Young adult fiction

MEET ROWAN, STAR OF REFLECTION POND

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To continue our journey into Reflection Pond, allow me to introduce Rowan, the male main character.

Name: Rowan

Age: 19

Appearance: Longish, black hair, with blue eyes, and a compact, muscular frame. He’d be described as thin and sharp, not bulky. In a perfect world, when Reflection Pond is made into a movie, he’ll be played by Kit Harington (see picture!). I agonized over this choice. My issue is, every male actor who’s perfect for the role is too old. It’s not fair for thirty-somethings (or forty-somethings) to play teenagers. So while Ian Somerhalder and Jared Leto are out, I found Kit. Let’s slap some contacts in his eyes and he’s PERFECT. We have to hurry, though, he’s getting dangerously close to thirty.

Personality: Sarcastic, easily irritated. Fiercely loyal. He wants to belong somewhere, but is afraid he’ll ruin everything just by being himself.

Callie’s first impression of Rowan:

There was a lightness about them and Callie imagined they could move very fast if they wanted. The taller one had wavy, jet black hair that hung to his shoulders, and intense, light blue eyes. His lips twisted into a smirk.

An excerpt from Rowan:

            “I know what you’re doing,” he said, voice bored. “You’ll probably break your ankle.” He knew what Callie saw as she looked up at him; a guy in black jeans and a black t-shirt, a bad boy who didn’t belong and didn’t care. He’d cultivated that image so carefully that sometimes even he believed it. He’d turned so many people away with his hostility that they’d stopped trying to befriend him. Rowan preferred it that way, no obligations, no expectations.

            “Not that you care,” Callie said. Her fingers curled into the wood and tried to find purchase.

            “I’ve seen open fractures, you know, where the bone rips through the skin.” He shuddered. “Nasty.”

            “You’re not helping,” she said through clenched teeth.

            “Oh, sorry. Would you prefer I help the process along, throw you out the window and lament over your corpse? Wax poetic about how your life ended so soon and so tragically? It’s a bit dramatic though, falling to your death just to evade a party. Rude, too, if you ask me, considering all of this is to welcome you back to your rightful home and all that bullshit.”

            Callie groaned. Tension leaked into her words. “I didn’t ask for a party. I didn’t ask for any of this. I just want to go home.”

            “What’s your master plan here?” A pause. He used the break to inspect his nails. “Have you considered how you’re going to get back through the pond? I suggest go go gadget arms or abracadabra.” He held up a finger. “I know. Click your heels.” Rowan frowned as though deep in thought. “Wait—that might not work considering we don’t wear shoes.”

            “Maybe I’ll just die and save myself the trouble.”

            “Well, good luck with that.”

Rowan’s interview takes place just before Reflection Pond begins.

  1. If you had a free day with no responsibilities and your only mission was to enjoy yourself, what would you do?

            Every day is a day to myself. When you’re unimprinted, nobody cares what you do. So, I’d train with the quarterstaff, then spend the rest of the day in the library. If I’m not beating the hell out of something, then I’m reading. I like to keep things balanced.

  1. What impression do you make on people when they first meet you? How about after they’ve known you for a while?

            Obviously, everyone thinks I’m unbelievably attractive. IF they manage to get past that, then they’ll find I’m loyal. Nobody really gets past the first part.

  1. What’s your idea of a good marriage? Do you think that’ll happen in your life?

            Marriage? Why in the world would someone want to be married? That’s a terrible idea.

  1. What are you most proud of about your life?

            My knowledge. People may overlook me, but I’ll always come out on top in the end, because I studied, and they didn’t.

  1. What are you most ashamed of in your life?

            There are a few bad decisions that will haunt me forever. I’ve found that once you’ve done something horrible, that potential is always inside of you. I’m ashamed of my inability to change the past. If I could go back, I’d let it be me instead of her.

  1. If you could spend the day with someone you admire (living or dead or imaginary), who would you pick?

            My foster mother. Just one more day and I’d change everything.

  1. Do you think you’ve turned out the way your parents expected?

            Probably not. They probably hoped I’d be a doctor or something. Instead, I’m the black sheep. The town idiot. I’m really aiming high.

  1. What do you believe about God?

            If there is a God, he’s not paying attention.

  1. Is there anything you’ve always wanted to do but haven’t done? What would happen if you did it?

            Ha. Oh wait, this is serious? I want to belong. If I could do that…maybe—nevermind. Next question.

  1. What’s the worst thing that’s happened in your life? What did you learn from it?

            I killed someone I loved. That never goes away, you can never take it back. I learned that I can’t trust myself and I certainly can’t trust anyone else. I’m always going to try to rectify that mistake.

  1. Tell me about your best friend.

            That’d be Ash. I’m pretty sure he thinks I’m an asshole. I’m also pretty sure he’s right. Ash is cool, though. He’s a teacher, so we spend a lot of time talking about books and our history. He doesn’t treat me like an outsider. I appreciate that.

