welcome blog: Delightful Debutantes #28: Brodi Ashton & Everneath.

Thanks to Brodi Ashton for stopping by the blog today! Everneath is one of my favourite reads and a book I would recommend to anyone! It's so good!

Read on for a Delightful Debutantes interview in which I quiz Brodi about all things Everneath and do a little fangirling for Jack Caputo. Love that guy!

From inspiration to publication: Can you tell me what inspired you to write Everneath and also give me a quick rundown of your path to publication?

-The story about a girl returning to her high school after a long mysterious absence has been floating around in my head for years, but it wasn't the first book I ever wrote. My first book got me an agent, but not a book deal. While he was submitting the book, though, and all I could do was wait, I decided to work on another book based on that scene in my head- of the broken girl returning home. That book became EVERNEATH.

-It turns out my first book didn't sell, and my agent at the time didn't like EVERNEATH, so we split ways. For a moment I was in limbo, but then I queried agents and received several offers of representation for EVERNEATH, so I knew it was something worth fighting for. I went with my agent, Michael Bourret, who's vision for EVERNEATH was right on track with my own. He sold it in a pre-empt to HarperCollins as a trilogy.

-I've made the process seem much shorter than it actually was, because it took me four years. Also, I left out a lot of the rejection, sorrow and angst, because that stuff's boring, and not a little depressing. :) Every day I realize how lucky I am to be getting paid for doing something I love!

It’s well known amongst readers of my blog that I like YA romances that break the YA Insta-Love mould, which is one of the reasons I loved the relationship between Nikki and Jack in Everneath. It also helps that I pretty much immediately fell head-over-heels for Jack Caputo. Can you tell me some of your favourite literary romances? Did any of these inspire the romance in Everneath?

-Oh, Jack Caputo. He is an amalgam of so many of my favorite characters. Mostly with Jack, I wanted to make him very real, and layered, with good qualities and some not-so-good qualities. I wanted the romance to be between two people who had no special abilities. I wanted to show that Jack was flawed, and he made mistakes, but sometimes the most beautiful things in life are flawed.
- Of course, my husband would want me to tell you I based Jack off of him. :)

I have to ask about Cole too. I know I should avoid him, but I can’t help but be intrigued by that Immortal bad boy rocker. I just can’t resist a boy in a band. If you could pick a theme song for Cole, what would it be?

"Never Let Me Go," by Florence + the Machine, or "Ulysses" by Franz Ferdinand.

What was your favourite scene to write in Everneath? Do you have a favourite passage or quote you’d like to share?

-My favorite scene was... any scene with Jack and Nikki. Especially the scene in Jack's bedroom where Nikki tries to come clean about where she's been and why she's different.

-As for favorite quote, I love the one from Mrs. Stone: "Heroes are made by the paths they choose, not the powers they are graced with." Even though my book is "paranormal", I wanted the heroes to be very real, and very normal. I wanted the heroic actions to be based on choices, rather than strength.

Can you name three other books that readers of Everneath might also enjoy?

-I'm really bad at comparing my book to others out there. But how about I give three books that I've read lately that I've enjoyed? 1. INCARNATE by Jodi Meadows 2. UNDER THE NEVER SKY by Veronica Rossi 3. THE SAVAGE GRACE by Bree Despain

What was your last five star ‘so good I couldn’t put it down’ read?

DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE by Laini Taylor

So, I’m already pining for book #2 and I know you probably can’t tell me too much about it right now, but if there’s anything you can share, I’d love to hear it and I’m sure my readers would too.

I can't share much! But I will say that if you've read all of book 1, you will have a good idea of what needs to happen in book 2, and where Nikki needs to go. :)

Thanks so much for having me on the blog! I'm a fan. :)