FFBC: Welcome to the club, The Night We Said Yes by Lauren Gibaldi

The Night We Said Yes
by Lauren Gibaldi
Publisher: Harper Teen
Release Date: June 16th 2015
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit, Music

Synopsis:

A fun, romantic read, perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen and Susane Colasanti!

Before Matt, Ella had a plan. Get over a no-good ex-boyfriend. Graduate from high school without any more distractions. Move away from Orlando, Florida, where she’s lived her entire life. 

But Matt—the cute, shy, bespectacled bass player who just moved to town—was never part of that plan.

And neither was attending a party that was crashed by the cops just minutes after they arrived. Or spending an entire night saying “yes” to every crazy, fun thing they could think of.

Then Matt abruptly left town, and he broke not only Ella’s heart but those of their best friends, too. So when he shows up a year later with a plan of his own—to relive the night that brought them together—Ella isn’t sure whether Matt’s worth a second chance. Or if re-creating the past can help them create a different future. 

In alternating then and now chapters, debut author Lauren Gibaldi crafts a charming, romantic story of first loves, lifelong friendships, uncovered secrets, and, ultimately, finding out how to be brave.

Hello Lauren! Welcome to the FFBC ! We are super excited to have you in our FFBC tours!

Thank you for having me! I’m so excited!

THE NIGHT WE SAID YES is about four friends who say yes to every idea they have for one night. In the process, two of them, Ella and Matt, kind of fall for one another. Fast forward to a year later, when Matt’s been gone for about six months. He and Ella meet again and try to recreate the original night that brought them together, seeing if second chances are possible. The book flips back and forth from one year ago to the present time so you can see both nights unfolding at once. 

Ella and Matt have a lot in common—they’re both shy and silly and awkward and sweet. They’ve both played second place to someone in their lives (for Ella, her best friend Meg, and for Matt, his older brother Chris.) But where Ella flourishes in her friendships, Matt becomes nervous, as he’s not used to being so close to people. I don’t necessarily think they’re the perfect couple, but I think that’s what makes them work—their imperfectness. 

I love the idea that one night can change everything—that in one night, we can make things happen. I think we all get excited before a night out, wondering what will happen and who we’ll see. I wanted to capture that excitement in the book. As for inspiration from other places, I try not to get inspiration from shows and stuff because I’m terrified of accidentally borrowing plots! I will say I did listen to a lot of Taylor Swift and The Ataris (my favorite band when I was in high school) between writing. 

I think this quote summarizes it nicely: “It was the sense of possibility that I loved, the idea that anything could happen next.” My other favorite line is the last night, but I’m not going to quote that! 

Yes! There’s a scene in the Then section (a year ago) where they’re hanging out on a roof. For some reason, it’s my favorite scene. 

I keep answering this differently in each interview to keep it interesting, so here’s a new one! “Tonight the Streets Are Ours” by Richard Hawley. 

Super awesome! I actually haven’t thought of this much—I will say I had a lot of fun casting my book trailer. I used high school juniors and seniors, and they did a fantastic job (you can see yourself!) I think my Ella and Matt, specifically, were perfect. So let’s just say them. 

Ummm—I don’t know! I say just read and have fun! 

MATT’S STORY, a Night We Said Yes Novella about the year inbetween, as told by Matt, comes out August 4th with Epic Reads Impulse! I’m really excited for everyone to see Matt’s side of the story. Then, my second novel, AUTOFOCUS, comes out summer 2016. 

SO MANY! There are lots of obvious ones (Sarah Dessen! Gayle Forman! John Green!) so I’ll go with non-so-obvious from various categories. For adult fiction, J Courtney Sullivan and Carlos Ruiz Zafon; for non-fiction David Sedaris and Sarah Vowell; and from YA Jessica Martinez and Jenny Sanchez Torres.

Holding my ARC! I cried. 

I can’t pick just one. Can I just say every book written by a Fearless Fifteener? Because there’s so much amazingness there. 

Thank you so much for everything, Lauren!

Follow the The Night We Said Yes by Lauren Gibaldi Blog Tour and don't miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule.

Public librarian and author of THE NIGHT WE SAID YES (HarperCollins / HarperTeen, June 16, 2015) and MATT'S STORY (a The Night We Said Yes Novella, out August 2015). Fan of dinosaurs and cheesy jokes. And you.

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FFBC: Welcome to the club, Storm Siren (Storm Siren #1) by Mary Weber

Storm Siren (Storm Siren #1)
by Mary Weber
Publisher: Thomas Nelson / HarperCollins
Release Date: August 19th 2014

Synopsis:

“I raise my chin as the buyers stare. Yes. Look. You don’t want me. Because, eventually, accidentally, I will destroy you.”

In a world at war, a slave girl’s lethal curse could become one kingdom’s weapon of salvation. If the curse—and the girl—can be controlled.

As a slave in the war-weary kingdom of Faelen, seventeen-year-old Nym isn’t merely devoid of rights, her Elemental kind are only born male and always killed at birth — meaning, she shouldn’t even exist.

Standing on the auction block beneath smoke-drenched mountains, Nym faces her fifteenth sell. But when her hood is removed and her storm-summoning killing curse revealed, Nym is snatched up by a court advisor and given a choice: be trained as the weapon Faelen needs to win the war, or be killed.

Choosing the former, Nym is unleashed into a world of politics, bizarre parties, and rumors of an evil more sinister than she’s being prepared to fight . . . not to mention the handsome trainer whose dark secrets lie behind a mysterious ability to calm every lightning strike she summons.

