We The Ward series by Jordana Frankel, so we jumped at the chance to sit down and chat with her about the latest title in the series, The Isle, which hits shelves on January 19th, 2016. We’ve got a fun giveaway to share with you, but first, here’s what Jordana had to say when we asked her all the questions!
***INTERVIEW***
In the midst of a drought and on the brink of a water war, two sisters must save their city from the greatest curse of all — eternal life.
I loved writing the end! When I began writing The Ward, I had a very hazy vision for how I might wrap up the sequel. I’d had a number of ideas, but they were like puzzle pieces I wasn’t sure could fit together. And when they did, in fact, fit, I was sort of surprised!
In my early years, I made sure to ride a lot of roller coasters.
My approach to The Ward was a lot like throwing darts at a map of the entire solar system and hoping to hit Rhode Island. My first editor, Claudia Gabel, is a bit of a Novel Whisperer, so working with her was truly a gift. Still, it was tough; I felt like I could only see one step ahead. I followed every cool idea I had, which made for a number of deleted pages. With The Isle, I felt more comfortable with that pesky “plot” concept and was able to see further down the storyline. If my approach differed, it’s only because experience made the process somewhat more clear.
With cake. She’ll like you better if you give her cake.
Aww…Callum. *Sigh*
SPOILERS! View Spoiler »
I’d really want to introduce Ren to Batman/Bruce Wayne…they’d find some interesting common ground, I imagine. Their appreciation for high-speed vehicles, namely. But their motivations in the world are completely different.
Slobbish. Gallant. Variable.
This question gives me anxiety, for some reason.
I’m not sure, sorry! I’m always a bit behind if there’s a screen involved.
JAMIE. OUTLANDER.
I’m actually co-writing my next novel with a former partner of mine, Aurora Wells. She’s a brilliant writer who’s put her pen to all sorts of issues, from animal rights to gender and sexuality.
Our co-baby/novel is a contemporary, gender-queer YA about a teenage girl transitioning into a teenage girl-slash-superhero. In the end our hero/ine discovers that their identity *is* their power. It’s an origin story, with a healthy sidekick of romance. 😉
I’d like to be reincarnated as a very wealthy cat. Thank you for asking.
***About Jordana Frankel***
Jordana Frankel is a Jersey native.
She’s been a camp counselor, a salesperson of diamonds, a hostess at a southwestern grill, an archivist of rare books, a yoga instructor, and a reading teacher, but her shining moment was when she got to hang out in Walmart for 12 hours a day as the AXE girl.
She received her B.A. in English from Goucher College, graduated and then went to live in Italy for a year. Afterwards she then went for her MFA in Poetry at Hollins University.
But then she graduated and she moved back to NYC.
She got her first job at The Literary Group International as a literary agency, where she’d started as an intern reading queries and then assisted editorially. At Linn Prentis Literary, also a literary agency, she handled foreign sales, picked up gems from unsolicited mail, and helped authors through the publishing process. And then it was onto The Book Report Network where she handled ads and promos for features on Teenreads.com, Kidsreads.com, and GraphicNovelReporter.com.
Jordana is currently writing a (history textbook/)novel entitled THE WARD, forthcoming from KT Books/HarperCollins in 2013. She also teaches creative writing workshops for kids ages 8 to 18 through Writopia Lab, a non-profit organization based in New York City.
***About the Book***
The Isle by Jordana Frankel Series: The Ward #2
Published by Katherine Tegen Books on January 19, 2016
Genres: Dystopian
Pages: 384
Goodreads Buy the Book
The heart-racing and thrilling sequel to The Ward about a teenage female drag racer who will do anything to save her sister—and a flooded futuristic Manhattan.
Drought season is coming....
The Ward is in trouble—its streets filled with seawater after a devastating flood and its impoverished inhabitants suffering from a deadly disease called the Blight.
Ren, with the help of her scientist friend, Callum, and her racing buddy, Derek, has discovered a cure—miraculous spring water—administering it to her sick sister, Aven. But when Aven is kidnapped by Governor Voss, the malevolent dictator of the United Metro Isles (UMI), Ren must go on a dangerous mission to save her sister, again.
The mysterious healing water is the only source of freshwater throughout the entire UMI—water that Ren had been tasked by the government to discover. Although she refuses to give up the water’s location, Governor Voss has his own selfish reasons for wanting it. And he will do anything to satisfy his thirst for unquenchable power.
But Ren and Aven have more enemies than the governor. An ancient order, the Tètai, has been guarding the magical water for hundreds of years. And they will kill to protect it. With the Ward in desperate need of freshwater and wracked by disease—and deadly enemies at every turn—the sisters face a dangerous journey, marred by mysterious secrets and horrifying truths, to save their friends and neighbors, and a city.
***GIVEAWAY***
Good luck and don’t miss the other stops on the blog tour for The Isle by Jordana Frankel:
Week 1:
- 1/11: Night Owl Book Cafe – Review
- 1/12: Swoony Boys Podcast – Q&A
- 1/13: Live To Read – Review
- 1/14: Seeing Double In Neverland – Top 10
- 1/15: Take Me Away To A Great Read – Review
Week 2
- 1/18: The Cover Contessa – Review
- 1/19: The Irish Banana Review – Guest Post
- 1/20: Reads All the Books – Review
- 1/21: A Leisure Moment – Guest Post
- 1/22: Emily Reads Everything – Review
