Interview with Ilona Andrews

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Y'know, I love being a blogger. I really, really, really do.

Case in point - I was recently drooling over the cover art for 7th 'Kate Daniels'  book, 'Magic Rises' and reciting a typical mantra of "hurry up July, hurry up!" when I got this wacky idea to shoot off an email to Ilona Andrews. I just wanted to ask them some questions, you see. I wanted to pick their brain. Between waiting for 'Magic Rises' ... I just thought I'd ease some of my rabid fan-girl anticipating by shooting off some questions to the authors. 

So I emailed them. 

But I know they have crazy deadlines. And I'd really much rather that they concentrate on writing their amazing stories than answering my rabid reader questions. And they must get a heap of fan-mail every single day, and to answer every single one would result in carpal tunnel and would, again, take them away from their writing. 

I did not expect them to write back to me. I just figured I'd try it to say I'd tried.

... But then I got a reply.

A REPLY! 

FROM ILONA ANDREWS! 

ILONA ANDREWS ANSWERED MY RABID FANGIRL QUESTIONS!

... And this is why I love being a blogger - because now I get to share their answers with you.

Enjoy.

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Q: Are you ‘plotters’ or ‘pantsers’, respectively? That is, do you meticulously plot your novel before writing, or do you ‘fly by the seat of your pants’ and let the story evolve naturally? And did you have to change your plotting/pantsing ways to suit each other?

A:  No we plot everything out, well at least the beginning and end.  Usually while floating in the pool and drinking yummy beer.  We know how it starts and how we want it to end, the rest is getting it there.

Q: And to the actual nuts and bolts of duo-writing – is writing a book together a case of someone writing chapter one, and then handballing chapter two off to the other person? Or do you write together line-by-line?

A:  We sit in the same room, our desktops about five feet apart.  I do a lot of the plotting & male voice, especially Curran.  Ilona will usually do a scene then send it to me and I add or change whatever I  think needs and send it back.  Other times we just talk it out.  If it gets in the book, we both went had our hands in it.

Q: Kate and Curran’s infamous romance has sort of become an urban fantasy bookish legend – you certainly set a high benchmark for tension & snark, and ‘will they or won’t they?’ romance. How did you handle the building tension – both between Kate and Curran, and from fans wanting them to get together – I imagine you must have received many rabid fan emails demanding satisfaction, now!

A:  We didn't want them to fall into bed together in the first book.  We wanted it to be as realistic or believable as it could be, given the circumstances.  Our fans are great and I don't recall any negative emails.

Q: I think you write some of the best action scenes – sometimes books so filled with action can demand skim-reading, but with ‘Kate Daniels’ and ‘The Edge’, I’m gripping the cover in my hands and my heart is racing with every sword-swipe and body-slam. What sort of research do you do to ensure your fight scenes are so gloriously detailed and riveting?

A:  Thanks, we both have some martial training.  Ilona has taken some self defense & classes in Russian schools.  My background is in wrestling, Judo, Ju Jitsu and some Army training.  We also enjoy watching cheesy martial arts movies.  When we do the action or fighting scenes we actually physically go through it to see if it makes sense, if we need more people we will recruit the kids.  As far as research, we highly recommend "Meditations on Violence" and "Facing Violence" by Rory Miller.  The tv show "Human Weapon" is also great.

Q: Which has been the hardest ‘Kate Daniels’ book to write so far, and why?

A:  Probably the first because we had no idea what we were doing and when we got a deal the totality of our edits was "cut it by a third."  Didn't matter what, we just had to make it shorter.  We had to go through it carefully, almost line by line, and find stuff we could take out, without changing the story.

Q: I loved the ‘Magic Tests’ young adult short story in the anthology ‘An Apple for the Creature’. It was great to read Julie apart from Kate and the pack, and by reading about her on her own we were able to see how much she’s grown over the books/years. Are you now contemplating writing a Julie YA spin-off series? And, if so, would Derek feature prominently?

