FLAWED Blog Tour--Interview w/Kate Avelynn + giveaways!!

I'm super stoked to be a stop on the FLAWED tour, you guys! If you've yet to read this amazing book, I urge you to do so ASAP, seriously. Kate Avelynn has some wicked talent, and the characters in this book grab you and won't let you go till they're done with ya. So good!

Moving on... The fab Kate agreed to a little mini interview for my stop on the tour, so I won't keep you from it any longer. Well, maybe just a wee bit longer. ;-P

Up first, a bit about the book...

FLAWED 
by Kate Avelynn

product description from goodreads.com

Sarah O’Brien is alive because of the pact she and her brother made twelve years ago — James will protect her from their violent father if she promises to never leave him. For years, she’s watched James destroy his life to save hers. If all he asks for in return is her affection, she’ll give it freely.

Until, with a tiny kiss and a broken mind, he asks for more than she can give.

Sam Donavon has been James’ best friend — and the boy Sarah’s had a crush on — for as long as she can remember. As their forbidden relationship deepens, Sarah knows she’s in trouble. Quiet, serious Sam has decided he’s going to save her. Neither of them realizes James is far more unstable than her father ever was, or that he’s not about to let Sarah forget her half of the pact . . .

Amazon | B&N | The Book Depository

And now, on to the interview!


Hi, Kate! Thanks so much for stopping by my blog! Let’s just dive right in, shall we? :-)
FLAWED is a beautifully written, haunting tale of pain and loss and obsessive love. Was this a story that grabbed you and wouldn’t let go, or did you really have to work at getting it onto the page? 
Thanks for having me, Jamie! I’d definitely say this book grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. Once I had an image of James watching Sarah in my head, the rest kind of just poured out of me, emotional chaos and all. 
And we are so glad it did! 

You did an amazing job of portraying both the good and bad in Sarah, James, and Sam, which, to me, made them seem even more real. Is that balance in their characters something you knew was necessary to this story? Is that something you strive for in every character, showcasing how there’s good and bad in us all? 
Aw, thank you. You nailed it with your second question—I see the good and bad in everyone, so it feels only natural that the characters I write reflect what I see around me. There’s nothing more fascinating than a villain we can relate to, or a flawed protagonist! 
Isn't that the truth? A great villian is one who manages to make us root for them!

Sarah is a character that I imagine most readers of FLAWED relate to, in some way or another. She’s both timid and weak, as well as strong and a survivalist—traits many of us possess. Was her journey through self-discovery something you planned from the beginning, or did she surprise you? 

Sarah was the least developed character when the story first came to me, so while I knew what was going to happen next, her reactions to the situations I put her in surprised me. She’s more of a fighter than I expected! The best kind of surprise, right?! 

I have to admit that Sam is my absolute favorite character in FLAWED. I can’t really explain it, but there’s something about him that got to me in the best way. Tell us, who was/is your favorite character, and why? Definitely James. He’s the character who came to me first, and to me, this is his story. I’m fascinated by how genuine his motivations are toward Sarah and his mother and even his father. He’s not an evil person, but love has twisted him into something he can’t overcome. 
Okay, this is proof that you are meant to write dark, my friend. ;-)

And finally, a question I like to ask all interviewees: You’ve been invited to meet your favorite author, living or dead. Who would that be, what’s the one question you would ask them, and what would your answer to that question be? 

My high school English teacher assigned several of Toni Morrison’s books my senior year, and I found her wisdom and use of language both grounding and inspiring. In her 1993 Nobel Lecture, she said, “Make up a story. Narrative is radical, creating us at the very moment it is being created. We will not blame you if your reach exceeds your grasp; if love so ignites your words they go down in flames and nothing is left but their scald. We know you can never do it properly—once and for all. Passion is never enough; neither is skill. But try. For our sake and yours forget your name in the street; tell us what the world has been to you in the dark places and in the light. Don't tell us what to believe, what to fear. Show us belief’s wide skirt and the stitch that unravels fear's caul. You…can speak the language that tells us what only language can: how to see without pictures.”

