Kiss of the Royal
by Lindsey Duga
Genre: YA Fantasy
Release Date: July 3rd 2018
Entangled Teen
Summary:
In the war against the Forces of Darkness, the Royals are losing. Princess Ivy is determined to end this centuries-long conflict once and for all, so her new battle partner must succeed where the others failed. Prince Zach’s unparalleled skill with a sword, enhanced by Ivy’s magic Kiss, should make them an unstoppable pair—but try convincing Zach of that.
Prince Zach has spent his life preparing for battle, but he would rather be branded a heretic than use his lips as nothing more than a way to transfer magic. A kiss is a symbol of love, and love is the most powerful weapon they have—but try convincing Ivy of that.
With the fate of their world on the line, the battlefield has become a testing ground, and only one of them can be right. Falling for each other wasn’t part of the plan—but try convincing their hearts of that.
by Lindsey Duga
Genre: YA Fantasy
Release Date: July 3rd 2018
Entangled Teen
Summary:
In the war against the Forces of Darkness, the Royals are losing. Princess Ivy is determined to end this centuries-long conflict once and for all, so her new battle partner must succeed where the others failed. Prince Zach’s unparalleled skill with a sword, enhanced by Ivy’s magic Kiss, should make them an unstoppable pair—but try convincing Zach of that.
Prince Zach has spent his life preparing for battle, but he would rather be branded a heretic than use his lips as nothing more than a way to transfer magic. A kiss is a symbol of love, and love is the most powerful weapon they have—but try convincing Ivy of that.
With the fate of their world on the line, the battlefield has become a testing ground, and only one of them can be right. Falling for each other wasn’t part of the plan—but try convincing their hearts of that.
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Interview
with Lindsey Duga
Can you tell us a little bit about the
characters in KISS OF THE ROYAL?
There
are four main characters in the book: Ivy, Zach, Brom, and Millennia.
Ivy
is the heroine. As the direct descendant of the Holy Queen, the first Royal to
use the magic Kiss, Ivy is the most powerful princess in Myria and that comes
with a lot of pressure. With each patrol more and more Royals fall on the
battlefield, and evil creatures begin to grow to insurmountable numbers. Even
though Ivy cares deeply for her kingdom and its people and wants to save them,
she is plagued with self-doubt. After so many defeated partners at her side,
and a mother who criticizes her at every turn, Ivy struggles to believe she’s
powerful enough to do anything, let alone save an entire kingdom. But her
determination and sense of duty drives her to go after one last chance in
proving herself--partnering up with Zach.
As
a prince with very little Royal blood and no Royal upbringing, Zach is Ivy’s
opposite in almost every way. Not just the little things like how they talk,
fight, and act, but in their core beliefs. Zach was raised as a Romantica, a
group of people that believe in love and other powerful emotions, which goes
against the teachings in logic and reason of the Royal Legion. But Zach is the
most talented swordsman the four Kingdoms have seen in a century and Ivy needs his blade to execute her magic. Even though he’s as stubborn
as Ivy is, he’s ruled by emotion and often makes rash decisions without
thinking things through.
Bromley
is Ivy’s page, but he’s really more like her little brother. Having grown up
with her, he’s devoted to her rather
than the Legion, and vows to go with her and Zach on their quest. His presence
is a pillar of support to Ivy and helps her in ways that go beyond the duties
of a page.
Millennia
is a young, but very talented, mage they encounter on their quest. Also a
Romantica like Zach, she believes in Love and hates the Royals for personal
reasons that force Ivy to see a new perspective that is vastly different than
everything she has been taught to believe.
Can you tell us a little bit about your next
books or what you have planned for the future?
Absolutely!
Due to the achingly slow pace of publishing, I typically have three projects
going on in different stages. I have a YA paranormal romance about nature
spirits set in the Smoky Mountains out with editors, a YA high fantasy with my
critique partners, and a brand new middle grade sci-fi about female space
pilots in its first draft.
How long would you say it takes you to write a
book?
On
average it takes me about 3.5 months to draft a new novel, and revising
(depending on how intense the revisions are) takes about 2 weeks - 1 month.