A:  We've talked about it.  We would like to write an older Julie, maybe a love triangle between her, Derek and Ascanio.  Lately though, my money is on the dragon guy.  We're not YA writers though, and it might not work as well as we'd like.

Q: You gave readers Andrea and Raphael’s incredible story with ‘Gunmetal Magic’. How long have you known that this couple would get their own world-book? And did you ever anticipate fan’s level of adoration for these secondary characters?

A)  Andrea and Raphael probably since Magic Burns.  Jim and Dali came later.  We wanted to sort of hint at it before Hexed and Magic Dreams.  No not really,  we are always surprised at how enthusiastic and supportive our fans are.  They are great.  

Q: As to the end of the ‘Kate Daniels’ series … do you have an end in sight? Is there a finale ‘plan’ already in place that you’re writing towards?

A:  Hmmm, well originally it was only going to be the seven books and the two spinoffs, or set in Kate Daniels worlds books.  However, I am only allowed to hint at new and exciting things to come, as our agent Nancy put it.  We do certainly have an end game.  We know how we want the series to end.  That said, if people still wanted to read the books, we would still write them.  We just don't want to drag it out until people get sick of it.  I hope that makes sense.

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Thank you so much for replying, Ilona Andrews.

'Fate's Edge' The Edge #3 by Ilona Andrews

From the BLURB:

Audrey Callahan left behind her life in the Edge, and she's determined to stay on the straight and narrow. But when her brother gets into hot water, the former thief takes on one last heist and finds herself matching wits with a jack of all trades... 

Kaldar Mar-a gambler, lawyer, thief, and spy-expects his latest assignment tracking down a stolen item to be a piece of cake, until Audrey shows up. But when the item falls into the hands of a lethal criminal, Kaldar realizes that in order to finish the job, he's going to need Audrey's help...

The ‘Edge’ universe is a complicated one. It is our world infused with magic and with other dimensions and universes. There is the ‘Weird’ and the ‘Broken’ - alternate universes that are mirror images of each other. Same continents, same oceans – only slightly skewed. Then there is the ‘Edge’ – a thin strip of universe that divides the Weird and the Broken. It is in the Edge that those with little or no magic exist – aware of the alternate universes, and having longer life spans, but most of them are unable to cross over to the more magical Weird.

‘The Edge’ is the third book in Ilona Andrews’s urban fantasy series, ‘The Edge’. 

Audrey Callahan was destined for burglary. She has a magical gift that allows her to open any lock, crack any safe . . . get behind all closed doors. She is a most valuable asset – as her family can attest to. Coming from a long line of thieves and grifters, Audrey’s family put her skills to use many times throughout her childhood. But when her older brother became a drug addict, they started putting her life in danger in order to steal enough money to continually send him to ineffective rehabilitation facilities. 

And then Audrey had enough, she ran away and abandoned her family

Or, at least, she thought she did. 

When Audrey’s father turns up on her doorstep, with an idea for one more heist to help get her brother clean, Audrey agrees. But only on the condition that he forget he ever had a daughter.

Unfortunately for Audrey and the Callahan clan, what they stole was priceless . . . and dangerous. And now a very powerful organization wants it back. 

Enter Kaldar Mar – a thief himself, he has recently turned into a spy and now works for the very powerful organisation that want the stolen item returned. He must work with Audrey to retrieve the item, prevent all hell breaking lose and save her neck. 

I have been very bad. I have not read an instalment in Ilona Andrew’s fantastic ‘The Edge’ series since 2010. This, despite absolutely loving both ‘On the Edge’ and ‘Bayou Moon’. And I really don’t have an excuse for my long absence from this series – I even had ‘Fate’s Edge’ patiently waiting on my shelf since 2011. I was excited to read ‘Fate’s Edge’ (possibly because I kept thinking that floating-head on the cover was Richard Armitage . . .  PHWOAR!). I really have no reason for being away this long . . .  but my deserved punishment is what a fantastic book ‘Fate’s Edge’ is, reminding me what I've been missing and why I should hurry up and finish the series with ‘Steel’s Edge’.

