Pirate's Alley by Suzanne Johnson: Review and interview!!

I was lucky enough to get an advance readers copy of this book and...OMG!!!

Wizard sentinel DJ Jaco thought things might settle down, at least a little bit. No such luck, since New Orleans post-Katrina is still full of the preternatural, and they really don't get along. The major factions, the elves, the vampires, and the fae, are trying to create a council that will rule the city together. If they can't make this work, it could mean war.

Meanwhile DJ is assigned a simple guard/spy duty. Unfortunately her "client" is the sexy pirate Jean Lafitte, who has just returned from his latest "death" with vengeance foremost in his mind. He's sneaky and doesn't play fair, and he has the council - and DJ - very worried.

As if this weren't enough, New Orleans is experiencing some very unusual weather - it's freezing, snowing, sleeting, etc. Eugenie, DJ's best friend, also has an unusual condition to report - and this one will test loyalties. While DJ is on the side of what's best for her friend, her shifter boyfriend, Alex, is firmly on the side of duty. For him everything is black and white, no matter the consequences for the people involved.

This installment of Sentinels of New Orleans was absolutely amazing. I loved getting sucked back into DJ's world even as the suspense almost killed me. I stayed up late reading, totally unaware of the time, because I just had to see what happened next. And the ending...WOW! I cannot wait to read book five! (Seriously. I'll be stalking the author's blog for teasers and hints.)

Johnson, Suzanne. Pirate's Alley (Sentinels of New Orleans Book 4). New York: Tor Books, 2015. Publication Date: April 21, 2015. 5 stars. 

Speaking of the author, I asked Suzanne Johnson five questions. Her absolutely honest answers may surprise you...

What song makes you dance no matter where you are? 

It varies according to what I’ve been listening to the most. Lately, it’s “Embarque ma Belle” by Kaïn, a Canadian band. The song’s about ten years old, but even if you don’t understand the lyrics, I defy you not to at least dance in your chair ☺.

What is your favorite guilty pleasure TV show? 

Er...um...sigh. “General Hospital.” I DVR it. Don’t judge. How long is it gonna take for poor Jason to regain his memory? And Elizabeth’s toddler, Aidan, has been napping upstairs for over a year!

What is your writing process? Do you outline and block out scenes, write the whole thing chronologically, or piece it together? Are you a plotter or a pantser?

I don’t plot down to the color of the draperies, but I do map out every scene before I start writing it and know the beginning, ending, and major turning points and relationships in the book before I start. I spend about 2-3 weeks plotting before I start writing, then go straight from beginning to end.

Are you a collector? What do you collect? What would you collect if money and space were no option?

I’m a fickle collector. I collect obsessively, then get swayed by another shiny thing to collect and abandon the previous one. I’ve collected and sold collections of dolls, colonial blue thumbprint Fenton glass, and Early American Pattern Glass. Currently, I seem to be obsessively collecting art supplies. 

What traits have you picked up from your parents? 

I am a leg-jiggler, like my dad was. The creative streak comes from my mom, and, like her, I dabble in art. I come by stubborn honestly, from both of them.

Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The thoughts and opinions expressed in the review are mine alone. 

All the Bright Places has all the feels PLUS author interview PLUS giveaway!!

Theodore finch, the Freak, has climbed to the top of the school bell tower to think about suicide. Ultimately deciding jumping would be far too messy, he’s about to climb down when he notices a pretty girl a few feet away. She’s also on the edge, and appears zoned out. “Come here often? Because this is kind of my spot I and don’t remember seeing you here before.”

Not exactly poetry and flowers, but Finch’s words, and his subsequent actions, talk Violet down from the bell tower ledge. As the two work on a school project and “Wander the State,” Violet goes from resenting Finch’s presence to craving it. He’s the only one who understands, and he pushes her out of her comfort zone, making her feel more alive that she has since her sister died. But the depression that drives Finch to research methods of suicide never quite goes away, and as the days pass he becomes more and more manic and remote. Violet seems to be the only thing tethering him to life…but for how long?

This extraordinarily well written novel was so very real that realistic fiction doesn’t seem an adequate term. In alternate voices both characters tell the story, and as it built toward the foreshadowed turning point I felt like I actually knew both teens. Niven pulled me fully into Violet and Finch’s lives, showing me the complexity of the their thought processes easily and without judgement. All the Bright Places gave me insight into the helpless, hopeless feeling that many teens face when they are fighting depression, mental illness, etc. Sometimes it's easier to connect with fictional characters than it is with those around us, and it's possible that some teens will see themselves or their friends in Violet and Finch. I think this is going to be an important book to those teens, and I encourage everyone, high school through adult, to read it. 

Five Question Interview with author Jennifer Niven!
As the new year rolls in I'm adding some new features to Fun-Size Reads. One of these is slightly kooky interviews with authors. 

I love authors. I go all fangirly when meeting them though, and never manage to actually speak to them. I just grin stupidly while they sign my books. Starting these interviews gives me the opportunity to ask authors questions that, hopefully, no one else has asked. 

Jennifer Niven is the author eight books, including the Velva Jean historical fiction series, her memoir The Aqua Net Diaries, and Ada Blackjack and The Ice Master, two nonfiction titles that make me shiver just looking at the covers. All the Bright Places is her first Teen novel. 

Jennifer took a break in her busy schedule to kindly answer a few odd and random questions for Fun-Size Reads:

What author, novel, or story inspires you to write?  
My mom. She was a prolific, award-winning author, and when I was a little girl, we used to have “writing time.” While Mom sat at her grown-up desk, I sat at my little one, composing stories in crayon.  She not only encouraged my own writing from a very early age, she taught me that I could be or do anything I wanted to be or do. In August 2014, she passed away unexpectedly and suddenly, and I am trying to honor her with every word I write. I feel like that little girl again, sitting at my desk, crayons in hand, doing what I most love to do, knowing that—if not for her—I wouldn’t be doing it at all.

What is your favorite comfort food?  
Popcorn.

Jared & Jen

What is your favorite guilty pleasure TV show? If you don’t watch TV, what genre of books do you read for pure enjoyment?  
Supernatural.  I love it so much I went to a Supernatural convention in 2013 just so I could have my picture taken with Jared Padalecki.  Sam Winchester is my fictional boyfriend.

When you were growing up, what was your favorite playground spot?
The swings. I loved going higher and higher until I felt like I was part of the wind.

What is one misconception people have about you and/or your profession? 
That being a writer is easy. I was lucky enough to grow up with a writer mom, so I saw firsthand how difficult and stressful and unpredictable the business was.  I also saw the commitment it took.  I’m grateful for that because I think so many people go into the business of writing with unrealistic expectations—not realizing that it is, in fact, a business, and that you have to be ready and willing to do it in spite of everything else.  I hear from people who ask if I only write when I’m inspired, but the answer is no.  I work harder (and longer!) than most everyone I know.

Giveaway Time!!
Finch and Violet find unexpected bright places in their state. What are your bright places? What locations have you found that make you happy? Tell me about one, and you'll be entered to win a finished cop of All the Bright Places sent to you directly from the publisher!
a Rafflecopter giveaway


Niven, Jennifer. All the Bright Places. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2015. 5 Stars

Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The thoughts and opinions expressed in the review are mine alone.