Book and a Beverage Author Edition | Amber Lough

Welcome back to BOOK AND A BEVERAGE!

It’s been a while since I’ve hosted an author edition of Book and a Beverage but I am SO excited to be getting back into the swing of things! I had an overwhelmingly wonderful response from authors who were interested in participating so keep an eye out for even more author posts within the next few months!

Give a big welcome to author AMBER LOUGH!

Name: Amber Lough
You know her best as the author of… THE FIRE WISH (7/22/14), THE BLIND WISH (7/28/15)

THE FIRE WISH: Amazon // Goodreads
THE BLIND WISH: Amazon // Goodreads

READING

What are you reading? I’m usually reading one novel and one non-fiction book at a time. Right now, I’m reading AN EMBER IN THE ASHES by Sabaa Tahir and THEY FOUGHT FOR THE MOTHERLAND, by Laurie S. Stoff. Oh! And LOOK WHO’S BACK, by Timur Vermes.
What’s important that we should know about this book? Most of you have heard of Tahir’s book, so I’ll focus on Stoff’s non-fiction book. It’s about Russia’s women soldiers in WWI, particularly about the women-only brigades. It’s amazing, and is the focus of my current WIP.
What are your top three books you would recommend to other people? 1. ROSE UNDER FIRE, by Elizabeth Wein. (Yes, CODE NAME VERITY is more shocking, but I really loved Rose. And living in Germany, I think of what she went through often.) 2. THE DARK IS RISING, by Susan Cooper (The ENTIRE series, really.) 3. ISLAND OF BLUE DOLPHINS, by Scott O’Dell (It was the first real novel I read as a kid, and it seeped into my bones.)

WRITING

What can you tell us about your current work in progress? It’s set in Russia, during WWI, and is about the 1st Russian Women’s Battalion of Death. It’s dark, light, heavy, and fun.
Are you a pantser or a plotter? I used to be a pantser, but I have since seen the error of my ways. However, I do make things up as I go along, and weave them into my plan.
Do you have a favorite spot to read/write? My Kleingarten. In Germany, many people have little gardens, like Russian dachas, with a vegetable patch, flowers, and a small cabin that are part of a larger garden community. My garden is currently my favorite place to be, writing or not.

What are you drinking? Earl Grey tea, with milk and sugar. It’s currently a bit cold.
What’s your favorite thing to drink while reading/writing? If I don’t have fresh coffee around (like now), I make a pot of tea. I am that interesting.

Which character from a book would you say you’re most like? Who would be your literary BFF? I have absolutely no idea who I am like. All of them and none of them? But I would want Anne Shirley to be my BFF.
If you had one subplot or minor character that could go off on its own tangent, who or what would it be? From THE BLIND WISH, I would focus on Rahela’s flying carpet, and her relationship with Shirin, as they fly around saving other girls.

 Thank you so much to Amber Lough for being a part of Book and a Beverage today!
Her first book in the Jinni Wars, THE FIRE WISH, is out now and book two, THE BLIND WISH, releases in just a couple days on 7/28/15!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Amber Lough lives with her physicist husband and their two kids in Lower Saxony, Germany.
As a child, Amber moved about every two years and spent much of it overseas in Cuba, Japan, and Bahrain. She attended High School in North Charleston, South Carolina and studied Russian at Saint Louis University in Missouri before heading into the Air Force. She was an Intelligence Officer stationed in San Diego, and travelled the Pacific for her job. She also spent about 8 months in Baghdad, Iraq. After having her first child, she left the Air Force to begin writing full-time.
Amber is represented by Laura Rennert of Andrea Brown Literary Agency.
Visit Amber over at The Fourteenery and The Hanging Gardens where she contributes with other YA authors.

Website // Twitter // Goodreads // Tumblr