Posts Categorized: Interview

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Miss World Tour Stop

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I’m part of the Miss World blog tour and today I’ve got Randi here for an interview to learn more about herself and her book. There’s also a chance to win so stick around!

Never heard of Miss World? Here’s the lowdown:

Miss World
Randi Black
Release date: August 30th, 2011
by Fire Spirit

Goodreads / Purchase

It’s 1993. Kim Ho wishes she were Courtney Love, instead of the chubby 16-year-old who clashes with her traditional Chinese parents. Her very own Kurt Cobain arrives in the form of Kevin, a 26-year-old failed musician. But Kevin uses Kim’s rock-star dreams to exploit her, and those dreams die along with the real Kurt Cobain.Too scared to tell anyone, Kim conjures up a cross-dressing imaginary friend and dates Walter Riordan, the cute boy from special-ed. Walter helps her recover, but after a joke snowballs into a plot to murder Kevin, Kim’s forced to choose between revenge or her sanity. This is a truly daring and original coming-of-age novel about one girl’s quest to reclaim her power from those who’ve stolen it.


Interview with Randi Black
Q. Let’s start with telling us a bit about what we should expect from your book, Miss World. 
Well, first of all, Giselle, I want to thank you for taking the time to read “Miss World” and being part of this tour! 

Since “Miss World” was meant to be a dark and confrontational novel, then this should be a fair warning, LOL.  I wrote it as a way of saving myself from this mess I got myself into during my 20s. It’s not one of those light-hearted, feel-good books where everyone’s happy in the end.  Kim isn’t pretty or thin or white, like many other protagonists I see in YA.   Nor is she the most likable.  I’ve had people tell me they had to put it down for a while because some of the scenes are quite disturbing.   Unfortunately, shit like rape and STDs happen in real life, and sugar-coating them would’ve been a cop-out.  But if you can past Chapter 5, it’s not so bad anymore.  

That being said, expect to be taken for a wild, intense ride.  There will be a cross-dressing imaginary friend whose farts smell like angel food cake and butter cream frosting.  A dyslexic boy who looks hot in skinny jeans.  An unapologetic amount of sex and violence.  A scandalous family secret.  Willful destruction of property.   Bands you may not have heard of and want to check out.  Lollapalooza ’94 AND ’95. 

Seriously, though, doesn’t that sound kind of fun?

Q. I saw in your biography that you’re a rocker chick! How much of yourself did you put into your protagonist, Kim? 
Quite a bit.  I felt like anything was possible when Nirvana got big in ’91, and wanted to be Courtney Love when I bought Hole’s “Pretty on the Inside.” I was also quite the snob back then (and still kind of am).  After Kurt died, I leaned towards more obscure bands because there was no way I was going to listen to Green Day.  Kim’s musical tastes definitely reflect that.  You can also say that we were both truly moved the first time we heard The Gun Club. And like Kim, I used to scream and play bad guitar until bad shit happened.  After years of smoking, I like how low my voice has gotten, especially now that I’m singing again.  But my guitar playing is still bad. 
Q. What song do you have in your head right now?
“Rocket USA” by Suicide. 
Q. If you could jump into any book, which would you want to live in?
“We Got the Neutron Bomb”  It’s about the L.A. punk scene in the late 70s, which was happening when I was still in my diapers.   
Q. Is there something you simply have to have with you when you write?
When I really think about it, no.  I can even do it with music, coffee, or cigarettes. 
Q. Do you have any other books in the works for the future? Any teasers to share?
I’m working on the sequel to “Miss World.”  It’s called “Two Sides of the Beast,” and takes place a month after “Miss World” ends.  Kim’s looking forward to college and engaged to Walter, but he’s become physically violent and she suspects he’s cheating on her with a model.   On the day she moves to the dorms, she meets someone who’s totally not her type and decides to use him to get back at Walter.  She and this new guy end up falling madly in love and having lots of hot sex.  Like her, he’s also got lost musical aspirations and being together gives them a second chance at that.  But Walter, who has repeatedly betrayed Kim, still won’t let go of her that easily.

It took me 7 years to write and edit “Miss World,” so I’m really excited about this project because it represents a new chapter in my life.  It’s scheduled to come out in Summer 2013, and it’s probably the cutest novel I’ll ever write.  


Thanks so much for dropping by Randi. It was wonderful to get to know you!

 Randi’s Website / Goodreads / Twitter

Once there was a girl who grew up in San Dimas, CA. Her mom loved telling her that she was a difficult child, even before she was born. Whatever, though. Getting A’s and playing piano bored her. She preferred writing and punk rock. Then she got accepted into the MFA in Writing program at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and became Randi Black. During a fit of insomnia, she started Fire Spirit Press to release “bad books for bad girls.” Randi lives in Chicago with her partner and the ghost of their dead feline, Stitchie von Poo.

