1--What is the title of your latest release?
CELESTIAL BANQUET
2--What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
A hot-headed noodle chef joins a legendary cooking competition to feed the gods
3--How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
It had to take place in an alternate fantasy world that is loosely based on East Asia. This is where I want all the magic and monsters to emerge.
4--Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?
I totally would because I’d eat everything she cooks. She’s as passionate about food as I am.
5--What are three words that describe your protagonist?
Stubborn, ambitious, and hungry.
6--What’s something you learned while writing this book?
I learned that adventure and excitement are elements I want to play with more in the future. This book is fast-paced and action-packed. I had so much fun writing it.
7--Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
I edit while I draft. I like having cleaner drafts, though I do rounds of revisions anyway afterwards. The work never ends.
8--What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
Irish oysters and salmon. I went to Dublin last year and fell in love with the luscious seafood while I was there. The oysters are so flavorful and the salmon, rich and sweet like candy.
9--Describe your writing space/office!
It’s pink and full of cute things. My office is a small room where I cram my writing space and my arts and crafts. It’s crammed—which is an accurate representation of what’s going on in my head at any moment.
10--Who is an author you admire?
To be honest, I admire every midlist author who persists and continues to spin stories in a harsh industry.
11--Is there a book that changed your life?
I love Circe by Madeline Miller. It’s the feminist, atmospheric retelling of a mythical figure of my dreams.
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.
I vomited. Every time I receive good news (like when I got the offer from my agent), I hurl. It’s not pretty, but it’s totally accurate especially with anxious people like me.
13--What’s your favorite genre to read?
Lately, it’s been horror. I love getting spooked and reading the darker perspective on what goes on in the dark.
14--What’s your favorite movie?
Austenland. I rewatch this movie regularly. I often picture myself as the heroine and imagine what it would be like living a historical experience. It doesn’t hurt that the love interests in this movie are gorgeous. coughBretMcKenzie,J.J.Feild,andRickyWhittlecough
15--What is your favorite season?
Fall. I love the smell of burning leaves, the crunchy fallen leaves, and how the trees burst with golds, reds, and oranges. Sweater weather is best since I hate the extreme cold and heat.
16--How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
I have to eat something delicious. It doesn’t have to be fancy, but it has to provide that comfort I need to reward myself with for having survived another year on this planet.
17--What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
I recently watched Arcane on Netflix. I absolutely loved the characters, the animation style, and the voice acting. It’s set in a steampunk world with magic with trauma-stricken, complicated characters.
18--What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
Japanese, though I enjoy everything. I always order chirashi if it’s on the menu. Chirashi is a fresh selection of assorted sashimi atop a bed of sushi rice. I swear I could be a pescatarian if I lived on the coast.
19--What do you do when you have free time?
I art! Art means illustration, painting, embroidery, doodling, sculpting, crafting, everything. I’m always on the lookout for new hobbies. It’s an effective way for me to meditate.
20--What can readers expect from you next?
I have an adult speculative project in the works, as well as another YA series that is fully plotted out. I want to keep bringing my quirky ideas to life.
Once every generation, the Major Gods hold a Celestial Banquet, inviting chefs from all over the Continent to prepare mouthwatering fantastical feasts. The winner is awarded the fabled Peaches of Immortality, along with a lifetime of fame and fortune. The losers perish per the whims of the fickle gods.
Hot-headed noodle chef Cai enters the competition with dreams of owning her own restaurant and supporting her impoverished Peninsula town. Along with the drunken Minor God Kama, her childhood crush-turned-friend Bo, and dreamy noble Seon, Cai must now compete against the Continent’s finest culinary masters in trials that range from hunting and serving up mystical sea serpents to preparing a magical omurice from the eggs of the legendary Jian bird.
Battling impossible odds and inconvenient feelings for both Bo and Seon, Cai is determined to prepare a feast fit for the gods—even if she loses her life. Set in a spectacular world inspired by Chinese and Southeast Asian folklore, Celestial Banquet is an ode to food, home, and family, wrapped in an epic and thrilling adventure.
Young Adult [Zando, On Sale: June 3, 2025, Hardcover / e-Book , ISBN: 9781638931263 / eISBN: 9781638931270]
Roselle Lim was born in the Philippines and immigrated to Canada as a child. She lived in north Scarborough in a diverse, Asian neighbourhood. She found her love of writing by listening to her lola (paternal grandmother's) stories about Filipino folktales. Growing up in a household where Chinese superstition mingled with Filipino Catholicism, she devoured books about mythology, which shaped the fantasies in her novels. An artist by nature, she considers writing as "painting with words."
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