About
the Book:
Title: ICE LIKE FIRE
Author: Sara Raasch
Release
Date: October 13, 2015
Pages: 479
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Formats: Hardcover, eBook, Audiobook
It’s been three months since the Winterians were freed and Spring’s king, Angra, disappeared—thanks largely to the help of Cordell.
Meira just wants her people to be safe. When Cordellan debt forces the Winterians to dig their mines for payment, they unearth something powerful and possibly dangerous: Primoria’s lost chasm of magic. Theron sees this find as an opportunity—with this much magic, the world can finally stand against threats like Angra. But Meira fears the danger the chasm poses—the last time the world had access to so much magic, it spawned the Decay. So when the king of Cordell orders the two on a mission across the kingdoms of Primoria to discover the chasm’s secrets, Meira plans to use the trip to garner support to keep the chasm shut and Winter safe—even if it means clashing with Theron. But can she do so without endangering the people she loves?
Mather just wants to be free. The horrors inflicted on the Winterians hang fresh and raw in Januari—leaving Winter vulnerable to Cordell’s growing oppression. When Meira leaves to search for allies, he decides to take Winter’s security into his own hands. Can he rebuild his broken kingdom and protect them from new threats?
As the web of power and deception weaves tighter, Theron fights for magic, Mather fights for freedom—and Meira starts to wonder if she should be fighting not just for Winter, but for the world.
Hi Sara! First I want to say welcome back to Two Chicks on
Books! I loved SNOW LIKE ASHES & ICE LIKE FIRE and am so happy that you
could stop by for a visit! BTW I can’t wait for book 3!
Yay!! I’m so excited to be here :D
For the readers: can you give us a recap of SNOW
LIKE ASHES and the characters?
SNOW LIKE ASHES followed Meira, a sixteen-year-old
girl who was one of the last surviving refugees from the Kingdom of Winter.
Under the guidance of General William Loren (whom she calls Sir), Meira was
trying to help the other refugees free their enslaved kingdom and put Mather,
the exiled teenage king, back on the throne. They gained an alliance with the
Kingdom of Cordell thanks to a questionable treaty with its king, Noam, and
prince, Theron. But Angra, the king of Spring, had some other tricks up his
sleeve, and things quickly unraveled—ending with Meira in one of Angra’s
Winterian work camps. CHAOS ENSUED.
What can we expect in ICE LIKE FIRE?
More politics. This is the book where Meira really struggles
with balancing Warrior Meira and Queen Meira—oftentimes at the expense of
sacrificing Warrior Meira altogether.
What about book 3? Do we have a title yet?
We do! Or, well, I do, heh. It’ll be announced this winter!
Who was your favorite character to write? What about your least favorite?
Has that changed between the two books?
Favorite character (other than Meira) was probably Ceridwen. She’s just so
ANGRY, I love it.
Least favorite: Angra. He’s so MYSTERIOUS. Even to me. It’s
like pulling teeth to get this guy to tell me anything about his backstory.
What is your favorite passage/scene in ICE LIKE FIRE?
The one that first comes to mind is Chapter 9, purely because it’s so
emotionally draining. #sorrynotsorry
Was book 2 easier to write than book 1?
HA. Hahahahahahahahaha *falls off chair*
Noooo. Book 2 was stupid hard to write. I actually went through
about four or five different drafts before I finally landed on the right
opening. Middle books are notoriously hard—they have to be a bridge between
places as well as their own thing. I keep telling myself “I will only ever
write standalones after this.” Yeah, we’ll see if that happens.
What are you reading right now? Or what do you have on your TBR that you’re
dying to read?
I just finished Prince’s Gambit, book
2 in the Captive Prince trilogy, and I am dead from feels. DEAD. This is one of
the best, if not the best, books I’ve ever read. The last 40 pages had me in
this state of slack-jawed screeching in the middle of the night and IT’S JUST
UTTER PERFECTION. (Tho this is not a
YA book, so be warned—it’s very much an adult fantasy novel.)
Who is your ultimate Book Boyfriend?
Laurent from, see above, the Captive Prince trilogy. Though, I feel dirty
saying that, because he’s so crazy perfect with Damen and I know he’d have zero
interest in me. But I’d just want to follow him around and giggle and fawn over
him and basically be his groupie.
What inspires you to keep writing YA?
Meeting teen readers. They are the BEST—so passionate, so excited, and it
always invigorates me in a way that nothing else can!
