Happy Sunday and welcome to my stop on the We Rule the Night blog tour!! I’m so excited because today I have an interview with the author, Claire Eliza Bartlett! Read on to find out what inspired her to write this book, who her favorite character is to write, and what book Revna would love!

We Rule the Night by Claire Eliza Bartlett
Published on April 2, 2019 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Genres: YA, Fantasy
Pages: 400
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Two girls use forbidden magic to fly and fight–for their country and for themselves–in this riveting debut that’s part Shadow and Bone, part Code Name Verity.

Seventeen-year-old Revna is a factory worker, manufacturing war machines for the Union of the North. When she’s caught using illegal magic, she fears being branded a traitor and imprisoned. Meanwhile, on the front lines, Linné defied her father, a Union general, and disguised herself as a boy to join the army. They’re both offered a reprieve from punishment if they use their magic in a special women’s military flight unit and undertake terrifying, deadly missions under cover of darkness. Revna and Linné can hardly stand to be in the same cockpit, but if they can’t fly together, and if they can’t find a way to fly well, the enemy’s superior firepower will destroy them–if they don’t destroy each other first.

We Rule the Night is a powerful story about sacrifice, complicated friendships, and survival despite impossible odds.

Author Interview

What inspired you to write this book?

It all started with a metal concert…

A friend of mine couldn’t go to a metal concert, so her wife offered me the spare ticket. While listening to the band’s new album, I heard a song called Night Witches. Very quickly I learned it was based off a real life regiment of women who flew outdated biplanes and dropped bombs on the German-Russian front lines during the nights of World War II. A few biographies later and I was suddenly outlining a YA fantasy!

Do you have any deleted scenes or subplots from the book you can share?

Originally I had a romantic subplot, between Revna and a boy who later got cut from the novel as a whole. I’m glad overall that I chose to focus on friendship.

Who is your favorite character from this book and why?

My favorite character is Magdalena, the cheerful mechanic and engineer who keeps Revna and Linne’s plane running. Magdalena’s generally positive attitude always made her a pleasure to write and I hope you’ll be seeing more of her in the future!

Who was the most fun character to write in this story?

I love writing character conflicts, which means that Linne’s interactions with everyone were super fun for me. I also enjoy mystery and foreboding, so writing the Skarov boys was great.

What would you do if you spent the day with your books main characters? Where would you go to eat, hang out, relax, etc.?

Well, we haven’t seen it, but Linne has a pretty sweet mansion back home. If we were with her, we’d definitely spend the day lounging in her house, maybe going out to the fancy places in the capitol and getting behind-the-scenes tours of political buildings.

If I were hanging out solo with Revna, we’d do something relaxing like read or go to the baths. That girl needs to work less in her life!

What would your characters favorite books be and why?

Linne’s favorite book is The Young Protector’s Handbook, no question. Firstly, it has all the rules you need to be a good Union citizen! She’d enjoy flinging those rules at anyone who disobeyed them.

Revna’s favorite book would be a book to escape with. Maybe a book full of hope, like Laini Taylor’s Daughter of Smoke and Bone.

Thank you so much for answering my questions, Claire!

About the Author

Claire Bartlett lives in an enchanted forest apartment in Copenhagen with too many board games and too few cats.
Get more detailed information, like how many board games is too many, how many cats is too few, and what book-related beauties I’m working on by signing up for my newsletter.

 

 

 

Author Links

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