Interview with Rin Chupeco for Wicked As You Wish

Wicked As You Wish (A Hundred Names for Magic #1)

by Rin Chupeco

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Release Date: March 3rd 2020

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy 

Synopsis: 

An unforgettable alternative history fairytale series from the author of The Bone Witch trilogy about found family, modern day magic, and finding the place you belong.

Many years ago, the magical Kingdom of Avalon was left desolate and encased in ice when the evil Snow Queen waged war on the powerful country. Its former citizens are now refugees in a world mostly devoid of magic. Which is why the crown prince and his protectors are stuck in...Arizona.

Prince Alexei, the sole survivor of the Avalon royal family, is in hiding in a town so boring, magic doesn't even work there. Few know his secret identity, but his friend Tala is one of them. Tala doesn't mind—she has secrets of her own. Namely, that she's a spellbreaker, someone who negates magic.

Then hope for their abandoned homeland reignites when a famous creature of legend, and Avalon's most powerful weapon, the Firebird, appears for the first time in decades. Alex and Tala unite with a ragtag group of new friends to journey back to Avalon for a showdown that will change the world as they know it.

Can you briefly describe WICKED AS YOU WISH and its characters?

WICKED AS YOU WISH is a story where fairytales are a part of world history, where a Filipina teen named Tala, who can negate magic, finds herself aiding the exile prince of Avalon in his fight against the Snow Queen as he tries to get back his kingdom, Avalon, frozen and inaccessible for close to twelve years. And it all starts when the most powerful weapon his family possesses - a firebird - lands on his doorstep.

Who would you say is your favourite character from the story and why?

There’s bits of me in the main cast, so that’s always been a hard question. I would definitely go with Tala, because I put a lot of my own personal experiences into her story and tend to be protective of her. And also definitely the firebird, who’s just a funny but annoying little ass.

How did the story occur to you? Did you find inspiration anywhere?

I love fairytales, and when I was a kid I legit thought that fairytales WERE a part of history, so I just continued to build up on my old assumptions from there.

If you could choose one song to describe your book, which one would it be?

“Count on Me” by Bruno Mars seem pretty perfect to me. Especially this part, because it absolutely encapsulates both the family and the found family aspects of WICKED AS YOU WISH that I believe is one of the book’s most focal points: 

If you ever find yourself stuck in the middle of the sea,

I'll sail the world to find you

If you ever find yourself lost in the dark and you can't see,

I'll be the light to guide you

Find out what we're made of

When we are called to help our friends in need

If your book was going to be made into a movie, who would play your characters?

Tala: Ylona Garcia

Alex: George Shelley

Kensington: Makenyu Maeda

Loki: Min Junqian

West: Noah Schnapp

Zoe: Millie Bobby Brown

Cole: Diego Tinoco

Nya: Marsai Martin

Kay (Tala’s father): Rory McCann

Snow Queen: Eva Green

the firebird: if it could talk it would have chaotic Danny Devito energy

What drink and place do you think will go with your book to have a perfect book date?

As my favorite place to go and write the book was at a lot of Korean grills, I would heartily recommend that! I also think that a buffet is sort of the best kind of dining to describe the book - it features different kinds of cuisines all over the world, but they’re cuisines that I am intimately familiar with, and it’s the best place to eat when you’re with your friends!

Can you recommend your readers any other books in case they are left hungry for more once they finish WICKED AS YOU WISH?

The Foxheart middle grade series by Claire Legrand is sweet and sad and magical, and you can’t go wrong with a reread of the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer!

What would you say is the most difficult part of writing a book?

Not getting bogged down by the middle. Drafts always looks different than the setup you have of them in your head, so it’s hard pushing through, especially because I have a tendency to nitpick and go over a scene and getting stuck there for days instead of revising for later!

What’s next for you?

I just finished writing the sequel, and then there’s a final book after that! I also have WIPs for a very strange Filipino middle grade story, and conversely also for a very strange adult fantasy, and am still deciding which one to prioritize afterward!

Despite an unsettling resemblance to Japanese revenants, Rin always maintains her sense of hummus. Born and raised in Manila, Philippines, she keeps four pets: a dog, two birds, and a husband. Dances like the neighbors are watching.

