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Thursday, December 3, 2015

2015 Debut Authors Bash, Featuring Romina Russell (and GIVEAWAY!)


Hi bibliovores! Welcome to the 2015 Debut Authors Bash. Today, I'll be hosting Romina Russell, author of Zodiac and Wandering Star! Stick around for my interview with Romina, and a giveaway!




Meet Romina!

Alyssa: Hi, Romina! Thank you so much for joining me today!

Romina: Thank you so much for hosting me!

Alyssa: How has your debut year been?

Romina: Breathlessly amazing! It feels like I compressed a lifetime’s worth of emotions into a single year, and I had an absolute blast. In particular, I was blown away by the incredible community of YA readers, who have cemented for me that this is what I want to do with my life.

Alyssa: How has the experience been different, as book two’s publication gets closer?

Romina: The second time around feels quieter, yet more intense. Since I’ve been through the publication process once already, I’ve become better at balancing the demands on my time, but since by now ZODIAC already has readers, I feel much more pressure for the sequel to resonate with fans of the series.

Alyssa: Were there any parts of Zodiac that were cut that you wished stayed put? Anything you can share and/or give details without spoiling anything? :)

Romina: Nope—if anything, I actually kept tacking on additional scenes to ZODIAC; hence its heft and height and tiny type! After the first ARC was printed, I added so many extra pages—including wholesale new chapters, like Helios’s Halo and the prologue—that Razorbill decided to print a second ARC, which bears the beautiful current cover art. And I’m still working on getting you a copy of the first ARC (I remember from your blog posts that you loved the original cover colors)! <3

Alyssa: OMG! *squishes* You are awesome! What can we expect from book three?

Romina: ANOTHER AMAZING COVER! Sorry, I had to get that out—I’ve already seen a draft of the book 3 cover, and I know I say this every time, but this one might be my favorite! LOL. Story-wise, we’ll adventure to more Houses and discover new cultures as Rho comes closer than ever to unraveling the mysteries of her universe and the secrets of her past.

Alyssa: I cannot WAIT to see that cover! Razorbill has outdone themselves with these two. And that’s it from me! Thank you for taking the time to be here, Romina. :)

Romina: Thank you!! <3


About Romina Russell:

Romina Russell is a Los Angeles based author who originally hails from Buenos Aires, Argentina. As a teen, Romina landed her first writing gig—College She Wrote, a weekly Sunday column for the Miami Herald that was later picked up for national syndication—and she hasn’t stopped writing since. When she’s not working on the ZODIAC series, Romina can be found producing movie trailers, taking photographs, or daydreaming about buying a new drum set. She is a Virgo to the core.



Check out Romina's debut!


Zodiac by Romina Russell
Book One of the Zodiac series
Publisher: Razorbill
Publication Date: December 9, 2014

Summary (from Goodreads):

At the dawn of time, there were 13 Houses in the Zodiac Galaxy. Now only 12 remain….

Rhoma Grace is a 16-year-old student from House Cancer with an unusual way of reading the stars. While her classmates use measurements to make accurate astrological predictions, Rho can’t solve for ‘x’ to save her life—so instead, she looks up at the night sky and makes up stories.

When a violent blast strikes the moons of Cancer, sending its ocean planet off-kilter and killing thousands of citizens—including its beloved Guardian—Rho is more surprised than anyone when she is named the House’s new leader. But, a true Cancrian who loves her home fiercely and will protect her people no matter what, Rho accepts.

Then, when more Houses fall victim to freak weather catastrophes, Rho starts seeing a pattern in the stars. She suspects Ophiuchus—the exiled 13th Guardian of Zodiac legend—has returned to exact his revenge across the Galaxy. Now Rho—along with Hysan Dax, a young envoy from House Libra, and Mathias, her guide and a member of her Royal Guard—must travel through the Zodiac to warn the other Guardians.

But who will believe anything this young novice says? Whom can Rho trust in a universe defined by differences? And how can she convince twelve worlds to unite as one Zodiac?



Learn more about Wandering Star, the sequel to Zodiac!




The Giveaway:

28 comments:

  1. Great interview Alyssa! The covers for this series are absolutely lovely!!

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  2. I'm already in love with this author because she seems to be so passionate about what she does!! I'm a writer myself so any advice and help that other authors give is always a bonus for me! Thanks for sharing this A! <3 YOU ROCK!

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  3. Heard a lot about this book really want to read it!

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  4. Yay :D Love this post. <3 Thank you for sharing about it sweetie :) Not books for me, but they look so so pretty. Sigh. I hope you are having an amazing day Alyssa :)

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  5. I've read EON and I thought that it was all right, just not my favorite. I do own EONA and plan to get to that book eventually though.

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  6. I have not read either of these books. Thanks to your blog, I have now got to know Romina and her work. Good job, both of you. Great interview! I really enjoyed it.

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  7. I have not read Eon or Eona, but they have been on TBR list for some time. I am excited to read the Zodiac series. Everything about it sounds awesome! My mother has always been into astrology, so I have been hearing about it all my life. =P

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  8. I do love these covers! So gorgeous. I need to read this series but I'm waiting for all the books to be out so I can binge-read them.
    And the author sounds like a sweetheart from the interview!

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  9. I read Eon and Eona a long time ago but I still remember how much I loved it!

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  10. I'm completely obsessed with these covers! The book also sounds pretty unique, so I'll have to add it to my wishlist!

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  12. I have not read Eon or Eona, but the cover of Zodiac is gorgeous. I've always been really interested in astrology. Great interview!

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  13. The covers are what got my attention, I have not read Eon or Eona yet. Thank you for the giveaway. (=

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  14. I haven't read very many, but will hopefully soon!

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  15. never read one
    but hopefully i will ^^

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  16. I'm gonna read this book soon. She seems so nice ! Great interview !

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  17. I LOVED Zodiac! I want Wondering Star with me NOW! Excellent post.

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  18. I actually haven't read any space opera books! I've read Beth Revis' Across the Universe and loved it! Great interview and thanks for the giveaway!

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  19. I've actually never read a space book or opera, but I'm totally open to it! I'm extremely into studying the stars and astrology, so I love these types of things! :)

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  20. I LOOOOOOVE scifi/space opera books!!! I absolutely devoured ZODIAC and flailed madly about it on Twitter when I finished! I also loved Beth Revis' ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, that's another YA space adventure. But this story and world Romina has created is just outstanding, and I can't wait to lose myself in it again with WANDERING STAR!!!

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  21. I've actually never given space books a try. I think I might give them a chance soon. I like scifi movies so why not try a book.

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  22. Never read one, but excited to try it out!

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  23. I like science fiction and space opera, some I've read include Gateway by Frederik Pohl, The Forever War by Joe Haldeman, S is for Space by Ray Bradbury, The Last Astronaut by Pel Torro, The Legion of Space by Jack Williamson

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  24. I loved the Hyperion Cantos by Dan Simmons and Into the Black by Evan Currie.

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  25. I loved the Hyperion Cantos by Dan Simmons and Into the Black by Evan Currie.

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  26. I enjoyed reading Star Trek novels, as my mom was a huge fan and she loved the books!! I really would love to win this!!

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  27. I wasn't familiar with this book or the author, but now I'm definitely interested in starting this series!

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  28. I don't usually like space-y books, but really loved the ones I read recently. Alienated, These Broken Stars, etc. were great.
    Dianna

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