It's Mockingjay Day...

... not. While the US is undoubtedly crying/screaming/fainting over the release of Mockingjay today, we here from across the pond are still waiting, waiting, waiting...

I have not encountered much spoilers so a huge thank you to the considerate readers and bloggers, although to those who do post spoilers, do consider us! We also want to enjoy Katniss' story the way we should. We'll join the club of crying/screaming/fainting readers tomorrow, worry not! :D

If you're in the UK, overly excited but is currently catatonic due to fear of spoilers here are some great fanfictions to discover! It won't be the same as reading the real book, but it will feed your Mockingjay hunger somewhat!

SCARS 

KenoshaChick

Post-CF. Peeta is rescued from the Capitol by Katniss and her band of rebels; however, after months of torture it is unkown if he will survive. It is also unknown if Katniss will survive if he doesn't.

MY FIRST DATE WITH KATNISS EVERDEEN
KenoshaChick

Take a deep breath. Wipe the sweat off your hands. Don't let her scowl make you nervous. You're only talking to the girl you've been in love with your entire life. (This story takes place in the spring before the Hunger Games, in a world where Peeta actually has a backbone.)


PEETA'S HONEYMOON SURVIVAL KIT
Medea Smyke

What could Peeta possibly need for his honeymoon? Lord knows. Good thing he's got such good friends, like Gale and Finnick, to help him figure it all out.


CHRISTMAS CHEERS 
Medea Smyke

A fluffy little one-shot for the holidays. One catastrophy leads to another as Gale and Madge get their son ready to visit their family on Christmas Eve. Gale/Madge Peeta/Katniss.

LOSING CHANCES

Candycornlol

The Hunger Games through Gale's eyes.

FEAR, PAIN AND JEALOUSY

Rue'slullaby74

I am a coward. I never told her. I don't know what it would feel like to hold her in my arms as something more than we are. I don't know if she loves me. The worst part... is that I might never know. I might lose her before I get the chance to find out.

I hugely recommend the first three I've listed. SCARS is a romantic Mockingjay assumption that will delight the Team Peeta club. My First Date with Katniss Everdeen is accurate to characters and absolutely adorable! And, Peeta's Honeymoon... now that one is just hilarious. Genius.

Hope you don't mind me sharing, we do have our own little ways of coping with the Mockinjay fever... :)

Enjoy and well...happy reading!

Angel Giveaway Winners!

Thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway! Glad to know a lot of you are excited for Angel! Without further ado, the two randomly picked winners are:

#56 - Andy P.

and

#143 - Erikka J.

Congratulations!
I have sent you both an e-mail, so check your inbox and reply to me within 48 hours.
I have more giveaways to follow so keep an eye out, folks! :)

The Eternal Ones UK release promo

My internet has been patchy at best as of late, so this post should really have been posted earlier. Now my internet has been resurrected (Oh I do try to make up jokes and puns sometimes...), it's time for a little promo for the UK release of Kristen Miller's The Eternal Ones! I have yet to read this, but I am so very excited!

It was published by Razorbill on 19th August, but to those who have yet to read about it, here's the blurb, trailer and samplers for you. Enjoy!

The Eternal Ones (Kirsten Miller)


What if love refused to die?

Haven Moore can’t control her visions of a past with a boy called Ethan, and a life in New York that ended in fiery tragedy. In our present, she designs beautiful dresses for her classmates with her best friend Beau. Dressmaking keeps her sane, since she lives with her widowed and heartbroken mother in her tyrannical grandmother’s house in Snope City, a tiny town in Tennessee. Then an impossible group of coincidences conspire to force her to flee to New York, to discover who she is, and who she was.

In New York, Haven meets Iain Morrow and is swept into an epic love affair that feels both deeply fated and terribly dangerous. Iain is suspected of murdering a rock star and Haven wonders, could he have murdered her in a past life? She visits the Ouroboros Society and discovers a murky world of reincarnation that stretches across millennia. Haven must discover the secrets hidden in her past lives, and loves¸ before all is lost and the cycle begins again.