  1. What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done to someone? Why?

            Really? You had to ask again? See question 10.

  1. What would you like it to say on your tombstone?

            Tombstone? I’m hoping to have my ashes spread in the river.

  1. Describe your ideal mate.

            I like looks as much as the next guy, but I’d really like someone who challenges me. I don’t like slutty girls or the ones who can’t stand up for themselves. Sometimes I’m a jerk, I need someone who will tell me when I’m being an ass.

  1. What are you most afraid of?

            Myself.

  1. What’s the most important thing in your life? What do you value most?

            Home. Not that I really have one, but maybe one day.

  1. What do you like best about yourself? Least?

            I like that I’m able to analyze things from a different perspective. I’m also loyal. What do I like least? Where should I begin? We’ll be here all week.

  1. How do you feel about your life right now? What, if anything, would you like to change?

            I’d like to find my amulet, for one, finally be accepted in Eirensae. Other than that, things are okay.

  1. Are you lying to yourself about something? What is it?

            Don’t you know the fae can’t lie? Not even to themselves.

Want more Reflection Pond (and more specifically, more Rowan!)? Add it on Goodreads and join my mailing list to get all the latest news and freebies!

All the best,

Kacey

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MEET CALLIE, STAR OF REFLECTION POND

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In preparation for the upcoming release of Reflection Pond, I’ve compiled some juicy tidbits about the characters (with excerpts!). Today, I’m going to introduce you to Callie, the main female character.

Name: Callie, Calla Lily

Age: 17

Appearance: Long blond hair, blue eyes. In a perfect world, where Reflection Pond was made into a movie, Annasophia Robb (see picture!) would play Callie.

Personality: Reserved, quiet, shy, with a short fuse ignited by fear. She’s had a hard past that makes her hesitant to trust people or rely on them. She has a soft side that longs for magic and kindness. She believes that she can leave her past behind and make herself into a new person, if only given the chance.

Here is Rowan’s (the male main character) first impression of Callie:

It wasn’t because she was pretty—of course she was, beauty was a given in Eirensae. Sometimes he longed for the diversity of the human world, where no one was glamoured to perfection. He wanted scars to map out a history that actually meant something. Flawlessness turned his stomach.

The girl’s arched mouth fell into a gasp as she looked up at the glamoured ceiling. A blond cascade of hair skimmed over her shoulders as she leaned farther backwards, trying to take it all in.

Rowan didn’t believe a single word that came out of her mouth. He couldn’t lie, but he didn’t think she was like him. It didn’t matter if she looked like Sapphire. Lots of girls had blond hair and blue eyes. Lots of girls were beautiful. It didn’t mean she belonged here. No one fell through the pond by accident.

And an excerpt from Callie:

She must be crazy, going through with this party. Callie pressed her fingertips to the mirror, half expecting her hand to disappear through it as she saw in the movies. Maybe she was dreaming. Maybe she’d fallen asleep in Nate’s bed and created another reality so she wouldn’t have to face the real one.

When she was little, back before she’d realized that the world was an awful, cruel place, Callie had dreamed that her mother was a princess. She’d drawn pictures of castles sparkling with jewels and white knights on horses. She convinced herself that one day, a carriage would come for her and never look back. Then she’d been placed with the Johnson’s and Callie had lost all hope.

And maybe she was crazy, but was it so wrong of her to be curious? To ask, what if? She glanced again at her reflection. They’d pinned flowers in her hair and covered her eyelids with glitter. Maybe she wanted this.

Maybe this was the most excited she’d been.

Ever.

Callie’s interview. This takes place just before Reflection Pond, when Callie is a foster child.

  1. If you had a free day with no responsibilities and your only mission was to enjoy yourself, what would you do?

            Read. The best way to escape your life is to take on someone else’s. I can be anyone as long as I’m inside a book.

  1. What impression do you make on people when they first meet you? How about after they’ve known you for a while?

            I think I come off as quiet and maybe a bit standoffish. It’s not that I’m trying to be that way, it’s just hard for me to trust people. I don’t have many friends and very, very few people know what really happened to me. Fosters are like that. You can’t hold too tightly to anything, because tomorrow it will be taken away from you.

  1. What’s your idea of a good marriage? Do you think that’ll happen in your life?

            No. Just no.

  1. What are you most proud of about your life?

            My ability to blend in. Inside, everything is a mess, but on the outside you just see a girl who is making it through every day. Maybe I don’t smile enough, but no one is looking hard enough to notice.

  1. What are you most ashamed of in your life?

            Not being able to defend myself. If I were stronger, I could’ve had a different life.

