AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Ryan Winfield

I'm beyond excited to welcome the super talented Ryan Winfield to the blog today. Before we dive into the interview, let's catch up on my history with Mr. Winfield.

First, I read and reviewed his debut novel, South of Bixby Bridge. Then, having been a tad bit annoyed, I called his bluff--which, much to my surprise, he answered. Later, he released the first two books in The Park Service Trilogy: The Park Service and Isle of Man. I also reviewed both of them here and here. And most recently, he released his newest novel, Jane's Melody, which, of course, I also reviewed.

It was this last book that prompted me to actually formally interview Ryan. Why? Well, because Jane's Melody is an adult romance, and I love romance. I knew before I even read this book that I was going to have some questions for Ryan. So, here they are...

1. Where did you get the idea for Jane's Melody?

I’m never entirely sure where a story comes from when I write. Jane came to me one night in a dream and I woke knowing her history and her pain and what she needed to heal it. But how that healing might find her was still a mystery when I began writing.

 

2. Did you find this harder to write than your other books? If so, why?

I never find it particularly difficult to write. It usually comes natural to me once I start a story. However, this was a very emotional book for me and it did sometimes take a toll on my heart. In the end, it was a cathartic and uplifting experience finding peace and love along with Jane.

 

3. First there was South of Bixby Bridge, which isn't really genre specific. Then there was The Park Service Trilogy, which is young adult dystopian. And now there's Jane's Melody, which is romance. What made you decide to branch out into yet another genre?

I didn’t decide. And I can’t imagine ever making that decision. I don’t consider myself a genre writer. In fact, I couldn’t really tell you what genre a story belongs in until it’s finished and someone needs to categorize it for readers. When a story comes to me I do my best to tell it the way it wants to be told. I would imagine that if I spent any energy at all considering genre when I write then other forces would creep in and tinker with the story’s structure or style and I’d end up with something that wasn’t pure.

 

4. Did you do any sort of research for this book? If so, what? Did you read any romance novels before writing this book? If so, which ones?

Yes and no. I’m always researching and sketching characters, often without knowing what story they will inhabit. Jane had been with me for a while, and Caleb too, through songs and poems I had been writing, and then their story presented itself and I had very little research to do outside of small bits of fact checking after I had written it. I did not read any specific books to prepare for writing this one.

 

5. I know the final Park Service book will be out later this year, but what else can we expect from you?

I wish I knew. I’m working on several things now but I never know which of them will take over and become the story I have to tell. I have some manuscripts hiding in drawers that I don’t think are ready yet to publish, and some of these other stories I’ve started might keep me from returning to them to make them ready, at least for now.

 

6. Is there a certain story or type of story you want to write, but haven't yet? If so, why haven't you written it yet?

I’m fascinated by the mind and how it works and how it sometimes works against us. I have a character that I love and continue to get to know and his story deals with mental illness from an insider’s perspective. I really hope to someday finish it.

 

7. Your books have been widely popular. Has this success changed you or anything in your life in any way?

I hope not. I’m still just as tickled when anyone reaches out to let me know that they enjoyed something I’ve written. I don’t think I’ll ever get over that. I feel a very personal connection to my readers—maybe because I spent so many years working without them and I had to imagine a friend that I was writing for. I think every reader I come across embodies that friend somehow. If anything, my work finding some success has made me more appreciative of the process. I can take very little credit outside of doing the work. The stories come from somewhere else entirely and I hope to never lose contact with wherever it is they’re born.

 

Thanks so much for stopping by today, Ryan =) Be sure to check him out on Facebook and Twitter.

BOOK REVIEW: Isle of Man: Book Two of The Park Service Trilogy

Title: Isle of Man -- Book Two of The Park Service Trilogy
Author: Ryan Winfield
Publisher: Birch Paper Press
Genre: Young Adult Dystopian
Type of Review: Personal
Kara's Rating: 5.5 Kicks to the Heart

Blurb:  After discovering the horrific truth behind the Park Service, fifteen-year old Aubrey Van Houten has overthrown its leader with the help of his best friend Jimmy and his girlfriend Hannah. But their victory has left all three parentless and alone in a world where drones still hunt humans. And while the Park Service founder might be dead, he's far from gone. Now, Aubrey's quest to free his people will lead him even farther into a world where nothing is what it seems.


