Jaime Questell | Five Things You Need to Know about LeGrand's Carnival
I am so excited to be on Fresh Fiction today to talk about BY A CHARM AND A CURSE!
Charm is my first novel, and I had so much fun writing it. (It's really
easy to say that now that it's done!) Writing about a carnival let me cram in so
many of the things I like: sparkling lights, intricate costumes, performers
defying gravity, and a healthy dose of romance. Below, I've outlined Five Things
You Need to Know about LeGrand's Carnival. Let's go!
LeGrand's Carnival is kind of a conglomeration of the Texas Rodeo carnival,
the local Renaissance Festival, and the Halloween carnival my elementary school
used to put on every year. I stole the rides from the rodeo carnival, the food
from the ren fest, and the sense of fun and excitement from the Halloween
carnival. It's all of those things but glossier, shinier, and with a healthy
dose of magic.
Leslie, the owner of the carnival, and Lars, operator of the Ferris wheel
and one of LeGrand's long-time employees, were based on Leslie Knope and Ron
Swanson from Parks and Rec. I've always loved their dynamic; how they sometimes
butt heads but always had each other's backs, not to mention the unshakable
sense of respect they have for each other. But while my Leslie is still
intelligent and caring, but she's also hardened and a little world-weary. And
Lars, well, Lars has Ron's gruff exterior, but he also has a gooey center.
Together they're the backbone of LeGrand's.
If I worked at LeGrand's you couldn't keep me away from Mrs. Potter's tent.
Mrs. Potter trains her dogs to perform all sorts of stunts, from jumping through
flaming hoops to piling on top of each other to form pyramids of wriggling
puppies. She has corgis and pugs and dachshunds, and bigger dogs like standard
poodles and great Danes, and everything in between. And I. Love. DOGS. My goal
in life is to be like the Queen of England, with a posse of corgis following her
at all times, so writing Mrs. Potter was a little bit of wish fulfillment.
Another bit of wish fulfillment? All the food! No trip to the carnival is
complete without food that is absolutely terrible for you. Juliet, main
character Emma's best friend, is in love with deep-fried candy bars, of which
there are plenty. Some of my favorites didn't make it onto the page โ hello,
empanadas! โ but believe me, they are there.
And finally, the Ferris wheel. The ride is one of the oldest in the
carnival, and its old-fashioned wooden structure proves it. But for as old as it
is, it's sturdy and well maintained. The giant wheel looms over the rest of the
carnival, and at night its golden lights shine brightly. And for Emma, the
Ferris wheel is where this story begins.
LeGrand's isn't a real place, but if it was, I could find my way around that
carnival blindfolded. I had so much fun putting all the details into LeGrand's
to make it feel real, and I hope that readers enjoy it, too.
Le Grand's Carnival Fantastic isn't like other traveling circuses. It's bound
by a charm, held together by a centuries-old curse, that protects its members
from ever growing older or getting hurt. Emmaline King is drawn to the circus
like a moth to a flameโฆand unwittingly recruited into its folds by a mysterious
teen boy whose kiss is as cold as ice.
Forced to travel through Texas as the new Girl in the Box, Emmaline is
completely trapped. Breaking the curse seems like her only chance at freedom,
but with no curse, there's no charm, eitherโdooming everyone who calls the
Carnival Fantastic home. Including the boy she's afraid she's falling for.
Everythingโincluding his lifeโcould end with just one kiss.
Young Adult Fantasy
[Entangled Teen, On Sale: February 6, 2018,
Hardcover / e-Book, ISBN: 9781633759008 / eISBN: 9781633759015]
Jaime Questell is a writer and graphic designer from Houston, Texas. She has
also been a bookseller, a professional knitter, a semi-professional baker, and
an administrative assistant. None of these jobs involved wrangling corgis, which
is quite sad. She lives in the โburbs with her husband, children, very anxious
dog, one surly cat, and one recently acquired cojack, which is what happens when
a corgi and Jack Russell terrier combine to make doggy magic.
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