The Eternal Ones - Sampler #1

The Eternal Ones - Sampler #2

The Eternal Ones - Sampler #3

Thanks to Jenny @ Wondrous Reads for the all information! :)

Book Review: Exclusively Yours (Shannon Stacey)

When Keri Daniels’ editor finds out she has previous carnal knowledge of reclusive bestselling author Joe Kowalski, she gives Keri a choice: get an interview or get a new job.

Joe’s never forgotten the first girl to break his heart, so he’s intrigued to hear Keri’s back in town—and looking for him. Despite his intense need for privacy, he’ll grant Keri an interview if it means a chance to finish what they started in high school.

He proposes an outrageous plan—for every day she survives with his family on their annual camping and four-wheeling trip, Keri can ask one question. Keri agrees; she’s worked too hard to walk away from her career.

But the chemistry between them is still as potent as the bug spray, Joe’s sister is out to avenge his broken heart and Keri hasn’t ridden an ATV since she was ten. Who knew a little blackmail, a whole lot of family and some sizzling romantic interludes could make Keri reconsider the old dream of Keri & Joe 2gether 4ever.

Exclusively Yours is more than just a romance novel; if I can label it a general love novel I might probably do. It's infused with so many different type of love that it really surpasses just being a plain ol' romance book. It's full of hearty laughter and family closeness, and is one of those books that are refreshing, light and funny in spite of the drama it portrays. Set in the middle of a two-week Kowalski family outing, Keri and Joe's story gives an endless source of pleasure, fun and love.

Keri and Joe are an absolute joy to read and reminisce with, their connected past a constant reminder of exactly how perfect they are together. It was fun reading about their high school adventures, and even more so whenever one is used to embarrass any one of the pair. The book provides a very extensive insight into their past, so the characters are not only well-developed, but are actually seen in terms of their connection to each other. The characterisation is full and strong and many actions both in present and in the past are well-explained, not only from one, but from many perspectives. There is something incredibly romantic with reunited lovers, and as far as any ex-couple can go, these two are a really good match.

Apart from Keri and Joe's romance, there is also the rest of the Kowalski siblings' story in this book. I love the secondary characters in this book.Exclusively Yours portrays very common, very realistic issues in marriages among the siblings. While there is the general happily ever after feel to the plot, it makes clear that the road to it is not smooth. Keri and Terry's relationship was also very very entertaining. I love how their interaction and dislike of each other was not overly exaggerated. Instead, the book focused on what brought them together. To add to all the fun, the sense of brotherhood and camaraderie shared by the Kowalskis is spotlighted and needless to say, it was a delight to indulge in that!

What I found to be slight issues with this book in particular is that though Keri and Joe are both wonderful characters, I felt their romantic potential was not well explored. There were a lot of moments where I thought the tension (in the romance) could be heightened. I do like the fact that it was not all lust and whenever scenes became steamy, it was not overly graphic. I felt that there was a lot of reliance on their past and I would have liked a lot more attention to their present and perhaps future. Also, I felt that the book dragged a lot, although of course I take this may be due to the confined setting of the camping grounds.

I enjoyed Exclusively Yours a lot and would recommend it to those who love contemporary romance.

Three stars.


* This E-book was obtained for review from Net Galley.

In My Mailbox (13)

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi @ The Story Siren.

This week has been a roller coaster ride! I've gone from a nervous wreck to an ecstatic student to a catatonic, daydreaming fresher, what with the A level results coming out :)

My internet connection has been patchy as of late too, and still quite unstable so I might be late with my IMM comments. Two books bought - well, not an improvement in the book ban, but I'm allowed to celebrate right? I did just finish my A levels... :D

* For Review

Dark Road to Darjeeling (Deanna Raybourn)

* Bought

Shadow Hills (Anastasia Hopcus)

The Highlander's Stolen Bride (Melanie George)

* From the library

The Duke and I (Julia Quinn)

Numbers (Rachel Ward)

The Glass Swallow (Julia Golding)

Dragonfly (Julia Golding)

Incarceron (Catherine Fisher)

The Truth About Forever (Sarah Dessen)

Lots from the library this week - loaned during the aftermath of the results. I wanted to indulge, but that was before I found out that I have a reading list for university! I love economics but YA fiction is soo much more fun to read!

