FFBC Tours: Our Year of Maybe by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Our Year of Maybe

by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Release Date: January 15th 2019

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary

Synopsis:

Aspiring choreographer Sophie Orenstein would do anything for Peter Rosenthal-Porter, who’s been on the kidney transplant list as long as she’s known him. Peter, a gifted pianist, is everything to Sophie: best friend, musical collaborator, secret crush. When she learns she’s a match, donating a kidney is an easy, obvious choice. She can’t help wondering if after the transplant, he’ll love her back the way she’s always wanted.

But Peter’s life post-transplant isn’t what either of them expected. Though he once had feelings for Sophie too, he’s now drawn to Chase, the guitarist in a band that happens to be looking for a keyboardist. And while neglected parts of Sophie’s world are calling to her—dance opportunities, new friends, a sister and niece she barely knows—she longs for a now-distant Peter more than ever, growing increasingly bitter he doesn’t seem to feel the same connection.

Peter fears he’ll forever be indebted to her. Sophie isn’t sure who she is without him. Then one blurry, heartbreaking night twists their relationship into something neither of them recognizes, leading them to question their past, their future, and whether their friendship is even worth fighting for.

Can you briefly describe what’s going on in Our Year of Maybe and their main characters?

Thank you for having me back! OUR YEAR OF MAYBE is about the aftermath of a kidney transplant between best friends, complicated by the fact that the donor, Sophie, is in love with the recipient, Peter. 

Sophie is a quiet, anxious dancer who really only feels alive when she’s with Peter, and Peter is a gifted pianist eager to experience life beyond his friendship with Sophie…which makes him feel guilty. The book is about how they move forward when they have such opposing goals, and what that means for their relationship, especially when Peter has a literal piece of Sophie.

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

There’s a special place in my heart for Sophie’s sister, Tabby. I didn’t set out to write another sister story (after YOU’LL MISS ME WHEN I’M GONE), but I love how their relationship turned out, and I haven’t read anything in YA quite like it. Sophie is older than Tabby, who is the teen mom of a one-year-old. Tabby is still with her boyfriend, the baby’s father, and while that relationships isn’t without its challenges, I wanted to show a teen mother in a positive light. Tabby also loves showtunes (as do I), much to Sophie’s annoyance. 

At the beginning of the book, Sophie and Tabby aren’t close. They don’t have a bad relationship—they just don’t have one at all, not really. So the book shows them slowing getting to know each other for the first time, which I really enjoyed writing. 

I also have to thank my past Pitch Wars mentee/current CP Carlyn Greenwald for the inspiration for Sophie’s sister! She was originally older, and I couldn’t get their relationship right. Carlyn suggested making her younger, and everything just clicked. 

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

I’m fascinated by organ donation, and I have so much respect and admiration for donors. Since a lot of transplant books focus on what can go wrong, I wanted focus on the relationships. No one is ever rushed to the hospital, and Peter’s body doesn’t reject Sophie’s kidney—medically, everything goes pretty smoothly. But donating a kidney to your best friend who you also happen to be in love with, when a small part of you hopes that after the transplant, he’ll realize he loves you back? That’s the space I wanted to explore. 

What’s your favourite quote from the book?
The last line ;)


If you could choose one song to describe your book, which one would it be?
“Dreams” by Brandi Carlile—a line from it is the book’s epigraph

If the book was a movie/TV show, who would you imagine representing your characters?
I had Timothée Chalamet in mind while writing Peter, and Dutch actress/model Luca Hollestelle for Sophie—her freckles are so lovely.

Since it is still cold outside, what hot drink do you think will go with your book to have a perfect book date?

I’m not a coffee person (I know, it’s a waste for me to live in Seattle)—so I’d say chai or hot cocoa! :)


Can you recommend your readers any other books in case they are left hungry for more once they finish Our Year of Maybe?

Yes! I think fans of OUR YEAR OF MAYBE might also enjoy the following books:

THIS IS WHAT IT FEELS LIKE by Rebecca Barrow

THE DISENCHANTMENTS by Nina LaCour

I’LL GIVE YOU SUN by Jandy Nelson

PHANTOM LIMBS by Paula Garner

YOU ASKED FOR PERFECT by Laura Silverman (out in March) Touring with the FFBC Tours in February!


What’s next for you?

I’m working on my third book, scheduled for summer 2020 with Simon Pulse! All I’ll say right now is that it’s a rivals-to-lovers YA romantic comedy that takes place over 24 hours on the last day of senior year.

Rachel Lynn Solomon lives, writes, and tap dances in Seattle, Washington. Once she helped set a Guinness World Record for the most natural redheads in one place. She's the author of You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone (out now from Simon & Schuster/Simon Pulse), Our Year of Maybe (1/15/19), and Today Tonight Tomorrow (2020). A short story of hers will appear in the anthology It's a Whole Spiel (Penguin Random House/Knopf, fall 2019).