But what if she doesn’t want to be the weapon they’ve all been waiting for?

Set in a beautifully eclectic world of suspicion, super abilities, and monsters, Storm Siren is a story of power. And whoever controls that power will win.

There are few things more exciting to discover than a debut novel packed with powerful storytelling and beautiful language. Storm Siren is one of those rarities. I'll read anything Mary Weber writes. More, please! - Jay Asher, New York Times Bestselling Author of Thirteen Reasons Why

Weber's debut novel is a tour de force! A story of guts, angst, bolcranes, sword fights and storms beyond imagining. Her heroine, a lightening-wielding young woman of immense power and a soft, questioning heart, captures you from word one and holds tight until the final line. Unwilling to let the journey go, I eagerly await Weber's (and Nym's) next adventure - Katherine Reay, author of Dear Mr. Knightley

A riveting read! Mary Weber's rich world and heartbreaking heroine had me from page one. You're going to fall in love with this love story - Jospehine Angelini, internationally bestselling author of the Starcrossed trilogy

Elegant prose and intricate world-building twist into a breathless cyclone of a story that will constantly keep you guessing. More please! - Shannon Messenger, author of the Sky Fall series

Mary Weber has created a fascinating, twisted world. Storm Siren sucked in  from page one - I couldn't stop reading! This is definite must-read, the kind of boo that kept me up late into the night turning the pages!  - Lindsay Cummings, author of The Murder Complex and The Firs of Calderon

Intense and Intriguing. Fans of high stakes fantasy won't be able to put it down - C.J. Redwine, author of Defiance

Aside from Goodreads, I hang out on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, and my BLOG. Come say hi!

Officially though: Mary Weber is a ridiculously uncoordinated girl plotting to take over make-believe worlds through books, handstands, and imaginary throwing knives. In her spare time, she feeds unicorns, sings 80’s hairband songs to her three muggle children, and ogles her husband who looks strikingly like Wolverine. They live in California, which is perfect for stalking L.A. bands, Joss Whedon, and the ocean. She likes orange trees, tattoos, and ALL the music. ;) 

BOOK 1 in my YA fantasy STORM SIREN trilogy releases Aug 2014 from Thomas Nelson, HarperCollins. Eep!

Okay, so I have a few! Howl’s Moving Castle (because Howl and Sophie!!), The Princess Bride (because William Goldman is a freaking genius), and The Scarlet Pimpernel. Oh, and ALL THE HARRY POTTERS ever.

Hmm. Doctor Who or Psych. Or wait…maybe Sherlock. I’m pretty sure Benedict Cumberbatch is my spirit animal.

Babe (yes, the pig movie) because it makes me ugly cry EVERY SINGLE TIME. Also, Lord of the Rings, because Aragorn.

Anything on the mix tapes that my husband makes for me. :)

I’m currently obsessed with this green bean, garlic, and pecan sauté that takes, like, five minutes to cook. Seriously, it’s SO GOOD!! However, lest I sound overly healthy, I also confess that CHEETOS are the nectar of heaven. So is Thai food. And Indian. And Thanksgiving dinner. And second breakfast… 

Definitely Howl from HOWL’S MOVING CASTLE. He’s gorgeous and arrogant and completely full of it. I also have a thing for Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey (from Dorothy Sayers’s books) because he’s British and detective-y and drinks tea in the bath.

I have this sweet piece of awesome taped to my writing desk:

People who choose kindness when they could do otherwise. Comic Con. Food. All the books. My husband and kids. Rain on windowpanes.

Cervantes. I would invite him to dinner and feed him Cheetos and demand he tell me his life story (and how he came up with DON QUIXOTE).

To quote one of my kiddos’ favorite movies: “Everything is awesome.” (And you’re so welcome for getting that song now stuck in your head for the rest of forever. :))

Hi Mary! We are really happy to host you in our FFBC. We are super excited to have Storm Siren as part of our FFBC. 

Awww thanks so much for having me! And I’m going to confess to you right up front that STORM SIREN might, uh…ahem…be my obsessive ode to The Last Airbender, Tolkien, Joan of Arc, and comic books. :0) It’s basically a YA fantasy about a slave girl with a lethal storm-summoning curse who’s purchased by her kingdom to be used as a weapon against an invading army. Except, the girl has no desire to be a weapon, nor does she have any idea how to control her curse. So yeah…superheroes, magic, monsters, man-eating horses, and a terribly hot guy. ;)

I’m inclined to say weaponry, but to be honest I think it was the swear-words-that-aren’t-actually-swear-words. Because seriously – how does one curse in fantasy-speak? And who knew there were so many options?! Of course, the result has been that for the past four months my children have been walking around uttering every form of “bolcranes,” “litches,” and “kracken” they can get away with.

Broken. Powerful. Indomitable. Tender. Individual.

*laughs* Probably all the scenes with Nym’s owner, Adora. And her dead squirrel. ;)

Oh funny – this isn’t something I’ve actually ever thought about! Let’s see…for Nym I think maybe Willa Holland (she’s got the spunk and steam), for Eogan – Michael Ealy (ohmygosh those eyes!), and for Adora – probably Anne Hathaway or Sarah Jessica Parker.

Definitely DEMONS by Imagine Dragons. 

Thanks a ton for having me, guys!! What a blast to do this with you!!!!!!

Follow the FFBC Storm Siren Blog Tour and don't miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule.

Win (1) of (5) copies of Storm Siren by Mary Weber (US Only)

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