Whenever I read this, I feel like I have to write. Even if the words come out all wrong and I wind up putting the book straight into a drawer never to be seen again, I owe it to myself to try. I honestly don’t know what I’d ask her. Maybe to tell me about the very first thing she remembers writing and what it was about the experience that made her want to do it again. It’d probably be one of those really embarrassing situations where I hung on her every word, incapable of saying anything intelligent back. It definitely wouldn’t be my shining moment! 

Ooh, that's a very inspiring speech!

About the Author: 

Kate Avelynn lives in Central Oregon with her husband, whom she fell in love with at eighteen after realizing he shared her obsession with music, sports, and psychoanalysis. When not devouring books, holding down her editing gig, or attempting to coax life out of the weed patch she calls a “garden,” Kate writes dark, young adult romance that blends first love, betrayal, and danger. FLAWED is her debut novel.

Kate's the best, truly. If you don't already, follow her on Twitter and Facebook, and be sure to visit her website and Goodreads page to keep up with what's ahead for this superb talent!

And now for the prizes! Kate is giving a $15 gift card to either Amazon or B&N—your choice. All you have to do is leave a comment about the author who inspires you most and why, along with your email address and which gift card you’d prefer. Today’s giveaway is open to International readers.

Kate is also running an Ultimate FLAWED Fan Pack contest via the Rafflecopter listing below. Enter daily for a chance to win some really cool stuff!

A huge thanks to Kate and the team at Entangled for allowing my lil' slice of Bloggerdom to be part of the FLAWED Blog Tour!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Three-line Thursdays is back!

In case you might not know it, the second book in my debut series comes out in less than three months (yay!). And keeping with tradition, I'm bringing back Three Line Thursdays to help celebrate!

What exactly is Three Line Thursdays? It's simple, really. Every Thursday between now and the release of BLOOD AWAKENING, I'm going to tease you guys with three random lines from the book! I'll treat this just like Teaser Tuesdays, by turning to random pages and selecting three lines (take that, two-line Tuesdays!). Fun, right?!

He dropped his fingers onto my wrist, slowly dragging them up my arm, leaving a trail of heat in their wake. I opened my mouth to speak—to tell him to either a) back off, or b) keep going. “Don’t waste your breath,” he interjected, “I know you love him, not me.”

SHRAPNEL ebook winner!

In case you might not have noticed, I'm way behind on posting the winner from last week's giveaway. My apologies for falling behind on the ol' blog; I'll work on getting better!

Without further ado, the winner of the ebook of SHRAPNEL by Stephanie Lawton is...

Leeanna!!

Congrats, Leeanna! Please email me your email address and I will forward it on. Thanks for entering!!

SHRAPNEL Blog Tour--An excerpt and a giveaway!!

You guys, I'm so excited to be part of the official blog tour for SHRAPNEL (Evernight Teen), the sophomore novel by the awesomely talented Stephanie Lawton! And I'm also excited that my part of the tour consists of a sneak peek AND an ebook giveaway!!

Okay, I'm not gonna drag it out. Here's your sneak peek at SHRAPNEL!

The car ride to Oakleigh Mansion is a short one, just a couple miles east into historic downtown. We stop at a red light and I glance out the window at the giant cannon that sits in the middle of the park to my right. Today it’s painted pink with “save the ta-ta’s” scrawled across the barrel. My sixth sense kicks in and tells me some punks will soon be painting it purple. Briefly, I wonder how much of it is actually cannon, and how much is decades of layered paint.

A few more blocks and we arrive at Oakleigh, a big-ass white monstrosity straight out of Gone with the Wind. I’ve heard of it, but never visited. And unless they’re part of a reenactment, I’m pretty sure the film crew wouldn’t dress in period costumes, which means the uniformed guy on the stairs checking his pocket watch is not real. Super.

 “Watch your language. Remember your manners. Do what the TV people tell you. Oh, and try to have fun.”

“Yes, Mom.”

I give her a cheeky smile but kiss her before I haul my backpack out of the back seat and trudge up the winding stairs to the front door. Weird, right? The front door is on the second floor, not the first. I salute the dark-haired pocket watch guy and he stares right into my eyes, like he’s sizing me up or sucking my life story out of my brain. I snicker at the thought of a zombie ghost and slip past him to put my foot on the next riser. I’m one step from the top when the massive front door swings open to reveal a gray-haired man with an animated—and solid—face.

