Q&A Session with Emmy Laybourne + A Pre-Order Campaign Giveaway [Blog Tour]

Hi everyone! I'm Emmy Laybourne, author of the MONUMENT 14 series, and I'm delighted to be here on The Hiding Spot. It's my first time here!

I'm here to promote a contest and free Exclusive Bonus Content only available to those who pre-order my third novel SAVAGE DRIFT.

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Q&A Session

What was the most proud moment in your career?

I think it was when I got the call from my publicist that the New York TImes would be reviewing MONUMENT 14, and that it was a good review! I remember standing on my driveway - it was the middle of autumn and the tree canopy overhead was like stained glass, lit up with gold and orange. I felt such hope and joy - it had been a hard and long road to becoming a novelist, and receiving that call made me feel like I was standing at the top of a hill, with a future-view laid out before me.

Tell us about a moment you felt fear, in terms of your career?

Uch, I feel it all the time. I feel it as stress, and it usually hits… Well, it hits right about now, when it comes time to promote a new book. You've poured your heart and your energy into this slim, typeset being and you're about to put it out on shelves all across the country. Will people like it? Will it be reviewed well? What if no one buys it except your mother?! Daily meditation helps me to keep the fear at bay, as does playing with my kids and dancing to Pharell's HAPPY!

What fictional character would you like to have coffee with?

Oooh!!! Will you call me terribly sappy if I say Laura Ingalls Wilder? No, you know what - PA! Pa Ingalls, that's who I'd like to meet. And I'd ask him to bring his fiddle.

Which fictional character do you have a secret crush on?

Not Pa. 

Mmmmm, I'll pick Corlath, from Robin McKinley's THE BLUE SWORD. If you haven't read this gripping, passionate and beautifully told fantasy - GET IT NOW! And Corlath is a very hunky reason to pick it up. Strong, silent, handsome, deadly - just how I like my men.

Thanks so much for having me here, Sara! It's been a real pleasure to connect with you and your readers!

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More about SAVAGE DRIFT:

It's over.    

 

Dean, Alex, and the other survivors of the Monument 14 have escaped the disaster zone and made it to the safety of a Canadian refugee camp. Some of the kids have been reunited with their families, and everyone is making tentative plans for the future. And then, Niko learns that his lost love, Josie, has survived!

Or is it? 
For Josie, separated from the group and presumed dead, life has gone from bad to worse. Trapped in a terrible prison camp with other exposed O’s and traumatized by her experiences, she has given up all hope of rescue. Meanwhile, scared by the government’s unusual interest in her pregnancy, Astrid—along with her two protectors, Dean and Jake—joins Niko on his desperate quest to be reunited with Josie. 

In Monument 14: Savage Drift, the stunningly fierce conclusion to the Monument 14 trilogy, author Emmy Laybourne ups the stakes even higher for a group of kids who have continually survived the unthinkable. Can they do so one last time? 

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Win it!

Emmy is running a Bonus Content giveaway for people who pre-order her book! Click on this link to go to her website and get your short story!

To help spread word about the campaign, we’re running an ADDITIONAL giveaway! Enter this rafflecopter to have your choice of two prizes. You can either win a Mega Swag pack or a signed paperback of both MONUMENT 14 and SKY ON FIRE.

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Thanks for joining us today! Here’s the full rundown for this blog tour. Come hang out on another stop, learn more and get additional chances to enter the giveaway!

Saturday, March 22

http://www.jeanbooknerd.com/

Official tour kickoff!

Sunday, March 23

http://chickloveslit.com/

Why Max Skolnik?

Emmy discusses why she picked Max as a subject for the Exclusive Bonus Short Story.

Monday, March 24 

http://www.bookreferees.org/

Sneak peek from SAVAGE DRIFT

Tuesday, March 25

http://www.readingteen.net/

Exclusive interview - Learn what superpower I’d pick

Wednesday, March 26

http://thehidingspot.blogspot.com/

An intimate interview with Emmy

Thursday, March 27

http://booknerd.ca/

Killer Cover Art – see the process behind the cover for this Exclusive short story

Friday, March 28

Jen Ryland

Ya Romantics

http://jenryland.blogspot.com/

Hitting The List – hear Emmy’s behind the scene’s view about watching her friends hit the list on the Fierce Reads tours

Review: Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne [Throwback Thursday]

Throwback Thursday is a upcycled weekly meme hosted by Sabrina at I Heart YA Fiction. To participate, read an older release or a book that has been on your shelf for awhile. Post your review, then link back to I Heart YA Fiction using the Mr. Linky! (Or repost an old review - there's no reason those books from a couple years ago shouldn't get some love!)