Something I've loved about this entire series is the heroines. I honestly can’t choose a favourite amongst them – but Audrey Callahan is probably edging (ha!) close to the top spot. She’s not had a great life, especially after her brother became an addict and her parents all but forgot about her (except when they needed her skills). She had no childhood to speak of, and in adulthood she has really been abandoned. But she never feels sorry for herself – she is hard-working, independent and when Kaldar Mar turns up to tell her what a complete catastrophe her theft has caused, she takes full responsibility and is keen to make amends. 

All of ‘The Edge’ heroines – Rose, Cerise and now Audrey – have been these great, tough, down-but-never-out women. They’ve all come from hard background for various reasons, but they rise above their situations, take control and reveal themselves to be pillars of strength to those around them. 

And, all of the women have had prickly beginnings with their hero’s. Audrey and Kaldar are no different – in fact, she both tasers and shoots a crossbow at him within a few hours of meeting him. Audrey knows Kaldar’s type – the slick Casanova conman who’s too handsome for his own good. Audrey knows his type, because she grew up with it. 

This man was a rogue, not because circumstances forced him to be a criminal but because he was born that way. He was probably conning his mother out of her milk the moment he could grin. He’d charm the clothes off a virgin in twenty minutes. And if the poor fool took him home, he’d drink her dad under the table, beguile her mother, charm her grandparents, and treat the girl to a night she’d never forget. In the morning, her dad would be sick with alcohol poisoning, the good silver would be missing together with the family car, and in a month, both the former virgin and her mother would be expecting.

Kaldar, for his part, tries treating Audrey like all the other women he’s ever come across – but he quickly discovers that she is nothing like any other woman he has ever met, and what starts out as a flirtation with ambition to conquer, turns into genuine affection and a desperation to win her heart.

Two characters from ‘On the Edge’ also feature heavily in this book - Rose’s brothers; necromancer George and changeling, Jack. Not really fitting in at their new home as young royalty ‘edgers’, Jack is coping particularly badly – his inner beast wants to break out and the confines of civility and politicking are grating on his last, wild nerve. So they both stow away with Kaldar and become part of his spying team, much to his chagrin and without Rose and Declan’s knowledge. 

I kinda forgot about Jack and George for a while there – but their appearance in ‘Fate’s Edge’ reminds readers of how far these characters have come since book one, and that there’s still plenty of surprises in store for them as they get older. George, in particular, is developing a reputation as a dashing young man who catches girl’s eyes. But it’s Jack I have a soft spot for; he feels so out of place and unwanted, and he can’t grasp girls yet or figure out how to make friends with people. I have high hopes for these two, I really do. The same way I’m hoping for a Julie spin-off in the ‘Kate Daniels’ world, I’m now hoping for a George & Jack young adult spin-off series in ‘The Egde’ world.

‘Fate’s Edge’ was a fantastic kick in the butt – just what I needed to remind me why I love this series and wish I hadn’t taken quite so long to get back into it. 

5/5 

'Bayou Moon' The Edge #2 by Ilona ANDREWS

From the BLURB:

Cerise Mar and her unruly clan are cash poor but land rich, claiming a large swathe of the Mire, the Edge swamplands between the state of Louisiana and the Weird. When her parents vanish, her clan’s long-time rivals are suspect number one.

But all is not as it seems. Two nations of the Weird are waging a cold war fought by feint and espionage, and their conflict is about to spill over into the Edge—and Cerise’s life. William, a changeling soldier who left behind the politics of the Weird, has been forced back into service to track down a rival nation’s spymaster.

When William’s and Cerise’s missions lead them to cross paths, sparks fly—but they’ll have to work together if they want to succeed ... and survive

‘Bayou Moon’ is the second book in Ilona Andrew’s paranormal romance series, ‘The Edge’.