Happy reading! :)

Book Review: The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins)

Winning will make you famous.

Losing means certain death.

In a dark vision of the near future, a terrifying reality TV show is taking place. Twelve boys and twelve girls are forced to appear in a live event called the Hunger Games. There is only one rule: kill or be killed.

When sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen steps forward to take her sister's place in the games, she sees it as a death sentence. But Katniss has been close to death before. For her, survival is second nature.

With a few exceptions, I feel I am the last person to read this book. In a way, I'm glad I read it late. Had I read it any sooner I would have gone insane waiting for Catching Fire and again waiting for Mockingjay.

There is always something unnerving about dystopian fiction in general, but what makes Hunger Games just that bit more gruesome is the fact that it pits children against each other under the amusement of everyone else. The thought it sickening. The Hunger Games certainly lives up to the brutality of the concept, and Katniss' narration gives a very vivid picture of just how sadistic it all is. I must admit that while reading, the Hunger Games felt like one big adventure and as such, has a certain magnetism to it that I could not say no to. But for once I am glad not to be part of that adventure and be in the relative safety of my bed reading rather than fighting for survival.

I'm sure a lot will agree Katniss Everdeen is probably the strongest female protagonist in the world of YA. Her voice is authentic and conversational and thus easy to follow, despite the heavy decisions she has to make within the circumstances. The ease in which she narrates her world adds to her strength and is a strong contrast to the darkness of her future. She's very real and very tangible, truly a person of her own.

There is no end to the number of secondary characters that is note-worthy in this book. Friendships and bonds are fragile, but unmistakable. It's particularly difficult to endear myself to any one of the tributes as they are doomed to perish one way or another, but certain characters attach themselves so strongly that their deaths deliver a very different point across to the readers. One of these points being just how satirical The Hunger Game is. It reminds me of George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty Four and hence also carry heavy political connotations.

The Hunger games does not forgo humour or drama, but it excels in brutality. And I do love it. It's a bloody good book!

As for the great debate? Well, Team Peeta.

Five Stars!

Book Review: I am Number Four (Pittacus Lore)

In the beginning we were nine.

We left when we were very young, almost too young to remember. Almost. And now . . .

Three are gone.

We are here to keep our race alive, which was almost entirely obliterated. We're just trying to survive.

Six are left.

But we are hunted, and the hunters won't stop until they've killed us all.

They caught Number One in Malaysia.

Number Two in England.

And Number Three in Kenya.

I am Number Four.

I know that I am next.

I was right to be excited and downright giddy for I am Number Four because it totally rocks my sock. No wonder it's been optioned for film even before the book has been published. It's so brilliant it has got to be epic.

I was in awe with the concept of the Lorien Nine. Sent to hide on Earth after the destruction of their planet Lorien, they are hunted by the destroyer of Lorien, the Morgadorians. A Loric charm protects these nine so that they may only be killed in order. The first three are now dead, and Number Four - otherwise known as John Smith-, being the next target, hides in Paradise, Ohio with his guardian Henri. The danger that surrounds both John, Henri and their every move creates tension of the best kind. That lurking, dangerous feel of the unknown is well depicted by this book, and culminates in an action sequence so intense reading it drained me afterwards, as if I myself was part of it!

Though not a usual fan of sci-fi, I found it hard not to be amazed by the Loric way of life. Reading about it felt like a discovery of a rich culture I wanted to indulge in, and the Lorien Nine in particular had me reading in slack jawed fascination. Everything that binds them together and all that they share are completely mersmerising - their legacies, the loric charm, their fight for survival against the Mogadorians. It's fascinating, and it was so very difficult not to indulge in exploring more about Lorien and its people!

