Debut Author Bash 2016: Tobie Easton

Hello and welcome to my very first post for the Debut Author Bash of 2016! If you didn't know, the bash is a bunch of bloggers bringing attention to some lovely authors and their debuts organized by the lovely Nichole over at YA Reads. You can find the entire bash schedule here! Today's post will be with Tobie Easton and before we jump into the interview, I'll also be re-sharing my review for Emerge. Let's get started, shall we?

Review

Emerge by Tobie Easton

5 Stars

When I heard about this book, I was so excited! I'm always looking for a good mermaid read. I ended up being lucky enough to receive an e-ARC from the publisher and man, am I thankful! Going in I kind of thought Emerge was going to be a light fluffy romance, but I was wrong. There is indeed a romance, but this story has a dark tone as well.

Let's discuss the characters. I quite enjoy our main character Lia and her inner struggles. She breaks rules, but only when her intentions are good. I just loved seeing her internal fight. Lia's sisters and her cousin are also pretty entertaining. However, two of my favorite characters are Clay and Caspian. Clay is human and pretty dang adorable, I am a sucker for a flirty, green eyed man. I found myself falling for him as the story went on. Caspian on the other hand, is mer. Mer is a term you'll see fairly often as a term for the mermaid race. Caspian is intelligent, sweet, and very kind. He's actually every bit as charming as Clay. For someone I didn't enjoy, Mel. She seems like the bitch of the story and we're made to hate her for good reason. Boy, did I love to hate her. Enough about the characters, you need to read it for yourself!

My favorite thing about Emerge is actually all of the mythology behind the mermaids from how they focus on maintaining their legs to the concept of same-love. I don't want to spoil anything for you, but I love how Easton came up with this concept that everyone gets legs at a certain point in life and for a certain reason. However, they have to work to maintain them unlike what we see in The Little Mermaid, which is also mentioned throughout. Everything is so intriguing! I just can't get enough of it!

In the end, I enjoyed every minute of this novel. I even messaged Tobie as I went and that was fun. Emerge isn't your typical mermaid novel. It has a lot more to it than just beaches and romance. There's a battle to be won and it's a wonderful ride. In the end, I was only able to see one thing coming and it didn't even play a major part in the ending. I have every confidence that Emerge will surprise you. Because it says Mer Chronicles Book 1, I'm assuming there will be a sequel and the wait may just kill me. I hope you'll pick it up and come back to chat with me.

Interview with Tobie

Care to tell us a bit about yourself before we get started?

Sure!  I’m an author in my twenties living in Los Angeles who loves to write about magic and kissing.  I’m also a newlywed and a chocolate chip cookieaholic.  When I’m not writing, I’m reading, and when I’m not reading, I’m trying out a new restaurant or travelling.  Or kissing ;)

Can you tell us a little bit about Emerge and how you came up with the idea?

Emerge tells the story of seventeen-year-old Lia Nautilus. Lia may be a Mermaid, but she’s never lived in the ocean. Ever since the infamous Little Mermaid unleashed a curse that stripped Mer of their immortality, war has ravaged the Seven Seas. Lia is supposed to be safe in Malibu’s secret community of land-dwelling Mer. Then a new girl with a deadly secret endangers the human boy Lia has feelings for. After making a horrible mistake, Lia will risk everything to stop him from falling in love with the wrong girl.  

The idea for Emerge came to me while I was swimming laps (seriously!).  As a kid, every time I went swimming, I pretended to be a mermaid.  I was remembering that while I was swimming laps, and I started to wonder what life would be like for mermaids who lived on land.  That’s when my brain started spinning the story for what would become Emerge.

When you were writing Emerge did you typically know where you wanted things to go or did the plot kind of come to you as you went?

I’m definitely a plotter!  I like to know the character arcs and plot twists in advance so I can build toward them.  The final version of Emerge is actually really close to my original outline.

One of my favorite things is the concept of how a mermaid gets their legs. Was it something you thought about for a long time or did it just come to you because it is genius!

Thank you so much!  That’s one of my favorite details from the book, too.  It occurred to me early-on in the writing process (before I had even started outlining), while I was still working on world-building.  In fact, it was that realization that made me determined to write the book because it caused so much to click into place.  I’m excited for each new reader to discover that detail.

I love how you included a pronunciation guide at the end, can we expect to learn more Mermese from Caspian in book two?

There will definitely be more Mermese words and expressions in Book 2 of the Mer Chronicles, which is entitled Submerge.  There are a couple in particular that are a lot of fun!

And lastly, I know you did a photoshoot for Project Mermaids, was it everything you hoped for? You looked absolutely gorgeous, by the way.

Wow, Gabby, thanks so much!  Project Mermaids, is a charitable endeavor aimed at raising awareness for ocean conservation by photographing celebrities dressed as mermaids.  I was so excited when they invited me to work with them in support of such an important cause.  The day itself couldn’t have been more fun or surreal. The photographer, makeup artist, and assistants were all so nice and so enthusiastic about Emerge.  They even designed my makeup to match the book cover!  People lined the Venice pier taking photos with their phones during the shoot—it was crazy! Being transformed into a mermaid was an absolute dream moment.  You can see the behind-the-scenes video of our shoot below along with the finished photo.

Links

Website:  www.TobieEaston.com/books

Facebook: www.facebook.com/tobieeaston/

Twitter: www.twitter.com/TobieEaston

Instagram: www.instagram.com/tobieeaston/

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/book/show/27882492-emerge

Purchase links:

Amazon: www.amazon.com/Emerge-Tobie-Easton/dp/1942664915/

Barnes & Noble: www.barnesandnoble.com/w/emerge-tobie-easton/1123019014

Chapters: www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/emerge/9781942664918-item.html?ikwid=emerge&ikwsec=Home&ikwidx=1

The Book Depository: www.bookdepository.com/Emerge-Tobie-Easton/9781942664918

I want to thank you all for stopping by and of course Tobie for joining me as well. I hope you'll be inspired to pick up this wonderful, Summer time read. Have a wonderful day!

Xoxo,

Gabriella