The ‘Edge’ universe is a complicated one. It is our world infused with magic and with other dimensions and universes. There is the ‘Weird’ and the ‘Broken’ - alternate universes that are mirror images of each other. Same continents, same oceans – only slightly skewed. Then there is the ‘Edge’ – a thin strip of universe that divides the Weird and the Broken. It is in the Edge that those with little or no magic exist – aware of the alternate universes, and having longer life spans, but most of them are unable to cross over to the more magical Weird.

It is in the Edge that Cerise Mar lives, on a bit of swamp land called the Mire – with the state of Louisiana on one side, and the Weird on the other. Cerise is the eldest daughter of the Mar clan – called ‘rats’ by the locals for their family numbers but poor social status. The Mar’s are a rag-tag family of gamblers, ex-soldiers and mad scientists and for as long as anyone can remember they have been in a family feud against neighbouring land-owners, the Sherillee’s.

The blood feud is heating up when Cerise’s mother and father, Genevieve and Gustave, go missing and the Mar’s suspect the Sherillee’s of foul play. . .

Meanwhile, an ex changeling soldier called William is residing in the Broken, having escaped the Weird and military service. But all that is about to change – he will be forced to leave his cosy trailer, action figurines and CSI-watching when he is compelled to exact vengeance on an old foe. A man called Spider works for secret organization, ‘The Hand’. . . he hates changelings and has been murdering changeling children for his own blood sport. But worse than that, Spider is looking for something in the Mire that could gift him with great power and strength. . . and it’s up to William to stop him.

While travelling the Mire’s oozing swamplands, William and Cerise cross paths and reluctantly join forces when they discover that William’s nemesis and Cerise’s parents are linked to the same mission. . .

Ilona Andrews have done it again, much to nobody’s surprise. This husband and wife writing team are an urban fantasy juggernaut and with each book release they get better and better.

‘Bayou Moon’ comes on the heels of first book ‘On the Edge’, in which William was first introduced but lost the girl and exited with his tail between his legs. William was a cagey conundrum in that first book, but fans sensed something deeply dark and compelling about him nonetheless. Fans were right to be fascinated. William is a complex character, with a tragic background and the weight of the world on his shoulders. He is Heathcliff-tragic, but never ‘woe is me’. William is fiercely independent and accepting of his hard lot in life (a childhood spent in a military training facility!) and as a result he has a very ‘get the job done’ attitude that is a teensy-bit psychotic, but still impressive. Above all else though, William’s fascination lies in his secret desires. He wants a family. He is dumb-struck by the very concept of ‘family’, and cannot fathom what that sort of unconditional, supportive love would feel like. I loved William! And I especially loved his very befitting romance with Cerise Mar. . .

Cerise is one ballsy chick. When her parents are kidnapped she becomes the leader of her family clan – but really, Cerise has been in the pilot seat for many years now ever since her father quietly handed the financial reins over to her. Cerise has the weight of her family on her shoulders, but she shoulders the burden with aplomb and hardly a bitter word. She is so strong and independent, but underneath her armour is a young woman denied a life – denied a chance at love and marriage. Hell, the closest Cerise has come to ‘love’ is fighting her enemy, the eldest brother of the Sherillee clan, Lagar Sherillee.

Together Cerise and William are a complicated romance, but completely compelling. . .
I thought Curran and Kate had an auspicious first meeting with “here kitty, kitty” but William and Cerise take the cake for best first impressions;

The girl showed him her stained finger and reached toward him slowly, aiming for his face.
“No,” William said. “Bad hobo.”
The finger kept coming closer.
“You touch me, I’ll break it off.”

From there on in William and Cerise experience light-heartedness with one another that they don’t exhibit with anyone else. And from antagonistic flirtations to a heated repartee, these two are an impressive match. Even more so for William’s often strange courtship ritual;

They swarmed her. She whirled, cutting through them, slicing limbs in half, severing muscle and bone. Blood sprayed, she paused again, and the fighters around her fell without a single moan.
Four seconds and the deck was empty. Nothing moved.
She was the most beautiful think he had ever seen.
He would have to fight her before this was over, just to find out if he could beat her.

