Monday, July 29, 2013

Blog Tour: Banish by Nicola Marsh-Character Interview & GIVEAWAY! *Closed*



Today the Australian Blog Tour for Banish by Nicola Marsh hits The Rest Is Still Unwritten thanks to the fantastic team over at HarlequinTEEN Australia!

Banish is Australian author Nicola Marsh's debut into YA fiction and I was lucky enough to sit down with the male lead of the series, Ronan and pick his brain---err talk to him.

I also have a paperback copy of Banish to give away to an AU/NZ follower and an ecopy to give away to an INTERNATIONAL fan but more details on that later in the post. In the mean time, let's see what happened when Ronan and I met up.....
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Hello Ronan, thank you for agreeing to sit down with me for a little chat. I hope Nicola Marsh didn’t have too much of a hard time convincing you considering you guys are good friends and all......

Ronan-how I see him portrayed
by Ben Barnes
So. Excuse me while I collect my thoughts. I’m just taking you all in. Alyssa described it, but she really didn’t do your hair justice. *reaches out to touch and but pulls back at the last minute and
smiles sheepishly* Sorry. Wasn’t meaning to be a stalker-ish fan, but then again being a musician I imagine you get your fair share of female attention, right?

Anywhoo. I suppose we should get to the actual interview part, that is why you’re here after all....

You’re the male lead and love interest in Nicola Marsh’s debut YA novel Banish, how does that make you feel? I’m not gonna break the girl code by disclosing anything, but I do know Alyssa thinks highly of you, anything you wanna say about that?
Nicola’s pretty cool so I’m kinda chuffed she chose me to be the male lead in her YA debut. Not much pressure on me or anything!

As for dating Alyssa, I cop crap from the guys in my band all the time. She’s younger than me. And a teenager. But when it’s right, it’s right, you know? Alyssa is different from anyone else I’ve dated. She’s seventeen going on thirty! I like her maturity. And her quirkiness. And everything about her. She’s amazing.  

Nawww, looks like someone's crazy about all things Alyssa ;) Describe yourself in 5 words?
Innovative. Driven. Creative. Dedicated. Laidback.

If you asked Alyssa this, she’d probably say: rockgod. Sexy. Hot. Cool. The Best.

(Who am I to argue with a smart girl like that?)  

Amen to that! You’re a musician…where did this love of music come from?
My dad. I have a lot to thank him for. He’s one of the best dudes on the planet.  

Playing in a band must be something special? How did you guys manage to form and when do I get you see you guys perform? Haha!
Playing gigs is cool, but what I love most about being in a band is the camaraderie. I get to hang out with my mates and play the music I love. Win-win.

The Dizzy’s are a bunch of my old high school friends. We started hanging out in music class, then after school. Did a few jam sessions in my dad’s garage and the band launched from there. Next stop…record deal?

Better ask Nicola when you get to see us live on stage!  

*memo to self....chase up Nicola* Why jazz? I mean nowadays everyone is into rock and roll or metal, and hip-hop and pop is all the all the range, but what is it about jazz music that just captures you?
I grew up on the stuff. It’s the only music dad played. All. The. Time! It kinda grew on me after a while and once I started playing sax, jazz is what I naturally gravitated to. It sounds…sultry to me. Really hot.  

Do you play any other instruments or is the saxophone the only one? Would you WANT to learn to play any others?
I only play sax but if I had the time I’d play trumpet. Or drums. Drummers seem to get all the chicks at gigs.  

Alright. This is a loaded question, but I have to know.....John Coltrane or Charlie Parker?
John Coltrane, because I identify with him. His father sparked his interest in the sax too. Plus he got to play in THE Dizzy Gillespie Band.  

Musician, IT guy and computer wiz….do you have any other talents we should know about?
You should’ve asked Alyssa this…she’d probably add ‘making out’ to the list…  

Looks like next time I have to sit down with Alyssa. I really wanna hear what she thinks now! But moving on....What’s the most romantic thing you’ve ever done for a girl? Or….if you prefer, what’s a romantic thing you plan to do for a girl? *hint* *hint*
I thought writing a song for Alyssa was pretty darn romantic. I’ve never done that before. But look how that turned out. A dead body showing up in my music vid was so not in the plan!

My ideal romantic gesture? Discover her fave city and band in the world, and book tickets to attend a concert there. Would be wicked!

After the events of Banish, what do you see in store for you next?
Alyssa is facing some pretty heavy stuff in her future so I’m looking forward to supporting her through that. But if she stays in Broadwater and doesn’t return to NYC, gotta admit, it’ll put a strain on our relationship. Doing the long distance thing is tough. Plus I hear a rumor if BANISH sells well, I may face some serious competition for Alyssa’s affections in the next installment…  

*gasp* No! We don't want that! Competition=Not Good. Although, I'm eager to meet the guy that can compete with you in Alyssa's eyes.....