 “Love the shirt. You must be Dylanie,” he coos.

“Dylan.”

“Dylan. A girl who knows her mind. I like that. Welcome to Oakleigh, Dylan. We’ve got an exciting weekend ahead. Ready to meet your housemates?” He raises a plucked eyebrow. The cameras must be rolling already.

“And you are …?”

“Riley Wiggins. Come in.”

“Nice gloves, Riley.”

“You like?”

He wiggles his bare digits where they peek out from his fingerless gloves. A real ham, this one.

Inside the cavernous house, a creepy painting of a woman with dark hair and laser eyes follows me down the hall. I peer at the brass nameplate on the bottom of the frame.

“That’s Mrs. Irwin,” Riley says. “She saved Oakleigh from the Union troops when they stormed Mobile.” I roll my eyes. I hate history. “She was an Irish subject of the British crown. Hung the Union Jack from the second-story porch and told the Yankees to bugger off. It worked.”

A Southern belle with balls—I can appreciate that.

Riley ushers me into a dark room that smells of hardwood floors and old books. I meet two other psycho kids about my age.

“Dylan Reid, I’d like you to meet Ashley Dalby and Jake Morris.”

I remember Mom’s order to mind my manners, so I stick out my hand. Ashley leaps off an antique settee and pumps my hand with more enthusiasm than is quite necessary.

“Hey,” she drawls. “How are you?” Her voice goes up an octave as she stretches out the last word into several syllables. Then she blows a gum bubble and keeps on chewing.

Then there’s Jake.

 Oh. Oh.

When your parents split up because your dad caught your mom with another woman and the boy you’ve been crushing on since kindergarten suddenly nicknames you “lezzy,” identity crisis is a given. Mom’s even asked me more than once if I want to talk about the possibility. Appreciated, but not necessary. Jake—and the heat creeping into my cheeks—is proof. 

Yay!! I seriously cannot wait to read this book! 

Here's a bit about Stephanie:

After collecting a couple English degrees in the Midwest, Stephanie Lawton suddenly awoke in the deepest reaches of the Deep South. Culture shock inspired her to write about Mobile, Alabama, her adopted city, and all the ways Southern culture, history and attitudes seduce the unsuspecting.

A lover of all things gothic, she can often be spotted photographing old cemeteries, historic buildings and, ironically, the beautiful beaches of the Gulf Coast. She also has a tendency to psychoanalyze people, which comes in handy when creating character profiles.



If you haven't read Stephanie's debut novel, WANT, you have to. It's beautifully written and rife with pain and humor and hotness. A true winner!

And as promised, Stephanie and the wonderful people at Evernight Teen are offering up an ecopy of SHRAPNEL for one lucky winner! And the best part is that since it's an ebook, this contest is international!

Simply leave a comment below between now and Thursday, Jan 24th at midnight CST telling me your thoughts on the above sneak peek, and I will announce the winner on Friday. Easy, right? Then comment away!

 You can keep up with the blog tour here, and be sure to check out Stephanie on her website, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads!

Congrats, Steph! 

Happy Release Day to Stephanie Lawton and SHRAPNEL!!

So it's been a little bit since my last blog post (yes, it was before Christmas. Don't judge!), and I thought, "What better way to come back than to celebrate the release of a good friend's equally as good second novel," right? Right!

So with that, I wanted to wish a huge HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY to my friend and sort-of neighbor, Stephanie Lawton! Her debut novel WANT was truly beautiful, so I know that her sophomore book, SHRAPNEL, will blow me away--can't wait to read it!

Please take a second to visit Stephanie on Twitter (@Steph_Lawton) and wish her a Happy Book Birthday! (And don't worry, she's always there!)

And be sure to stop back by my blog on Tuesday, Jan 22nd, when I'll be sharing an excerpt from SHRAPNEL, plus the chance to win an ecopy, as part of the blog tour!

HAPPY RELEASE DAY, STEPH!