Our Hero, Number Four, is one swoon-worthy alien. His voice is authentic, characterised by the brief, punctuated sentences. His narrative intensifies the tension and works particularly well in the fast-paced action scenes. Despite his otherworldly roots, the book takes some time showing just how human John is. He is an alien with a heart, and one easy to adore. Like any typical fifteen year-old boy, he gets into fights, vies for female attention, and makes some genuine mistakes.

Despite his otherwordly roots however, John's battles are not only of extra-terrestial origins, but are also comprised of those which he has wielded for himself and for those whom he has grown to care. In particular, for his love interest Sarah and best friend Sam. The sense of brotherhood and friendship is also strong in I am Number Four - in John's closeness to Henri and his friendship with Sam's. Relationships are at the heart of this book and it was a delight to read bout Henri and John in particular. I adore and admire Henri as a character - his selflessness shines in this book and his affection for John unforgettable! Of course, I must also note the romance. Sarah and John share something innocent yet moving, one I'm sure readers will root for.

I am Number Four is one brilliant book. With an epic concept, a heart-stopping action sequence, a wonderful romance and an emotionally charged resolution, this sci-fi thriller is unmissable. It's gripping, it's exciting, it's bloody brilliant. Like I said, epic!

Five Stars.

Did you know? Pittacus Lore is actually James Frey. I am Number Four is currently being filmed for a movie release on February 2011 and it stars Alex Pettyfer (sigh!) as John Smith. Yes, I am one very happy gal :)

I am Number Four will be out in the UK on 26th August 2010. Visit the official website here to find out more.

* I received this book from Waterstones for review.

In My Mailbox (12)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi @ The Story Siren.
Here's what we got this week:

* For Review

Scarlett Dedd (Cathy Brett)

* Bought

Catching Fire (Suzanne Collins)

I stuck to my book ban! *throws confetti* I still bought one book more than what I had in mind but still.

I'm reluctant to start reading the Hunger Games trilogy as I don't want to wait long for Mockingjay  (I know some people are almost dying for it and it isn't a good feeling, right?) but itching to have a stand on the I am Team Peeta - Team Gale debate :)

Anyway, so much for that - What did you guys get on your IMMs this week? Will check later after I read I am Number Four (which is brilliant, by the way).

Author Interview: L.A. Weatherly (part II) + Giveaway!

Here's part II of the interview I held with L.A. Weatherly, the wonderful author of Angel. If you missed part I check it out here.

Don't miss my Angel giveaway at the end of this post too!

6. Why did you choose to have a combination of a first-person and a third-person point of view for the narrative instead of just one of them?

It wasn't really a conscious choice - it's just that I heard both characters so strongly in my mind that I knew right from the start that I wanted to let them both 'speak'. And, I do think that the story benefits from it - if we only had Willow's viewpoint, we'd miss out on a great deal of tension which is possible from hearing Alex's POV, too, as of course he has a very different slant on things than she does. Interestingly, although I think I could probably write Willow's voice in third person, I doubt that I could write Alex's in first. I have no idea why; it's just how I 'hear' him! This sort of thing just happens, sometimes; who knows why. For instance, I wrote a Barrington Stoke novel called Wasted last year that for some reason wanted to be in the present tense, which I've never done before. It was right for that particular story, as it turned out. So I don't question these things too deeply; I just trust the story and go with it!

7. Can you tell us more about Alex and Willow's road trip? Is it inspired by a personal experience? Which stop was your favourite?

