Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young (Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads)Published by St. Martin's Press on April 24th 2018
Genres: Epic, Fantasy, General, Legends, Myths, Fables, Young Adult Fiction
Pages: 352
Format: ARC
Seventeen-year-old Eelyn’s world is war. Raised to fight alongside her Aska clansmen in a generations-old blood feud against the Riki, her life is brutal but simple: fight and survive. Until the day she sees the impossible on the battlefield—her brother, fighting with the enemy—the brother she watched die five years ago.
Faced with her brother's betrayal, she must survive the winter in the mountains with the Riki if she wants to make it back to the fjord after the thaw. But when she begins to see herself in the people she's been taught to hate, the world Eelyn once knew begins to crumble. And after the village is raided by a ruthless clan many believe to be a myth, Eelyn is given no choice but to trust Fiske, her brother’s friend who has tried more than once to kill her. Together, they must end the blood feud between their clans or watch their people be slaughtered.
A lush, Viking-age inspired fantasy about loyalty, forgiveness, and the definition of family
We are so excited to be a part of the blog tour for Sky In The Deep by Adrienne Young! I had the opportunity to read this one early and immediately fell in love with it! Before I share my thoughts, here’s the scoop:
Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young (Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads)Published by St. Martin's Press on April 24th 2018
Genres: Epic, Fantasy, General, Legends, Myths, Fables, Young Adult Fiction
Pages: 352
Format: ARC
Seventeen-year-old Eelyn’s world is war. Raised to fight alongside her Aska clansmen in a generations-old blood feud against the Riki, her life is brutal but simple: fight and survive. Until the day she sees the impossible on the battlefield—her brother, fighting with the enemy—the brother she watched die five years ago.
Faced with her brother's betrayal, she must survive the winter in the mountains with the Riki if she wants to make it back to the fjord after the thaw. But when she begins to see herself in the people she's been taught to hate, the world Eelyn once knew begins to crumble. And after the village is raided by a ruthless clan many believe to be a myth, Eelyn is given no choice but to trust Fiske, her brother’s friend who has tried more than once to kill her. Together, they must end the blood feud between their clans or watch their people be slaughtered.
A lush, Viking-age inspired fantasy about loyalty, forgiveness, and the definition of family
We had the chance to ask Adrienne a few questions about Sky In The Deep!
What inspired SKY IN THE DEEP? How did the idea and Eelyn come to you? Do you have any favorite Viking stories?
The sibling betrayal was definitely the first inspiration for this story. I was driving in the pouring rain on this country road and that first scene just hit me – Eelyn, seeing her brother on the battlefield after thinking that he was dead for five years. I pulled over on the side of the road and scribbled a million notes on an old envelope. I was immediately hooked to the idea and I wanted to know what had happened. I started writing that first chapter and I just never stopped.
What type of research did you do for your characters and world-building? What languages did you study to implement the languages that the Aska and the Riki speak? What was the strangest thing you had to research for this book?
I did a ton of research for this story. I actually really love to research things so it was a lot of fun. A lot of it was stuff like clothing, landscape, weapons, food, etc. But I did a lot of research into Norse mythology as well to build a foundation for this world. The language used is Old Norse, but it’s a dead language so studying it was really difficult. There is a lot of controversy about it among scholars and there’s no real way to fully understand it, so I just did my best based on my own investigation. I’m definitely not an expert! The weirdest thing I had to research was how to tear out someone’s eyeball. Yuck.
What is one of the most surprising things you learned when writing Sky In The Deep?
That the Vikings actually had a whole set of laws that protected women from unwanted attention, harassment, and assault with harsh penalties. It was still a male-dominated society, but these women had a lot of rights and freedoms other women in other European societies of the time didn’t. That’s cool.
What was your writing process like for SKY IN THE DEEP?
Complete and utter obsession. When I draft, I get really buried in the world and I don’t really come up for air until I get to the end. I write as much as I can and limit my intake of other influencers that could mess with my mindset. I don’t watch TV or movies or listen to music that’s not on my playlist, and I kind of don’t have a social life until it’s done.
