Interview: Mary Karlik (Magic Harvest) ~ #BookTour #YoungAdult

Posted on by

Hello and Welcome All!

Today I’m very lucky to be interviewing Mary Karlik author of Magic Harvest.

Tell us a bit about yourself.

I am happy to be here. I am a native Texan with deep Scottish roots. My grandfather’s parents immigrated to America just before he was born. Two years ago, I visited Scotland and knew I had the setting for this series. As I researched Scotland and Gaelic I stumbled across a program at the Sabhal Mòr Ostaig (SMO) college on Skye. SMO is the center for Gaelic studies and they have a series of short courses to learn Gaelic as well as distance learning programs. Last April I took my first short course at the campus on Skye. It’s an immersion program and absolutely wonderful. I returned in August for 2 more weeks. Actually, as I write this I’m here in Skye. It’s been an exciting adventure to learn Gaelic. Not only am I’m learning an ancient language, I’m integrating with the culture in a way a tourist could never do. I’ve made wonderful life long friends from across the globe. It’s been a life-changer.

Where do you get your ideas?

That is a question I’m often asked. They come from everywhere and it seems there is always and abundance of them sparking somewhere in my brain. But for this series, it was from a class in the graduate program I attended at Seaton Hill University. My professor asked us to brainstorm mash-up ideas. I’d previously worked on a human trafficking book but it never found its feet. I also love fairy stories. I jokingly said, “How about fairy trafficking in the human world.” Everyone loved the idea and I knew I was on to something.

What are some of the books you’ve enjoyed recently? 

I listen to books while I’m driving or running. I loved Cruel Prince by Holly Black, The perfect Match by Kristin Higgins, On Second Thought by Kristin Higgins. I recently re-read all of Robert Louis Stevenson’s books. I love Kidnapped. I also re-read Eoin Colfer’s Artemis Fowl series.

Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way whether growing up or as an adult? 

So many. The book that made a reader out of me was The Secret Garden. I loved that book. Then I read The Chronical of Narnia and the world of fantasy was opened to me. I was convinced the portal to Narnia was in my Nanny’s wardrobe. Of course I also loved The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. My first romance was Mr. and Mrs. Bo Jo Jones. I wrote my first romance after reading that book. Harry Potter was released just after I started seriously writing. What a game changer! As an adult I’d say every book I read influences me in some way. I try to read with a fairy critical eye and look for what the author does well. There is so much talent out there it’s not hard.

10 Quick Things about Mary

Favorite Food: Rib Eye steak

Favorite Drink: Hendricks gin and tonic with a cucumber or a strong peaty whiskey like Ardbeg

Favorite Color: Blue or emerald green

Favorite Book: Harry Potter—all of them

Favorite Season: That’s hard. Winter if the snow is good because I ski. Summer so I can hike

Favorite Online Hangout: Facebook. It’s just easy.

Favorite Animal: Dogs. I have two.

Favorite Band Musician: So many! Dirks Bently or Keith Urban for country. Julie Fowlis or Mànràn for Celtic trad.

Favorite Vacation Destination: Scotland but I’ve been here so long now I’m kind of wanting to see sun and lie on a hot beach

Favorite Movie or TV Show of all Time: I love the magic of Harry Potter, the scary fun of Dr. Who, but my passion is skit comedy. Although it dates me, I loved The Carol Burnett Show.

Thank you very much for taking the time out of your busy schedule to take part in this interview.

 

Mary Karlik has always been a dreamer. When she was a teen, she read The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, and then sat in every wardrobe in her Nanna’s home, trying to open the door to Narnia. She didn’t find it, but she did discover her voice as an author: one filled with her young adult self, and grounded in her roots as a Texan and her Scottish heritage, nourished by obscure Scottish folklore.

You can find her Texas roots in her YA contemporary romance Hickville series , which has been described as “100% solid storytelling,” and begins with Welcome to Hickville High, a “lovely story about growing up.”

She digs deep into her Scottish roots – there is magic there, she just knows it – for the forthcoming YA epic fantasy Fairy Trafficking series, beginning with Magic Harvest.

She makes her home in the beautiful Sangre de Cristo mountains of Northern New Mexico where she is a certified professional ski instructor, but she also loves visiting Scotland where she is currently studying Scottish Gaelic at the University of Highlands and Islands in Skye. Mary also earned her MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University, has a B.S. degree from Texas A&M University, and is a Registered Nurse.

Mary currently serves as the President of the Young Adult Chapter of Romance Writers of America and looks forward to raising a glass or two of gin and tonic with her fellow writers every year at RWA’s national convention.

Author links: WebsiteGoodreadsFacebookTwitter 

 

Magic Harvest
by Mary Karlik
Published by: Ink Monster LLC
Publication date: September 18th 2018
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

Synopsis:
Young fae girls are disappearing.

Layla has never belonged to the fairy realm – at least, half of her hasn’t. She’s never known anyone with human blood, not even her father. When she was three, the dragon Fauth attacked the fairy festival, murdering her fae mum & stepfather. Frankly, some fairies think she should’ve been eaten too.

As she grew, despite being called names like “fuman” for being a half-blood, she’s discovered that being half-human isn’t terrible. She may lack magic, but she is immune to iron sickness, and she can wield a sword with elven skill.

Magic in the human world is disastrous.

Sixteen years later, when Layla’s half-sister is kidnapped and taken through a portal to the forbidden human realm, Layla rushes to the rescue. She’s older and stronger, and she’s not about to let her last living family member be taken from her without a fight.

Only someone who belongs to both worlds can find the truth.

The portal spits her out in the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, but neither her sister or the kidnapper are anywhere to be found. Stuck in a world she only knows from school books, Layla forges unlikely alliances to find her sister. As she becomes tangled in the dark world of fairy trafficking, magic harvesting, and murder, Layla will have to find the strength within if she is to survive and save her sister.

AmazonB & NKoboiTunes

 

Signed copy of Magic Harvest + swag and more!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 


 

Daily or Weekly Mail

 

I'm an outdoor sun loving reader living near San Fransisco. I’m a mother, wife, animal & book lover. I'm the owner, reviewer & mind behind Angel’s Guilty Pleasures. My favorite animals are horses & dogs. As for reading I love all things paranormal & urban fantasy & my favorite shifters are dragons.

11 comments on “Interview: Mary Karlik (Magic Harvest) ~ #BookTour #YoungAdult

  1. Awesome interview and Q&A!! Awesome giveaway too!! Shared on all my socials!!??

    • Glad you enjoyed the Q&A with Mary Karlik. Good luck in the giveaway and thank you for stopping in.

      • Thank you for having me!
        Mary Karlik recently posted…Old Blind DogsMy Profile

        • Thank you for the wonderful interview!

  2. Congrats, Mary!!! I’m so excited for you and your new release! Also, I love the sound of Magic Harvest. 🙂

    • Thank you for stoping by today.

    • Thank you!

  3. thanks for the interview

    • Thank you for stopping in and glad you enjoyed the interview!

  4. Thanks for being on the tour! 🙂

    • You are welcome!