When the story first came to me, I just sort of knew, instantly, that Willow was from upstate New York and that Alex was from New Mexico, and that a lot of the book was going to be a journey from one place to the other. Although I've travelled a fair amount in the US, that particular journey wasn't one that I had done before I wrote Angel - though I did do it earlier this year, retracing Alex and Willow's route as part of my research. I LOVED the panhandle of Texas, which they pass through. I didn't expect to - all I had ever heard about it was that it's hot and flat - but it turned out to be the most amazing countryside: so incredibly flat that you get these sweeping expanses where you can literally see for miles, out to the unbroken line of the horizon. There was something really hypnotic about it; it felt so pure, and peaceful. I also loved New Mexico, where Alex is from. We spent several days there, and it's such rugged countryside - this incredible mix of mountains and desert.

Why didn't you take me on this roadtrip? Why?? :D My favourite was Arkansas!

8. Since you've lived in both the US and the UK, can you tell us which one you prefer? Why? (I'm sure a lot of us would like to know...*drum roll*)

Oh, the UK, of course. ;-) (And if this were a US interview, my answer would be ... 'Oh, the US, of course!') No, in all seriousness, I love them both. I feel very at home in the UK; I've lived here for 15 years now. I love the English countryside, and the English people with their wry sense of humour. And in the US, I love the sense of space, and again the people themselves - who do tend to be quite different from the English, particularly in their immediate openness with people; there's something very endearing about it. Though as a US ex-pat, I'm always conscious of never quite belonging to either country, now - the Brits always know, immediately, that I'm American (actually I'm a dual citizen) - and Americans tend to think I'm English. So I'm sort of betwixt and between the two identities, belonging to both and neither at the same time - which isn't really a bad thing for a writer, as we're primarily observers anyway.

Of course, I just read the first sentence. UK, whoohoo! :D

9. Will there be any major differences between the advance and the finished copy? Can you tell us what they are?

Yes, there are differences, but nothing too major - mainly just minor rewrites to some scenes. The most significant difference probably comes in chapter fourteen. I won't say any more than that, though - it might be fun for readers who saw an ARC to play 'spot the difference' when the time comes!

10. Can you share with us your plan for the second book in the trilogy?

I am almost insanely secretive when it comes to works in progress, so I won't say very much. What I will say is that it's going to have an urban setting, and that we'll see a lot of the same characters from Angel (including Alex and Willow, naturally!) along with some new ones. And both Alex and Willow are going to be tested in ways that they never expected, which will also test their love for each other. I can hardly wait to start writing it (which will be very soon!) - it's going to have some really tense, exciting moments, as well as of course the continuing romance.

Isn't she a darling? I adore her. Thank you Lee! :)

Excited about Angel? You can find out more about Angel on Angel Fever, where you can read the first 45 pages of this amazing book, listen to the playlist, follow Alex and Willow in their road trip, win a signed advance copy and so much more!

I'm insanely impatient for Angel Fire, but I will enjoy spotting re-reading Angel when it comes out October 1st and comparing it with my ARC!

Don't forget to also follow Lee on twitter @LA_Weatherly and Angel book @Angel_book for more news about this trilogy! :D

***
Rules.

• Open to wherever Book Depository ships. That now includes Brazil, Mexico and Philippines!
• Deadline for entries will be on 22nd August, 12MN BST.
• Winners will be drawn by random.org
• Winners will be contacted via e-mail, and will be given 48 hours to response. Otherwise, a new winner will be drawn.
• Any details will be deleted after use and will not be passed on to any third party.

Waiting on Wednesday (6)

Waiting on Wednesdays is hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine.
Today's pick is:

Amelia O'Donohue Is So Not a Virgin (Helen Fitzgerald)

At this boarding school, even the wildest rumors don't measure up to what's really going on...


Rachel Ross is asthmatic and "more bottled up than ketchup," but that's fine. Nothing will prevent her from graduating at the top of her exclusive new boarding school and getting into Oxford.


Rachel refuses to be distracted by the present until she uncovers a shocking secret on campus. She realizes that someone is in desperate need of help and that she actually has something to share-and more friends than she knew.


With an utterly original, hilarious, and honest voice, Amelia O'Donohue delivers a sexy new boarding school tale with true heart-and a surprise ending you won't forget.


