FFBC Tours: Welcome to the club, Unblemished by Sara Ella

Unblemished
by Sara Ella
Publisher: Thomas Nelson/HarperCollins
Release Date: October 11th 2016
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Synopsis:

Eliyana has always recoiled from her own reflection in the mirror. But what if that were only one Reflection—one world? What if another world existed where her blemish could become her strength?

Eliyana is used to the shadows. With a hideous birthmark covering half her face, she just hopes to graduate high school unscathed. That is, until Joshua hops a fence and changes her perspective. No one, aside from her mother, has ever treated her as normal. Maybe even beautiful. Because of Joshua, Eliyana finally begins to believe she could be loved.

But one night her mother doesn’t come home, and that’s when everything gets weird.

Now Joshua is her new, and rather reluctant, legal Guardian. Add a hooded stalker and a Central Park battle to the mix and you’ve gone from weird to otherworldly.

Eliyana soon finds herself in a world much larger and more complicated than she’s ever known. A world enslaved by a powerful and vile man. And Eliyana holds the answer to defeating him. How can an ordinary girl, a blemished girl, become a savior when she can’t even save herself?

Hello, Sara! We are super excited to have you in our FFBC tours.

Favorite Book?

Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers

Favorite TV show?

Once Upon a Time

Favorite movie?

Beauty & the Beast

Your Favorite Song? 

The Words by Christina Perri

Favorite Food? 

Anything with chicken

Name 3 fictional places you would move to in a heartbeat. 

Narnia, Storybrooke, Stars Hollow.

Who is your perfect fictional boyfriend? 

Killian Jones.

Favorite Quote? 

“Someday you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.” ~ C.S. Lewis

What do you find yourself “Fangirling” over? 

Once Upon a Time a.k.a. #CaptainSwan

If you could meet one author, dead or alive, who would it be?

C.S. Lewis

Something to say to our Book Addicts? 

I love you, awesome nerds! You are all beautiful inside and out.

Could you tell our Book Addicts a little bit about Unblemished? 

Unblemished is about a teenage girl named Eliyana who has been ridiculed for the way she looks her entire life. As a result she feels ugly. Worthless. Unlovable. After her mom dies, Eliyana discovers perhaps the blemish she always considered a curse is not such a curse after all. The story explores the themes of self-worth, inner beauty, and realizing it’s okay to just be exactly who you are.

What can you tell us about Eliyana and her personality? 

Eliyana is very insecure to begin with, and really emanates every negative emotion I felt as a teen. She’s constantly hiding and putting herself down. I wanted her to have a strong arc, and throughout the story she begins to see herself in a new light. She sees she is not worthless, but quite the opposite. Her blemish becomes her strength. This in and of itself is a powerful device in moving her from the blemished girl who hides from her reflection to the unblemished young woman who stands against evil.

How did you come up with the story? Did you find inspiration in any other story/movie/show and how has this affected your writing? 

I had horrible acne as a teen so that definitely influenced El’s character and how negatively she feels toward herself. I also adore Beauty & the Beast, and the theme of true beauty can most certainly be found in Unblemished. Those familiar with fairy tales will see them woven throughout. Finally, music is huge for me and the chapter/ act titles are actually lyrics and song titles from popular musicals.

Tell us your favorite quote from Unblemished. 

“. . . appearances can deceive. A jagged surface doesn’t always allude to what truly lies beneath.” ~ Ky Rhyen

Is there a specific scene that you had the most fun writing? 

* SPOILER ALERT * I love the scene in chapter nineteen where Ky has a confrontation with one of the villains. He totally shows his awesome side in that scene, and it gives me all the feels. It’s also a turning point in his relationship with Eliyana.

If you had to pick one song to be the Theme Song for Unblemished – Which one would you pick? 

“Unconditionally” by Katy Perry 

Lyric— “Acceptance is the key to be, to be truly free.”

Quote— “If true love ushers a change, perhaps that’s where I need to begin. How can I fulfill my purpose as a Mirror unless I can first love myself?”—Eliyana

Are there any recommendations you could give your readers to be in the “perfect mood” to read Unblemished (specific music, snacks…)? 

You can check out the official Unblemished playlist on Spotify, and a comprehensive playlist will be released as part of the Unblemished blog tour (check out the Literary Meanderings blog on October 15th). I’d say an oak or pine scented candle (reminiscent of the forest of the Second Reflection) and some peanut butter M&Ms (El’s favorite) would add the perfect touch.

What’s next for you? 

Right now I’m working on edits for the second book in the Unblemished trilogy (title to be revealed on the Between Chapters channel in October). Book 2 releases July 11, 2017.

Thank you so much for everything, Sara! 

THANK YOU!!!!

Follow the Unblemished by Sara Ella Blog Tour and don't miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule.

