~Author Interview & Book Giveaway~ Miss Mae, author of When the Bough Breaks

The day is finally here! Today I am interviewing the lovely and talented Miss Mae, author of the excellent YA novel, When the Bough Breaks. Discover the reason behind her pen name, the inspiration for her new release, and what time period she prefers. Then find out how you can win a copy of When the Bough Breaks.

To read my 5-pearl review of When the Bough Breaks, click here.

I always ask, have you always wanted to be a writer?

Well, pretty much. When I was younger, my dream was to be an artist. I took art classes in school and was told I had talent. One of my still life drawings was presented at an exhibition. This desire stayed with me until my teen years when I became drawn to romantic suspense from the library books I checked out. After reading those, I dreamed of creating my own worlds and characters.

"Miss Mae" is a pseudonym, I assume. Why did you choose to use a pen name?

Though my name is only four letters, people seem to have the hardest time remembering it, or pronouncing it correctly, or spelling it the proper way. I decided, if published, I needed something really simple and easy!

Give us a little glimpse into how your mind works. Do you think of a character or scene first? How does the story progress from there?

Hmm, you know I'm not exactly sure myself! LOL I think just a seed pops up, and I don't really think about it much. Weeks, or months may pass and over time that seed will take shape and morph into a "formula." So I guess it's the scenes first that appears and then the characters are created to fit.

What was the inspiration behind When the Bough Breaks?

LOL, the concept of the "bad boy" being tamed by his love for the "good girl". But in this particular story, I had to come up with a reason for his supposed "playboy" reputation. So the "rich master of the big house in a small town" was added, and the ensuing secrets that came along just created extra spice!

Do you like to listen to music while you write? If so, what type of music do you prefer?

No, I can't listen to music. Too distracting. I prefer quiet, but that's hard to find with four dogs running in and out of my room!

Just for fun, what's your favorite color? Food? Animal? Time period?

My favorite color is blue, but red comes close to tying it. Favorite food is chocolate...yum! And animal? Wow, I can't say there's a favorite since I adore animals (I can't eat them either). And time period...um, probably 1950's and early 1960's. Seemed like such a fun age then (thinking "Happy Days" here.)

Where can we find your books?

It would really help so much if prospective buyers would buy straight from the publishers' sites. That would be The Wild Rose Press and Whimsical Publications.

Direct book links from the publishers:

Said the Spider to the Fly, e-book

Said the Spider to the Fly, paperback

See No Evil, My Pretty Lady, e-book

When the Bough Breaks, paperback

Thank you for joining us, Miss Mae!

Want a chance to win a paperback of When the Bough Breaks? Miss Mae has graciously agreed to send a paperback copy to one very fortunate reader.

First, the ground rules:

1. You must be a follower of this blog. This makes it easier for me to contact you if you've won. Following is not an entry but it is required. I've only done a few giveaways but I've already experienced problems when the entrants don't follow me.
2. Multiple entries are allowed. Leave separate comments for each entry. For example, if you choose to follow Miss Mae's author blog and her group blog, leave one comment stating that you follow her author blog and one comment stating that you follow her group blog. Any questions?
3. Make sure your comment(s) are unique, as in, if you are known as Jane Doe, please add something to your comment to differentiate yourself from the other Jane Does out there.
4. This giveaway is open to US residents only. If you are under 18, please have an adult enter for you.

Here's how to enter:

1. Follow Miss Mae's author blog, Pure Southern Genteel. You must follow publicly and leave a comment on this post to indicate you're following or we won't know that you are.
2. Follow Miss Mae's group blog, The Sweetest Romance Authors. Again, you must follow publicly and leave a comment on this post to be entered.

It's that simple. A winner will be drawn Monday, December 28. Entries will be accepted until December 27, Midnight Eastern time. The winner will be announced on this blog on Monday, 12/28. Check back then to see if you won.

Happy reading, writing, and blogging!

Book Review: When the Bough Breaks by Miss Mae

Title: When the Bough Breaks

Author: Miss Mae

Website: www.missmaesite.com

Genre: Fiction/Young Adult/Mystery-Thriller

Publisher: Whimsical Publications

ISBN: 978-1-936167-01-2

Format: E-book, 189 pages

(avl in print only)

Release date: October 12, 2009

Reviewed: September 7, 2009

Rating: 5 pearls (4.8)

Warnings: None

Synopsis: 16-year-old Darlene Moore is not allowed to date until she turns 18. Despite her mother's rule, she finds herself drawn to Parker Shane, a young man newly returned from Vietnam who has the reputation of a playboy. Through betrayals by more than one person in whom Darlene once placed her trust, these two struggle to find a way to be together.

My two cents: This book started out with the feel of a typical young adult book. The heroine, Darlene, is 16 and in high school. Set in the late '60s with all the trappings of the period, it was an interesting journey into recent history. As the story progresses, however, the initial fluffy feel of the story is lost in a barrage of tragedy that left this reader in tears more than once.

I was surprised that this short novel managed to wring so many differing emotions from me. I chuckled, I cried and at one point, my jaw dropped. It is well-written, flows well, and has believable characters. This was a book that was hard to walk away from. If my copy hadn't been an e-book, I would have taken this book with me everywhere until I was done!

While the first few chapters were a little slow, getting to know who was who and what was what, the story quickly picked up pace. The author let tantalizing bits of mystery drop until all the pieces fell into place. In my opinion, it was very well done.

In conclusion, this is the first by this author that I have had the pleasure to read. It won't be the last.

Please note: Although my copy was an e-book, this book will only be available in print.

*Review based on ARC.

The Girlfriend by RL Stine

Title: The Girlfriend

Author: RL Stine

Genre: Young Adult Fiction

Sub-Genre: Thriller

Publisher: Scholastic

Original Publication Year: 1991

ISBN: 059044333X

Format: Mass Market Paperback, 165 pages

List Price: $3.99US

Character(s): Scotty Singleton

Synopsis: Scotty Singleton finds his hands full fending off a psycho girl who won't take no for an answer.

What I liked: The 'cozy memory' feeling this book gave me. I read this when I was a teenager. I loved RL Stine's books and read them constantly. Things have changed a lot since then but I still got a chill at certain points in this story.

What I didn't like: Honestly, I found the characters to be a little flat, even Scotty. It wasn't so bad that I was bored or even disinterested. It was just very, very different from what I'm used to or how I remember this book. Of course, if I'm totally honest, I have to admit that I always did enjoy the Fear Street books far more than the “stand-alones” that Mr Stine wrote.

Overall: 3.8 stars. This will be added to the books I'm saving for my daughter. (She's 5 now.)

Note: The book I read is an older printing. The one currently available has a different cover, is 176 pages with a list price of $6.99US.