This sounds so cute! A boarding school setting sounds fun to, everyone trapped in one place and all that :D
What do you think? I'll check out your WoW picks too!

Book Review: Kiss of the Highlander (Karen Marie Moning)

A laird trapped between centuries...

Enchanted by a powerful spell, Highland laird Drustan MacKeltar slumbered for nearly five centuries hidden deep in a cave, until an unlikely savior awakened him. The enticing lass who dressed and spoke like no woman he’d ever known was from his distant future, where crumbled ruins were all that remained of his vanished world. Drustan knew he had to return to his own century if he was to save his people from a terrible fate. And he needed the bewitching woman by his side....

A woman changed forever in his arms...

Gwen Cassidy had come to Scotland to shake up her humdrum life and, just maybe, meet a man. How could she have known that a tumble down a Highland ravine would send her plunging into an underground cavern — to land atop the most devastatingly seductive man she’d ever seen? Or that once he’d kissed her, he wouldn’t let her go?

Bound to Drustan by a passion stronger than time, Gwen is swept back to sixteenth-century Scotland, where a treacherous enemy plots against them ... and where a warrior with the power to change history will defy time itself for the woman he loves....

This is by far the most engaging novel in the series, and one of, if not my favourite in the whole series. While the first three couples have been perfect for each other in the classical sense, our hero Drustan and our heroine Gwen engaged in a romantic play with unconventional roles. In general I prefer the latter, but in a novel where the protagonists are centuries apart, the female being in the later century, I expected a fiesty heroine and Gwen is exactly that! Which is why I love the role reversal in The Highlander's Kiss so very much.

I always love Karen Marie Moning's characters and both Gwen and Drustan have a special place in my heart. I admire Gwen's firmness in her stance, her persistence and her bluntness. Despite her inexistent love life, rift with late parents and tumbling career, she can still spare Drustan a piece of herself. Drustan MacKeltar is a persistent man himself, but with a more stubborn, arrogant edge. First born, laird and with an ego the size of Scotland, waking up beneath Gwen in the middle of the twenty first century is one hell of a surprise for him. Despite the challenge, he takes everything in his stride and maintains his dazzling charm. Drustan also comes up with seriously funny things in this book, and that alone should be read by anyone! There are no limits to masculine pride and testosterone in Kiss of the Highlander, so prepared to be charmed!

The Highlander's Kiss is a plot-driven novel, really. It has dramatic irony, so part of it is predictable from that viewpoint. However, it's still such a real roller coaster ride; just when I thought I knew the plot, it twists and turns and surprises me. More than once too! Out of all the books in the series, this one has more intellectual motifs as Gwen is a physicist. She analyses the plot in her own terms and produces academic explanations of her adventures. In a way, her scientific reasoning adds colour to the plot and explains the sudden twists well. Of course, need I mention how romantic it is? Especially the oath and the ending? Well heck, it's romantic!

Like the rest of the highlander series, The Highlander's Kiss has vibrant secondary characters bound to recur in the succeeding books. It ends perfectly to set up the next book, which revolves primarily around Dageus, Drustan's brother. Although it closes the Gwen and Drustan's chapter well, it also leaves a gripping cliffhanger which will have readers demanding the next book.

Besides, don't you just love those sexy, luscious lips on the cover ?

FIVE STARS.

* I received this copy for review. 

Author Interview: L.A. Weatherly (part I)

Today I'm very pleased to have the author of ANGEL, one my favourite books, for an interview! This woman is a genius.

Watch out for part deux tomorrow - For the rest of you lot who haven't read ANGEL yet, I'm giving away two copies (pre-ordered) with the next installment, so watch out for it!

Shall we start?

