably be like Tristan and want the shelves to be full of escapist novels, because I’d be endlessly fascinated by what life was like in the outside world.

There is many a story about the trolls that human parents in Cecile’s world use as cautionary tales for their children. If Cecile was able to get a message to her family (without breaking any oath) regarding what the trolls are really like, what would she most want them to know?

That appearances are not always what they seem.

Two of Tristan's closest friends, the twins, are hugely competitive. If they lived in our world, what competitive sport do you think they would most excel at or most like to play?

I think the twins would excel at track and field sports like shotput, javalin, longjump, and hurdles, because they appeal to their strengths. However, Victoria and Vincent are always up for obscure challenges, so I think if you proposed a dance-off, they would not decline. They might even ask you to judge. 

One might describe Stolen Songbird as dark given the lack of natural light in Trollus. What one word might you use to describe book two?

Well, I’m not done writing it yet, but so far it’s an uneasy sort of book. Everyone is very tense, so I think that’s the word I’ll go with. Stolen Songbird is dark, but there are a lot of light-hearted moments. In the sequel, the stakes are higher and the characters are faced with a lot of difficult choices. I’m much crueler to all my characters in the sequel – I don’t think anyone gets by unscathed. Not even the twins…

*Jenny bites off all her nails and heads to the kitchen for chocolate...*

• • • • • • • • • • • 

STOLEN SONGBIRD

For five centuries, a witch’s curse has bound the trolls to their city beneath the ruins of Forsaken Mountain. Time enough for their dark and nefarious magic to fade from human memory and into myth. But a prophesy has been spoken of a union with the power to set the trolls free, and when Cécile de Troyes is kidnapped and taken beneath the mountain, she learns there is far more to the myth of the trolls than she could have imagined.

Cécile has only one thing on her mind after she is brought to Trollus: escape. Only the trolls are clever, fast, and inhumanly strong. She will have to bide her time, wait for the perfect opportunity.

But something unexpected happens while she’s waiting – she begins to fall for the enigmatic troll prince to whom she has been bonded and married. She begins to make friends. And she begins to see that she may be the only hope for the half-bloods – part troll, part human creatures who are slaves to the full-blooded trolls. There is a rebellion brewing. And her prince, Tristan, the future king, is its secret leader.

As Cécile becomes involved in the intricate political games of Trollus, she becomes more than a farmer’s daughter. She becomes a princess, the hope of a people, and a witch with magic powerful enough to change Trollus forever.

Goodreads • Amazon

• • • • • • • • • • • •

DANIELLE L. JENSEN 

Danielle was born and raised in Calgary, Canada. At the insistence of the left side of her brain, she graduated in 2003 from the University of Calgary with a bachelor’s degree in finance. But the right side of her brain has ever been mutinous; and in 2010, it sent her back to school to complete an entirely impractical English literature degree at Mount Royal University and to pursue publication. Much to her satisfaction, the right side shows no sign of relinquishing its domination.

Website • Facebook • Twitter 

• • • • • • • • • • • • 

GIVEAWAY

Thanks to Danielle, I have a signed copy of Stolen Songbird up for grabs today! To enter, please just fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Giveaway is open to US/Canada only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Under Nameless Stars Blog Tour: Guest Post + Giveaway

I'm thrilled today to be a part of the promotional blog tour for Under Nameless Stars, the second book in the Zenn Scarlett series by Christian Schoon. As this series involves all sorts of fascinating science fiction-related things, like traveling through space and life as an exoveterinarian, I thought I'd ask Christian if his leading lady Zenn had any good tips for those of us who have yet to experience space travel for ourselves.

There's a fabulous competition and giveaway associated with this tour, so be sure and check out the bottom of the post for all the details as well as a link to the full list of participating blogs. Welcome to Supernatural Snark Christian!

Hi and thanks for letting Zenn and I tie up the “Under Nameless Stars Blog-Tour-and-Party-Shuttle Craft” to the mooring-mast high above the Supernatural Snark Nature Park/Bookish Emporium. 

Without further ado: Zenn Scarlett’s Top 5 Rules for Interstellar Travel (when you find yourself with no ticket for said travel. Caution: may contain minor spoilers. Proceed at your own risk.)

• When smuggling oneself aboard a starliner inside a crate-cage that also contains a large sandhog boar, double check to ensure that your sedation field generator is in good repair. A faulty seda-field unit could allow the sandhog to regain consciousness at an inopportune moment. As any certified exoveterinarian will tell you, sandhogs are unpredictable by nature and frequently aggressive. Since these creatures attain mature body lengths of over twelve feet and weights in excess of two thousand pounds, being confined inside a crate with a fully awake animal of this species could result in serious bodily harm or death.

