Blog Tour and Giveaway: Spindle by E.K. Johnston

Welcome to the blog tour for Spindle by E.K. Johnston! I am thrilled to be a part of this tour and to promote Spindle. If you haven't had a chance to check out A Thousand Nights and Spindle, be sure to do so! I have an interview with the author, and there is a giveaway below. =)

Meet E.K. Johnston!

Alyssa: Hi and welcome to The Eater of Books! So glad you could join me today. =) Congratulations on the upcoming publication of Spindle. What’s it like, having three books published in the same calendar year?

EKJ: Really, really busy. It’s the best kind of busy, but I’m already kind of planning my long winter’s nap! I loved meeting so many people in new places, or hearing from them via email. It was quite the ride (because in addition to having this year’s books, I also have to think about next year’s stuff…), but I wouldn’t change a moment of it.

Alyssa: Many readers seemed to think that A Thousand Nights was a standalone. Was Spindle always a story that you planned to write? Or perhaps a direct sequel to A Thousand Nights (as opposed to a companion sequel)?

EKJ: Spindle actually came first! I wanted to do a Sleeping Beauty re-telling, but I realized I had some world-building to do. Nights grew out of that, and I decided to write it first so that I would have a firm understanding of my magic system. I do think that both stories stand alone, but they take place in the same world and with the same sort of feel, so I am glad I got to write both.

Alyssa: What's another YA book that you think readers would like, if they're interested in Spindle (and/or vice versa)?

EKJ: I haven’t read it yet (it’s in the mail!), but I am VERY excited about Audrey Coulthurst’s Of Fire and Stars. Also Amy Tintera’s Ruined is a little more action-packed than Spindle, but they both have a lot of politics and the things we do for love.

Alyssa: Describe the process of choosing the title?

EKJ: I picked Spindle in 2012, and it didn’t change. We did have to re-title it in the UK though (because of linguistic nuance and also Neil Gaiman). It’s called Kingdom of Sleep there.

Alyssa: How is it different, writing the story of a nameless heroine?

EKJ: I never considered her nameless, to be completely honest. She has a name from everyone who loves her, as do all the other characters in the book. Spindle is a bit more modern in terms of naming conventions, but my princess still has three names, depending on who is talking to her.

Alyssa: What is one message that you’d love young readers to take away from Spindle?

EKJ: Yashaa, the narrator, is not a stupid person. He’s quite well aware of all the things he doesn’t know. But at the start, he’s so angry and so vengeful, and he forgets to listen. As soon as he remembers, he starts to make real progress, using his anger as motivation. So I guess it’s not “don’t be angry”, because that’s impossible, but rather “channel that anger”, because I really believe that people can.

Alyssa: My last question – what’s next? Do you have more retelling-esque stories planned, in this series or otherwise?

EKJ: Next, in 2017, is That Inevitable Victorian Thing. And some other stuff, but I can’t talk about it yet.

Alyssa: Thank you so much, and best of luck with everything!

About the Author:

E.K. Johnston had several jobs and one vocation before she became a published writer. If she’s learned anything, it’s that things turn out weird sometimes, and there’s not a lot you can do about it. Well, that and how to muscle through awkward fanfic because it’s about a pairing she likes.

Her books range from contemporary fantasy (The Story of Owen, Prairie Fire), to fairy-tale reimaginings (A Thousand Nights, Spindle), and from small town Ontario (Exit, Pursued By A Bear), to a galaxy far, far away (Star Wars: Ahsoka). She has no plans to rein anything in.

You can follow Kate on Twitter (@ek_johnston) to learn more about Alderaanian political theory than you really need to know, or on Tumblr (ekjohnston) and Instagram (ek_johnston) if you're just here for pretty pictures.

Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Tumblr | Instagram

About the Book:

Spindle by E.K. Johnston

Book Two of the A Thousand Nights series

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Publication Date: December 6, 2016

Official Summary:

The world is made safe by a woman...but it is a very big world.

It has been generations since the Storyteller Queen drove the demon out of her husband and saved her country from fire and blood. Her family has prospered beyond the borders of their village, and two new kingdoms have sprouted on either side of the mountains where the demons are kept prisoner by bright iron, and by the creatures the Storyteller Queen made to keep them contained.

But the prison is crumbling. Through years of careful manipulation, a demon has regained her power. She has made one kingdom strong and brought the other to its knees, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. When a princess is born, the demon is ready with the final blow: a curse that will cost the princess her very soul, or force her to destroy her own people to save her life.

The threads of magic are tightly spun, binding princess and exiled spinners into a desperate plot to break the curse before the demon can become a queen of men. But the web of power is dangerously tangled--and they may not see the true pattern until it is unspooled.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes and Noble | The Book Depository

The Giveaway:

3 Finished Copies of Spindle (US Only)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:

Week 1:

11/28: Such A Novel Idea - Review

11/29: The Irish Banana Review - Fast 5

11/30: Quite the Novel Idea - Review

12/1: The Bookkeeper's Secret - Mood Board

12/2: Reading Is Better With Cupcakes - Review

Week 2:

12/5: Alexa Loves Books - Bookish Style Files

12/6: Mundie Moms - Review

12/7: The Eater of Books! - Q&A

12/8: Swoony Boys Podcast - Review

12/9: In Wonderland - Guest Post