Blog Tour: The Weight of a Soul by Elizabeth Tammi (Interview+ Giveaway!)

Happy Saturday and welcome to my stop on the The Weight of a Soul blog tour!! Today I have an interview with Elizabeth Tammi to share with you! Read on to discover Elizabeth’s favorite scene from her book, which YA characters Lena would hang out with if she could, plus follow the rest of the tour and enter to win a print copy of The Weight of a Soul!

When Lena's younger sister Fressa is found dead, their whole Viking clan mourns—but it is Lena alone who never recovers. Fressa is the sister that should've lived, and Lena cannot rest until she knows exactly what killed Fressa and why—and how to bring her back. She strikes a dark deal with Hela, the Norse goddess of death, and begins a new double life to save her sister.

But as Lena gets closer to bringing Fressa back, she dredges up dangerous discoveries about her own family, and finds herself in the middle of a devastating plan to spur Ragnarök –a deadly chain of events leading to total world destruction.

Still, with her sister's life in the balance, Lena is willing to risk it all. She's willing to kill. How far will she go before the darkness consumes her?

Do you have a favorite scene, quote, or moment from The Weight of a Soul?

I loved writing any scenes between Lena and Amal—their dynamic and friendship appealed a lot to me, and I liked watching how their respective relationships to Fressa informed both of their decisions and actions throughout the story. I also really loved writing the last couple chapters and finally watching the culmination of all the lead-up action!

If Lena were to hang out with characters from other YA books, who would they be and why?

I feel like if Lena was looking for someone who understood her and her fixation on getting her sister back, she might want to spend time with Sadie, from Courtney Summers’s novel of the same name. But if she was looking for a fun time with a group of friends who know all about the Norse gods and their hijinks, she’d definitely hang out with the Hotel Valhalla crew from Magnus Chase.

What was your favorite bit of research you ended up not using?

Something small that I thought was super cool (but couldn’t find a way to sneak in) was the fact that coins from the region where modern-day Iran is were found in Scandinavia. It just goes to show how widespread the so-called “Viking” raiders and traders were, and how extensively they interacted with other lands and cultures.

What is something that we might not know about your main characters?

Well, one of the big things that I had in my mind when I was creating the main characters for this story was that I didn’t want there to be a main romantic plotline. I’d just come off the heels of writing a romance-heavy debut (Outrun the Wind), which I seriously loved doing, but I definitely wanted to try something new by writing a story that didn’t involve much romance, at least for the main protagonist. That informed a lot of the characters’ structuring and interrelationships, which in turn shaped the plot. Of course, Fressa and Amal’s romantic relationship is referenced frequently and Lena does develop veiled feelings for another character as the story progresses, but the important thing for me was to show that there can be complete, meaningful stories that don’t involve romance.

What are some TV shows, movies, and books that would pair well with your book?

I think the dynamic between the Freding sisters and Amal has a few parallels to the main trio from Disney’s Frozen! Of course, there’s the show Vikings, too. For books, I’d say anything by Adrienne Young or Rick Riordan’s Norse-inspired Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard trilogy would be great reads.

Which of your characters do you identify the most with and why?

I don’t feel totally aligned with any of them on a personal level, but the closest would be Lena for sure. I relate to some of her older sister and oldest daughter sentiments, and understand how and why she reacts to confusion and tragedy like she does.

Elizabeth Tammi was born in California and grew up in Florida, but is currently double-majoring in Creative Writing and Journalism as an undergraduate at Mercer University in Georgia. When she’s not writing, you can probably find Elizabeth at work for her university’s newspaper and literary magazine. Her other interests include traveling, caffeinated beverages, and mythology. You can find Elizabeth online on Tumblr at (annabethisterrified), Twitter at (@ElizabethTammi), Instagram at (elizabeth_tammi), and at elizabethtammi.com.

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