I’m so happy and thrilled to host Danielle J. Jensen today during her Blog Tour for her debut Stolen Songbird. I absolutely adored and loved Stolen Songbird, so I when I got the chance to chat a little with Danielle, I was super excited!
So please welcome Danielle !
Hi Danielle! Thank you so much for stopping at the Bewitched Bookworms today and for chatting with me about your awesometastic debut āStolen Songbirdā.
Thank you for having me and for thinking my book is awesometastic š
From all the paranormal creatures you could have written about, why did you choose trolls?
The idea for the story started with the setting. The trolls came into being as I thought about what sort of creatures would live in an underground city. They pretty much created themselves!
If you could be one paranormal creature, what would you like to be? For me it changes, there was a time I wanted to be a sparkling Vampire (yes there I admit my Twilight obsession) and there are other times I would like to be a Feyā¦, so what about you Danielle?
Iām pretty sure every paranormal fan imagines herself as a vampire at some point!! What I want to be usually depends on what Iām reading. Iāve wanted to be a fairy, an elf, a dragon, a shadow hunter, a unicorn, and the list goes on. But my enduring favourite is a shape shifter who takes on the form of a tiger or a leopard. Which is highly ironic given that I am allergic to cats.
Letās take a second to talk about CĆ©cile ā I absolutely admired her as a heroine. Could you describe her in 3 words for us?
Optimistic, kind, and feisty.
And ā¦ which 3 words would Tristan choose to describe her?
Infuriating, inconvenient, and human. Brave, tenacious, and beautiful.
If you would be in CĆ©cileās situation, kidnapped, about to get married, how do you think you would handle this situation?
I wouldnāt handle it as well. Unlike CĆ©cile, Iām quite shy with new people, so Iād probably spend the entire time hiding in the library plotting my escape. Good thing this book isnāt about me, or it would be very boring.
For me, every story needs romance, love and a swoon worthy boy. Does romance play a big role in your reading and writing experience?
Itās extremely important to me ā I adore love stories. Relationships between characters are something that fascinates me, and I try to explore as many as possible in my books. I find that Iām always left feeling disappointed if a romance doesnāt develop within a novel, except in a case where there is a strong friendship to take its place, i.e. Code Name Verity. That said, I canāt imagine writing a novel that didnāt have a strong romantic element ā itās in my blood.
Tristan is definitely one of the most interesting, mysterious and intriguing characters Iāve met in a long time. He was so difficult to figure out, which only added to his allure. As a writer, was it hard to develop him as a character and what do you admire most about him?
I actually find writing Tristan much easier than CĆ©cile, and I think that is because he generally reacts on the basis of logic and she generally reacts based on how she feels. For me, it is easier to write a logical reaction than to insert myself into CĆ©cileās shoes and puzzle out what she will do. Which makes it interesting when Tristan throws caution and planning to the wind and acts on his feelings.
What I admire most about Tristan is his dedication to the revolution he leads, because it requires him to be āonā every waking second. By necessity, he is pretending to be someone different than he really is, and I canāt even imagine how exhausting it would be to constantly be careful about everything you say or do. I also admire his intelligence, but given that I am his creator, thatās sort of like saying I admire my own intelligence. Which is weird.
If you would compare Tristan to other fictional boys, which ones would you choose and why?
A tall handsome boy with layers of depth and secretsā¦ Heās like every guy in YA!
I jest. Except not really š
Tristan can be snarky, and I modeled that a bit after Will in Clockwork Angel, because I love that guy.
Now, letās have a minute to talk about Marc. You wrote this beautiful and heartbreaking Love Letter from Marc to his wife, which seriously brought me to tears. Did you expect Marc to have such an impact as a character to your readers?
Iām pretty proud of that letter ā not bad for a first effort! But the answer to your question is no, I didnāt expect for Marc to be the character so many readers latched on to. Although, I do remember my agent saying that she loved him when she called to offer me representation, so maybe that should have been my first clue! Marcās story is tragic, and I think that appeals to peopleās hearts.
Iāve had several readers ask why I didnāt make Marc the love interest, and there are several reasons for that.
1. Marc already had his love story, and shoving him into a love triangle would really steal from the poignancy of that loss.
2. Tristanās role as the leader of the revolution (which the plot pretty much hangs on) requires him to be ambitious, cunning, and a little bit ruthless, and Marc is none of these things. Marc is a better person than his cousin, but he isnāt a better leader.
3. Other than his friendships, Marc has nothing to lose, whereas Tristan begins the story with everything. Which means I can take, and take, and takeā¦ *cue evil laughter*
Last but not least, the ending! Oh Danielle, itās as cruel as itās amazing, but can you tease us a tiny little bit about what is to come next?
Book 2 reveals quite a bit more about the friendship between Tristan and Marc. You donāt see much conflict between the two of them in Stolen Songbird, but as I alluded to in Marcās love letter to PĆ©nĆ©lope, that hasnāt always been the case. And wonāt always be the case. Tristan made a big mistake in the past, and both of them are going to pay for it.
