Q and A with Kersten Hamilton and Giveaway!

As part of Kersten Hamilton's Teen {Book} Scene tour for her debut YA Tyger Tyger, I have an interview with Kersten as well as a giveaway for her book!  So without a further ado....

~~~

What are the top three reasons why teens or adults should consider picking up Tyger Tyger the next time they see the book online or in stores?

Wow. That is a hard question. Not because think that teens and adults won’t love Tyger Tyger, but because I have I really, really hard time talking about my books.

Writers are supposed to have a great ‘elevator pitch’ telling all about their book in thirty seconds. Mine is something like this: Um. I wrote a book. Want to read it? I am just not. Good. At. This. I can talk about the process of writing, the characters, my own life…but when someone asks me why I think they should read my book, my tongue sticks to the top of my mouth. My typing fingers freeze. And I look around for help. So, if you don’t mind, I’ll step aside and let three people who know how to do this take over:

Pick up Tyger Tyger for Action and Adventure: “Laced with humor, packed
with surprises and driven by suspense, the plot grabs readers from the start using the stylistic tactics of the best fantasy writing.” – Kirkus Reviews

Pick up Tyger Tyger for Characters and World-building: “I loved the
characters, the dialogs that had that witty and querky feeling I adore, the world-building; it's just not the goblin book you expect! I loved it because it was so utterly different from other YA fantasy novels. It was all at once touching, hilarious, action-packed and fast-paced.”— Roxane, The Honeyed Knot

Pick up Tyger Tyger for Romance and well, you know. Romance: “Ah Finn.
How do I describe him? Finn is one of those dreamy, charismatic and completely self-sufficient kind of guys. The type of literary boy (dare I say hunk?) that I can totally fall in love with. From the very beginning when he asks Teagan if he can kiss her, I was sold! Who doesn't love a boy who can not only charm you, but can handle himself in a fight? Ah Finn, you have my heart sir… Finn and Teagan have this deliciously tense relationship that keeps you on your toes. From the first moment they meet, there is this spark between them that refuses to let go. It was refreshing to see a "love" that wasn't instantly perfect. Does anyone believe in an instantly perfect love? A love that takes effort, compromise, and time? That is a love that I can be invested in!”—Jessica, A Fanatic’s Book Blog

What was your favorite part about writing Tyger Tyger? Also, do you have a favorite scene or line in it that you would like to share with us?

My favorite part of writing is always creating characters, and my favorite scenes are those which reveal character. My favorite scene in Tyger Tyger is Finn’s fight in the alley. Because if you understand what he does there, you understand Finn.

I absolutely adore the title of Tyger Tyger. So would you mind sharing with us how it came to be? Was it always the title or did it come later on?

As a child, I loved poetry. The Tyger by William Blake was one of the very first poems I memorized: http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/~keith/poems/tyger.html It haunted me.

Even so, Tyger Tyger wasn’t the original title. The first book of the Goblin Wars actually started out as a picture book called Loveleaves and Woodwender. I was re-writing the story and it took a turn for YA when Teagan met Finn. Things started to sizzle. The book got longer. And older.

It wasn’t until I’d written the poem into the book that I realized it fit the theme and mood of the whole story arc. Tyger Tyger was the perfect title!

If Tyger Tyger had a theme song what would it be?

Run by Snow Patrol: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQbgihHWNGo “Light
up, light up as if you have a choice…even if you cannot hear my voice.”

What are three things that most people would be surprised to find out about you?

1. I can’t remember ever getting a grade higher than an ‘F’ on a spelling test. Ever. No matter how hard I tried (and I tried really, really hard). This was because:

2. I have severe dysgraphia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Dysgraphia#Dyslexic_dysgraphia:

3. I am carrying a couple of pieces of shrapnel that I never bothered to have a doctor remove. It was just a flesh wound. Meh.

What’s up next for you book wise?

I just finished In the Forests of the Night, book two of Goblin Wars. I’m working on a realistic young picture book -- nitty-gritty for the itty-bitty if you will. I’m almost finished with the first book of a MG steampunk series, and putting the finishing touches on a “Holes”-esque, older MG which deals with suicide, Catholicism, immigration issues and one undead school administrator. After I wrap those up with buttons and bows, it’s back to the YA world for the third book of the Goblin Wars...

As you can see, I follow any story at any level that makes me happy. So far, the Goblin Wars is making me very, very happy.

I hope it makes your readers happy, too.

Thank you for interviewing me, Lauren!

