1--What is the title of your latest release?
THE LOVERS
2--What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
The Lovers is a steamy sapphic rom-com for fans of Ashley Herring Blake, in which Twin Flames get a second chance at love while working a wedding in the California desert.
3--How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
Setting plays a huge role in the story of The Lovers. The main plot unfolds at a bohemian chic wedding at a resort in Joshua Tree National Park. Kit and Julia, the two main characters, are both working the wedding. Kit, as the tarot reader the bride has hired for entertainment, and Julia, as the wedding planner. I had the best time creating the desert resort of my dreams, drawing inspiration from locations I’d visited in Palm Springs and on the way to Joshua Tree during my research excursions. Joshua Tree is the perfect setting for a wedding like the one that takes place in The Lovers because there's nowhere more magical and mystical than the desert—in my opinion. The color palette and the balmy heat is a perfect recipe for romance.
4--Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?
The Lovers has two main characters and I would definitely hang out with both of them!
I would love to get a Tarot reading from Kit and talk to her about coming out as bi later in life, plus all the spiritual stuff that she's into, I'm into it too, so we would have plenty to talk about.
Julia and I are really similar in our constant need to maintain control, but because she's so good at what she does for a living and because I know she's epically organized, I would have no problem letting her plan dinners or be in charge of the road trip. Whatever we’re doing, she can take the wheel.
They're both kind and thoughtful women. Kit has this warmth about her, while Julia has this sharp sense of humor—I think they'd be a blast to hang out with.
5--What are three words that describe your protagonist?
Kit: genuine, empathetic, brave
Julia: determined, focused, tenderhearted
6--What’s something you learned while writing this book?
So much about Tarot! I was already practicing Tarot when I started writing The Lovers, but using it in the story to create the plot really helped me get deeper into my practice. I was able to memorize the meanings of the cards and start getting comfortable actually giving readings to people besides myself—which is something I had not done before writing this book.
7--Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
I am definitely an “edit as I go” type of person—though I do not go back to the beginning and edit all the way through during drafting. My favorite process involves spending as much time as I need on the scene that I'm writing, massaging the language, fine-tuning the action, playing with the dialogue, until I feel like it’s all gelling. Not every deadline allows for me to do that in the first draft, but when I can, it's really the sweet spot.
8--What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
I love going to expensive restaurants when I can. I do a lot of research about the restaurant, the chef, the history of the food and try to really immerse myself in the experience. So I guess my foodie indulgence is “luxury dinners.”
9--Describe your writing space/office!
I have a dedicated office in my house since I am a small business, and I can use the square footage as a tax write off! It’s a fairly orderly space with a wooden desk and a cute navy-blue velvet reading chair. There is some fun, purposeful clutter largely in the form of BTS (the K-Pop band!) memorabilia and books.
10--Who is an author you admire?
I am a huge fan of queer authors out here telling queer stories in a world that still very much doesn’t support queer joy. Ashley Herring Blake, Carlyn Greenwald, Taleen Voskuni, Bridget Morrissey, Jennifer Dugan, Matthew Hubbard—just to name a few. Their books give me courage.
11--Is there a book that changed your life?
The Hunger Games was the first time I read book and thought, “Wow, I want to write one of these and I’m going to try.” My writing journey started when I was super young, but it didn't start with books. It started with movies and screenplays. I had a hard time imagining my narrative voice in a literary, prose driven novel. But Suzanne Collins is a screenwriter, and I was able to connect with Katniss's voice in a way that I had not been able to with other pieces of fiction. I know I wouldn’t be writing novels now if I hadn't read that book.
12--Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published)/Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
It was in December; I was wearing a BTS sweatshirt, and I was standing in front of my Christmas tree. I knew that Berkely was hopefully going to offer me a deal, but until you have the offer in hand, you just never know if it's going to come through. I saw my agent, Katie’s name on my phone as it rang, and as soon as I heard her voice I knew: This is a dream come true deal.
13--What’s your favorite genre to read?
My reading tastes are all over the place just like my writing—lol— so it's hard to pick a favorite, but the Scorpio in me really wants me to say horror. And the Scorpio usually wins.
14--What’s your favorite movie?
This is the most impossible question, and I refuse to answer with just one, so I will give you a horror movie and a rom-com.
Scream
When Harry Met Sally
15--What is your favorite season?
Spooky season.
And I know, you’re probably like, “Isn’t she a romance author?” But I contain multitudes, my friends.
16--How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
I have a very complicated relationship with my birthday which means I often end up getting in my head about what I should be doing and how I should be feeling, which can ruin any fun plans I might try to make. I’ve learned the best way to celebrate for me is to spend time with my family, maybe a few very close friends, and enjoy a delicious meal.
17--What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
I watch a lot of TV and movies, so again this is a very difficult question for me to answer and my tastes are extremely varied.
Some recent loves:
Challengers, Yellowjackets, My Lady Jane, Fancy Dance, Under the Bridge (I have a huge crush on Lily Gladstone), and a cheeky favorite, Ghosts (the US version funnily enough).
18--What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
As a luxury food fan I am just going to say “Fancy food” —not to be confused with Fancy Feast.
19--What do you do when you have free time?
Hang out with my son, take long walks with my husband, go to open houses and pretend I’m a buyer, snuggle my dogs, visit haunted locations, daydream.
20--What can readers expect from you next?
I have another romance coming from Berkley in 2025, and then a YA horror called LOST GIRLS coming from Delacorte in 2026!
A second chance at love is in the cards for two women working a stylish California wedding in this charming debut romance.
If Kit Larson believes one thing, it’s that the cards never lie. She’s seen it proven time and time again as a tarot reader and mystic influencer. But unfortunately the cards didn’t warn her about her most recent breakup or her parents’ divorce, so when Kit is offered a gig at another influencer’s boho-chic Joshua Tree wedding she accepts for the distraction. And distract it does when she finds out her high school crush, Julia, is the wedding planner.
Julia Kelley is her agency’s most sought-after wedding planner, and for a good reason—she's a perfectionist. Control means never showing others the vulnerable, blobby mess she really is deep down inside. Having an ex-girlfriend in the bridal party is a problem, sure, but reconnecting with the beautiful tarot reader who broke her heart as a teenager is so much worse.
Kit’s cards once told her that she and Julia were Twin Flames, two halves of the same soul. With wedding events pushing them together, their spark reignites . . . and so does a chance at being lovers.
Romance Comedy | Romance LGBTQ [Berkley, On Sale: September 24, 2024, Trade Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9780593640869 / eISBN: 9780593640876]
Rebekah Faubion is the author of The Lovers, a Nora Ephron-style, queer rom-com about a tarot card mystic who seems fated to fall for a wedding planner she has a past with, coming Summer 2024 from Berkley. When she isn’t writing books that make her bi soul sing, she enjoys painting on her deck, listening to BTS, and reading tarot by candlelight. Under her pen name, she is also the co-author of YA horror and adult romance novels. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and son.
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