YA Fresh

What's Fresh with Alyson Noel's Evermore!

Since a horrible accident claimed the lives of her family, sixteen-year-old Ever can see auras, hear people’s thoughts, and know a person’s life story by touch. Going out of her way to shield herself from human contact to suppress her abilities has branded her as a freak at her new high school—but everything changes when she meets Damen Auguste…

Ever sees Damen and feels an instant recognition. He is gorgeous, exotic and wealthy, and he holds many secrets. Damen is able to make things appear and disappear, he always seems to know what she’s thinking—and he’s the only one who can silence the noise and the random energy in her head. She doesn’t know who he really is—or what he is. Damen equal parts light and darkness, and he belongs to an enchanted new world where no one ever dies.

Hello Alyson, it's great to have you back with us! Please tell us about your latest novel Evermore.

Alyson: My latest book EVERMORE, is the first in a new five book series and I’m really excited about it! It’s published by St. Martin’s Press and in stores on 02.03.09. The second book in the series, BLUE MOON, releases on 08.04.09, with three more
titles to follow in 2010.

EVERMORE is about a sixteen-year old girl who undergoes a near death experience only to awaken with psychic powers she doesn’t want. And just when she’s beginning to adjust, the gorgeous, exotic, and wealthy Damen Auguste comes to town and turns her entire world upside down . . .

It sounds awesome! Could you share a bit about the main character of your book and what makes her unique?

Alyson: Ever Bloom can hear thoughts, see auras, and get a person’s entire life story by touch. She’s also visited daily by the ghost of her dead little sister Riley. Basically, she’s a sixteen-year old girl who longs to be normal again. Sure that her new psychic gifts are nothing but payback for her role in the accident that caused her entire family’s demise.

How did the idea for this novel come about?

Alyson: Well, a few years ago I lost three people I loved in five horrible months, and just when the dust began to settle my husband was diagnosed with leukemia and it felt like my entire world was crashing down. A year later, when he was in full remission, I wrote SAVING ZOE and CRUEL SUMMER, both of which explore the subject of grief and unavoidable change. But when it came time to write my next book, I realized I wasn’t finished exploring those themes though I wanted to do so in a much different way, by giving the story a paranormal twist and pushing the boundaries between life and death, and EVERMORE just came pouring out of me.

What do you hope readers will gain from reading this novel?

Alyson: At it’s core, EVERMORE is a story about love, destiny, and forgiveness—with an emphasis on forgiving ones self. I hope readers come away from it thoroughly entertained and maybe even with a different perspective of their own unique place in the world.

Thanks for sharing, Alyson. I wish you the best with this intriguing series! Would you like to close with a novel you highly recommend and why?

Alyson: There are so many novels I’d recommend for so many reasons, but one that comes to mind is Courtney Summers’s debut, CRACKED UP TO BE. I was lucky enough to get an early read on this one, and thought it was completely amazing! The writing was clean and beautiful, the main character complex—I can’t wait to see what she writes next!

Alyson Noël is the best selling, award-winning, author of FAKING 19, ART GEEKS AND PROM QUEENS, LAGUNA COVE, FLY ME TO THE MOON, KISS & BLOG, SAVING ZOE, CRUEL SUMMER, FIRST KISS (THEN TELL)- an anthology, and the upcoming IMMORTALS series including: EVERMORE (Feb 09), BLUE MOON (Aug 09), and three more titles for 2010. Her awards and honors include: the National Reader’s Choice Award, NYLA Book of Winter Award, NYPL Books for the Teenage, TeensReadToo 5 Star Gold Award, TeenReads Best Books of 2007, Reviewer’s Choice 2007 Top Ten, nominated for a CYBIL award, nominated for a Quill Award, nominated for YALSA’s Teen’s Top Ten, chosen for the CBS Early Show’s “Give the Gift of Reading” segment, and selected for Seventeen Magazine’s “Hot List” and Beach Book Club Pick. Her titles have been translated into French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Vietnamese, Hungarian, and Romanian. She lives in Laguna Beach, CA. Visit her website, www.AlysonNoel.com.