• After successfully smuggling oneself aboard a starliner (whether by cage-crate or other means), take immediate steps to secure a discrete location in which to conceal yourself.  One optimal solution: befriend, or have yourself befriended by, a fellow passenger who actually has a ticket and a cabin for the duration of the voyage. If this fellow traveler happens to have a refreshingly jaunty sense of humor and also be wealthy enough to afford a luxury suite of rooms, all the better.

• In the highly unlikely event you’re invited to visit the Indra chamber of the starliner, inquire whether the ship’s captain has informed the Indra groom of your visit to the pilot room. Indra grooms are notoriously protective of their chambers and are likely to resent any distracting intrusions, especially around the time period when they enter into their trance-like communion with the Indra. (For those unfamiliar: Indra, also known as Stonehorses, are 700-foot-long vacuum-dwelling creatures that have evolved the capacity to “tunnel” through the space-time continuum, propelling starliners across vast distances in mere nano-seconds. Indra grooms direct the Indra in these travels).

• In the starliner dining saloons, pay careful attention to the small placards designating which foods are suitable for consumption by which species of passenger. The placards are color-coded for easy referral. In no instance confuse the green of the “Safe for Humanoids” placard with the somewhat similar blue-green “Safe for Zeta Reticulani” placard. Human travelers making this mistake have been known to spend the remainder of their journey locked in their cabin’s bathrooms emitting bovine-like moo-ing vocalizations.

• Be aware that should your starship fall prey to what is commonly referred to as “The Vanishing Indra-Ship Crisis,” your starliner’s company will deny responsibility for any liability relating to this event. Since the vanishing of these ships has been designated “An Act of the Gods” by the controlling legal authorities of the Local Systems Accord, your surviving relatives will be unable to file a claim for damages resulting from your loss and/or death. However, should you at some future time re-appear, most starliner companies will compensate you with free second-class passage to your home planet from the point of your re-appearance.

• • • • • • • • • • • •

UNDER NAMELESS STARS

Zenn Scarlett’s novice year of exoveterinarian training on Mars isn’t quite going to plan…

After facing a plot to destroy her school and its menagerie of alien patients, could things get worse? Yes, they could: her absent father has been kidnapped.

Desperate to find him, Zenn stows away aboard the Helen of Troy, a starliner powered by one of the immense, dimension-jumping beasts known as Indra. With her is Liam Tucker, a Martian boy who is either very fond of her, very dangerous to her, or both. On the verge of learning the truth about her father, Zenn’s quest suddenly catapults her and Liam thousands of light years beyond known space, and into the dark heart of a monstrous conspiracy.

Braving a gauntlet of lethal environments and unearthly life forms, Zenn’s courage is tested as never before. With the fate of entire worlds in the balance, she is racing headlong into trouble… again.

Amazon • B&N • Goodreads

• • • • • • • • • • • 

CHRISTIAN SCHOON

Christian Schoon grew up in Minnesota, and worked his way through college in a succession of rock bands before earning his degree from the U of Nebraska-Lincoln School of Journalism.

Following a stint as an in-house copywriter/scriptwriter at Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, he supplied freelance copy for the entertainment industry and scriptwriting for live-action and animated TV.

Currently, he writes from his 150-year-old farmstead in Iowa which he shares with a fluctuating number of horses (generally less than a dozen, but not always), 30 or so cats, a dog, three ferrets and a surprisingly tolerant wife.

The Zenn Scarlett books are his first novels, however he admits to being an unrepentant fan of science fiction and fantasy ever since discovering the tales of Edgar Rice Burroughs in the fifth grade.

Website • Twitter • Goodreads

• • • • • • • • • • • • 

GIVEAWAY

Thanks to the amazing team at Strange Chemistry, I have a really fun giveaway to share with you all today. Up for grabs are copies (either ebook or physical) of both Zenn Scarlett and Under Nameless Stars, plus a Name Your Own Star Gift Package! To enter, you must answer the below question in the Rafflecopter form. Each tour stop has a question associated with it, so be sure and check out the full list of participating blogs for more chances to win!

The answers to the questions can be found in the book's blurb and author profile (seen above) as well as the author's blog and an extract from the book. Good luck everyone!

TODAY'S QUESTION (Question 9) :

Liam's shirt is made of

a. Synth-cloth

b. Plastic

c. Hemp-cloth

d. Unbleached cotton

a Rafflecopter giveaway