1. How did the idea for Angel come about?

I've known the characters of Alex and Willow for a long time; they were both originally characters in a fantasy novel of mine which was never published. But they refused to go away, and I began to play with the idea of putting them in a contemporary setting, with a totally different storyline. I knew early on that Willow was psychic, and that Alex had been hired to kill her - and that instead, they fall in love - but for a long time, that was all I knew. Then about a year ago, I was looking at a non-fiction display of angel books in a bookshop, and thinking about the fact that all of these titles seemed to be about angels as friendly human helpers, rather than the more religious aspects that we historically identify with angels. And I started wondering...what if angels aren't really good and kind, like we think? What if they have their own agenda - and are really beings to be feared? Suddenly the two story ideas came together, and I knew that I had my novel. Angel wrote itself very quickly after that!

2. Name a book that you wish you'd written:

Well, the obvious answer is Harry Potter, so that I could live in a castle with an indoor swimming pool and have a fleet of cars and swan about wearing loads of bling, etc, etc. ;-) But presumably you mean a book that I wish I'd written for more than just greedy reasons! (And I do love Harry Potter, actually, but I wouldn't quite put it in that category.) One that comes instantly to mind is Tabitha Suzuma's new book, Forbidden, which I thought was amazing - she turns all of your ideas about a very taboo subject completely upside down as you find yourself falling in love with the main characters, and longing for them to be able to be together. Really, really beautifully done - I imagine that this is the one that's finally going to win Tabitha some major awards. (I should mention, though, that it's not for younger readers - and be warned, it's a real tearjerker!). Another is Philip Reeve's Mortal Engines, which I think must be one of the most brilliant concepts ever - the sort that when you hear it, you immediately think, oh, I WISH I had thought of that!

You greedy... I agree, I wish I wrote the HP books and pocketed all the royalties. :D

3. If you were not a writer, what would you be?

I would want to work in film in some way - I think I'd be great in the editing room! But as to what I might actually be doing, that's a different story. I'd probably be a teacher. I teach a lot of writing courses, and really enjoy getting concepts across to people.

4. Why did you choose to have teenage protagonists rather than adult ones?

Well, I'm a children's writer, so for better or for worse, the story ideas that come to me are almost exclusively ones for children's or teenage fiction - somehow, it's just the way that my mind works (not to mention that I love reading children's fiction!). It never really even occured to me to have adult protagonists in Angel. In a way, I think it's a very teenage story in its themes and issues, simply because of that sense of isolation that many teenagers feel. This is heightened in Angel, whose protagonists really are incredibly isolated from the rest of the world - Willow because of what she is, and Alex because of how he was raised. In a very real sense, they're perfect for each other in a way that nobody else could ever be - and because of their age, you also get that great, all-encompassing love; the kind that just sweeps you away and devours you when you're young. So the age of the protagonists probably gives Angel a greater sense of passion and romance than might have been possible otherwise. (Which is never a bad thing!)

5. What is the best and most difficult aspect of developing the plot?

I tend to work my storylines out before I start to write, so I suppose the best aspect is that feeling of 'Ha! I've got it nailed before I've even started!' And then, of course, the most difficult aspect is getting 70,000 words into the story and realising that despite all your planning, the mid-section isn't even remotely working and is all going to have to be redone (as happened with the first draft of Angel). A lot of my career has been spent doing series fiction for younger children - titles of around 15,000 words - and it's possible to plan those out pretty precisely, with little deviation from your plan once you write it. So when Angel refused to play the game at first, that was a bit of a shock! What I learned is that such a long novel (Angel is over 100K) is really totally different from shorter stories. You can plan all you like, but you're just not going to know everything before you start; it's a process of discovery, and of letting the characters lead you. So with book 2, Angel Fire, although I've planned out the rough spine and know the general events and how the story ends, I haven't tried to control it as much as I did Angel - I'm just going to trust that the characters will lead me in the right direction when the time comes.

Isn't she a darling? I adore her. Watch out for part II tomorrow!

Excited about Angel? You can find out more about Angel on Angel Fever, where you can read the first 45 pages of this amazing book, listen to the playlist, follow Alex and Willow in their road trip, win a signed advance copy and so much more!

You can add Lee at twitter (@LA_Weatherly) and Angel Book (@Angel_book) too!

Thank you Lee :)