She is represented by Rebecca Podos of the Helen Rees Agency. She is also fond of speaking in the third person, and may as well finish this short bio in this manner. While she does not always get to check her Goodreads page, she does answer questions posed to her here as promptly as she is able to.

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Pre-order Promotion: Jesse's Girl (Hundred Oaks) by Miranda Kenneally

PRE-ORDER JESSE'S GIRL AND GET LOTS OF PRIZES!

Everyone who emails teenfire@sourcebooks.com will automatically receive an email of the EXCLUSIVE Jesse’s Girl Playlist, and will be invited to attend a LIVE online author event on July 6, the day before Jesse’s Girl goes on-sale!

In addition, if you pre-order the book and send your proof of purchase (and mailing address) to teenfire@sourcebooks.com, you’ll not only get the exclusive playlist and event invite, but you’ll also receive a signed/personalized bookplate, a super-cute custom guitar pick, and entered to win a $300 gift card to TicketMaster so you can go to a concert or musical or some other fun event.

Jesse's Girl (Hundred Oaks)
by Miranda Kenneally
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Release Date: July 7th 2015

Synopsis:

Practice Makes Perfect.

Everyone at Hundred Oaks High knows that career mentoring day is a joke. So when Maya Henry said she wanted to be a rock star, she never imagined she’d get to shadow *the* Jesse Scott, Nashville’s teen idol.

But spending the day with Jesse is far from a dream come true. He’s as gorgeous as his music, but seeing all that he’s accomplished is just a reminder of everything Maya’s lost: her trust, her boyfriend, their band, and any chance to play the music she craves. Not to mention that Jesse’s pushy and opinionated. He made it on his own, and he thinks Maya’s playing back up to other people’s dreams. Does she have what it takes to follow her heart—and go solo?

As much as I love music, I am generally not a fan of country. I don’t like banjos. I don’t like sappy lyrics about trucks and hauling hay. Dolly Parton is my mortal enemy—my mom plays “Jolene” over and over and over and over, and it makes me want to chop my ears off like van Gogh. Yeah, yeah, I’m from Tennessee, where it’s a crime if you don’t love country, but I like deep, rumbling beats and singing loud and fast and hard. I do not like closing my eyes and crooning to a cow in the pasture. Yet here I am at a Jesse Scott concert, getting ready to meet him and to see if he’ll let me shadow him next Friday.  

My school requires every senior to “shadow” a professional for a day. It’s their way of helping us figure out what kind of career we want. Like, if you want to be president when you grow up, you might get to shadow the mayor. Want to be a chef? Have fun kneading dough at the Donut Palace. When I said “I want to be a musician,” I figured they’d send me to work in the electronics section at Walmart. 

I certainly never expected to shadow the king of country music. 

It turns out that Jesse Scott is my principal’s nephew. Jesse won TV’s Wannabe Rocker when he was ten and has gone on to become very successful. In sixth grade, every girl in class—myself included—took the Teen Beat quiz: “Would Jesse Scott Like Your Kissing Style?” (Obviously the answer was yes.) In middle school, I had a Jesse Scott poster on my ceiling. It’s hard to believe he’s only eighteen, because he’s already won three Grammys. When he was younger, his songs were about family, fishing, and playing baseball, but lately they’re about love and making love and all things sexy.  

I wouldn’t say I’m a fan anymore, but I would never give up an opportunity to learn from a professional with such a gorgeous, pure voice. I want to learn what it’s like to perform day in and day out. Despite what everyone and their mom says—that I’ll struggle as a musician—all I want is to play guitar in front of a crowd and hear people cheer for me. 

I can’t believe I’m backstage at the Grand Ole Opry! I bounce on my toes. Jesus, is that an archtop Super 4, the model Elvis played? I’ve never seen one in real life. It probably cost more than my house. I’m ogling the guitar when Jesse Scott comes out of the bathroom, drying his hair with a towel. He pads across the room to the couch, wearing nothing but a pair of rugged jeans with more holes than Swiss cheese. The lighting is dim, and he doesn’t seem to notice I’m here, which is good, because I’ve moved from ogling the guitar to ogling him.  