Next stop on the Miss World Blog Tour:

Giveaway 1
Randi is offering one ebook copy of Miss World as giveaway on my stop
Open internationally
Click here to enter

Giveaway 2

The blog tour is giving away an iPod Shuffle
Open internationally
Use the  Rafflecopter below to enter

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Blue Sky Days Tour Stop

Posted by on 02/02/2012 • 21 Comments

I’ve gotten to know Marie on Twitter and on her blog so I was happy to get on the blog tour for her book Blue Sky Days which just came out  recently. I have a fun post for you today that includes an interview with Marie as well as a giveaway for my lovely readers.

Blue Sky DaysMarie LandryRelease date: January 17th, 2012

Goodreads / Purchase

A year after graduating from high school, nineteen-year-old Emma Ward feels lost. She has spent most of her life trying to please her frigid, miserable mother – studying hard, getting good grades, avoiding the whole teenage rebellion thing – and now she feels she has no identity beyond that. Because she spent so many years working hard and planning every moment of…

Unlovable by Sherry Gammon

Posted by on 01/19/2012 • 34 Comments

Today I have Sherry Gammon stopping by Xpresso Reads to answer a few interview questions regarding her books and the writing process. There is also a chance to win, and of course, my dazzling 5-star review of Unlovable.

REVIEW

UnlovableSherry GammonRelease date: January 19th, 2011

Goodreads / Purchase

Port Fare, New York, has fallen into the clutches of true evil. The Dreser brothers have arrived with a scheme to increase drug sales in the area by whatever means possible. Seth Prescott is part of MET (Mobile Enforcement Teams) a branch of the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration). He’s been assigned to work undercover at Port Fare High, and things aren’t going very well, until senior Maggie Brown enters the equation. He’s harbored a secret crush on her from…

Still Waters Tour Stop

Posted by on 01/09/2012 • 22 Comments

As part of the Still Waters Tour, I have Emma Carlson Berne stopping by the blog today to answer some fun questions regarding her book, Still Waters. And because you all were nice enough to come take a look, you may have a chance to win!What is Still Waters about?

Still Waters Emma Carlson BerneRelease date: December 20th, 2011by Simon Pulse

Goodreads / Purchase

Hannah can’t wait to sneak off for a romantic weekend with her boyfriend, Colin. He’s leaving for college soon, and Hannah wants their trip to the lake house to be one they’ll never forget. But once Hannah and Colin get there, things start to seem a bit…off. They can’t find the town on any map. The house they are staying in looks as if someone’s…

Hushed Tour Stop

Posted by on 12/29/2011 • 26 Comments

I have the pleasure of welcoming Kelley York as she stops by Xpresso Reads for an interview today as part of the Hushed Blog Tour, which is a book that I really enjoyed. Also, there is a chance to win a copy.

Before we get started with the interview, let’s take a look at the book and what people have to say about it.

Hushed Kelley YorkRelease date: December 6th, 2011by Entangled Publishing

Goodreads / Purchase

He’s saved her. He’s loved her. He’s killed for her.

Eighteen-year-old Archer couldn’t protect his best friend, Vivian, from what happened when they were kids, so he’s never stopped trying to protect her from everything else. It doesn’t matter that Vivian only uses him when hopping from one toxic relationship to…

Obsidian Tour Stop

Posted by on 12/22/2011 • 25 Comments

On this lovely day, I am happy to have the Obsidian blog tour stop by. I’ve got a great interview with Jennifer to show you and then you will all have a chance to win a copy of this fantastic book!

ObsidianJennifer L. ArmentroutRelease date: December 6th, 2011by Entangled Publishing

Goodreads / Purchase

Starting over sucks. When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I’d pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring…. until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.

And then he opened his mouth.Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon…

Interview & Giveaway T.P. Boje

Posted by on 12/10/2011 • 13 Comments

TP, author of the Afterlife series, is dropping by Xpresso Reads today for an interview. She has also generously offered up a few copies of Beyond, the first in the series, to some of my lucky readers.

THE BOOKS:

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BeyondTP BojeReleased September 9th, 2011

Add it to your Goodreads to-read shelf

Beyond

Have you ever wondered where you go when you die?

Meghan is 16 when it happens to her. She wakes up on a flying steamboat on her way to a school run by Angels in a white marble castle. She meets Mick who helps her through a difficult time in a different world filled with heavenly magic. One day she finds a mirror in the cellar of the school and goes through it. She…

Pyxis Tour Stop: Interview & Giveaway

Posted by on 11/14/2011 • 14 Comments

Xpresso Reads is thrilled to be part of the Pyxis blog tour and happily welcomes KC Neal today for an interview. She is also offering an ecopy of Pyxis for a giveaway. You don’t want to miss this debut novel, and for those who have read it, read carefully because she gives us some hot teasers about book two!

THE BOOK:

Pyxis (Pyxis, #1)KC NealReleased November 4th, 2011(Paperback released on Dec. 2nd)by StoneHouse Ink

Goodreads / Purchase

Two worlds… one 16-year-old girl must learn to protect them both.

The nightmares haunting Corinne and her friend Mason hint at a universe that exists beyond the one they know. Her destiny is to protect a weakness between the two worlds, but her mentor is dead. As Corinne and Mason…