Interview with Isabella Caine & Ken Brosky, Authors of 'Blood & Thunder (The Grimm Chronicles, Book 5)

Welcome to the virtual book tour for Blood & Thunder, hosted by Enchanted Book Promotions! Get to know authors Isabella Caine & Ken Brosky a little bit better. Thanks for stopping by!

What was the inspiration for this series?

We wanted to create a story about a female hero, but we wanted to make sure that she doesn’t simply resort to senseless violence to get the job done. And we definitely didn’t want her most difficult obstacle to be something ridiculous like choosing the right boyfriend. So we invented a story where the characters from fairy tales have come to life, and they become more evil the longer they remain alive. Even the princes and princesses in the fairy tales turn evil, which means our hero needs to be ready to do battle with all sorts of interesting characters.

How many books do you anticipate being in it?

12.

What were your favorite fairy tales in childhood?

Ken: I would say my favorite fairy tale was Cinderella. The original was just so crazy and weird that it was a blast to read. Nowadays I’m much more partial to the funny ones, especially the ones with talking animals.

Isabella: Ditto the talking animals. There’s one where a donkey sings and frightens a burglar … we need to figure a way to incorporate that into our series …

Which characters spoke to you the most during the writing process?

Ken: Definitely Br’er Rabbit. I grew up reading him in school, and so it’s been a good time playing around with that character. He’s developed his own personality over the years, and it helps to get away from his original stories a bit so I can make him my own. There’s a fine line with handling such a great literary character.

What are some of the pros and cons of co-writing a book, instead of writing it by yourself?

Pros: We can play off each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Also, we can help each other spot things we wouldn’t normally spot if one of us was working on our own.

Cons: We have to wait patiently for the other person to finish a draft.

What other projects do you have in the works?

Isabella: Book 6! The Order of the Golden Dragon. It’s going to be a blast.

Ken: I’m also doing a more adult series that’s going to be about a post-apocalyptic world. It’s been a lot of fun to tinker with. But my focus is going to stay on The Grimm Chronicles until it’s finished. That comes first. I’m not pulling a Dance with Dragons and spending 6 years between books. I hate that.

Did you make any New Years resolutions?

You know what? We didn’t. Crud. Hows about we resolve to double our efforts with the last 6 books in the series? We’ll give each one an extra run-through before publication. It’ll be a little more work, but it’s worth it at this point. The response we’ve received has been incredible.

What is something readers may be surprised to learn about you?

Ken: I like to watch TV while I write. It’s horrible, but sometimes it inspires me. Plus, I can take breaks and write a page every commercial. I don’t always do it …

Isabella: I can cook a mean pork chop.

Is there anything else you would like to share with us?

Yes! Here’s a teaser for the last seven books:

Dragons! … Wizards! … lions … monsters … blind princesses … giants … and a talking sausage!

Thanks for your time!

Title: Blood and Thunder

Author: Isabella Fontaine & Ken Brosky

Genre: YA

Upon making a surprising discovery in a Corrupted's lair, Alice finds herself torn between her responsibilities as the hero and her desire to live a normal life. She's been granted a unique opportunity to leave the entire world of the hero behind. But before she can make her ultimate choice, her nightmares return ...

A ship is coming. And aboard that ship is one of the most terrifying Corrupteds Alice has faced yet. In order to face her foe, Alice will have to do without the help of her scorned friend, Br'er Rabbit.

At school, a miraculous recovery by the star of the baseball team prompts more questions, all of them bringing Alice back to that fateful encounter at the orphanage of doom. To make matters worse, a school bully has taken his terrorizing too far, a friend is in trouble, and the mysterious ship in Alice's nightmare holds a terrible secret ...


This story also contains:
- "The Fisherman and His Wife," by the Brothers Grimm
- Chapter one of "Moby-Dick," by Herman Melville.

Read an excerpt!

I tightened my grip on his hand. The shadowy figures were almost upon the car now. My brain went into full hero mode, searching for the safest way out of this. Five of them stood behind the car. They’d laid something across the road ahead—there was nowhere to drive. With the streetlights out, they seemed to moved swiftly through the darkness.

But I could see their eyes. The moonlight reflected in their eyes. Dozens and dozens of white eyes all around the car, moving closer.

“Hey,” Chase said, tugging on my hand. “Are you listening to me? The reason I wanted to be smart was so I could still talk to you.”

“Chase … that would be really sweet if not for the fact that you relied on a magic fish,” I said with a weak smile. I reached into my purse, grabbing the magic pen. I stuffed it in my pocket.

He smiled back. “I don’t know what’s happening to me. I feel different, somehow. Not just because I can walk again, either. I feel …”

“Chase.” I reached out with one finger, lifting his chin so our eyes locked. “Listen to me. Something is about to happen to us. It’s going to be weird and scary, but I want you to promise me you won’t fight back.”

He smiled and cocked his head, obviously confused. Through the driver’s-side window, I could see shadowy figure skulking across the street. “Weirder than a magic fish?”

“Promise me you won’t fight back.”

“Alice, I don’t—”

A fist broke through the driver’s-side window. Chase flinched, spinning in his seat. The fist unclenched, reaching for the collar of Chase’s baseball jersey and pulling him to the window. His seatbelt tightened; I reached out, unbuckling him.

“Alice! What—no!” he cried out as the shadowy hand pulled him through the broken window.

Purchase on Kindle! http://amzn.to/VDYMGt

Author Bios

Isabella Fontaine lives a quiet life on a farm in rural Wisconsin. She enjoys reading Grimm’s Fairy Tales and writing on a typewriter, which annoys her cats. This is her first book collection.

Ken Brosky received his MFA from the University of Nebraska-Omaha. He’s written a number of books and regularly publishes short stories. He also helps out at Brew City Press whenever possible. This is his first young adult collection.