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Blog Tour + Giveaway: Forever for a Year by B.T. Gottfred

Forever for a Year
by B.T. Gottfred
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)

Release Date: July 7th 2015

Synopsis:

When Carolina and Trevor meet on their first day of school, something draws them to each other. They gradually share first kisses, first touches, first sexual experiences. When they’re together, nothing else matters. But one of them will make a choice, and the other a mistake, that will break what they thought was unbreakable. Both will wish that they could fall in love again for the first time . . . but first love, by definition, can’t happen twice.

Told in Carolina and Trevor's alternating voices, this is an up-close-and-personal story of two teenagers falling in love for the first time, and discovering it might not last forever.

There's never a manual to help us find the right person or letting us know the perfect moment/event/situation where to fall in love with someone. But I think we can describe the feeling of it if we have experienced it. And I think that the better way to start is with a quote:

“You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.” ― Dr. Seuss

Falling in love is something not everyone achieves and I think that if you find it with someone you're one of the lucky ones. So let's talk about the famous states you feel when you start falling in love with someone.

Feeling Hormonal. Yes, people. We usually feel like the other person is the only one you see. You want to spent all the time with him/her and while you try to deny that you this is not love and there's no way you're falling in love with that person you forget about everybody else. And when someone says something about him/her you go all moody.

The Butterflies. The all so famous butterflies in your stomach. That or that you're so nervous that you're about to fart (try to avoid that if you can - not cool). It's the sensation of expectation, mixed with the euphoric feeling of meeting with that special someone and some nerves. 

Feeling Comfortable. I think the best indication that you've fallen in love is when you're comfortable with the person you are with. You can be yourself no matter what and you accept yourself, because that special person made you see that you're beautiful and what makes you special: your nerdiness, your flaws, your attitude, etc., is what makes your relationship interesting and alive.

Feeling Confused. Falling in love for the first time is confusing. You're not used to what you're feeling and like I said it's not like there's a handbook in how to feel when you're falling in love or top ten symptoms of falling in love. Every person is different and can fall in love in different ways. The only advice? Just embrace it.

Listening to sappy songs. All-the-time. Since you're falling in love and the love flows all around you and your partner you're allowed to listen to those sappy songs we all love.

When you accept it. You'll be super happy to the point you'll want to yell it to everyone, grab your boyfriend/girlfriend and start kissing them in front of everyone so they know how in love you two are and probably grab his/her hand all the time like you're super-glued to the other person.

Love will make everything perfect, but the euphoria will fade and all you'll have left is the person you have found that have the potential of being your best friend, partner and lover for the rest of your life. But leaving the euphoria behind doesn't mean you have stopped loving this person, it means that you're in another stage of your relationship and the period of falling in love has ended.

Win (1) finished copy of FOREVER FOR A YEAR by B.T Gottfred (US Only)

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Happy New Year, Book Addicts!

Book Addicts! Happy New Year! I hope you had as much fun I had celebrating the transition to 2015 and I hope this year comes filled with happiness and books for you all.

So I was thinking about doing a quick re-cap of the last thing I did on 2014 and the first thing I did on 2015 and I would love to hear from you, too. You can leave all the answers in the comments section. So here we go...

I remember it like it was last night... Sorry, I promise to leave the bad jokes out of this post from now on. I was getting ready for a party I was going after having dinner with the family to celebrate with some friends the 2015 and what a better way to get into the mood than with Taylor Swift? Oh yes. My mirror watched me sang a few times Shake it Off before welcoming the 2015.

As for the first song in 2015, it was actually going to the mentioned party, in my car, and it was Best Day of My Life by American Authors.

I think this is a question filled with emotion, since the last book I read in 2014 was Until The End by Abbi Glines and it's the end of the Sea Breeze series and it was just so beautiful, so great... that if it wasn't for that mind-blowing ending I would be ugly crying even now.

As for the first book I'm reading, and I say reading 'cause guys I didn't have time to finish any book yet with having to deal with the next-day-after-a-party/hangover, would be The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin. It was a christmas gift from me, to.. well, me, and I've read a lot of great reviews and people fangirling over the boys in this book, so it's time to give it a try to this series. 

This is an easy one. The last show I watched was The 100. OMG! Did you see the last episode?! As for the first show I watched this year I would have to say The Originals. I have to catch up on the last episodes and I started today :)

"Ugh... I'm so hungry... I need to blog about this."

Okay guys, so this is it. Just let me know all your answers in the comments if you want and if you have some time ;) Also a quick reminder that there are some giveaways on my site still going on, including the huge Christmas Giveaway. And I have new challenges this year that you can check out on this post: 2015 Challenges.