The ‘Edge’ series, much more so than ‘Kate Daniels’, offers a lot of intricate politics and subplots. While the series overall is more romantic than ‘Kate Daniels’, the political underpinnings are crucial to the book universe and story. There’s a lot of double-talk about the Hand, and the Mirror – secret organizations. And if you aren’t concentrating, then a lot of vital information will be lost. At times all the information about back-door dealings and crazy political villains tires when what you really want is William + Cerise. But Ilona Andrews are masters of world-building, and as tedious as the inundation of information can be, it pays off in the end.

I loved ‘Bayou Moon’. I thought Declan in ‘On the Edge’ would be my definite favourite of this series, but William takes the cake. I love this series as much as ‘Kate Daniels’ and I can’t wait for more ‘Edge’ in 2011.

5/5

'On the Edge' Edge #1 by Ilona ANDREWS

From the BLURB:

Rose Drayton lives on the Edge, between the world of the Broken (where people drive cars, shop at Wal-Mart, and magic is a fairy tale) and the Weird (where blueblood aristocrats rule, changelings roam, and the strength of your magic can change your destiny). Only Edgers like Rose can easily travel from one world to the next, but they never truly belong in either.

Rose thought if she practiced her magic, she could build a better life for herself. But things didn't turn out how she planned, and now she works a minimum wage, off the books job in the Broken just to survive. Then Declan Camarine, a blueblood noble straight out of the deepest part of the Weird, comes into her life, determined to have her (and her power).

But when a terrible danger invades the Edge from the Weird, a flood of creatures hungry for magic, Declan and Rose must work together to destroy them, or the beasts will devour the Edge and everyone in it . . .

This is the first book in a new series by the husband and wife writing team, Ilona Andrews.
I resisted reading this book for quite some time, even when blog reviews oozed praise and whet my appetite. My reluctance was due to an incredible affection for Ilona Andrews’s ‘Kate Daniels’ series. Silly, I know, but there was a part of me that hesitated reading ‘On the Edge’ in case this new series wasn’t as good as ‘Kate Daniels’.
I had nothing to fear...

The ‘Edge’ universe is a complicated one. It is our world infused with magic and with other dimensions and universes. There is the ‘Weird’ and the ‘Broken’ - alternate universes that are mirror images of each other. Same continents, same oceans – only slightly skewed. For instance, in the Broken the continent of North America is divided sideways, but in the Weird it is divided vertically.
Then there is the ‘Edge’ – a thin strip of universe that divides the Weird and the Broken. It is in the Edge that those with little or no magic exist – aware of the alternate universes, and having longer life spans, but most of them are unable to cross over to the more magical Weird.

It is in the Edge that Rose Drayton lives. Rose is raising her brothers, Jack (8) and Georgie (10) after their mother died and father ran off a couple of years ago. They also have their Grandmere, Éléonore. Rose has the ability to ‘flash’ – release a streak of pure white light from her fingertips that packs the punch of a lightning bolt and is as precise as an arrow. Jack is able to shapeshift into a lynx cat. Georgie is a necromancer.
The Drayton’s live in wary fear of ‘Bluebloods’ from the Weird – because Rose has noble blood and is a prized brood-mare for scouting blueblood nobles.
That’s why she is wary when Declan Camarine, a Weird blueblood, comes knocking on her door and proposing marriage. That’s why Rose is especially cautious when strange dark creatures called ‘hounds’ start sucking the magic from Edge citizens and bleeding them dry.

I’ll admit that getting a grip on this new universe – the triple Weird, Edge and Broken – is a little tough going at times. It is complicated and precise universe-building, the sort that Ilona Andrews is famous for and which readers of ‘Kate Daniels’ are still grappling with (four books deep). But that’s just their way – the world’s that their series are set in become characters unto themselves, and are crucial to the overarching storyline – and so Ilona Andrews revel in taking their time, teasing out their new world order. Having experienced ‘Kate Daniels’ I know to be patient with my understanding of their world-building, so even if some aspects of ‘Edge’ went over my head, I have no worries with being patient and trusting that more will be revealed and understood with coming books.

