HOLY BABY JESUS YOU GUYS. I am honoured and thrilled to be on the ACOTAR blog tour and to share with you guys my Q&A with Sarah! I've asked her some (non-spoilery) questions about A Court of Thorns and Roses and honest to God, I'm wriggling in my seat just reading her responses. I hope you enjoy! Many thanks to Bloomsbury for hosting the tour (: I'm gonna save my fangirling for my review but y'all should already know how much I absolutely adore Sarah and ALL her books. She is an auto-buy author for me. Feyre, Tamlin, Lucien, Rhysand <3 ACOTAR is AMAZINGGGGGGGGGG. Swoony, beautiful, lyrical and so full of passion. Love love love.
May 6: Bookish Broads, Dark Readers, & Fiction in Fiction in Fiction
May 7: Paper Riot
May 8: Polished Page-Turners, So Many Books, So Little Time , & Behind the Pages
May 11: Novel Sounds & Alexa Loves Books
May 12: Icey Books
May 13: Jenuine Cupcakes & Writer of Wrongs
May 14: What Sarah Read & Andi’s ABCs
May 15: Fiction Fare & Belle of the Literati
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Date Released: May 5th (US), May 7th (AU/UK)
Buy Links:
US - Bloomsbury, Amazon, Kindle, Barnes & Noble, Nook, IndieBound, iBookstoreUK - Bloomsbury, Bloomsbury eBook, Amazon
Australia - Bloomsbury, Bloomsbury eBook, Kindle,iBookstore, Kobo, Google Play, Bookworld, Booktopia
Synopsis:
"Feyre’s survival rests upon her ability to hunt and kill – the forest where she lives is a cold, bleak place in the long winter months. So when she spots a deer in the forest being pursued by a wolf, she cannot resist fighting it for the flesh. But to do so, she must kill the predator and killing something so precious comes at a price.
Dragged to a magical kingdom for the murder of a faerie, Feyre discovers that her captor, his face obscured by a jewelled mask, is hiding far more than his piercing green eyes would suggest. Feyre’s presence at the court is closely guarded, and as she begins to learn why, her feelings for him turn from hostility to passion and the faerie lands become an even more dangerous place. Feyre must fight to break an ancient curse, or she will lose him forever."
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Q&A with Sarah J Maas
Honestly, I don’t quite remember, but I recall looking up alternative names to “Beauty” or “Belle” and came across “Feyre” as an old spelling of fair (…which means pretty/beautiful/etc.), and loved how it also had the “Fey” element in it. (It’s pronounced “Fay-ruh”, btw!)
2. Was it challenging to choose which parts of the Beauty and the Beast fairytale to adapt into ACOTAR, which parts would come from fey folklore and which would be your own?
No, actually. While writing, I just let my gut guide me. So if I didn’t want to incorporate certain elements of the folklore that inspired it, I didn’t include them. I thought of the book as an original fantasy with a fairytale retelling bend to it—which gave me way more freedom that clinging to a straight-up retelling, I think.
3. What made you decide on art as Feyre’s hobby?
It actually wasn’t in the first draft—the art was something that came in later revisions, as I delved more deeply into Feyre’s character. I wanted her to have some passions, some interests—something she might have suppressed for years in favour of keeping her family alive and fed. And when I read back through the book, I realized that her descriptions of things were so vivid, so bright—always full of color and texture. It was if she’d been telling me all along that art—that color and light and all of that—was where her heart lay.
4. It’s a well known fact to your readers that your books tend to get darker as they progress – how much darker will the rest of the series be? (How much will we need to steel our hearts?)
Hahaha, ummmmm. It’s so hard to say without spoiling, but I’d say yes—the books get a bit darker, but that’s because Feyre is now discovering just how brutal and dark the world of Prythian can be. (…on the plus side, lots of steamytimes ahead!)
5. How many more swoon-worthy men will you be introducing to the series? :D
There are…two new men coming in Book 2 that I am suuuuper excited about. (And a few others that are pretty hot, actually, but don’t have as big a role to play.) I feel like the title for Book 2 should be A Court of Abs and Pecs.
2. Was it challenging to choose which parts of the Beauty and the Beast fairytale to adapt into ACOTAR, which parts would come from fey folklore and which would be your own?
No, actually. While writing, I just let my gut guide me. So if I didn’t want to incorporate certain elements of the folklore that inspired it, I didn’t include them. I thought of the book as an original fantasy with a fairytale retelling bend to it—which gave me way more freedom that clinging to a straight-up retelling, I think.
