Written by Erin Francois
Mara Rutherford’s debut novel Crown of Coral and Pearl is nearing release and Mara herself was kind enough to answer my weird questions I had about herself, her book, and her opinions.
Hi Mara! Tell us a little about yourself!
Hi and thank you so much for having me! I’m originally from California but have spent half of my life living elsewhere, including England, Russia, Peru, and Serbia. My husband, a fighter pilot turned diplomat, and I are coming up on our fifteen-year wedding anniversary, the day after my book launch! We have two sons and currently live in Belgrade, Serbia. I’m also a triplet born on Leap Day, a folklore enthusiast, and am obsessed with our red poodle, Mishka.
Your debut novel, Crown of Coral and Pearl, releases on August 27th! Can you tell us what readers might expect?
Readers can expect sisters, adventure, a little bit of magic, romance, and unique settings! Reviewers have compared CoCaP to Grace and Fury, Red Queen, and The Selection. I read Grace and Fury recently and I definitely think it’s a good comparison! I haven’t read the other two, but if you like them, this might be the book for you!
I had a strong tropical travel-destination vibe for Varenia. Were you inspired by any real-life places when writing your world?
I saw a photo of Cinque Terre, Italy, when I was writing CoCaP, and the beautiful colors of the houses against the turquoise water were definitely in my mind when I created Varenia. New Castle was inspired in part by Predjama Castle in Slovenia, which I recently visited. It’s AMAZING. I highly recommend going if you get the chance!
What was the weirdest thing you had to research for your book?
Without giving away too much, there is a scene involving a salamander’s ribs in the book, inspired by something I learned while researching. My editor didn’t believe me when I said it was real!
Was your book always going to be called Crown of Coral and Pearl?
CoCaP was originally Coral and Pearl. My editor wanted something that sounded more like a fantasy title, hence the change.
If you had to choose one of your characters to go out to dinner with, who would it be and why?
Probably Ceren. He’s the antagonist in CoCaP, but I have a weakness for villains. I often joke that I married the ultimate good guy, so I live vicariously through my characters when it comes to bad guys.
In your acknowledgements you talked about your twin sister. How much does she resemble Zadie and you, Nor?
When I originally started writing CoCaP, I would have likened myself more to Zadie, actually. Growing up, I considered myself the “responsible twin,” more family oriented, and definitely less brave than my sister. However, when I started to think about it more, I realized that I have a lot in common with Nor, too. I would do anything for the people I love, and I ended up “leaving home” when my husband joined the Foreign Service (the idea of home is really important to me, which I hope comes through in the book). So, in the end, I think both sisters are actually two different sides of me. That being said, I definitely took real life traits from my twin, Sarah, and used them in the book! Zadie has a line about similarities and differences that I stole straight from Sarah, in fact.
If you had healing blood powers, what would you do with your gift?
Hmmm…that’s a tough one! I suppose I’d be more willing to take physical risks. That being said, I’m terrified of sharks, and I don’t think anything would convince me to dive with one!
Who’s your favourite author and why?
I have different favorite authors for different genres: Barbara Kingsolver for women’s fiction; Stephen King for horror; Tana French for mystery; Neil Gaiman, Leigh Bardugo, and Laini Taylor for fantasy. I like to read in a lot of genres and categories to inspire different parts of my brain, but YA Fantasy is definitely my favorite genre.
Book two, Kingdom of Sea and Stone, is already set for release. What are your hopes for Nor?
In KoSaS, Nor will get to spend more time with Talin, which I sadly couldn’t give her in Book One. She’ll also have a chance to do a lot more exploring than she did in CoPaP, both physically and emotionally. I think we’ll see her grow a lot in Book Two, and struggle more with her sense of right and wrong.
Lastly, do you have any book recommendations for us?
My favorite recent read was SORCERY OF THORNS by Margaret Rogerson. I loved everything about it. I’m obsessed with Holly Black’s FOLK OF THE AIR books and I can’t wait for QUEEN OF NOTHING. And I just read NEVERNIGHT by Jay Kristoff, which I ended up really enjoying. I love when authors manage to strike a balance with darkness and humor, and I think he does it perfectly.
You see what I mean about weird questions now? The salamander response was particularly interesting! I’m sure Mara’s internet history must be very intriguing, especially after all the little historical things I noticed in her novel too. I am also such a villain-gets-the-girl shipper myself but it’s so interesting Mara choose Ceren, I was so sure she would choose Zadie or Talin! Aside from the obvious choice of Talin (heart eyes) I would choose a certain someone who has been spoken about, but who I hope will appear in KOSAS! NO SPOILERS! The idea of home Mara talks about really comes across in COCAP (wow these acronyms are really catching on, or maybe that’s just because I’m Australian and that’s what we do) and by the end of the book Varenia feels like your home. I could almost smell the salt waves.
Crown of Coral and Pearl releases on August 27th 2019 and you better be getting a physical copy with me!
