JT was good enough to sit down and answer some nosey interview questions and her fabulous publisher Mira, an imprint of the publisher that makes the world go round is sponsoring a #Giveaway, deets below.
ps: My Goodreads group has chosen this for our fall group read so if you're interested click HERE and join in
ISBN-13: 9780778330004
Publisher: Mira
Release Date: 8-27-2018
Length: 496pp
Source: Author/Publisher for review
Buy It: Amazon/B&N/Kobo/Indiebound/Audible
Publisher: Mira
Release Date: 8-27-2018
Length: 496pp
Source: Author/Publisher for review
Buy It: Amazon/B&N/Kobo/Indiebound/Audible
Overview:
One moment will change their lives forever…Competitive skier Mindy Wright is a superstar in the making until a spectacular downhill crash threatens not just her racing career but her life. During surgery, doctors discover she’s suffering from a severe form of leukemia, and a stem cell transplant is her only hope. But when her parents are tested, a frightening truth emerges. Mindy is not their daughter.
Who knows the answers?
The race to save Mindy’s life means unraveling years of lies. Was she accidentally switched at birth or is there something more sinister at play? The search for the truth will tear a family apart…and someone is going to deadly extremes to protect the family’s deepest secrets.
With vivid movement through time, TEAR ME APART examines the impact layer after layer of lies and betrayal has on two families, the secrets they guard, and the desperate fight to hide the darkness within.
Giveaway is for one print copy of
Tear Me Apart
US & Canada Only
Please Use the Rafflecopter form to enter
Good Luck!
Interview with JT:
JT hi! (waving madly) Welcome back to The Reading Frenzy, it’s so nice to have you visit.
So glad to be back, Debbie!
Your new novel, Tear Me Apart was amazing. Tell us a little about it please.
TEAR ME APART is a story long in the making, I had the original idea back in 2011, of a woman who makes the ultimate sacrifice – her life – in order to save her family. But I didn’t know what to do with it, so it sat in my files for 7 years, germinating. I finally took a stab at a draft and it wasn’t right, so I shelved it again and came back to it last year.
It’s still the same story, but it’s so much bigger. So much darker. I realized I had an opportunity to discuss some weighty topics – suicide and depression chief among them – and tackled both head-on. I’m so glad I waited. We’re ripe for this conversation now.
Add in a world class young skier and a forensic analyst, with a three part story that’s really a why-done-it instead of a who-done-it, and you have the genesis.
I have loved everything you have ever written and am impressed by how each novel has a unique feel. With some novels I could name the author without seeing a name but that is not the case with you especially for your stand alones. How do accomplish this?
I try very hard not to write the same novel over and over again. I would get bored – which is part of the reason I branched into standalones in the first place, to try my hand at something new. I so appreciate that you fabulous readers are willing to indulge me and my whim of the moment. I interested in so many things, I can’t limit myself to just one kind of story. I get a Ph.D. with each book.
Mindy is your seventeen-year-old skiing phenom one of the stars of Tear Me Apart. I absolutely loved her, she was very feisty and mature for her age.
Is she based on a real person?
Mindy is absolute inspired by Lindsey Vonn, an incredible skier who has had her share of ups and down over her career. I also was a big skier when I was younger and still love it. I think any time you get a young, high-caliber athlete, you’re going to find a higher level of maturity. The discipline needed to be an Olympic athlete lends itself to a more serious, focused kind of kid.
How was she to write, more dream or nightmare?
A dream, though I hated, hated, what she had to go through. I think she’s probably the strongest female lead I’ve ever written. She is grace in the face of disaster personified.
I once interviewed Lisa Gardner who like you comes up with some pretty scary bad guys/gals and I tongue in cheek asked her if her husband needed to sleep with one eye open. But really how does a mild mannered woman such as yourself come up with such deviant minded villains?
You assume I’m mild-mannered…. Ha!
Really, every character is me on some level, the good ones and the nasty ones. I exorcise a lot of demons through my work.
