Bittersweet by Michele Barrow-Belisle: Interview & Giveaway

Bittersweet 
(Faerie Song Trilogy #2) 
by Michele Barrow-Belisle 
Publication date: March 24th 2015 
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

To save the Faery world and her mother’s life, seventeen year old Lorelei sacrificed everything, and the dangerous bargains she made in Nevermore had lasting repercussions. Now safely back in her own world, Lorelei seems the same to her high school friends and her supernatural boyfriend, despite the dark magic growing within her. Love across dimensions is complicated, especially when an invisible veil between the two worlds is sealing, threatening to separate Lorelei and Adrius forever.

Determined to find a solution, Lorelei resorts to exploring her new found powers. But when her friends fall ill, and her healing touch only makes things worse, Lorelei can’t help but wonder if she's responsible.

Nightmares from the Nevermore tighten their icy hold when someone arrives determined to destroy Lorelei’s world, starting with those closest to her. Once again she’s forced to choose between her family… her friends… and a love that was ill-fated from the start.

Available at:

Amazon US     Amazon UK     Amazon CA     B&N      Kobo     Smashwords 

Excerpt

“Stay. Just…. Stay.” The second I said it I felt awful. What was I asking? I knew he couldn’t stay, that he needed to return to his world to stay alive in mind.

Since the night of the dance we’d carefully stayed away from discussing our little predicament. We were still at a standoff. He couldn’t live in my world without magical aids to keep him alive, because of the toxic nature of our polluted air, and I couldn’t go back to his world, because of a bunch of angry beings trying to kill me. That left us here. He would have to return to his world and refuel, to come back to mine. How long the potions lasted depended upon how much stress he was under. Physical exertion, extreme emotions all used up the reserve more quickly. Then there was the issue of his still being tied to Venus, the daughter of the ice witch I killed. A curse had caused his forced fealty to her. Killing the witch was not only supposed to save Mythlandria from her destructive wrath, it was also supposed to free Adrius of the curse that bound him to the ice witch’s commands. Who knew there was a daughter who would take over the bonds, and that she was also his ex-girlfriend.

Now she wants me dead in payment for killing her mother, and as a bonus, I’d be out of the way so she could get Adrius back in her life. That he could come here at all means the curse is weakening. I want his freedom, but at which price? Was I willing to kill for it? I’d have to end her life as well if I was going to destroy the bonds. And I wasn’t a killer. Even Octăhvia’s death was more of an accident than intended. I had no idea what awakening the magic would do, or how to wield it. This arrangement seemed like our only option, for now. And while I hated to see him leave, there was something comforting in being able to pretend that my life was normal again. As normal as it ever was. I could enjoy being back home with friends and back at school which surprisingly enough, I’d missed. It’s amazing how coming to the edge of your life multiple times will make even the most mundane routines a welcomed change.

“Think about what you’re asking me,” he said. “You know why I have to leave.”

He watched me suck in a breath of regret, as I wished I could take back my self-serving plea.

Pain creased his eyes. “Sleep soundly, Lorelei,” was all he said. He kissed the top of my head and turned to go.

The tense set of his jaw revealed the effort it took to leave. I watched him walk away, biting down on my lower lip until he reached the driveway.

“How am I supposed to sleep?” My voice was almost too quiet to be heard over the howling wind. But his hearing surpassed most mortal’s.

“Warm milk with honey works well,” he answered my whisper, his back still facing me. “It helps with the night terrors too,” he added.

“You know that’s not what I meant.” I moved closer, descending one step at a time until my bare feet hit the cold of the pavement.

Adrius froze. Electric pulses crackled between us.

“I was talking about sleeping without you. Here.”

“You’ve managed to do it before,” he said cautiously, the strain of his resolve vibrating in his voice.

“I know. But—“

This was wrong. It was selfish. How could I ask him to stay, when I know that leaving is what would keep him alive to return to me?

“I’m sorry. I’m being silly. It’s just I can’t—“

With whipcrack intensity, his resolve burned away and he rushed toward me and pulled me into his arms. His touch burned though my shirt as his hands splayed against my back, pressing us closer. He kissed me, hungrily at first, then it quickly deepened to ravenous. Matching his fervor, I tangled my fingers in his hair. Every inch of me was on fire. He gasped, his lips slowing against mine. By the time we separated, we were both breathless. He leaned his forehead against mine for a few rapid heartbeats, then pulled back. Our eyes remained locked in a palpitating stretch of silence that spoke volumes. My head swirled, and all I wanted was more of where we’d left off.

