Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Blog Tour Interview with Mindee Arnett, Author of Avalon (and GIVEAWAY!)


Welcome to day seven of the Avalon blog tour! I'm honored to be a part of this tour, and even more honored to host the lovely author herself, right here on my blog! Stick around for an interview with Mindee Arnett, book information, and the epic giveaway!

Read my review of Avalon HERE.


Meet Mindee!


Alyssa: Hi, Mindee! Thank you so much for joining me today on my blog!

Mindee: Thanks for having me. I’m thrilled to be here!

Alyssa: So, let’s get to it. Name another science fiction (or better yet: space-related novel), recent or not, that you really enjoyed and/or influenced you or your book? 

Mindee: I recently read and enjoyed Redshirts by John Scalzi. It was hysterical and fun. I tend to like my sci-fi novels on the humorous side. I’m a huge fan of Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.  

Alyssa: I'll have to look it up! Both sound interesting. How did you choose character names in Avalon? Jethro is commonly known as a Biblical name, for example.

Mindee: Actually, you hit the nail on the head. I did try to use some Biblical names. Mostly because the ship was originally called Eden before we changed the name to Avalon. With all my names, I try to embed hidden meanings. Milton, for example, is named after John Milton, the author of Paradise Lost. There’s a theme in the book about losing paradise, so it’s a bit of a nod to that. A little trivia about the names in Avalon concerns the ships. Except for Avalon, all the ships are named after race horses. I’m not sure why I did this, other than I love horses and because it was a fun convention to employ. 

Alyssa: Research well done, in my opinion! Hmm. What’s the shiny pretty thing on the cover? It would make a great keychain LOL!

Mindee: It would, wouldn't it? What you’re seeing there is a creative interpretation of a metagate and more specifically, metaspace. Metaspace is what makes faster-than-lightspeed travel possible. Ships are able to enter metaspace either through metadrives installed on the ships or through metagates, which are like tunnels through space. 

Alyssa: How do you like your romance? Are you a fan of “love triangles”?

Mindee: I’m a fan of whatever works. If the love triangle is awesome and helps push the story along, great. Mostly, I like my romance on the side. I don’t want it to be the driving force of the story. My favorite romance theme is unrequited lover, especially when it involves star crossed lovers. A perfect example of this is in the second season of Dark Angel. The two main characters are in love but they are physically unable to touch one another. It’s completely heart breaking and I love it.

Alyssa: Ooo, wow. I've never seen that show, but I'll take your word for it! What can we expect in book two? More debts to be paid? Mysterious worlds? Glow-in-the-dark aliens? *hushes so she won’t spoil anything*

Mindee: I think you must be psychic. All of those things are in the sequel in one way or another, or at least symbolically. Seriously though, the sequel starts off with Jeth and the crew in a hard place and facing an even more threatening villain than the ones in Avalon

Alyssa: Ha! It's been known to happen ;) What are you currently working on in terms of Young Adult projects - something new? Anything contracted? 

Mindee: Yikes. Contracted. That’s a scary word. Right now I’m starting on book 3 of the Arkwell Academy series. I've also got a YA high fantasy that I’m hoping to work on soon as well as a new standalone paranormal. There’s also the possibility of an Avalon spinoff, but I can’t say more since so much of it is tied up in the events of book 2.

Alyssa: And that’s it from me! Thank you so much for stopping by my blog, Mindee!

Mindee: Thanks again!


About the Book:


Avalon by Mindee Arnett
Book One of the Avalon series
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Publication Date: January 21, 2014

Official Summary:

A ragtag group of teenage mercenaries who crew the spaceship Avalon stumble upon a conspiracy that could threaten the entire galaxy in this fascinating and fast-paced sci-fi adventure from author Mindee Arnett.