Much of your story takes place in Colorado which considering the ski champ makes sense. Was the skier or the location created first in your mind?
I’m from Colorado, it’s part of my blood. I took Samantha Owens there in Edge of Black and knew I wanted to revisit the setting for a full-length novel. This was my opportunity – a young phenom skier. What could be more perfect!
There were a lot of twists and turns in this novel.
How do you keep everything straight, do you have a wallboard, keep them on a spreadsheet, all in your head– how?
I use Scrivener, so I have a solid visual of the chapters and can manipulate them as I go. Every character’s chapter is highlighted in their own color, plus are broken into present day and past. Makes it very easy to see what’s what – and I’m a very visual person. My method is very organic. I’ll often write a huge chunk of one character, then another, then a series of past events, and then meld them together. I experiment with flow a lot. I want the chapters to follow a certain cadence, and Scrivener gives me that opportunity.
There is a ton of DNA advances for both medical and crime solving covered in this novel. Was everything in the novel true and where did you get the information?
Everything is true. The advances being made in DNA analysis are incredible. I came across a National Geographic article about DNA phenotyping – which produces a facial analysis which is based in the genetic makeup of the suspect. Eye color, facial features, the works. That it can be 3-D printed is an added bonus. Give me your DNA swab and I’ll give you a 3-D rendering of the suspect – that’s where we’re headed. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to put it in a book.
You’ve been a published author for a few years now. Does it get easier during the entire conception to release day, is it just like the first time every time or something else.
Or, it gets harder and harder. You’d think it would be easier, but no. Granted, I do reinvent the wheel every time around, but the desire to become a better writer, to push myself to the next level, to find stories that haven’t ever been told in the way I want to tell them… it’s getting more and more challenging as I go on. But that’s the fun of it all!
What was the last book JT Ellison the reader couldn’t put down?
Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik. I’m entranced and can’t wait to see what happens. I love a good fairy tale.
Thanks JT for taking time to answer my questions, good luck with Tear Me Apart and all the irons in your fire!!
Thank you, Debbie! It’s always a blast visiting with you.
Where is this book tour taking you?
Nashville, Houston, Tampa (twice – Bouchercon and SIBA), Charlotte, NC and Chapel Hill, NC. Fun! Hope to see some of you on the road.
https://www.jtellison.com/events/
So glad to be back, Debbie!
TEAR ME APART is a story long in the making, I had the original idea back in 2011, of a woman who makes the ultimate sacrifice – her life – in order to save her family. But I didn’t know what to do with it, so it sat in my files for 7 years, germinating. I finally took a stab at a draft and it wasn’t right, so I shelved it again and came back to it last year.
It’s still the same story, but it’s so much bigger. So much darker. I realized I had an opportunity to discuss some weighty topics – suicide and depression chief among them – and tackled both head-on. I’m so glad I waited. We’re ripe for this conversation now.
Add in a world class young skier and a forensic analyst, with a three part story that’s really a why-done-it instead of a who-done-it, and you have the genesis.
I have loved everything you have ever written and am impressed by how each novel has a unique feel. With some novels I could name the author without seeing a name but that is not the case with you especially for your stand alones. How do accomplish this?
I try very hard not to write the same novel over and over again. I would get bored – which is part of the reason I branched into standalones in the first place, to try my hand at something new. I so appreciate that you fabulous readers are willing to indulge me and my whim of the moment. I interested in so many things, I can’t limit myself to just one kind of story. I get a Ph.D. with each book.
Mindy is your seventeen-year-old skiing phenom one of the stars of Tear Me Apart. I absolutely loved her, she was very feisty and mature for her age.
Is she based on a real person?
Mindy is absolute inspired by Lindsey Vonn, an incredible skier who has had her share of ups and down over her career. I also was a big skier when I was younger and still love it. I think any time you get a young, high-caliber athlete, you’re going to find a higher level of maturity. The discipline needed to be an Olympic athlete lends itself to a more serious, focused kind of kid.
