Saturday, November 16, 2013

"BROKEN" Blog Tour: Interview With Author CJ Lyons

BROKEN Blog Tour
"For Scarlet Jillian, every day is a game of Russian roulette - she has a 1 in 5 chance of dying..."


Interview With Author CJ Lyons

Today I am super-excited to have New York Times bestselling author CJ Lyons here on Mina's Bookshelf! CJ is the author of a fast-paced YA thriller, BROKEN (published by Sourcebooks Fire on November 5th) and she has graciously agreed to answer a few questions about her book. Stay tuned on Mina's Bookshelf for my 5 star review. Coming up in a bit!

Q. Welcome to my book den, CJ. Please, tell us something about the genesis of your new thriller BROKEN. What is the story behind the story, the inspiration for the plot and the protagonist of the book?

A. Scarlet’s character is loosely based on my own experiences as a pediatrician. I diagnosed my niece, Abby, with the same congenital heart condition, Long QT, when Abby was only twenty minutes old and BROKEN is dedicated to her.
Watching my niece refuse to allow her disease to define her was such a contrast to some other patients’ parents who would insist on making their child’s disease (most not life-threatening) the center of the child’s world that I couldn’t help but wonder what would it be like to grow up being treated as a “patient” all your life, or worse as the “dying girl,” rather than ever having the chance to figure out who you really were, dying or not.
What better disease to give a character like that than something rare and hard to diagnose and treat like Long QT? Of course, Scarlet is nothing at all like my niece (the best adjective to describe my niece would be “fierce” whereas Scarlet is very naïve and used to being controlled by the adults in her life) but by having Scarlet start the story as someone unsure of who she really is as a person, it makes her struggle and transformation as she faces the truth behind her illness all the more powerful.
After all, it’s easy for someone strong to stand up to bullies or uncertainty or injustice…but how does a kid who has lived all her life in a hospital, basically just waiting to die, learn how to be a hero and find her destiny?

Q. Is your professional background the reason why you started to write or becoming an author has always been in your bucket list?

A. Actually I was a storyteller and writer long before I even dreamed of becoming a doctor. I wrote my first novel in high school and two more SF/F novels in med school. But I never seriously considered writing as a career until I made my first sale to a publisher. Then when I realized I had a chance to make a new dream come true, I took the leap of faith and left medicine to write full time. It was scary (terrifying, actually!) but so far, so good!

Thank you, CJ! BROKEN was my first CJ Lyons’ book and what a pleasant experience :)

*****


About CJ Lyons

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of twenty-one novels, former pediatric ER doctor CJ Lyons has lived the life she writes about in her cutting edge Thrillers with Heart. 
Winner of the International Thriller Writers’ coveted Thriller Award, CJ has been called a "master within the genre" (Pittsburgh Magazine) and her work has been praised as "breathtakingly fast-paced" and "riveting" (Publishers Weekly) with "characters with beating hearts and three dimensions" (Newsday).
Learn more about CJ's Thrillers with Heart at www.CJLyons.net

*****


 About BROKEN
Sourcebooks Fire, November 5  2013
 Hardcover, 336 pages
Young Adult, Mystery, Thriller 
My rating: 5 out of 5 stars
 

New York Times bestselling author CJ Lyons makes her YA debut with a fast-paced thriller sure to keep readers guessing to the very last page


The only thing fifteen-year-old Scarlet Killian has ever wanted is a chance at a normal life. Diagnosed with a rare and untreatable heart condition, she has never taken the school bus. Or giggled with friends during lunch. Or spied on a crush out of the corner of her eye. So when her parents offer her three days to prove she can survive high school, Scarlet knows her time is now... or never. Scarlet can feel her heart beating out of control with every slammed locker and every sideways glance in the hallway. But this high school is far from normal. And finding out the truth might just kill Scarlet before her heart does.
                                                                             
Stay tuned on Mina's Bookshelf for a review. Coming up in a bit!

                                                                      

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