Well, I suppose we should wrap this up. I can't keep you here with me forever, though the thought did cross my mind. Ha! Kidding. Thanks for being a good sport about all this Ronan. If you're ever Down Under drop me a line and we'll hang out :)
Not a problem Though I’ve heard that Nicola Marsh is pretty cool to hang out with too…

Funny, I've heard that too ;)
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I have to say, it was really fun getting to chat with Ronan, but if you're after more from him be sure to check out Banish on Goodreads or pick up a copy from Booktopia, Bookworld or your local book retailer when it releases on August 1st!


Alyssa has one week to destroy her enemy, save her spirit...and save her soul.

After her ex-boyfriend commits suicide and her mum's alcoholism sparks yet another psychotic episode, seventeen-year-old Alyssa Wood flees her small hometown of Broadwater and heads to New York City to stay with her bohemian aunt — a Wicca High Priestess.

Alyssa revels in the anonymity of a big city and her new life. Her grades climb, she has a new best friend, and a new guy: the sexy geek Ronan — a saxophone player who prefers jazz to pop.

But her newfound peace is soon shattered when she sees a dead body in one of Ronan's music clips — and she's the only one who can see it. Worse still, Alyssa recognizes the body that has been murdered a week forward!

Alyssa doesn't believe in the supernatural...despite her family's Wicca background. So how will she overcome evil when it's closer than she thinks?

As a girl, Nicola dreamed of being a journalist and travelling the world in search of the next big story.
 
Instead, she chose a career in the health industry while honing her writing skills with a daily entry in a "not-so-secret" journal!

Luckily, she had the opportunity to travel but her dream to write was never far from her mind. She worked as a physiotherapist for thirteen years before she tired of saying "I'm going to write a book one day" and actually did it. She started writing late 2001 and found once she started she couldn't stop!

The inspiration for her first novel, THE TYCOON'S DATING DEAL, came from a magazine article on speed-dating and she sold this book in May 2003. It won the CataRomance Reviewers' Choice Award for Best Harlequin Romance 2004.

Nicola currently writes for Harlequin Mills and Boon Romance and Riva/Presents series, Entangled Publishing, Month9Books, Harlequin Teen and Crimson Romance,has published 40 books and sold over four million copies worldwide.

She's a Bookscan, USA Today, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Waldenbooks bestseller, has finalled in several awards including the prestigious HOLT (Honoring Outstanding Literary Talent), Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Award, Booksellers' Best, Golden Quill, Laurel Wreath, More than Magic and won several CataRomance Reviewers' Choice Awards.

Nicola loves the hip, vibrant, cosmopolitan vibe of her home city, Melbourne, where she's set the bulk of her novels, highlighting fabulous cultural and food havens like Acland Street (St. Kilda), Brunswick Street (Fitzroy) and Lygon Street (Carlton).

When she's not writing she's busy raising her two little heroes, sharing fine food with family and friends, cheering on her beloved North Melbourne Kangaroos footy team and her favourite, curling up with a good book!

Visit Nicola:
Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter


And as promised ONE (1) AU/NZ follower will win a PAPERBACK copy and ONE (1) INTERNATIONAL follower will win an E-COPY of Banish thanks once more to HarlequinTEEN Australia!

BUT!

I also happened to get an extra copy of Banish in the mail so I'M GIVING THAT AWAY TOO! One more AU/ZN follower will get a copy.

That means there's 2x paperback copies for AU/NZ up for grabs and 1x e-copy for INT!

To Enter....

·   Simply comment with a way to contact you!
·  You MUST be a follower to enter--that's my only condition :)
·  Let me know whether your AU/NZ or INTERNATIONAL!
·  Tweet/Facebook or Share for an extra entry!
·  Giveaway runs from today until the 12th of August (two weeks time!) and the winners will have 48 hours to respond to my email before a new winner will need to be chosen  

 

I want to say a BIG THANK YOU to author Nicola Marsh and the publicist over at HarlequinTEEN Australia, Polina for not only making this all possible but allowing me to be a part of the fun! Be sure to check out the full tour schedule if you haven't already or click on the above picture to join the fun!

7 comments:

  1. Loved the chat thank you.

    AUSTRALIA

    Email Subscriber:

    marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Please enter me. :)
    gfc follower: kalasyn
    AUS
    kalasyn@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. No no no! You don't want to be a drummer! Trumpeter & Saxophonist is definitely the way to go! :P

    Follow via google+

    oh and I'm from Australia.
    whyanot(dot)reviews(at)gmail(dot)com

    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
  4. Would love to enter

    Australia

    nikki12_rhall@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. Great post Rachel. I cannot wait to read this book. Thank you for the giveaway.

    AUSTRALIA

    GFC - KtTurner

    Katie Turner
    turnersantics(AT)homtail(DOT)com

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm not entering, just commenting on awesome interview Rachel :D

    Mich

    ReplyDelete
  7. Haha what a funny interview. Time to add this book to my to-read shelf!
    Thanks for the giveaway!

    naralee94(at)hotmail(dot)com

    Australia
    gfc follower: naralee94
    https://twitter.com/greengp01/status/364046651280732160

    ReplyDelete

Hi everyone!

Thanks so much for leaving a comment at The Rest Is Still Unwritten! I read each and every comment, even if I don't reply to them all and appreciate your interest in my blog.

Hope you have a great day and Happy Reading!
~Rachel
xoxo