What was your hardest scene to write? What was the easiest?
I really didn’t struggle to get this story on the page the way I have with other books so I really don’t know what the hardest scene to write was. But the easiest was the first chapter. I wrote it so fast and it just clicked in so perfectly.
Which of your characters are you the most like? Who was your favorite to write?
Eelyn! We have so much in common and she really inspires me. But I think Halvard was the most fun to write. I really, really love him.
If you could introduce one of your characters to any other character from another book, who would it be and why?
I would sit Eelyn and Inej down with a couple of beers. I want them to be friends!
Do you have a soundtrack for SKY IN THE DEEP? Can you share a couple songs? What would Eelyn’s favorite song be?
Yes! Music plays a HUGE role in my writing process and I have a playlist for every project. The ones I probably listened to the most while drafting SKY are To the Hills by Laurel, Bare by Wildes, and Rise Up – Reprise by Foxes. But a link to the whole playlist is on my site!
What books have inspired you to write? What books are you looking forward to reading this year?
The ones that inspired me to write are nothing like my books. One of the most influential ones for me was A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, because the human element is so beautiful and the author explores so many things in that book that really took my breath away. I wanted to write stories that went deep like that, but I love fantasy so I try to it within that realm.
Any advice on querying? Or writing advice for aspiring writers?
Querying – do not just sign with any agent who will take you. Make a dream agent list of qualified agents who have good reputations and make consistent sales. Query them. If they don’t bite, then write another book that they might want. Believe me when I say it is worth waiting for the right agent!
Any details about the companion novel?
I can’t say anything about the companion novel yet! But I’m hoping that we can start talking about it soon because I am really excited about it!
Jaime’s Thoughts
I’m not even sure where to start with this book… It was such an incredible read.
First can we talk about how amazing it is to read a fantasy book that isn’t 15 books long? This, my friends, is a stand-alone fantasy. That said, I would NOT be against seeing an outtake from the future for these characters. (Adrienne you can send that right to my email if you like!)
This book is YA Vikings.
It is brutal.
It is violent.
It is unflinching.
And I loved every second of it.
From the very first pages, you get a very clear understanding that there will be no holding back in terms of the warring families.
”Vegr Yfir Fjor.”
Honor Before Life is the Aska way and Eelyn is part of the Aska clan. Her father is leader and she stands alongside him and the other clan members each fighting season when the Aska and Riki find themselves at war.
Five years ago she watched her brother die during the battles, but she sees the impossible…. Iri fighting against his own people wearing the battle colors of the Riki. It can’t be true and her father is sure it’s just his spirit blessing her with his presence, but when she sees him again at the next battle, she can’t resist following to make sure.
Eelyn finds herself trapped though and taken captive by the Riki who is fighting with her brother, Fiske and made a dyr… and with winter forcing her to endure the season in the Riki village and the betrayal of her brother, as a slave, she’s determined to get back to her father and forget the brother who has forgotten her and the family he should be fighting for.
I absolutely love complicated characters and this book has them in spades. From Eelyn to Fiske, from Iri to Inge and Myra I just loved getting to know them all and see their growth from beginning to end. Seeing the hate and anger between the warring clans at the beginning and fighting a fight that almost seems to be happening just because it always has, to the point when they realize they finally have a common enemy and the realizations along the way that though they may pray to different gods, they actually have very few differences was just amazing. Eelyn is fierce and strong and clever and Fiske is … Fiske comes across as the strong silent type. He watches, he learns… and he kicks ass when he needs to.
I loved Young’s writing style. With intense action scenes and lush, beautiful prose, she had me turning pages until I was forced to stop. The romance will sneak up on you in the best of ways and it is lovely, and sweet and just perfection.
Ultimately this is a story about family and loyalty and forgiveness and you will be knocked off your feet at how incredibly Adrienne Young tells it.
I can’t wait to see what she writes next!
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