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Title: Monument 14

Author: Emmy Laybourne

Publisher: Macmillan BFYR

Pub. Date: 6.5.2012

Genre: Young Adult

Rec. Age Level: 14+

Add on Goodreads.



Emmy Laybourne's Monument 14 blew me away. I devoured this debut novel and, when I finished, I found myself in a satisfied stupor wondering where the past few hours had gone.

I sometimes have difficulty connecting to male main characters, so, when I opened Monument 14 and discovered that the narrator was one of the boys trapped in the superstore, I paused for a moment. I was entirely too interested in the premise to ever put down the novel, but I wondered if Dean would detract from my reading experience... I very much wanted to put myself in the position of the main character and I didn't know if I could make myself think like a teenage boy. I can't guarantee that Dean's thinking and actions were entirely true to life, but he felt realistic enough to me that I never forgot the fact that he was a boy, but I could still understand his emotions and motivations. In the end, I grew to like Dean a lot and I was happy that he, rather than one of the girls trapped in the superstore, was the narrator.

One of the most interesting aspects of this novel was the presence of small children as well as teens. I think having small children trapped as well added another dimension and sense of urgency to the situation. I found the differences between the reactions of each age group really put things into perspective... for both the characters themselves and the reader. It's already crazy that these teens are trapped and had to learn to trust one another and work together, but then to throw in small children that are alternately panicked or wanting to play and do something fun... the situation was terrifyingly real.

The giant hailstorm, the chemical weapons spill, the bus crashes, and the other events that lead to the fourteen kids being trapped inside the superstore all seemed carefully thought out and contained just enough detail to create a realistic picture within the reader's mind. The entire novel felt very cinematic. I actually found myself matching characters from the novel to people I knew in real life. Each character felt so impossibly real that my mind needed a three-dimensional body to go along with the personality Laybourne created.

Monument 14 has landed a spot on my Best of 2012 list. I'm already anxious for the next installment, as the novel ended on a cliffhanger... I seriously get shivers just thinking about the intensity of the final scenes!

Top 10 Books Read in 2012 & Year in Review

2012 was a very, very busy year for me. I had a lot going on in my personal life - including changing my college major, some family issues, and working way too many hours - and my blog was sadly neglected. I was lucky to have multiple great books assigned for various classes and was able to find some books for fun and review... as of today I've read 108 books this year! For those of you interested in looking through those titles, a link to the list can be found here on Goodreads.

This year was also a year of bookish changes and accomplishments for me:

1. I read my first graphic novel, Nate Powell's Swallow Me Whole, and fell madly in love with the sub-genre.
2.  I took my first Literary Theory class, which was sometimes overwhelming and difficult, but so, so wonderful. It definitely has had an impact on how I read.
3. I finally decided what I want to be! A Youth Services Librarian! In retrospect, this seems like an obvious career choice for me. It took me way to long to figure it out!
4. I got a job in a public library. I just started this month, but I LOVE it. I'm still new and the shininess hasn't even had a chance to wear off, but oh my goodness it is fantastic! I love everything about it... sorting books, the Dewey Decimal System, helping people find books... LOVE IT. 

So, even though I was pretty absent from the blogging world, I've been working towards combining my blogging/bookish life and real life. It's been a long process, but I finally see some progress! :)

I wasn't able to review many of my favorite 2012 reads, but I'd still like to share a quick list of titles and covers, which I painfully narrowed down to 10. I've linked each title's Goodreads page to the image, so click the image to add to your own reading list! Enjoy!

Emily's Dress and Other Missing Things by Kathryn Burak

Emily Dickinson, a troubled main character, and an off-limits potential love interest? How can you not want to read this book?

Plus, the writing is gorgeous. I didn't want to finish this book! 

Venom by Fiona Paul

 My favorite aspect of this book is all of the Shakespeare references and parallels. Granted, I read this as I was reading multiple Shakespeare works - and maybe some of these similarities were imagined - but I loved it!

I totally understand why Venom was one of Penguin's lead 2012 titles!

Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard

A historical, steampunk-ish novel with zombies and battling banter between the heroine and a scowling, attractive guy. 

Heck yes. 

Check out my review here. 

Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone by Kat Rosenfield

Beautiful writing and a haunting story. I love this MC. I was raised in a small town and constantly dreamt of escape, making her all too easy to relate to.

Check out my review here. 

