Hey everyone! I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the blog tour for THE HARPER EFFECT by Taryn Bashford!
I have an interview with Taryn to share with you today! And make sure to enter the giveaway below!
Haven't heard of THE HARPER EFFECT? Check it out!
Sixteen-year-old Harper was once a rising star on the tennis court--until her coach dropped her for being "mentally weak." Without tennis, who is she? Her confidence at an all-time low, she secretly turns to her childhood friend, next-door neighbor Jacob--who also happens to be her sister's very recent ex-boyfriend. If her sister finds out, it will mean a family war.
But when Harper is taken on by a new coach who wants her to train with Colt, a cold, defensive, brooding young tennis phenom, she hits the court all the harder, if only to prove Colt wrong. But as the two learn to become a team, Harper gets glimpses of the vulnerable boy beneath the surface, the boy who was deeply scarred by his family's dark and scandalous past. The boy she could easily find herself falling for.
As she walks a fine line between Colt's secrets, her forbidden love, and a game that demands nothing but the best, Harper must decide between her past and her future and between two boys who send her head spinning. Is the cost of winning the game worth losing everything?
A sizzling tennis romance perfect for the summer months, The Harper Effect, will be a grand slam for fans of Kasie West, Miranda Kinneally and Simone Ekeles.
Now on to the interview!
Hey Taryn! First I want to say welcome to Two Chicks on Books I’m glad
you could stop by for a chat! THE HARPER EFFECT sounds AWESOME and I can’t wait
for everyone to read it!
And it’s a pleasure to be
having this chat with you. Thank you so much for having me. I’m a lot excited.
For the readers:
can you tell us a little bit about the THE HARPER EFFECT and the characters?
Sure
thing. The Harper Effect is set in the world of professional tennis, but you
don’t have to love tennis or even understand it to read it, anymore than you
had to love karate to watch The Karate Kid. It’s a coming of age story in which
a girl learns to win from a boy who has lost everything. Harper is an unusual
teen in that she’s been tutored since starting high school and has travelled on
the junior circuit for years, but when she turns professional, the pressure
turns up and her world starts to implode. She turns to her sister’s
ex-boyfriend for comfort, a choice that’s going to start a family war, and she
escapes into training with new tennis partner, Colt, whose mysterious past
intrigues her. The truth of his situation and his past is what helps her grow
up and begin to make better choices, but before that happens, they both risk everything,
including their families. I hope that the story helps teens to navigate through
the usual teen issues of sibling rivalry, making good choices, relationships
with parents, first kiss, first big mistake that has consequences you need to
fix, but more than that, I hope that the book inspires people to set goals and
follow their dreams, just as Harper has to do.
What are you
working on now?
I’m
working on the companion novel to The Harper Effect. It’s Jacob’s story, and it
starts after Harper’s story is over, so it’s not a series and doesn’t need to
be read in any order. It’s set in the world of music, of course. And Jacob is
going to be an elite teen in that world, just as Harper is in her world of
tennis. I love to explore teens who go above and beyond the norm, and also I
love to shine a spotlight on the background scenes of these career choices.
Were any of the
characters in the book inspired by people from your real life?
No,
not any one person. I did once find myself sitting opposite Amelie Mauresmo
eating pizza in Wimbledon. My brother is a professional tennis coach and
coached her when she was 16. I was struck by how ‘normal’ Amelie was, and it
made me think about how elite teens are not super people, born with super
powers, but just normal kids who have a talent and have chosen to go after a
dream and never give up. I like the idea that this means everyone can find
their fit in life and then achieve what they set out to do. No super powers
required!
Who was your
favorite character to write? What about your least favorite?
My
favorite character to write was Milo because he made me giggle with his funny
sayings, his quotes, the devious training sessions he devised for Colt and
Harper, but at the same time he is wise and caring. I think he might be my
ideal father figure 😉 I didn’t have a least favorite
character –
even though Kim is the villain and is a pretty awful person, she was fun to
write.
What is your
favorite passage/scene in THE HARPER EFFECT?
Probably
when Aria has found out how Harper has betrayed her, and
Harper goes to find Aria in the Purple Woods, to explain herself. It’s the
culmination of their ‘war’ – and
it leads to Harper growing up thanks to the consequences of her choices.
A squall stirs the dead leaves and
petals into a whirling
soup of debris around us. My hair
billows. ‘Please listen to
me.’ But the air is fat with hate.
Aria opens the cooler box and throws a
pot at me. Then
another and another. They hit my crossed
forearms. She
wants to claw my face off. ‘I suspected.
I asked you straight
up. I believed you because I didn’t
think you could do that
to me –’
What kind of
research did you have to do for the story?
Mostly
my research centered around training for tennis players, especially doubles
players. The code calling, the rope exercise and the mirroring, are all real
strategies used in the world of professional tennis. I also attended games to
absorb the atmosphere and imagine how it felt to be the one on the court with
thousands of eyes on you. My brother, being a professional player and coach
himself, was also helpful in filling in any gaps in my knowledge.
Who is your
ultimate book boyfriend?
Well,
in 2018 it’s still currently Rhys from A Court of Thorns and Roses.
What inspired you
to write this book?
I
first wrote The Harper Effect when I was 14 and my brother was entering the
world of professional tennis. I was also a serious athlete at the time,
training for the 400m track event in the Olympics. So I guess sport was (and
still is) a big part of my life. I was also always fascinated by teens who
surpassed the norm in any field– so
I studied elite teen artists, writers, singers and sports people – just as a hobby. It was after meeting
Amelie Mauresmo that all these elements came together – sport, elite teens, and showing how
elite teens still must deal with the normal teen issues in life. They may be
elite in one area of their lives, but they still need to become decent and
well-adjusted adults to exist in this crazy world of ours.
Lightning Round
Questions
What are you
reading right now? Or what do you have on your TBR that you’re dying to read?
My
TBR pile is almost toppling over. I’m dying to read Stephanie Perkin’s There’s
Someone Inside Your House.
What Hogwarts
House would the Sorting Hat place you in?
Ravenclaw.
Twitter or
Facebook?
Facebook
– I’m a bit wordy for Twitter. Can you tell? I have a new teen and
mum of teens blog called Why Mom Runs on Facebook, which I enjoy writing.
Favorite
Superhero?
Superman
– he works in editorial and he can fly!
Favorite TV show?
Anne
of Green Gables
Sweet or Salty?
Salty
Any Phobias?
Snot
Song you can’t get
enough of right now?
Adele
– I Can’t Make You Love Me
2018 Movie you’re
most looking forward to?
A
Star is Born – it’s a re-make of the 1937 classic – and is so inspiring. I love anything
that inspires people to dream big.
Thanks so much Taryn for answering my questions! I can’t wait for
everyone to read THE HARPER EFFECT! Thank you for
making this so much fun. I loved your questions.
About Taryn:
Taryn lives the
typical writer’s life alongside supportive husband, teen children, and
characters from her latest book insisting they help make dinner. This can be
disconcerting as Jacob is always sticking his fingers in the cheese sauce and
Harper can’t cook.
Taryn’s been an
English Literature Honours student, an advertising sales rep and a CEO of an
internet company, but writing is her first love. The Harper Effect is her debut
novel.
Giveaway Details:
1 winner will win a finished copy of
THE HARPER EFFECT & A Tote Bag, US Only.
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
5/10/2018- Bri's Book Nook- Review
5/11/2018- Firstbooklove- Review
Week Two:
5/14/2018- BookHounds YA- Interview