Thank you so so much for chatting with me!
It was my pleasure!
Series: The Malediction Trilogy #1
Published by Strange Chemistry on April 1st 2014
Genres: Action & Adventure, Fantasy, Fantasy & Magic, Fiction, Legends, Myths, Fables, Romance, Young Adult
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
For those who have lovedĀ SeraphinaĀ andĀ GracelingĀ comes another truly fabulous fantasy...
For five centuries, a witchās curse has bound the trolls to their city beneath the ruins of Forsaken Mountain. Time enough for their dark and nefarious magic to fade from human memory and into myth. But a prophesy has been spoken of a union with the power to set the trolls free, and when CĆ©cile de Troyes is kidnapped and taken beneath the mountain, she learns there is far more to the myth of the trolls than she could have imagined.
CĆ©cile has only one thing on her mind after she is brought to Trollus: escape. Only the trolls are clever, fast, and inhumanly strong. She will have to bide her time, wait for the perfect opportunity.
But something unexpected happens while sheās waiting ā she begins to fall for the enigmatic troll prince to whom she has been bonded and married. She begins to make friends. And she begins to see that she may be the only hope for the half-bloods ā part troll, part human creatures who are slaves to the full-blooded trolls. There is a rebellion brewing. And her prince, Tristan, the future king, is its secret leader.
As CĆ©cile becomes involved in the intricate political games of Trollus, she becomes more than a farmerās daughter. She becomes a princess, the hope of a people, and a witch with magic powerful enough to change Trollus forever
About Danielle L. Jensen
WebsiteDanielle was born and raised in Calgary, Canada. At the insistence of the left side of her brain, she graduated in 2003 from the University of Calgary with a bachelorās degree in finance. But the right side of her brain has ever been mutinous; and in 2010, it sent her back to school to complete an entirely impractical English literature degree at Mount Royal University and to pursue publication. Much to her satisfaction, the right side shows no sign of relinquishing its domination.
Quote from my 5* Review
Stolen Songbird by Danielle L. Jensen is an outstanding fantastical debut with a marvellous heroine and the most beautiful swoon worthy romance. The setting is wonderfully unique, filled with intriguing magical creatures and woven into a story that left nothing to desire.
Don’t miss the Love Letter Danielle wrote for the Love Letter event from last month. She wrote a beautiful heartbreaking love letter from Marc to Penelope!
Are you excited about Stolen Songbird? Do you love a good YA Fantasy with wonderful romance just like I do? If you could ask Danielle a question, what would you like to ask her?
And here you can enjoy the first 3 Chapters for free!!!! Don’t miss it š
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[…] over at Bewitched Bookworms interviewed me for the blog today. We talk about Cecile, Tristan, and Marc, and she does her best to extract a bit of info about […]
I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH!!!! And I’m a super shy person as well (with new people that is), so I would likely be right there with Danielle in the library hiding amongst the books and planning my escape. Okay, maybe I’d be making out with Tristan a little too, but that can’t be helped. I’m a little nervous about the “take, and take, and take” comment, I think book two might give me a stress-induced ulcer, but I can’t wait. Glutton for punishment, party of one:)
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Wow, this book sounds really cool. I don’t know if I’ve read a book about trolls before.
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I’ve wanted to be an elf (and good with my bow), a shifter and a dragon. Sorry, Danny. No sparkly vamps for me. And thank you for not shoving Marc into a triangle! š
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I loved STOLEN SONGBIRD, and these are such wonderful review questions for Danielle! Aw, that ending kills me and I’m so curious about what’s going on with between Tristan and Marc. You know how much I enjoy YA that has a a wonderful romance, and Danielle gave that to us and more in this amazing book. Great interview, Danny š
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SO many things in this interview that are enticing me to read the book. I especially love books that have many strong relationships, definitely putting Stolen Songbird on my list!
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I read Stolen Songbird as soon as it was published. It was so unique and the tension between Cecile and Tristan was just… Ahhhh! I was supposed to review it this week, but I’ve been so busy.
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I never read the love letter, Marc’s, because I was afraid it would spoil something for the book. But I just read it. OMG! That is the most lovely, but heartbreaking love letter I have ever read! Just so beautiful!! Now I can’t wait to read my copy!! Spring Break at the end of the week. Six plus hours of driving (not me). I plan to read!!
Great guest post!! I saw another one with a picture of the mountain that inspired the city under the mountain. Very interesting tour.
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Lovely interview! I prefer to have romance in books too although I agree that Code Name Verity didn’t need it. I would also like to be a shapeshifter. I’d like to shapeshift into a vulture. For some odd reason I can’t explain, I love vultures.
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I’m so glad that she didn’t make any additional love interest. Marc would have been all wrong as an interest as she said. I loved the role he played.
I doubt I’d handle Cecile’s situation any better either. I really adored this book – now I must go hunt up that letter you mentioned!
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That’s the perfcet insight in a thread like this.
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