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

2011 was a bit rough on my love life, but I lost some of my bitterness in 2012. I like to think Fitzpatrick's debut contributed somewhat.

An amazing novel of family and real love, My Life Next Door shines! 

Check out my review here. 

Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama

A mermaid book like no other, Monstrous Beauty features gorgeous writing and weaves multiples stories and setting together. Part mystery, part love story and wholly intense, Monstrous Beauty is not to be missed.

This is Not a Test by Courtney Summers

I can't imagine writing of a favorite/best of list that didn't include a novel by Courtney Summers and this year is no exception.

Summers hasn't disappointed me yet (I know, it's great) and her newest novel featuring ZOMBIES was no exception. Powerful stuff right here ladies and gentleman. Read this book... and all her other books. Now. 

Check out my review here. 

Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne

I could not get this books out of my head for weeks after reading it. It still pops up in there unexpectedly, though I read it early in 2012. 

The story of 14 kids trapped in a store (think WalMart) as the world as they know it disappears. Maybe not the newest premise, but definitely my favorite take on it so far!

Check out my review here. 

Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore

I waited forever for this newest offering from Cashore. Picking up years after Graceling (and wayyy after Fire), Bitterblue tells the story of a girl learning to rule a broken kingdom, to believe in herself, and to love.

So good. 

Check out my review here. 

Sumo by Thien Pham 

Read during my graphic novel phase (not that it's ended), Sumo blew me away. Deceptively simple, Sumo tells the story of a washed up football played that travels overseas to to become sumo wrestler and finds himself in the process.

What's interesting about this book is that it reads like a sumo match... the images and ideas seem to circle one another and eventually come together in a climactic clash. 

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Feel free to share your favorites or own Best of 2012 post in the comments! And, if you loved any of my favorite titles, want to chat about them, or discovered something new, be sure to let me know! 

Happy New Year everyone!  

Review: Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne

Your mother hollers that you’re going to miss the bus. She can see it coming down the street. You don’t stop and hug her and tell her you love her. You don’t thank her for being a good, kind, patient mother. Of course not—you launch yourself down the stairs and make a run for the corner. 

Only, if it’s the last time you’ll ever see your mother, you sort of start to wish you’d stopped and did those things. Maybe even missed the bus. 

But the bus was barreling down our street, so I ran. 

Fourteen kids. One superstore. A million things that go wrong. 

In Emmy Laybourne’s action-packed debut novel, six high school kids (some popular, some not), two eighth graders (one a tech genius), and six little kids trapped together in a chain superstore build a refuge for themselves inside. While outside, a series of escalating disasters, beginning with a monster hailstorm and ending with a chemical weapons spill, seems to be tearing the world—as they know it—apart.

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Emmy Laybourne's Monument 14 blew me away. I devoured this debut novel and, when I finished, I found myself in a satisfied stupor wondering where the past few hours had gone.

I sometimes have difficulty connecting to male main characters, so, when I opened Monument 14 and discovered that the narrator was one of the boys trapped in the superstore, I paused for a moment. I was entirely too interested in the premise to ever put down the novel, but I wondered if Dean would detract from my reading experience... I very much wanted to put myself in the position of the main character and I didn't know if I could make myself think like a teenage boy. I can't guarantee that Dean's thinking and actions were entirely true to life, but he felt realistic enough to me that I never forgot the fact that he was a boy, but I could still understand his emotions and motivations. In the end, I grew to like Dean a lot and I was happy that he, rather than one of the girls trapped in the superstore, was the narrator.

One of the most interesting aspects of this novel was the presence of small children as well as teens. I think having small children trapped as well added another dimension and sense of urgency to the situation. I found the differences between the reactions of each age group really put things into perspective... for both the characters themselves and the reader. It's already crazy that these teens are trapped and had to learn to trust one another and work together, but then to throw in small children that are alternately panicked or wanting to play and do something fun... the situation was terrifyingly real.

The giant hailstorm, the chemical weapons spill, the bus crashes, and the other events that lead to the fourteen kids being trapped inside the superstore all seemed carefully thought out and contained just enough detail to create a realistic picture within the reader's mind. The entire novel felt very cinematic. I actually found myself matching characters from the novel to people I knew in real life. Each character felt so impossibly real that my mind needed a three-dimensional body to go along with the personality Laybourne created.

Monument 14 has landed a spot on my Best of 2012 list. I'm already anxious for the next installment, as the novel ended on a cliffhanger... I seriously get shivers just thinking about the intensity of the final scenes!

Feiwel & Friends, June 2012, Hardcover, ISBN: 9780312569037, 294 pages.