But, I mean, I could be thinking
about a book anywhere from a month to a year before I decide to write a word!
What is your favorite childhood book?
The
Dollhouse Murders by Betty Ren Wright was definitely one of my favorites as a
little kid. I was really into ghost books at one point and this one was about a
young girl who visits her aunt’s house and finds a dollhouse in the attic. She
hears noises in the attic and when she goes up to check, she sees the dolls in
the dollhouse moving by themselves, reenacting a murder that happened years
ago. So creepy!
If you could spend the day with one of the
characters from KISS OF THE ROYAL who would it be? Please tell us why you chose
this particular character, where you would go and what you would do.
One
thing you should know about Zach is that he’s a pretty stellar dancer. I love
ballroom dancing myself so I would probably drag him to a swing dance
convention. We would dance into the wee hours of the morning, trying all sorts
of new and fun steps. A big part of ballroom dancing is connecting with your
partner and reacting to their passion--I don’t think that would be hard at all
with Zach. He’s a pretty passionate guy.
What was the hardest scene from KISS OF THE
ROYAL to write?
The
climax of the story was pretty tough. I can’t even remember how many times I
actually ended up rewriting it. There was just so much to include! It was very
difficult writing it while keeping the pacing in mind. I didn’t want all the
information to come out at the end because it would slow down the action and
bore the reader. Weaving in that info throughout different sections was tough,
but I think it came out alright in the end.
What made you want to become a writer?
I’ve
always loved making up stories. When I was in middle school, my friend and I
decided to try writing a story together. I got absolutely hooked, but I didn’t
pursue being an author until my senior year of college when I got an idea for a
middle grade novel and decided to try and get it published. It took a few years
of revising, writers conferences, and pitching before I sold my third book. It
really is a dream come true!
Just for fun
(a Favorite song:
I
have so many! But my favorite song from the past few years is Paris by Magic Man. I saw them in concert as an opening band and
they were entrancing.
(b Favorite book:
Again,
so many! In the past ten years, it’s Percy
Jackson and the Lightning Thief, and in the past five it’s Golden Son by Pierce Brown.
(c Favorite movie:
My
favorite movie has been Clash of the
Titans, the 1981 movie about the greek myth of Perseus, since I was a kid.
The claymation is absolutely ridiculous, but this movie has a special place in
my heart.
(d Favorite tv show:
Avatar: The Last Airbender--I have seen this show at least five times from
start to finish. I love it so, so much. The world, characters, fight scenes,
and the general writing is utterly brilliant.
(e Favorite Food:
My
favorite dish is authentic tonkotsu ramen. It’s pretty hard to find if you
don’t live in a big city, but it’s sooo delicious. I’ll drive an hour for just
a bowl of this. With pork belly, scallions, mushrooms, and nitamago (soy-soaked
soft boiled egg), this dish is truly the food of the gods.
(f Favorite drink:
I’m
practically addicted to iced matcha (green tea) lattes with soy milk. I get one
every Sunday while I’m writing.
(g Favorite website:
I
really like ScreenRant.com -- I’m a huge fan of movies and TV shows so I enjoy reading
behind-the-scenes articles.
Thanks so much for visiting with us today!
About the Author
Lindsey Duga developed a deep love for courageous heroes,
dastardly villains, and enchanting worlds from the cartoon shows, books, and
graphic novels she read as a kid. Drawing inspiration from these fantastical
works of fiction, she wrote her first novel in college while she was getting
her bachelor’s in Mass Communication from Louisiana State University. By day,
Lindsey is an account manager at a digital marketing agency based in Baton
Rouge, Louisiana. By night, and the wee hours of the morning, she writes both
middle grade and young adult. She has a weakness for magic, anything classical,
all kinds of mythology, and falls in love with tragic heroes. Other than
writing and cuddling with her morkie puppy, Delphi, Lindsey loves catching up on
the latest superhero TV show, practicing yoga, and listening (and belting) to
her favorite music artists and show tunes. KISS OF THE ROYAL is her YA debut
novel.
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