I also have the utmost respect and belief in Ilona Andrew’s characterization. In no time at all I was caring and empathizing with the characters in ‘On The Edge’, and by the third chapter I was invested in their lives and a little bit smitten with them. Rose Drayton is awesome - it’s that simple. She is hands-down incredible. She had to take on the responsibility of her brother’s when she was just 18, and by the end of chapter 1 you know she’s had a tough life and had to grow up quickly. She is fiercely protective of her brothers, loves them unconditionally and shows incredible warmth and steel when it comes to the raising of them. She’s also got a quick wit and a sharp tongue. I loved her!

Georgie and Jack were wonderfully complementary characters. Ilona Andrews hasn’t really had the opportunity to write family dynamics in ‘Kate Daniels’, but they absolutely revel and excel in it in ‘On the Edge’. Jack and Georgie are two very carefree but caring young boys. They are occasionally disobedient and a few scenes of stupidity had me gritting my teeth – but they know Rose’s worth and I loved their cosy family unit. Throw in Grandmere Éléonore who is a mama lion to her grandbabies and you’ve got a lot of familial warmth that is an absolute delight to read.

If there’s one bit of characterization forte that Ilona Andrews are known for – it’s writing one hell of a good hero for their heroine. Declan Camarine is no exception. He is a little bit intimidating, a touch arrogant and a lot sexy. Underneath all his pomp and bluster Declan is hiding a very caring, loyal young man – and the real treat in reading him lies in peeling his layers back, so that Rose and readers start to discover his true nature. He’s 100% swoon-worthy.

Together, Declan and Rose make a formidable couple. There is plenty of that wonderful Ilona Andrews romantic tension between the two, but with the promise of a hastier coupling. These two are H-O-T and a new favourite coupledom for me.

Grandma sighed. “You have a flaw, Rose. You’re daring. Just like my Cletus, just like your father. It’s a Drayton trait, and it has brought us nothing but misery. You see a challenge, and you must go after it.”
Rose blinked. She didn’t chase challenges, at least no intentionally. At least she never thought she did.
“And this Declan, he’s a terrible challenge,” Grandma Éléonore continued.

As fans of ‘Kate Daniels’ can testify, Ilona Andrews is master of writing suspenseful romance. They are massive teases and in ‘Kate’ the hero and heroine didn’t ‘get it on’ until four books in. But it was a fulfilling and lustful build-up in that series and never too frustrating.
Well, in this new ‘Edge’ series Ilona Andrews try their hand at a more helter-skelter romance... and it *totally* works for them.
There is an initial ‘will they or won’t they?’ power-struggle between Rose and Declan. But it becomes pretty obvious fairly early on that their romance is a ‘horse of a different colour’ and set at a faster speed than Kate and Curran’s. And it is wonderful to read.
As Rose succinctly describes Declan’s entrance into her life;

He was the sword that had just sliced her life in half.

Rose’s romance is a whirlwind that forces her to let her guard down and accept love into her life. She has her family; Grandmere, Jack and George, but as much as she loves them they are her responsibility... Declan is more her *choosing*, her own indulgence and chance at recklessness. And so a part of their magic lies in Declan’s ability to disarm Rose and take her out of her somewhat dreary life and tear down her defences. And then part of it is Rose’s ability to cut Declan down to size, and not be totally disarmed by his charming smile and rock-hard abs. These two are just too adorable!

I loved ‘On the Edge’ – but I’m a little hesitant about the fact that 2nd book ‘Bayou Moon’ won’t be about Rose and Declan. It’s set in the Edge again, but with a new cast of characters (as far as I can gather from the blurb?). Hmmm... will definitely check it out, but I’ll cross my fingers for a Rose/Declan appearance.

5/5

Edge #2 'Bayou Moon' - September 28th 2010