And the featured is...
Thorn Abbey/ Always, Forever
by Nancy Ohlin
Publish Date: May 7, 2015
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Nothing is as it seems in this darkly romantic tale of infatuation and possession, inspired by Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca.About the Author
Becca was the perfect girlfriend: smart, gorgeous, and loved by everyone at New England’s premier boarding school, Thorn Abbey. But Becca’s dead. And her boyfriend, Max, can’t get over his loss.
Then Tess transfers to Thorn Abbey. She’s shy, insecure, and ordinary-everything that Becca wasn’t. And despite her roommate’s warnings, she falls for brooding Max.
Now Max finally has a reason to move on. Except it won’t be easy. Because Becca may be gone, but she’s not quite ready to let him go…
I am the author of Consent, forthcoming from Simon Pulse on November 10, 2015, as well as Always, Forever, a YA retelling of Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca, and Beauty, a YA retelling of the Snow White tale.
I've also contributed to several celebrity novels, including a New York Times-bestselling YA trilogy.
Photo Credits to Emma Dodge Hanson
The Interview
Thank you so much for allowing me to interview you.
Thank YOU!
Always, Forever (Thorn Abbey as I know) was one of the books that got me obsessed with reading. It's inspired by Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. Thank you for writing it!
So happy that it got you obsessed with reading!
1. How did you come up with the idea? I found it interesting that the story takes place at a boarding school.
Rebecca has always been one of my favorite novels. (I also love love love Alfred Hitchcock's film, which is based on the book.) I really identified with the narrator: a shy, awkward, working-class girl who finds herself in over her head when she marries a mysterious millionaire and has to fit into his world. (Well, maybe not the marrying the mysterious millionaire part ... that never happened to me!) As if that weren't difficult enough, she discovers that her husband's ex, Rebecca, was this perfect, sophisticated, beautiful socialite-everything she, the narrator, isn't. And that Rebecca died under strange circumstances.
All those elements came together for me in creating Always, Forever. A fancy boarding school seemed like a natural stand-in for Manderley, the English estate where Rebecca takes place. My main character, Tess, is a shy, awkward, working-class girl who is given a scholarship to the fancy boarding school, Thorn Abbey, and finds herself in over her head as she tries to keep up with the rich kids around her. She also falls for one of the rich kids, a mysterious boy named Max whose perfect, sophisticated, beautiful, socialite girlfriend, Becca, died under strange circumstances.
2. Was it difficult reimagining Rebecca?
No, and actually, it was great fun! I love retellings because you can totally immerse yourself in the original book (or film or whatever) and make it your own. The characters in Always, Forever: Tess, Max, Becca, Becca's best friend Devon, and the others-all came to me very naturally and easily. (They then took up residence in my brain-haunted it, really-for many months while I wrote the first draft.)
3. I haven't finished Rebecca, but I know that the narrator's name goes unmentioned. Did you consider doing that? I find it so tricky.
People have many theories about why the narrator in Rebecca has no name. In the book, her name is described as being "very lovely and unusual," but that's it. I considered doing that in Always, Forever but ultimately decided against it because it felt too complicated, especially in scenes where multiple characters are having a conversation. (Little known fact: Tess was "Anna" for the first few drafts of Always, Forever. I changed her to Tess when I realized that I already had an "Ana" in my previous YA novel, Beauty.)
4. For those who loved Rebecca, what can they expect from Always, Forever?
Romance. Mystery. Mean girls. Vengeful ghosts.
5. If Always, Forever was to become a TV show or movie, who would you want to play who?
Emma Watson as Tess! Nick Robinson, Taylor Lautner or Tyler Posey as Max. AnnaSophia Robb as Becca. India Eisley as Devon.
6. What are you currently working on and what new books can we expect from you?
My new YA novel, Consent, releases on November 10. I'm really excited about it because it's a contemporary realistic novel about a super-controversial subject--and it's a love story, too. I'm currently working on new YA and middle grade novels; I'll let you know as soon as I'm ready to share details!
Happy Halloween!!!
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