Interviews

Brigid Kemmerer: “When we read, we want to see ourselves in the characters”

[Note From Frolic: Our resident YA expert Aurora Dominguez got the opportunity to interview author Brigid Kemmerer and ask her five(ish) questions. Brigid’s novel ‘A Heart so Fierce and Broken‘ is out now!]

Aurora: What was your inspiration behind your most recent novel?

Brigid Kemmerer: For A Heart So Fierce and Broken I wanted to go into greater depths into the kingdoms of both Emberfall and Syhl Shallow, and to explore the ever-more-complicated relationship between Prince Rhen and his guardsman Commander Grey.

What character do you most relate to and why?

Probably Harper. I love her fierce tenacity and her refusal to give up, and how she so steadfastly wants to do what is RIGHT.

Why do you feel books with powerful and relatable characters are so popular and have such voice right now?

I think that books with powerful characters will always be popular. When we read, we want to see ourselves in the characters, and it makes us feel good when we see someone relatable achieving great things.

Please describe the content of your latest book and what can readers expect from the read.

In A Heart So Fierce and Broken, the curse is finally broken, but Prince Rhen is facing more problems. Rumors circulate that he is not the true heir and that forbidden magic has been unleashed in his kingdom. Although Rhen has Harper by his side, his guardsman Grey is missing, leaving more questions than answers. Readers can expect to go farther into Emberfall, and their opinions of the characters they think they know will be challenged along the way.

What’s next for you in the book world?

I just turned in the first draft of Defy the Night, about two outlaws named Weston and Tessa who live in the kingdom of Kandala, whose people are suffering from a mysterious fever that can only be cured by teas made from petals of the Moonflower—an expensive commodity. Wes and Tessa steal medicine to distribute it among those who can’t afford any—until Wes is caught, and Tessa tries to rescue him. In doing so, she runs afoul of the king and his wicked brother, and everything she thought she knew about Kandala turns out to be wrong…

Who is your favorite writer right now and why?

There are too many to choose from!

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Aurora Dominguez

Aurora Dominguez is a high school English teacher, college professor and journalist in South Florida. Her work has appeared in The Miami Herald, Where Magazine and J-14 Magazine, all places where she worked as a writer and editor before going from the newsroom to the classroom. Her favorite days are "Caturdays," which she spends with a good book, her husband, Sebastian, and her cat, Luna. Her motto when it comes to reading: "No book left behind!"