Of the various star systems that make up the Confederation, most lie thousands of light-years from First Earth-and out here, no one is free. The agencies that govern the Confederation are as corrupt as the crime bosses who patrol it, and power is held by anyone with enough greed and ruthlessness to claim it. That power is derived from one thing: metatech, the devices that allow people to travel great distances faster than the speed of light.

Jeth Seagrave and his crew of teenage mercenaries have survived in this world by stealing unsecured metatech, and they're damn good at it. Jeth doesn't care about the politics or the law; all he cares about is earning enough money to buy back his parents' ship, Avalon, from his crime-boss employer and getting himself and his sister, Lizzie, the heck out of Dodge. But when Jeth finds himself in possession of information that both the crime bosses and the government are willing to kill for, he is going to have to ask himself how far he'll go to get the freedom he's wanted for so long.

Avalon is the perfect fit for teens new to sci-fi as well as seasoned sci-fi readers looking for more books in the YA space-and a great match for fans of Joss Whedon's cult hit show Firefly.



About the Author:

Mindee Arnett lives on a horse farm in Ohio with her husband, two kids, a couple of dogs, and an inappropriate number of cats. She’s addicted to jumping horses and telling tales of magic, the macabre, and outer space. She has far more dreams than nightmares.



The Giveaway:


Follow the rest of the tour:

Week One:

1/13/2014- IceyBooks- Interview
1/14/2014- Word Spelunking- Guest Post
1/15/2014- Fantasy Book Addict- Interview
1/16/2014- Falling For YA- Review
1/17/2014- Whimsically Yours- Review

Week Two:

1/20/2014- Such a Novel Idea- Review
1/21/2014- The Eater of Books!- Interview
1/22/2014- Bewitched Bookworms- Guest Post
1/23/2014- Nerdophiles-Review
1/24/2014- The Irish Banana Review- Guest Post

15 comments:

  1. I cannot wait for this to released! Ever since I saw the cover I've made sure to request a copy at the libraray. I can't wait for tomorrow to get the book! Awesome interview!

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  2. Cant wait for this book :) the cover looks amazing!

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  3. Ooooh, awesome interview! I love getting more information about Avalon and the characters!! A spin-off from Avalon sounds great too!! =D

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  4. I just loved the interview!!! Thanks for this giveaway!!!

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  5. I am always interested in author interviews. Nice one, by the way. ^_^ The cover made me come over and check this out. Makes me very curious.

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  6. That's so cool how the characters in this book have biblical names for a reason. I love when authors try to symbolically embed stuff into their books and I love doing it as well. When I wrote a short story I did all of this symbolic stuff into it and it was hilarious I loved it haha. Thanks for sharing, Alyssa! <33

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  7. I have read about this book so much I really would like to read get. You do a great job writing and look forward to more Thanks

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  8. This isn't my usual read but I have been trying to branch out from my comfort zone. Luckily, I found some really great books this way. Might have to add this one to my tbr.

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  9. This book has been everywhere, and it sounds AWESOME! I love sci-fi and the way people have been depicting this sounds BA. We have a few copies at the store, but I haven't gotten around to reading it yet. I'd love to know what you thought of it! Happy reading!

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  10. This book sounds amazing! I can't wait to read it :)
    I keep seeing it everywhere! Great interview!

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  11. I am so looking forward to reading Avalon! Science fiction is my favorite genre, by far, and I loved the Proxy novella! Plus, I'm a fan of Joss Whedon's Firefly and this seems like it a lot.

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  12. I can't wait to read Avalon! I'm totally in love with the cover, plus I've heard great things about it :)

    Hey, how many book will this series have? Thanks!

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  13. This book sounds sooo good and the cover is just gorgeous! :D I can't wait to read it :) Thanks for the giveaway!

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  14. Book sounds really awesome. Thanks for the Giveaway.

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  15. I'm really excited about reading this book. I'm actually NOT a fan of sci-fi but the description of this book and things I've heard about it make me want to read it. This might be the book that makes me appreciate sci-fi!

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