Frost
Goodreads summary: In the icy, monster-plagued world of the Frost, one wrong move and a person could end up dead—and Lia Weaver knows this better than anyone. After monsters kill her parents, she must keep the family farm running despite the freezing cold and threat of monster attacks or risk losing her siblings to reassignment by the village Elders. With dangers on all sides and failure just one wrong step away, she can’t afford to let her emotions lead her astray. So when her sister finds a fugitive bleeding to death in the forest—a young stranger named Gabe—Lia surprises herself and does the unthinkable.
She saves his life.
Giving shelter to the fugitive could get her in trouble. The Elders have always described the advanced society of people beyond the Frost, the “Farthers,” as ruthless and cruel. But Lia is startled to find that Gabe is empathetic and intelligent…and handsome. She might even be falling in love with him.
But time is running out. The monsters from the forest circle the farm at night. The village leader is starting to ask questions. Farther soldiers are searching for Gabe. Lia must locate a secret organization called the Thorns to help Gabe escape to safety, but every move she makes puts her in more danger.
Is compassion—and love—worth the risk?
The Author
I've been making up stories since I was five years old, and now I'm thrilled to be able to do it as a full-time job. I have an obsession with dark fantasy, dystopian futures, and Pride and Prejudice-style love stories full of witty banter and sizzling, unspoken feelings. When I'm not writing, I'm creating digital art, reading funny blogs, or watching my favorite shows (which include TVD and BSG). I live with my geeky husband and our two bad cats in Atlanta, GA.
Check out her blog to see what she has been up to: http://thesouthernscrawl.blogspot.com/
If you have read my review for Frost, then you guys must know how much I adore Kate Avery Ellison and her books. I was so happy when she said yes to an interview and giveaway!
Interview
Tell us a little bit about yourself when you were younger and wanted to be an author.
Well, I've wanted to be an author since I was about six years old and my mother explained to me that some people wrote books for their job. I've always loved stories, and I was making them up before I knew how to read or write. I used to tell them out loud to myself or my brothers. So being able to write books full time is a dream come true.
What gave you the idea to write the Frost Chronicles?
Frost started out as a short story about an injured angel-like creature that a farm girl finds and hides in her barn. Different, I know! The Watchers were originally creatures that hunted the angel creatures. Lia originally only had a brother. And so on. The story slowly changed and morphed into something completely different as I decided I wanted to go a non-paranormal, more sci fi/dystopian direction with it. The story itself went through about six phases and eventually it ended up the way it is now. But I do plan to write that angel story, too. It's on my list. :)
Are there any scenes in the book based on real-life experiences?
Maybe, in the sense that I've been afraid before, and I've been in love, and so forth. I've also had a few instances in my life where I realized that something I'd been told all my life wasn't quite the way I thought it was, so in that way I can really relate to Lia Weaver.
Can you give us some teasers for the upcoming second book of the Frost Chronicles?
In Thorns, Lia's village is going through some serious changes. It turns out Gabe was just the beginning of a huge shift in the lives of the Frost dwellers, and we'll begin to see just how everything is going to play out. Loyalties will be tested, friendships will change, and a new group will be formed in opposition to the Farthers, a group who isn't working with the Thorns.
What's the toughest critique you have received yet?
As far as critique partners go, I have one writer friend who just tears manuscripts apart (but in a good way) when she's editing them. It's always valuable to have a friend like that when you're working on a draft. As far as reviewers or bloggers go, almost everybody I've ever worked with has been truly awesome. I really can't complain. :)
Any words of wisdom for aspiring authors?
Read everything you can, and write incessantly. Remember--the first draft WILL be crappy, but you can't fix it until you've written it, so push through and finish and then revise, revise, revise. Also, never stop trying to learn more and improve your craft through exercises, feedback, and books about writing.
If you were any kind of mythological creature, what would it be and why?
Interesting question! Hmmm. I think there are some perks to being a vampire or some other immortal creature, but the blood-drinking thing could be problematic for me. I think I'd like to be any kind of mythical creature that has the ability to teleport, freeze time, and forgo sleeping for writing if necessary. :)
Do you sometimes wish your characters were real?
Every author has a different relationship with his or her characters. I feel like I "inhabit" the skin of every character I write, so sometimes it's hard to picture them existing without me being the one seeing the world through their eyes, if that makes any sense (even though my characters are often very, very different from me personality-wise). But there are a couple of my characters who I'd love to have around.
Would you want to be like Wonder Woman?
She definitely has a lot of useful talents! But I always feel really sorry for characters like that--they have a lot of responsibilities and they always struggle to have a family life or normal existence while still taking care of the world and justice and fighting evil, ya know? I'd never want to be a celebrity or the president, either.
Do you listen to K-pop songs?
I don't...sadly, I haven't had a lot of exposure to Korean music.
Favorite actor?
My favorite male actor is Ian Somerhalder, not only because he's super hot and an amazing actor on The Vampire Diaries (and he was great on Lost, too), but because he's a very kind and genuine person who works tirelessly to help others. My favorite female actor is probably Emma Thompson. I love her in everything she does.
Giveaway
Two (2) ecopies of her wonderful book, Frost! Enter the giveaway contest, guys! This is open to both US and international residents!
