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Monday, March 6, 2017

Blog Tour: Gena Showalter Q&A, Author of Lifeblood (Everlife #2)

Hey, guys! Today, I have the great pleasure of welcoming Gena Showalter to the blog for her novel, Lifeblood—the sequel to Everlife! I hope you guys enjoy our interview, and definitely be sure to check out the other tour stops, as well as the awesome giveaway below!

Lifeblood (Everlife #2) by Gena Showalter 
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Pub Date: February 28th 2017 (in stores now!)
Buy it: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository | Indie Bound
My Firstlife is over, but my Everlife is only now beginning.

With her last living breath, Tenley "Ten" Lockwood made her choice and picked her realm in the Everlife. Now, as the war between Troika and Myriad rages, she must face the consequences.

Because Ten possesses a rare supernatural ability to absorb and share light, the Powers That Be have the highest expectations for her future—and the enemy wants her neutralized. Fighting to save her Secondlife, she must learn about her realm from the ground up while launching her first mission: convincing a select group of humans to join her side before they die. No pressure, right?

But Ten's competition is Killian, the boy she can't forget—the one who gave up everything for her happiness. He has only one shot at redemption: beating Ten at a game she's never even played. As their throw-downs heat up, so do their undeniable feelings, and soon, Ten will have to make another choice. Love…or victory.



Gena Showalter is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty books in paranormal and contemporary romances, as well as young adult novels. Her series include White Rabbit Chronicles, Angels of the Dark, Otherworld Assassins, Lords of the Underworld, Alien Huntress and Intertwined.
Her novels have appeared in Cosmopolitan Magazine, and Seventeen Magazine, and have been translated all over the world. The critics have called her books "sizzling page-turners" and "utterly spellbinding stories", while Showalter herself has been called “a star on the rise”. Gena lives in Oklahoma with her family and a menagerie of dogs. 
Connect with Gena: Website | Twitter | Facebook 


Where did you originally get the idea for this series? What inspired it?
I love scripture, and there are numerous scriptures about kingdoms not of this earth, as well as kingdom vs. kingdom—a war between spiritual forces—and the power of choice. Life and death. Blessing and cursing. Light and dark. Good and evil. Those themes combined and the idea to write a book where life as we know it is just a dress rehearsal and real life actually begins after death—where two opposite realms are in power—was born.

What are some of your favorite fantasy books of all time?
I’m a romance reader at heart, so none of my picks are straight fantasy; they simply have fantastical elements. Oh, and I’m going with the first book in the author’s series. Poison Princess by Kresley Cole, the kick off for the Arcana Chronicles. How she makes you fall in love with the incarnation of Death is a true testament to her amazing talent. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. Her take on Beauty and the Beast is exquisite! Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning. Such powerful writing (and Barrons—shiver)!

What is the first book that ever made you cry? (And if you can recall, what scene was it?)
Eek! Not sure I can recall the first—so many years have passed! But an instance that sticks out in my mind is Arcana Rising by Kresley Cole. The raw emotion in that book grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let go.

What are the hardest and easiest types of scenes for you to write?
A physical scene (be it kissing or warring) can be both the hardest and the easiest—at the same time. Not only must the kissing and fighting impact the characters, it must further the plot. It must teem with emotion without becoming cloying or causing the action to drag. The stakes must be high. There must be consequences and ramifications. And I can never forget, even for a moment, that every couple is different. Every hero and heroine has a different past, different fears, different likes and dislikes, hopes and dreams. I must stay true to both characters.

What fictional literary character do you relate to the most, and why?
I tend to relate to the sass-mouths. Not that I’m a sass-mouth LOL Or maybe I am? I’d have to ask the family. In my mind, I’m as sweet as sugar. But I digress. I like strong characters that have a slightly warped sense of humor. In real life, strong people with warped senses of humor—my family, my friends—surround me. (You know who you are! Yes, I’m talking to you, Jill Monroe, Kresley Cole and PC Cast)

If you could travel anywhere (all expenses paid) for writing inspiration, where would you go and why?
Scotland! Kilts! (Need a moment to calm my heartbeat).

What are some of your favorite and least favorite tropes in books?
I love beauty and the beast type stories! Yes, yes, a thousand times yes, sign me up. I’m a sucker for the stepbrother romances. Oh! And royalty. You’ve got a king? I’m ready to become his queen.

Do you have any writing routines, habits, or rituals?
Thanks to the advice of Kresley Cole and PC Cast, I recently bought a tread-desk. I walk while typing/writing. The first few days, I was super sore and kind of resented the machine—what do you mean it’s time to work again? Now, I love it! Oxygen flows and ideas spring up.

Describe an ideal date night for each of your main characters.
Ten: Dinner—anything but the slop she had to eat inside the Prynne Asylum—followed by cuddling and counting stars.

Killian: Getting. It. On.

What? He’s a guy.

After this series concludes, can you tell us anything about your future projects? What are you working on?
All I can say is that I’ve got an idea—it’s twisted, a little creepy, with a lot of action and romance—and I’m foaming at the mouth eager to work on it.

Such a fun and interesting interview, Gena! Thank you so much for stopping by the blog :)

Week 1:
3/6: Brittany's Book Rambles - Q&A
3/7: In Wonderland - Review
3/8: Reading Is Better With Cupcakes - Guest Post
3/9: Take Me Away To A Great Read - Review
3/10: Swoony Boys Podcast - Character Interview

Week 2:
3/13: Two Chicks On Books - Guest Post
3/14: Books Are Love - Review
3/15: Resch Reads and Reviews - Makeup Board
3/16: Here's to Happy Endings - Review
3/17: Lisa Loves Literature - Heaven vs. Hell

Week 3:
3/20: Quite the Novel Idea - Review
3/21: The Irish Banana Review - Fast 5
3/22: Mundie Moms - Review
3/23: Megnificent Books - Top 10
3/24: Owl Always Be Reading - Review

19 comments:

  1. I loved this interview thank you for sharing! <3

    Kelly

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  2. I think these books sound very exciting to read and I love the covers.

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    1. The covers are great! I hope you check both of these books out ^_^

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  3. Great interview! Sadly enough I never got around to reading the first book (as usual... lol) but I do hope to read it sometime. :)

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    1. Thanks and hopefully you get around to reading these books someday!

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  4. Absolutely brilliant interview Brittany. I was a bit fan of the Arcana Chronicles as well, I an totally relate. Interesting that even a kissing scene is written from the point of view to further the storyline. Writing is so intricate that I think as readers we often don't realise how much planning moment by moment goes into our favourite reads. I have a copy of book one and will get around to reading it soon. Thanks so much for sharing, really enjoyed it <3

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    1. I hope you get to read it soon! I'm so glad you enjoyed this interview :)

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  5. I am a sucker for anything Beauty and the Beast related, too! I haven't read this series yet, but it does sound like a really interesting fantasy that I would enjoy. Thanks for the fantastic interview! :)

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    1. Anything Beauty and the Beast related is amazing :) Thanks for stopping by!

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  6. I'll be reviewing this one next week! I was so excited to read this sequel, loved the first one!

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    1. I'm so glad you loved it :) Thanks for stopping by, Lisa!

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  7. Lovely tour post Brittany :D Seems like an awesome book. <3 Curious about it. It's so so gorgeous :D

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  8. This sounds fascinating, and the cover is absolutely gorgeous. Maybe even more so than the first book, though it's a close call.

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    1. I agree, the cover is really pretty! Thanks for stopping by, Rayna :)

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  9. I like this cover even more than the first one's. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this sequel. :)

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