The Revolution of Ivy by Amy Engel (Website, Twitter, Goodreads)Also by this author: The Book of Ivy
Published by Entangled Publishing, LLC on November 3rd 2015
Genres: Dystopian, General, Young Adult
Pages: 304
Format: eARC
The epic conclusion to the thrilling dystopian Ivy duology, perfect for fans of Divergent, The Maze Runner and the Delirium series. Ivy Westfall is beyond the fence and she is alone. Abandoned by her family and separated from Bishop Lattimer, Ivy must find a way to survive on her own in a land filled with countless dangers, both human and natural. She has traded a more civilized type of cruelty - forced marriages and murder plots - for the bare-knuckled brutality required to survive outside Westfall's borders.But there is hope beyond the fence. And when Bishop reappears in Ivy's life, she must decide if returning to Westfall to take a final stand for what she believes is right is worth losing everything she's fought for.
We had the opportunity to ask Amy Engel a few questions and wanted to share them with you!
Describe The Revolution of Ivy in 5 words.
Oh, I’m so bad at this. It reminds me of tweeting, which I’m also terrible at doing. I’ll give it a go: romantic, action-packed (that counts as two words, right?), poignant, bittersweet (this last word probably describes my feeling at being done writing the series more than the book itself).
What was the hardest scene for you to write in The Revolution of Ivy and why?
Honestly, it all flowed pretty easily. I don’t remember any one scene being particularly difficult to write. That is NOT the case with everything I write, though.
Were there any scenes that had to be cut that you wish would have stayed in?
Actually, no. No scenes were cut. My edits tend to be adding things in, rather than cutting.
We know why we love Bishop & Ivy… but why do you love them and why should the readers?
Well, on one level I love them because they feel like friends of mine, like real people. But I love how they have individual strengths that serve to make them even stronger when they’re together. I love Ivy’s impulsiveness and her fierce heart. And I love Bishop’s quiet, calm center and his steadfast belief in Ivy.
Bishop is…well there’s no other way to say it… he’s swoony and we loved everything about him, and can totally see why Ivy can’t resist. What’s your trick to creating a swoony guy, and who are some of your favorite swoony guys?
I think it depends on the book. In the IVY series, there’s no way Bishop could have been the “bad boy with a heart of gold” type guy. If he treated Ivy poorly from the outset, her heart would have closed against him completely given what she already believed about him. So Bishop had to have a personality that would work its way under and around her defenses even as she resisted her feelings for him. And I wanted to make sure his personality traits complimented hers. So patience in response to her impulsiveness, etc. But in general I would say a swoony guy (beyond the obvious physical attractiveness) listens, doesn’t talk down to or patronize his love interest, and genuinely likes his love interest for who she/he is as a person.
As for my favorite swoony guys, in YA books Peeta Mellark definitely takes top prize for me. I love his personality and the way he deals with Katniss when she’s at her most guarded.
What can readers expect from Ivy now that she is outside the fence?
They can expect Ivy to toughen up, both physically and emotionally, in a hurry. There’s no room for any sort of weakness outside the fence. So in order to survive Ivy has to cut herself off from her past somewhat. She has to put that part of her life away and focus on the future. Of course, whether or not that past is willing to let her go is something readers will have to find out…
Do you have any strange writing habits?
Hmmm…well, not sure if this is strange, but I don’t write at a desk or table. I have a comfy chair and ottoman in my living room and I write there with my laptop on my lap. Half the time I have kid running around, talking to their friends, watching t.v., etc. But as long as I have my earbuds in and I’m focused it really doesn’t bother me.
Can you share (without spoilers) a line or section of The Revolution of Ivy that was your favorite?
This is hard! Especially without spoiling anything. I can say that I really like the epilogue. It was what I’d been writing toward from the first word of the first book and it came together in a really satisfying way.
What are you currently reading?
“Fates and Furies” by Lauren Groff
Any advice for aspiring writers?
Read as much as you can, even in genres you don’t necessarily like. Sometimes reading books you don’t enjoy can teach you as much as reading your favorites. Write. Take criticism and use it to improve. Find your own “voice” as a writer. Grow a thick skin; you’ll need it. Don’t worry about writing what’s popular, but do think about what sells in a general sense.
What’s next for you? Are you working on anything right now that you can tell us about?
I’m working on edits for an adult novel (adult as in geared toward an adult audience, not adult like “50 Shades of Grey”) THE ROANOKE GIRLS, which will be published by the Crown imprint of Random House in early 2017. It’s a dark, gothic suspense novel and I’m super excited for it to be out it the world. Hopefully some of IVY’s fans will give it a try. Once I’m done with those edits, I plan to dive into something new, although I’m not sure exactly what yet. I have a couple of ideas fighting for first place right now.
Favorites
Favorite Song (right now): Right at this moment “Lay It All On Me” by Rudimental and Ed Sheeran is getting a lot of repeat play. My answer will probably be different by next week.
Favorite Book (right now): Oh this is an impossible question! I have favorites in every genre. But my all-time favorite book is probably “East of Eden” by John Steinbeck.
Favorite TV Show/Movie: The Walking Dead/I have a ton of favorite movies, but today I’ll pick “The Shawshank Redemption.”
Favorite Word: My editors would probably say my favorite word is “so.” But I really don’t have a single favorite word. Terrible answer for a writer to give, I know. Sorry!
Favorite Color: Green
Favorite Curse Word: The F-bomb
This or That
Coffee or Tea: Coffee, but only iced. I don’t like hot drinks of any kind.
E-books or Real Books: Real
Cake or Pie: It’s a tie, but only between german chocolate cake and pumpkin pie. Beyond those two, I’m not a big fan of either.
Dog or Cat: Cat
Tattoos or No Tattoos: No tattoos
Beer or Wine: Wine
I’m not even telling you anything about this book other than if you haven’t started this series GO NOW. Check out my review of book 1 HERE – that will set the stage for book 2! All I could think when I turned the last page of book 1 was that I HAD to have book 2 immediately… There may have been some of this ..
10 Reasons you need to read The Book of Ivy/The Revolution of Ivy
1. BISHOP LATTIMER
2. Ivy is so damn fierce!
3. Bishop Lattimer
4. The amazing story ARC
5. Bishop Lattimer
6. THE SWOONS
7. Bishop Lattimer
8. The excellent writing and pacing
9. Bishop Lattimer
10. Perfectly fleshed out characters who you’ll find yourself cheering for … and against!
So yeah… I love and adore Bishop and in this second book he only gets better than he was in the first. I have permanent heart eyes over him.
But seriously all those reasons above are just the tip of the iceberg on why you should read this book.
If you’re looking for an amazingly done dystopian this is the duology you need to grab.
I am horribly excited for whatever Amy Engel has coming next!
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