But he read my intentions. The corners of his lips quirked and he shook his head. Warm hands slid down my arms with one last caress, before he disappeared. Gone so quickly I didn’t actually see him leave. Swallowed by the darkness of the night and the forest that held the secret doorway into Mythlandria.

Available at:

Amazon US     Amazon UK     Amazon CA     B&N     iBooks     Kobo     Smashwords     

Author Bio

A dreamer at heart, Michele Barrow-Belisle has always lived with one foot in this reality and one foot in another, one of her own imagining. So it follows that she would grow up to write about the characters from those enchanting worlds she knows and loves so well. A fan of all things romantic, her young adult novels are populated with scintillating witches, vampires and fey.  Her bestselling debut book series Fire and Ice (Faerie Song Trilogy) was optioned for a major motion picture this year. Michele resides in southern Canada with her hubby and son who indulge her never-ending obsession with reading, writing and most importantly… chocolate.  

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Interview 

Please welcome Bittersweet author Michele Barrow-Belisle to Diane’s Book Blog. 

So Fire & Ice was optioned for a Movie! Exciting! What can you tell us about that?

Well, as you can imagine we’re all super excited about it! And I’ve had a lot of conversations with the producer, who fortunately wants to keep me on board in adapting the book to a screenplay. That doesn’t always happen, so I’m very grateful. I think it’s a dream most writers have, but it was equally important to me that my stories remain as true to the book series as possible. Hopefully we’ll be able to release more info soon! It’s so hard keeping things secret, lol.

Do you have dream cast in mind?

From the very beginning I pictured Morgan Freeman as the wizard Hawthrin. That would be amazing! Other than him the other characters have varied over the years. I can see Aimee Teegarden as Lorelei, and Avan Jogia as Adrius and Nick Roux as Zantheil, Zoe Kravitz as Abby, Predrag Bjelac as King Etienne,   Eva Green as the ice witch-Octahvia,  Effy Stonem as Venus, and Idina Menzel as Vivianne, Lorelei’s mom.

When and why did you begin writing?  

I’ve been writing for as long as I could hold a pencil… make that a crayon. I used to make up stories and invent long involved plays for my friend to star in, when I was a child. I’ve had a journal or a diary for as long as I can remember, and the ideas for stories and characters and plots dance in my head constantly. I took a long break from it after university, but coming back to it again has been like finding a piece of my soul.

Where did you get your inspiration for writing FIRE & ICE and BITTERSWEET? 

When I first started the story, many years ago, it began as something I could read to my son when he was about 8yrs old. I’d already self-published a series of how-to books by that point. We’d been reading the Magic Treehouse book series together and I had the thought, like many humble author has at some time, I could write that. And so I started writing what became Fire & Ice. But the story wanted to become so much more than a short middle grade novel, and so I set it aside for a few years. I took an amazing online fiction writing class at Savvy Authors.com and fresh new ideas for how to shape it into a full length novel sprang to life. It sort of snowballed from there, because once I gave the characters a new lease on life, they wouldn’t leave me alone until I’d finished writing the entire book. Then they went on to insist their story should be a trilogy.  So then came the second book and third is underway. Now I’m not sure they’ll let me end things there though, lol.

Do you have a favorite character from the book? 

I really love Adrius. He’s the ideal hero in my opinion. Yes he makes mistakes and wrong choices, but behind them all is this unrelenting need for love, and his love for Lorelei. There is a soulful depth to his character that I hope to bring to life in a novella, sharing his perspective and his experiences before and after meeting Lorelei. He never really gets to fully give his side of the story and there is so much more to him than we get to see. He’s the ultimate good guy… plus, he’s really hot!

What comes first for you? The story? Characters? Or setting? 

Usually it’s the characters and then they dictate the story and the setting. For Fire & Ice however, the setting came first, because Mythlandria was a very visual place that I could see in my head and I had a very clear image of how it looked.

What is the most valuable advice you've been given about writing and what would you like to pass on to other writers?  

My advice to new writers is the same advice I live by: Start. And then don’t stop. It sounds simple and yet it’s profound. So many people talk about wanting to write a book, but unless you actually start you can never finish. As the queen of procrastination, I was guilty of this myself for a long time. Eventually you have to just do it. Don’t worry about whether it’s any good, just start. Keep going until you get to where you want to go. Then celebrate, decide where you’d like to go next, and keep going. Write what you love, relax and remember to enjoy the journey. And to quote something NY Times bestselling author Lori Wilde once told me: “You can do this.”

Giveaway

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