Once upon a time, SARA ELLA dreamed she would marry a prince (just call her Mrs. Charming) and live in a castle (aka The Plaza Hotel). Though her fairy tale didn’t quite turn out as planned, she did work for Disney—that was an enchanted moment of its own. Now she spends her days throwing living room dance parties for her two princesses and conquering realms of her own imaginings. She believes “Happily Ever After is Never Far Away” for those who put their faith in the King of kings.

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Release Day Launch: Asa (Marked Men #6) by Jay Crownover

Holy smokes!! We are so excited to bring you the Release Week Blitz for Jay Crownover's ASA! ASA is a New Adult Contemporary Romance novel being published by HarperCollins, and it is the 6th book in The Marked Men Series. We sure hope you're ready for this amazing book!

Asa (Marked Men #6)

by Jay Crownover

Publisher: Harper Collins

Release Date: April 14th 2015

Synopsis:

Starting over in Denver with a whole new circle of friends and family, Asa Cross struggles with being the man he knows everyone wants him to be and the man he knows he really is. A leopard doesn’t it change its spots and Asa has always been a predator. He doesn’t want to hurt those who love and rely on him, especially one stunning arresting cop who suddenly seems to be interested in him for far more than his penchant for breaking the law. But letting go of old habits is hard, and it’s easy to hit bottom when it’s the place you know best. 

Royal Hastings is quickly learning what the bottom looks like after a tragic situation at work threatens not only her career but her partner’s life. As a woman who has only ever had a few real friends she’s trying to muddle through her confusion and devastation all alone. Except she can’t stop thinking about the sexy southern bartender she locked up. Crushing on Asa is the last thing she needs but his allure is too strong to resist. His long criminal record can only hurt her already shaky career and chasing after a guy who has no respect for the law or himself can only end in heartbreak.

A longtime criminal and a cop together just seems so wrong . . . but for Asa and Royal, being wrong together is the only right choice to make.

I pulled the Nova to a stop in front of a duplex that had clearly seen better days. It wasn’t a rusted-out trailer in Kentucky, but it might as well have been. I turned off the ignition and sat back in the seat so I could turn to look at Ayden. She was watching me carefully and I could see how frustrated she was with the entire conversation in the way her shoulders were tensed up and the way her hands had curled into tight balls on her lap. It was the way she used to look whenever I got into trouble and she had to do something desperate and drastic to get me out of it. I reached out a hand and put it on top of her fists.

“I died in that hospital, Ayd. There were no angels playing harps. There was no redemption and repentance. I died and it was very clear that I was going to get exactly the kind of fate I had been courting with all the messed-up shit I had been doing to other people. All I could see was every wrong I had ever committed and every bad decision I had ever made exploding all around me. For once I could see how all of that affected you. I was dying, and I knew what was waiting for me on the other side, yet I couldn’t go knowing that was all you were going to have to remember me by. I had to come back and give you something else to hold on to, some kind of good memory to go with the endless miles of bad I laid at your feet. I wanted to have the chance to show you I could be the kind of brother you deserved all along, so no, I didn’t save myself—you saved me. Just like you’ve always done for my entire life.”

I saw her bottom lip tremble until she snapped her teeth around it to keep it still. Her fists unclenched below my palm and she curled her shaking fingers around my hand and her already husky voice rasped with even more emotion when she told me what I think I had needed to hear from her all along.

“I have always been proud that you’re my brother, Asa. Yes, there have been times in the past I would have gladly fed you to the wolves, and it’s no secret that I had to leave home because I didn’t know what to do to help you anymore, but we both made it out alive and are better people for it. I know you’re sorry for the way things went down when we were younger, but I need you to open your eyes and take some credit for the way you have turned it around to make things the way they are now. I’ve long since come to terms with the Asa from my childhood. What I want to do is love the Asa that’s here with me now. You need to let go of those boulders weighted with all the bad things from past that are dragging you down before you get crushed under them.”

It was eerily similar to what Royal had been telling me the deeper and deeper I sank in with her. I don’t think I was ready to let any part of those stones go just yet, but a sexy redhead was slowly and surely eroding bits and pieces of the rock the more and more time I spent with her. By the time she was done, maybe she would be able to carve out something that was worthwhile, something that didn’t eviscerate me to look at.

I leaned over enough that I could kiss Ayden right on the center of her forehead between her midnight eyebrows and I felt her let out a shuddering sigh.

“I’m never going to let you down again, Ayd. That is the one and only thing in the entire world that I can promise and know it’s a promise I will keep.”

We stared at each other for a long and silent moment. The seriousness of the words I had said to her and the fact that I could see that she understood that I really, truly meant them finally worked to absolve me of some of the guilt that seemed to suffocate me whenever I thought about the things she had done to keep me safe.

Jay Crownover is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Marked Men series. She also introduced the dark and sexy world of The Point that started with BETTER WHEN HE's BAD and is currently working on her newest series The Saints of Denver. Like her characters, she is a big fan of tattoos. She loves music and wishes she could be a rock star, but since she has no aptitude for singing or instrument playing, she'll settle for writing stories with interesting characters that make the reader feel something. She lives in Colorado with her three dogs.

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