3. What made you decide on art as Feyre’s hobby?
It actually wasn’t in the first draft—the art was something that came in later revisions, as I delved more deeply into Feyre’s character. I wanted her to have some passions, some interests—something she might have suppressed for years in favour of keeping her family alive and fed. And when I read back through the book, I realized that her descriptions of things were so vivid, so bright—always full of color and texture. It was if she’d been telling me all along that art—that color and light and all of that—was where her heart lay.
4. It’s a well known fact to your readers that your books tend to get darker as they progress – how much darker will the rest of the series be? (How much will we need to steel our hearts?)
Hahaha, ummmmm. It’s so hard to say without spoiling, but I’d say yes—the books get a bit darker, but that’s because Feyre is now discovering just how brutal and dark the world of Prythian can be. (…on the plus side, lots of steamytimes ahead!)
5. How many more swoon-worthy men will you be introducing to the series? :D
There are…two new men coming in Book 2 that I am suuuuper excited about. (And a few others that are pretty hot, actually, but don’t have as big a role to play.) I feel like the title for Book 2 should be A Court of Abs and Pecs.
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Thank you so much for your time Sarah! I hope you enjoyed that everybody. How wonderful were those answers? I thought I saved the best question for last. NOW LET THE COUNTDOWN BEGIN FOR ACOTAR #2! But first... QUEEN OF SHADOWS! (A COURT OF ABS AND PECS THOUGH PLS?)
Sarah J. Maas is the New York Times, USA Today, and internationally bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series (Queen of Shadows, the fourth book, will release globally on September 1st, 2015) and the A Court of Thorns and Roses series (out starting May 5th, 2015). She currently resides with her husband and loyal canine companion in Pennsylvania. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Hamilton College in 2008 with a degree in Creative Writing, and a minor in Religious Studies. Sarah is represented by Tamar Rydzinski of the Laura Dail Literary Agency.
About Sarah
Sarah J. Maas is the New York Times, USA Today, and internationally bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series (Queen of Shadows, the fourth book, will release globally on September 1st, 2015) and the A Court of Thorns and Roses series (out starting May 5th, 2015). She currently resides with her husband and loyal canine companion in Pennsylvania. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Hamilton College in 2008 with a degree in Creative Writing, and a minor in Religious Studies. Sarah is represented by Tamar Rydzinski of the Laura Dail Literary Agency.
Sarah's website
Throne of Glass Facebook
World of Sarah J Maas
Sarah's Twitter
Stay tuned for my review of A Court of Thorns and Roses (:
Throne of Glass Facebook
World of Sarah J Maas
Sarah's Twitter
Stay tuned for my review of A Court of Thorns and Roses (:
More guys? How can there be even more guys? Well, let me state it for posterity. TEAM RHYS FOREVER.
ReplyDeleteYASSSS RHYS IS MY FAV <3 more guys = more for us Kara!
DeleteHow can one person come up with so many great guys?? Sarah J Maas is amazing. Great interview and her answers are the best! ...wait a minute...Sarah J Maas lives in Pennsylvania?? *dies of happiness*
ReplyDeleteI honestly love every single guy Sarah writes. Her men are so darn amazing.
DeleteA COURT OF ABS AND PECS HAHAHA DYING. Someone write that, please. Also, OMGOSH I can't believe you interviewed Sarah J Maas - does that mean I'm famous by association now? ACOTAR was just so good. I'm still stunned haha.
ReplyDeleteIKR. I SAW THAT AND DIED BECAUSE IT'S SO PERFECT. The other 2 Aussie stops also have Q&A w/ Sarah (: and you're already famous Emily! ACOTAR is like my fav new bk1 of this year.
DeleteHahahha abs and pecs and steamy times ahead, yes please! Gosh, two new men to swoon over? MAAS is my queen! Really awesome interview Jaz, loved the questions and answers!
ReplyDeleteThat last question is the question I knew everybody had on their minds (;
DeleteThis is a beautifully crafted and honestly told story of love against the odds, it's a tale of hatred overcome and how everyone deserves a chance regardless of who, or what, they are, a chance to prove they aren't what they seem on the outside and that the most important aspects of a person is what is within the outer facade.... beauty, compassion and love come from within and not from without.
ReplyDeleteMarlene
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