  1. If you could spend the day with someone you admire (living or dead or imaginary), who would you pick?

            Joan of Arc. Not only did she have visions of the future, but she used them to change history. She had to convince people she wasn’t a heretic, and though she eventually died for her visions, she brought about great change in a small amount of time. She was strong and brave, living in a man’s world, and that’s the kind of person I want to be.

  1. Do you think you’ve turned out the way your parents expected?

            I have no idea. I’ve never met my parents, though when they gave me up, I hope they didn’t expect me to have so many foster homes.

  1. What do you believe about God?

            I’ve never been very religious. Once, I lived in a home that required us to go to church. It seemed to me that God was just an excuse people used to do things. You can get away with nearly anything if you claim you did it in the name of God.

  1. Is there anything you’ve always wanted to do but haven’t done? What would happen if you did it?

            I want to get out of Pennsylvania, and I will, as soon as I turn eighteen. I’ve got enough money saved for a bus ticket. Florida, California, New York. I don’t know where I’m going, but I know I’m leaving. What would happen? I don’t know. That’s the best part.

  1. What’s the worst thing that’s happened in your life? What did you learn from it?

            I’m not answering that.

  1. Tell me about your best friend.

            I don’t really have a best friend. I guess it’s my boyfriend, Nate. He’s the only person who’s put up with me for this long.

  1. What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done to someone? Why?

            The worst thing I’ve done? Being born. Obviously I was a burden to my parents.

  1. What would you like it to say on your tombstone?

That’s cryptic. My name, I guess.

  1. Describe your ideal mate.

            Mate? You’re kidding, right? A book. A book is my ideal “mate.”

  1. What are you most afraid of?

            Being unable to defend myself. Being trapped.

  1. What’s the most important thing in your life? What do you value most?

            Freedom. Well, I’ll value it when I have it, anyway.

  1. What do you like best about yourself? Least?

            I’m determined, it’s probably my best quality. The least? My fear.

  1. How do you feel about your life right now? What, if anything, would you like to change?

            I feel like I’m stuck, but only for a little while longer. Like I said, eighteenth birthday, bus ticket, sayonara Pennsylvania and being a foster.  

  1. Are you lying to yourself about something? What is it?

Lying? I’m not much of a liar, I prefer to omit things. If I ignore it, it doesn’t really exist.

Read more about Callie and Rowan’s lives when Reflection Pond releases April 1st. Do you have questions for Callie? Post them below and I’ll answer them!

You can also add Reflection Pond on Goodreads and join my mailing list to get all the latest news and freebies!

All the best,

Kacey

REVIEW – PREP SCHOOL CONFIDENTIAL BY KARA TAYLOR

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In this breathtaking debut that reads like Gossip Girl crossed with Twin Peaks, a Queen Bee at a blue-blooded New England prep school stumbles into a murder mystery.

Anne Dowling practically runs her exclusive academy on New York’s Upper East Side—that is, until she accidentally burns part of it down and gets sent to a prestigious boarding school outside of Boston. Determined to make it back to New York, Anne couldn’t care less about making friends at the preppy Wheatley School. That is, until her roommate Isabella’s body is found in the woods behind the school.

When everyone else is oddly silent, Anne becomes determined to uncover the truth no matter how many rules she has to break to do it. With the help of Isabella’s twin brother Anthony, and a cute classmate named Brent, Anne discovers that Isabella wasn’t quite the innocent nerdy girl she pretended to be. But someone will do anything to stop Anne’s snooping in this fast-paced, unputdownable read—even if it means framing her for Isabella’s murder.

**

I received an advance copy of this title from NetGalley. All opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation, monetary or otherwise, for my review.

5 STARS

Prep School Confidential by Kara Taylor

This book was so much fun! The dialogue was hilarious and the situations had me laughing all the way through. Don’t let the cover or the title fool you—I went into this book thinking it was going to be snarky, shallow, and annoying. It was none of those things. (I might go as far as to wish they’d used a different title AND cover, one that was more interesting and more applicable to the story.)

Anne Dowling has a serious case of bad luck that ends her at Wheatley as the “new girl.” What ensues is a mix of mystery, murder, friendship, relationships, and self-discovery. While Anne is constantly touted as a “troublemaker”, I think she’s just a typical teenager trying to stay ahead of the game. She does her fair share of sneaking around, breaking and entering, and snooping, but her character never seemed catty or contrived.

When Anne’s roommate Isabella is found dead in the woods, the book really takes off. The reader follows Anne as she tries to solve the mystery of who killed Isabella—no matter the consequences.

Things I liked: Anne’s authentic voice. The storyline and how it keeps you guessing until the end. How all the characters are involved in something unsavory—it keeps things interesting!

Things I didn’t like: The stereotypical relationships and how Anne chooses the “rich” kid in the end. The extra characters who aren’t well developed.

Prep School Confidential will keep you on your toes and you’ll fly through the pages trying to figure it out. Anne is a likeable main character and the plot is substantial enough to satisfy even a critical reader.