Kara's Review: Let me start by saying that I've been waiting so long for this book and it was well worth the wait! If I only had one word to describe this book, it would be FANTASTIC! Thank goodness I have a lot more than one word though ;)  

If you haven't read my review of The Park Service: Book One of The Park Service Trilogy, then I suggest you take a moment to go do that. You can find it here. And before anyone points it out, yes, I gave this book 5.5 Kicks to the Heart, that isn't a typo, and this book deserves many more Kicks than that, but I don't want to be accused of going overboard or anything.

Okay, so now that we're all on the same page, let's get started.

I was hooked from page one--and not because I'd been waiting so long for this, but because of the opening line: "I never meant to kill Hannah's family." (Is anyone else's jaw hanging open like mine is?) I absolutely love it when an opening line jumps off the page and punches you in the gut. What a way to come out swinging, Ryan. Nicely done.

And it only gets better.

This second installment of The Park Service Trilogy takes us on a roller coaster ride full of plot twists, secrets, betrayals, and emotions. There was only one scene in the entire book that I guessed what was happening before it actually happened. (The scene in the cave with Aubrey & Hannah & the serum.) All the others--totally shocked. I did not see any of it coming, which just made it so much more enjoyable.

In the first book, Hannah's character was portrayed as a sweet, innocent, slightly naive girl who was Aubrey's potential love interest. I liked her, but I was a bit skeptical of her. Now I know why. Hannah did a complete 180 in this book, and by the end, I despised her. She's a lying, manipulative, sneaky little traitor who doesn't deserve Aubrey's affections. At this point, I'm not sure she's reedemable. She's going to have to do something really remarkable to change my opinion of her and even then I'm not sure I will be swayed--especially after that little stunt her and the professor pulled on the Isle of Man.

I'm still a little weirded out by the relationship between Aubrey and his best friend, Jimmy. There has never been any outward sexual attraction or any implication that there is any, but I can't help but feel as though it's brewing just under the surface. I get that they've been through a lot together, and that they've saved each others lives more than once, but...I don't know...I get the feeling there is a little something more than just friendship between these two. I could be completely wrong. Then again, I had a feeling about Hannah, which turned out to be spot on. Regardless of how this friendship plays outs, I'll be happy as long as neither of them die.

As usual, Ryan's descriptions are vivid (still a bit too long for my liking in certain spots), often times gruesome, but always handled tactfully and in a way that wasn't offensive. I still have an issue with the whole animal theme in these books, but that is just my own personal hang-up. I don't think I'll ever get over it, but I'll tolerate it for the sake of these books because they really are that good.

And O.M.G.! I'm rendered speechless with this ending. All that keeps going through my mind is: "I can't believe they did that!"


So many times, sequels fall short of the first book. That is NOT the case here. If anything, book two is miles better than book one. And I have very high expectations for the final book. Please don't disappoint us, Ryan =) Now if I can just figure out a way to make October get here faster...Oh, and while I'm at it, I need to see if there's a way I can get a signed copy of this book for my collection. Yes, I have a collection of signed Ryan Winfield books. Don't judge. ;) 

Be sure to stop by Amazon and pick up  your copy of Isle of Man. Grab The Park Service while you're there, too. Trust me, you won't regret it.

BOOK REVIEW: The Park Service

 
Title: The Park Service
Author: Ryan Winfield
Publisher: Birch Paper Press
Genre: Young Adult Dystopian
Type of Review: Personal
Kara's Rating: 5 Kicks to the Heart

Blurb: Aubrey Van Houten is a 15-year-old misfit who spends his time reading and dreaming about the good old days above. Believing the planet uninhabitable after a global nuclear war, Aubrey's people live deep underground, begrudgingly working assigned jobs until they can retire at 35 to a virtual reality paradise. Through a series of curious accidents, Aubrey stumbles onto the surface and discovers a real paradise off limits: a pristine planet where humans are hunted and killed by a mysterious Park Service. Now, Aubrey must decide between his only friend, his true love, and his imprisoned people, as he struggles to find the courage to stand up to evil, no matter how pretty its face.


