I am so, so excited to read Anna and the French Kiss. I've already read lots of wonderful reviews of this one, and it's a book everybody seems to love. Hot boys and the perfect Parisian setting...who could ask for more? Read on to find out more about Stephanie and her delightful debut!
I can’t wait to read Anna and the French Kiss. It’s got hot boys and is set in Paris! Sounds perfect! Where did you get the inspiration to write the story?
Merci! I sincerely hope that you enjoy it. The idea arrived to me in a dream—a beautiful boy with a French name and an English accent sitting on the steps of the Panthéon—and it was impossible to resist. Or, more accurately, THE BOY was impossible to resist!
I love Paris – it’s one of my favourite cities, and I read that you stayed there for a whole month (lucky!) What were some of your favourite things to do and places to see in Paris?
I *am* lucky. It's so hard to choose; I honestly loved everything. Of course, the food is the best part. (Banana Nutella street crepes! Orange flower macarons!) And I love creepy stuff, so I enjoyed visiting the cemeteries and catacombs and such. And Notre-Dame! Oh, it's so beautiful! And walking along the Seine at night! And, and, and . . .
Étienne St. Clair, Anna’s crush in Anna and the French Kiss definitely sounds like a swoonworthy book crush! Name some hot boys in books that have made you swoon?
I swoon for guys with flaws. Perfection is so boring! I love anyone Meg Cabot creates—Michael Moscovitz (The Princess Diaries) and Jesse de Silva (The Mediator) are particular favorites. Sarah Dessen has some super-sexy, flawed guys. I especially love Wes (The Truth About Forever) and Dexter (This Lullaby). Adam from Gayle Forman's If I Stay and Where She Went is such a REAL guy, and he has such a big heart. And Shrimp from Rachel Cohn's Gingerbread series is the most flawed of all, so I might even like him the most!
And then you hit Jane Austen, and the list never ends: Mr. Darcy, Henry Tilney, Wentworth, Colonel Brandon . . .
Can you name three other books that you think readers of your book might enjoy?
Anything listed above, but I'll add: North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley, Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway, and Girl at Sea by Maureen Johnson. All contemporary, romantic, funny, and with substance.
Can you tell me a little about the companion novel to Anna and the French Kiss, Lola and the Boy Next Door and also let me know what you are working on now? Thanks.
I recently sold my third novel, Isla and the Happily Ever After, which I'm working on right now. Lola (2011) and Isla (2012) are both companion novels to Anna. They aren't direct sequels, so they can be read and enjoyed on their own, but they have plenty of fun character overlap. The plots are still a secret, but I will say that Lola takes place in America, and Isla wraps things back up in Paris!
Many thanks to Stephanie for answering my questions, and for wishing me good cookies and good books for the holiday season! :) I can just tell that Steph is going to be a huge success!
Anna and the French Kiss is released on December 2nd 2010 by Dutton.
I'm really excited for Anna and the French Kiss (I'm at school in England, and have personally experienced the hotness that is a serious British accent)- thank you for this interview! I, too, adore Wes and Dexter the most out of the Sarah Dessen novels I've read... though I also love Owen from Just Listen. :)
ReplyDeleteI've been hearing so much about this book! All of it has been good :) It sounds right up my alley! Can't wait to read it! Love the Delightful Debutantes feature :)
ReplyDeleteGreat interview. I am so jealous that she was able to live in Paris for a month. That must have been incredible. I loved this book and I can't wait for you to read it. It was definitely one of my favorites.
ReplyDeleteI want to read it please :D
ReplyDeleteHi i'm a new follower :D !
ReplyDeleteI've heard so many good things about this book. I can't wait to read it, this book is in my christmas wish list :).
By the way I looove Paris. I'm also french ^^. And i'm going to Paris this saturday meeting Maggie Stiefvater :p.
Your blog seems really great i hope we'll talk more soon !
Jesse and Mr Darcy make me swoon too.lol
ReplyDeleteWho can resist a book set in Paris?! I really want to read this book. Infact I think I am going to order it now!
Great interview! I've been dying to read 'Anna and the French Kiss' for months - so excited about it :)
ReplyDeleteAwesome interview! I absolutely loved Anna and the French Kiss. I’m so excited about the companion novels.
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