Monday, January 16, 2012

Fracture ~ Megan Miranda (eARC) Review + Interview

Fracture
Walker Children's
January 17, 2012
272 pages
add to Goodreads/buy on Amazon


There's only so long a person can fall through ice, be in the freezing water and survive. At least that's what Delaney Maxwell thought before she fell through the ice of Falcon Lake. Delaney was under the ice for eleven minutes before she was pulled out. Eleven minutes.

Her heart stopped. Her brain stopped. Delaney was dead.

Common - and medical knowledge alike say that Delaney should have brain and other damage yet when she wakes up from her coma, she seems fine. At least, outwardly.

Brain scans show her brain is damaged, but there's no evidence of that damage in her actions . . .

The only way Delaney feels different is the inexplicable 'pulls' she feels. Suddenly, Delaney finds herself drawn to the dying. But what comes first: her appearance or the fact that they will die?

With everything in and around her seemingly different, Delaney feels more alone than ever. When a mysterious new boy, Troy, appears and claims to know about her, about comas, will he help her, be an outlet? Or will her bring more trouble?


Fracture is an amazing debut. When we learn of Delaney's coma - and her waking from it - the detail that is used is great. It helps understand everything that the characters are experiencing - both Delaney and her parents. It's much better than if Delaney had just woken up, details had been glossed over but the general picture given. The details really help me as a reader connect with Delaney.

I very much enjoy the directions the different characters take over the course of the story. They weren't all predictable - in fact, most of them were not - yet their actions did fit with the plot and what was happening around those characters. I love when characters do things that aren't predictable or expected, that are deeper, more thought out than the easy, predictable actions. When they flow as well as they did in Fracture, that is.

Megan Miranda seemed to have a great grasp of the characters emotions given some very difficult situations, no less. Her writing, too, was something I really loved. The different phrases she used, seemingly simple but such a beautiful way of comparing or portraying things.

The only place where I could have wished for maybe just a little bit more was with Troy. I wouldn't have hated just a little bit more development of his character.

The ending of Fracture is . . . ooh, I love it. It sneaks up on you, but then wow is it there. And it is pretty darn amazing.


Rating: 9/10

egalley received, through NetGalley, thanks to Kate at Bloomsbury




Author Interview with Megan Miranda

You were a high school teacher, have any of your students made their way into your book?

They have not. Actually, it was something I tried to be really careful about—at first, I went so far as to make sure none of the names overlapped, either. But there are so many! 90 kids a semester…that’s a lot of names. So eventually I gave up—I’m sure some of the names overlap, but I promise none of them are based on any real people. It’s more likely that parts of my high school friends made it in (but they didn’t, I swear!), because I knew them in all their dimensions, not just as a teacher.

Which of the Apocalypsies would be your book's BFF? (Or character would be Delaney's?)
Slide by Jill Hathaway would totally be Fracture’s BFF. They both have a paranormal element set in an otherwise typical world. And I’m sure Delaney and Vee would have a lot to talk about. They both know things that they’d probably rather not…

How did your science knowledge/background help in writing Fracture?
I think it helped even more than I originally thought it did. It was really the questions about the unknown that inspired me to write Fracture, but I would never have had those questions if I hadn’t spent that time studying science. So, sure, my background helped with the details, but it was also essential in coming up with the entire premise, even though it wasn’t necessarily a conscious decision.

Your book tour's going to Chicago; any chance you'll be ice skating anywhere? [note to readers: the Chicago part is not that random - ever skated on the rink by Marshall Field's?] Or do you stay away from ice/frozen lakes after writing Fracture?
Oh, definitely not! Though part of me thinks this is also just a product of me getting older. There are things I did when I was younger that I now cringe about. Walking on ice was definitely one of them. So after A) getting older; and B) writing Fracture…you couldn’t pay me enough.

Also, I am highly, highly uncoordinated. Ice skating, even on a rink, is probably not something that would end well.

Any writing/upcoming book news you can share?
My 2nd book should be coming out early 2013 from Walker/Bloomsbury. It’s another standalone, psychological thriller that walks the line between science and paranormal. But it’s also very different from Fracture. It’s about memories, the thin line between the real and the imagined, and friendship.

Is there an upcoming 2012 YA novel that you think we all just have to read?
Well, I already mentioned Slide, so that’s a definite. I think humor is really hard to pull off, but I laughed so hard through Robin Mellom’s Ditched. Highly recommended. And I loved Veronica Rossi’s Under The Never Sky.

Congratulations on Fracture's release!
Thanks for having me!

Thank you Megan for the interview and Kate for setting it up!!




While I don't have a giveaway, Jill Hathaway, author of Slide is being a good book BFF and has a giveaway that ends Thursday!! Here it is L I N K



And here is Megan Miranda's Fracture tour schedule and the Facebook page

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