Lightening Round Questions
What Hogwarts House would the Sorting Hat place you
in?
Ummm…soooo…I’ve never actually read
Harry Potter…*dodges thrown items*
Twitter or Facebook?
TWITTER ALL THE WAY
Favorite Superhero?
Harley Quinn. She counts as a
superhero, right? Don’t care, I love her.
Favorite TV show?
At the moment, Leverage. ELIOT MMMMMM
Sweet or Salty?
Both!
Any Phobias?
The ocean. I watched Life of Pi and it scared the sh** out of
me. That kind of movie is my ultimate horror film—being trapped in the ocean.
On a boat. Nowhere to go. Why people go on cruises BY CHOICE, to RELAX, is
beyond me. That’s my hell, right there.
Song you can’t get enough of right now?
“Something I Need” by OneRepublic: https://youtu.be/8_xvWdY6Gr4
Fall Movie you’re most looking forward to?
Okay it’s next fall, technically, but
the Assassin’s Creed movie OH MY GOD I CANNOT WAIT
Thanks so much Sara for answering my questions! I can’t wait to read
SNOW LIKE ASHES 3!
Thanks for having me!! It was a blast!
About
Sara:
Sara Raasch has known she was destined for
bookish things since the age of five, when her friends had a lemonade stand and
she tagged along to sell her hand-drawn picture books too. Not much has changed
since then — her friends still cock concerned eyebrows when she attempts to
draw things and her enthusiasm for the written word still drives her to extreme
measures. Her debut YA fantasy, SNOW LIKE ASHES, came out October 14, 2014 from
Balzer + Bray, and the sequel, ICE LIKE FIRE, comes out October 13, 2015.
Neither features her hand-drawn pictures.
Giveaway Details:
2
winners will receive sets of ICE LIKE FIRE Trading Cards/Miniature Bookmarks.
International.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
About
the Book
Check out the Tour Schedule!
Week
One:
10/5/2015- A Dream Within A
Dream- Review
10/6/2015- Mundie Moms- Interview
10/7/2015- Such a Novel Idea- Review
10/8/2015- Dark Faerie Tales- Guest
Post
10/9/2015- The Whimsical Mama- Review
Week
Two:
10/12/2015- Two Chicks on Books- Interview
10/13/2015- Bookish Lifestyle- Review
10/14/2015- Supernatural
Snark- Guest Post
10/15/2015- Fiktshun- Review
10/16/2015- Once Upon a Twilight- Interview
About book 1:
Title: SNOW LIKE ASHES
Author: Sara Raasch
Release
Date: October 14, 2014
Pages: 432
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Formats: Hardcover, Paperback, eBook, Audiobook
A heartbroken girl. A fierce warrior. A hero in the making.
Sixteen years ago the Kingdom of Winter was conquered and its citizens enslaved, leaving them without magic or a monarch. Now, the Winterians’ only hope for freedom is the eight survivors who managed to escape, and who have been waiting for the opportunity to steal back Winter’s magic and rebuild the kingdom ever since.
Orphaned as an infant during Winter’s defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee, raised by the Winterians’ general, Sir. Training to be a warrior—and desperately in love with her best friend, and future king, Mather — she would do anything to help her kingdom rise to power again.
So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore Winter’s magic, Meira decides to go after it herself. Finally, she’s scaling towers, fighting enemy soldiers, and serving her kingdom just as she’s always dreamed she would. But the mission doesn’t go as planned, and Meira soon finds herself thrust into a world of evil magic and dangerous politics – and ultimately comes to realize that her destiny is not, never has been, her own.
Sixteen years ago the Kingdom of Winter was conquered and its citizens enslaved, leaving them without magic or a monarch. Now, the Winterians’ only hope for freedom is the eight survivors who managed to escape, and who have been waiting for the opportunity to steal back Winter’s magic and rebuild the kingdom ever since.
Orphaned as an infant during Winter’s defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee, raised by the Winterians’ general, Sir. Training to be a warrior—and desperately in love with her best friend, and future king, Mather — she would do anything to help her kingdom rise to power again.
So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore Winter’s magic, Meira decides to go after it herself. Finally, she’s scaling towers, fighting enemy soldiers, and serving her kingdom just as she’s always dreamed she would. But the mission doesn’t go as planned, and Meira soon finds herself thrust into a world of evil magic and dangerous politics – and ultimately comes to realize that her destiny is not, never has been, her own.
I can't wait to read Ice Like Fire!
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