Blog Tour: Oppression by Jessica Therrien - Review/Author Interview

Title: Oppression (Children of the gods, #1)
Author: Jessica Therrien
Release Date: February 28th 2012 by ZOVA BOOKS
Edition: Ebook

Synopsis:

Elyse knows what it means to keep a secret. She's been keeping secrets her whole life. Two, actually. First, that she ages five times slower than the average person, so that while she looks eighteen years old, she's closer to eighty. Second, that her blood has a mysterious power to heal. For Elyse, these things don't make her special. They make life dangerous. After the death of her parents, she's been careful to keep her secret as closely guarded as possible. Now, only one other person in the world knows about her age and ability. Or so she thinks. Elyse is not the only one keeping secrets. There are others like her all over the world, descendants of the very people the Greeks considered gods. She is one of them, and they have been waiting for her for a long time. Among so many of her kind, she should not be very remarkable--except for the prophecy. Some believe she will put an end to traditions, safeguarded by violence, which have oppressed her people for centuries. Others are determined to keep her from doing just that. But for Elyse, the game is just beginning--and she's not entirely willing to play by their rules.

My Review:
Let me start off saying that I really enjoyed this book! Mythology is something that I became interested in in high school and I really love reading books with mythology in it. I also really enjoyed the different take Oppression took when it came to the gods and goddess. The gods and goddesses weren't these big, dangerous, you cross me and I'm gonna take you kind of people. They weren't really a big part of this book. This book was about the descendants of the gods/goddesses. Each descendant had an ability which related to the god of their bloodline. And I really enjoyed that. I really enjoyed the storyline.

The characters. I really enjoyed the characters. Each one had something about them that I liked.
Elyse was this girl who knew that she was different from humans. She ages five times slower than humans, so that was kind of obvious. But what she didn't know was that she was a descendant. When she met William and when he introduced her to their world, she knew absolutely nothing about it.

I really liked Elyse, she was smart and she had to deal with so many things a normal person would struggle to face. She was tough and I really liked that about her. But she could get a bit annoying at times, but I still loved her. Elyse has to face a big issue in this book, sacrifice. I'm going to leave it at that. William, I absolutely adored. And I laughed when I found out who he was a descendant of. I thought it was hilarious actually, I never would have guessed! He was so sweet and loving, and was so drawn to Elyse that you can't help but adore him. And the two of them together, two thumbs up!

I also loved the side characters, Nics and Sam! They made me laugh everytime I read about them. And Sam's ability is totally awesome! Wish I had it ;) Anna and Chloe are great and want to know what happened with them and what will happen. The book doesn't really involve The Council much and I really wish it did, but I know in book 2 we the readers are going to see a whole lot more of them. Ryder, I have one thing to say.... That's what you get! Lol

The one thing I wish this book would of touched more on was the "I'm the prophecy and the warming at the touch issue with Elyse and William" You know what I'm talking about if you have read the book.

But overall, I really enjoyed this story! For all you Mythology lovers, go ahead, give a try, you know you want to!   

 

 Author Interview with Jessica Therrien:

 

1. Where is the current place you reside and can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

I live in San Diego, so sometimes I talk like a surfer. I say dude a lot. I just got married last year, so I’m still in the honeymoon-so-in-love phase with my husband. I have a day job, so my writer life is a bit hectic. I’m always trying to write on the go. I love pajamas, T.V., and lazy weekends.

2. Have you always wanted to be an author and what or who inspired you to become a writer?

I’ve always loved language, so I used to write a lot of poetry. My mother is an English teacher, so she inspired me quite a bit. I never really planned on becoming an author, but after I fell in love with the YA genre, I definitely felt the need to write a full book.

3. When did you write your first complete book?

Oppression is my very first complete book. I believe I finished it sometime in 2010 after taking quite a while to write it.

4. Do you take any part in creating your book covers?

Yes, actually. ZOVA Books works with their authors to ensure they are pleased with the final product. I sat down with Matt Pizzo, CEO of ZOVA Books, and we pulled together a preliminary design. The final version wasn’t exactly what we planned, but pretty darn close. I love the cover J

5. Do you have any bad habits you do when you are reading?

I have bad habits I do ALL THE TIME. I crack my knuckles for one. Constantly. I also bite my lips like crazy. In terms of reading, I’m pretty harsh with my books. I dog-ear pages, bend covers, use books as coasters, etc. I guess you could say, the more worn out the book is, the more I love it.

6. Where is your favorite place to read?

In bed. Comfy-cozy.

7. Are you currently reading any books?

I’m between books. I can’t seem to let go of Blood Red Road enough to move on. I started a few others, but nothing has really grabbed me. I’m going to try Daughter of Smoke and Bone next. I heard that was great.

8. Who are some of your favorite authors?

Veronica Roth and Moira Young are my tippy-top favorites right now. It changes, though. I’ll probably have new favorites in a few months.

9. Which do you prefer: Standalone or Series when it comes to books?

I love to read series. In terms of writing, I think after Children of the Gods I’ll write a standalone book. It is extremely hard to have a day job, market your book, and try to write the sequel at the same time. Yikes.

10. Do you have any advice for writers out there who want to become authors?

People are probably tired of hearing this, but I didn’t know about conferences when I was trying to get published at first. Go to a writers’ conference. They are awesome, and that is how I got discovered.

11. Where can people buy your books?

Info - GoodReads
Barnes & Noble
Amazon

12. Do you have any websites? (Twitter, Facebook, Blog, etc.)

My Blog: http://jessica-therrien.blogspot.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/JessicaTherrien
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Jessica-Therrien/215976241749831

GooglePlus:https://plus.google.com/100883741966662021825?hl=en&tab=h#100883741966662021825/posts

Thanks for a great interview!