~~~

Thanks so much Kersten! I loved finding out more about you and Tyger Tyger,  and I hope others did as well! :) To find out more about Kersten and her books be sure to check out her website.
And now the part you've all been waiting for.... THE CONTEST!

Though, before we get to that, let me tell you some more about a different contest that's going on at each tour stop during the tour:

•Each stop will be posting a letter that, when unscrambled, will form a word related to Kersten Hamilton.
•At the end of the tour please visit the link here and enter your name, email address, and the unscrambled word for a chance to win a KINDLE!
•My letter is...

 S

Kersten has also offered up a preordered copy of Tyger Tyger for one lucky ready as well. Though, as with any contest, there are rules:

~This contest is open internationally!
~This contest will close on November 9, 2010!
~ You must be 13 years or older to enter!
~ To enter please fill out the form!

*THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW OVER.*

*This post was brought to you by The Teen {Book} Scene. To see all tour stops (as well as contest posts and other tours!) head on over to its offical page.*

Tyger Tyger by Kersten Hamilton

Summary/Cover Image from Publisher's Website:

Teagan Wylltson's best friend, Abby, dreams that horrifying creatures--goblins, shape-shifters, and beings of unearthly beauty but terrible cruelty--are hunting Teagan. Abby is always coming up with crazy stuff, though, so Teagan isn't worried. Her life isn't in danger. In fact, it's perfect. She's on track for a college scholarship. She has a great job. She's focused on school, work, and her future. No boys, no heartaches, no problems.

Until Finn Mac Cumhaill arrives. Finn's a bit on the unearthly beautiful side himself. He has a killer accent and a knee-weakening smile. And either he's crazy or he's been haunting Abby's dreams, because he's talking about goblins, too . . . and about being The Mac Cumhaill, born to fight all goblin-kind. Finn knows a thing or two about fighting. Which is a very good thing, because this time, Abby's right. The goblins are coming.

Review:

I have to admit that when I first saw the cover of this book, I wasn't too sure about it, but after hearing so many fantastic things about it, I decided to give it a chance, and I have to say, I'm so very, very, very glad I did. Because Tyger Tyger is a fabulous, unique, and 100% addicting story and series opener that I just could not get enough of.

Soon after Tyger Tyger opens up Teagan is warn by her friend that goblins, evil, killing ones, are hunting Teagan. Thinking this is claim is nothing but a joke, Teagan quickly laughs this off and forgets about it, since her life is pretty much the definition of perfect. She has loving, attentive parents, an annoying but cute little brother, good grades and an even better internship, and a best friend who's a bit crazy yet has Teagan's back 100%. Though, soon enough, everything in Teagan's perfect world begins to crumble with the arrival of the swoon-worthy yet dangerous Finn Mac Cumhaill. Finn is different but in a way that intrigues Teagan...that is until he leaves with quite a mess in his wake and with Teagan seeing things, goblins, that just can't be real, can they? And what about Finn, who is he exactly, and will he end up saving the day in more ways than one? Only time can tell in this thoroughly thought-out paranormal drama.

Tyger Tyger was such a fantastic story and one of the main reasons that it was that way was because of four things and four things only: the charming characters, the intriguing, one-in-a-million type plot, and the world building that came with Kersten's fabulous writing.

The characters were one of the big parts I loved because of how unique and three dimensional they were. I loved the way Kersten brought them to life with her writing, and how she could bring about sympathy in me for even the most unsympathetic of characters. My favorite characters out of the mix were Teagon (because of the way she wouldn't give up the fight for her and her family's life for nothing), Finn (for basically the same reason as Teagon, plus he was swoon-worthy and had an accent...what's not to love about that?), and Abby (because she was an awesome side-kick and gave this mostly serious story a funny flare every now and then). Another part I loved about the characters was the spark of a romance Finn and Teagon shared, and what I liked even more about it was the way Kersten presented in such a way that she gave you enough that it didn't seem like she overdid it and made it overshadow over parts of the story in it's wake. Insead it left you eager for more Finn-and-Teagon scenes in future additions

The plot and world-building, as mentioned before, was also a high point of this novel, probably my favorite two things out of the story. I loved the way Kersten took the idea of goblins and another world and made it her own through interesting back-story and characteristics, as well as the way she presented the plot in a way that made Tyger Tyger one unputdownable story!! I simply can't wait for more additions in the Goblin Wars series, because they are going to be winners for sure.

In all, if you read one book this November, let it be Tyger Tyger, because this seriously one kick-butt paranormal book!
 
Grade: A+

Tyger Tyger will be released November 15, 2010!

Source: Publisher. Thanks, HMH!