KARA'S REVIEW: This is Ryan Winfield's second book and it was highly anticipated by  a lot of people--myself included. I even attended his unveiling on Facebook. And I have to be honest, when I read that it was a young adult trilogy and that it was already being compared to The Hunger Games, my expectations plummeted. For those of you who don't know, I despised how horrible The Hunger Games turned out to be. So, needless to say when I read the description of The Park Service I had flashbacks of the anger and frustration I felt about The Hunger Games and the overwhelming urge to heave the book across the room. BUT, I am a devoted Ryan Winfield fan and I was determined to read his book.

Man, am I glad I did!! And it reaffirmed the lesson that you can't judge a book by its cover.

The Park Service is phenomenal and miles ahead of The Hunger Games in so many ways. First of all, I loved all of the characters. I truly felt for them and feared for them--I still do and it's been almost a full week since I've finished the book. Turning fifteen is difficult enough on its own, but to be thrust into some of the situations that Aubrey finds himself is heart wrenching.  There were so many scenes that stuck with me, but the one that still gives me chills to think about is the whale scene and the aftermath. I won't go into detail because I don't want to spoil it for anyone, but be prepared to have a very emotional reaction. Which leads me into the second reason this book is so awesome...

Ryan has a way with words. He can describe the most gruesome, action-packed, heartfelt scene in such vivid detail without over doing it. He doesn't beat the reader over the head with details that don't matter, but gives us enough to get a picture in our minds of what is going on. I will admit, there were some parts that I felt the descriptions went on a little too long, but it didn't drag the story down and I know this is just my own personal "thing."

And finally, everything you think you know about a world without people---everything you think you know about a post-apocolyptic world---everything you think you know about how a dystopian YA novel is supposed to play out: Forget it. Forget all of it. As I was reading this I kept expecting, waiting, for certain things to happen. Based on the words and actions of the characters I tried to anticipate what was going to happen next. I was wrong every single time. The Park Service was a truly refreshing take on something that has been done to death. Now I'm really thankful it's a trilogy.

For anyone who has read my reviews on Amazon and Goodreads you'll notice I only gave this four stars. The reason I did that was because of the subject matter in certain parts. This is a YA novel and four things stick in my mind that made me question the appropriateness of this book for youth: (1) the bird/pigeon scene, (2) the whale scene and the aftermath, (3) the fox scene, and (4) Eden. So, I decided to share this with my 13-year-old daughter and she had absolutely no problems with it whatsoever. She said to me: "Mom, how do you think people survived before we had everything we have today? How do you think people who live in the jungle survive? It's the circle of life. Stop being so sensitive. It was just a book." (Gotta love her!) Hence, the reason for my now 5-star review. Sometimes you just need a little perspective.

Despite all the great things about this book, there was something bothering me. Ryan's first book, South of Bixby Bridge, was a very adult book dealing with addiction and the path to sobriety. How did he go from writing that to writing YA? And where did he get the idea for The Park Service. Well, I asked him just that and here's what he had to say:

"Several years ago I found myself at a lecture given by Wade Davis, an Explorer-in-Residence at the National Geographic Society, and he was talking about an interesting people who live in the Sierra Nevada of northern Columbia. The Kogi, he said, escaped to the glaciers of the high mountains to avoid being conquered by the Spanish. Considering themselves elder brothers of humanity, the Kogi select their priests when they are infants and raise them in the absolute isolation of stone huts, teaching them about the world they will protect but not even allowing a ray of sunshine to touch their skin. After 18 years of learning about the world outside this dark hut, the young priest is brought to a cliff where he watches the sun rise over the valley, seeing everything he has learned about abstractly for the first time in all its natural glory. Now, this image of learning about the physical world before seeing it, this idea of having one’s senses bombarded with the reality of our gorgeous planet all at once, that image stuck with me in a persistent question about how that might feel, about how it might change our relationship to everything around us. I had been doing character sketches on a boy I wanted to write about and somehow this fascination with the Kogi and their young priests worked its way into his story and The Park Service was born—born really in a dream."

That is hands down the best answer I've ever received to that question. =)

If you haven't read The Park Service yet, I suggest you get on over to Amazon and get a copy. It'll be worth it.