Who wouldn’t? He was one of People magazine’s “50 Most Beautiful People,” and it is a truth universally acknowledged that you should stare at people who’ve made that list. The guy’s gorgeous. Like in the boy-next-door way. His wet, wavy, brown hair curls around his ears and nearly hits his shoulders, and while he doesn’t have a six-pack or anything, his body is fit. I wish he’d look my way so I can see his famous brown eyes. They always remind me of those caramel chews Poppy gives me when I visit. Jesse has some sort of Gaelic symbol tattooed on his left shoulder blade. I want to reach out and trace the design. 

God, get ahold of yourself, Maya. Don’t be a horndog. Besides, he’s so not my type. I don’t do pretty boys.

Growing up in Tennessee, Miranda Kenneally dreamed of becoming an Atlanta Brave, a country singer (cliché!), or a UN interpreter. Instead she writes, and works for the State Department in Washington, D.C., where George W. Bush once used her shoulder as an armrest. Miranda loves Twitter, Star Trek and her husband.

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Breathe, Annie, Breathe (Hundred Oaks #5) by Miranda Kenneally

Breathe, Annie, Breathe (Hundred Oaks #5)
by Miranda Kenneally
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Release Date: July 15th 2014

Rate: Enjoyed it (4 stars)

Synopsis:

Annie hates running. No matter how far she jogs, she can’t escape the guilt that if she hadn’t broken up with Kyle, he might still be alive. So to honor his memory, she starts preparing for the marathon he intended to race.

But the training is even more grueling than Annie could have imagined. Despite her coaching, she’s at war with her body, her mind—and her heart. With every mile that athletic Jeremiah cheers her on, she grows more conflicted. She wants to run into his arms…and sprint in the opposite direction. For Annie, opening up to love again may be even more of a challenge than crossing the finish line.

"Breathe, Annie, Breathe is an emotional, heartfelt, and beautiful story about finding yourself after loss and learning to love. It gave me so many feels. Her best book yet." — Jennifer Armentrout, New York Times bestselling author of Wait for You

In my opinion, all books by Miranda Kenneally are the perfect definition of a great contemporary young adult story that makes the reader smile after finishing it and wanting more. Breathe, Annie, Breathe is no different than the other Hundred Oaks books; it's the perfect YA read for this summer and one you do not want to miss.

Annie is a girl that tries to run to escape the past, the guilt and the hurt of her boyfriend's death. Hunted by the "what if", she's training to run a marathon in his honor, so you can get an idea what theme Ms. Kenneally focused on this time. It's absolutely crazy what we can learn from Annie and his training and preparation. You have an insight to the sports life from the perspective of Annie and is beyond realistic and impressive.

Breathe, Annie, Breathe holds a lot of emotions that I was expecting just by reading the synopsis of the book. But no one prepared me for the full height of them all. There's a good dose of drama, a lot of getting through a rough past and learning to stop running and there's also time to new relationships. 

What helped to get me hooked to this story from the very first page? The amazingly built characters, their personality and their imperfections that gave a realistic touch to everything on the story bringing Annie's story to life before my eyes. I liked that you couldn't forget a single character from this story (even the secondary ones) because everyone had their moment in the story and it was memorable.

As for those readers who do not like love at first sight, this is definitely your story. Annie and Jeremiah have a friendship in which he tries to support her and comfort her, even in the hardest and messiest moments. Jeremiah's there and that support and friendship leads to something incredibly worth reading about and being a witness of it.

I am definitely a Hundred Oaks fan and I am fascinated by Ms. Kenneally's work. I think she writes stories full of emotion, realistic and is as if she can read the mind of dozen teenager and with that create unforgivable characters and emotional stories.

Breathe, Annie, Breathe is one of them and it shows us that sometimes running from our pain, hurt and guilt is not the solution and even though it might seem impossible finding love in our darkest moments is possible. And this is why this book is one of my favorite YA reads of this year and why I am recommend it to every YA fan.

Growing up in Tennessee, Miranda Kenneally dreamed of becoming an Atlanta Brave, a country singer (cliché!), or a UN interpreter. Instead she writes, and works for the State Department in Washington, D.C., where George W. Bush once used her shoulder as an armrest. Miranda loves Twitter, Star Trek and her husband.

Tour wide giveaway:

(Ends July 29th)

-2x 50$ B&N Gift Card

-3x Signed copy of Breathe, Annie, Breathe

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