How was she to write, more dream or nightmare?
A dream, though I hated, hated, what she had to go through. I think she’s probably the strongest female lead I’ve ever written. She is grace in the face of disaster personified.
I once interviewed Lisa Gardner who like you comes up with some pretty scary bad guys/gals and I tongue in cheek asked her if her husband needed to sleep with one eye open. But really how does a mild mannered woman such as yourself come up with such deviant minded villains?
You assume I’m mild-mannered…. Ha!
Really, every character is me on some level, the good ones and the nasty ones. I exorcise a lot of demons through my work.
I’m from Colorado, it’s part of my blood. I took Samantha Owens there in Edge of Black and knew I wanted to revisit the setting for a full-length novel. This was my opportunity – a young phenom skier. What could be more perfect!
How do you keep everything straight, do you have a wallboard, keep them on a spreadsheet, all in your head– how?
I use Scrivener, so I have a solid visual of the chapters and can manipulate them as I go. Every character’s chapter is highlighted in their own color, plus are broken into present day and past. Makes it very easy to see what’s what – and I’m a very visual person. My method is very organic. I’ll often write a huge chunk of one character, then another, then a series of past events, and then meld them together. I experiment with flow a lot. I want the chapters to follow a certain cadence, and Scrivener gives me that opportunity.
There is a ton of DNA advances for both medical and crime solving covered in this novel. Was everything in the novel true and where did you get the information?
Everything is true. The advances being made in DNA analysis are incredible. I came across a National Geographic article about DNA phenotyping – which produces a facial analysis which is based in the genetic makeup of the suspect. Eye color, facial features, the works. That it can be 3-D printed is an added bonus. Give me your DNA swab and I’ll give you a 3-D rendering of the suspect – that’s where we’re headed. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to put it in a book.
You’ve been a published author for a few years now. Does it get easier during the entire conception to release day, is it just like the first time every time or something else.
Or, it gets harder and harder. You’d think it would be easier, but no. Granted, I do reinvent the wheel every time around, but the desire to become a better writer, to push myself to the next level, to find stories that haven’t ever been told in the way I want to tell them… it’s getting more and more challenging as I go on. But that’s the fun of it all!
What was the last book JT Ellison the reader couldn’t put down?
Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik. I’m entranced and can’t wait to see what happens. I love a good fairy tale.
Thanks JT for taking time to answer my questions, good luck with Tear Me Apart and all the irons in your fire!!
Thank you, Debbie! It’s always a blast visiting with you.
Where is this book tour taking you?
Nashville, Houston, Tampa (twice – Bouchercon and SIBA), Charlotte, NC and Chapel Hill, NC. Fun! Hope to see some of you on the road.
https://www.jtellison.com/events/
My Review:
Tear Me ApartJT Ellison
JT Ellison is a masterful storyteller as evidenced by her latest unforgettable story. She starts off with a cryptic first chapter that will have readers scratching their heads followed by whiplash inflicting unexpected hairpin turns and blindsiding twists in this chilling, unputdownable thriller about secrets, lies and deception. The Colorado backdrops are breathtaking, the suspense is non-stop and palpable brought to life by the fluent prose-like narrative. The author’s research into DNA uses for both medical cures and crime solving gives the read credibility and makes it more interesting plus putting it in easily understandable terms makes it accessible to all. The subtle hints leading to the long-awaited with baited breath reveal of the multifaceted and many-faced villain is satisfying, terrifying and will cause more than a few jaws to drop. Although all the characters stand out it’s the unsinkable teenaged skiing phenom Mindy and her tenacious aunt Juliet who rock these pages. Be prepared to be surprised astounded and totally blown away by this best-seller bound keeper shelf read.
Brava!
SUMMARY:
Seventeen-year-old phenom champion skier and US Olympic hopeful, Mindy Wright just had two bad breaks– one-her leg in several places– two those weird feelings she’s been having on and off for the last several months weren’t soreness from training but Leukemia. The prognosis is favorable and her best chance is a stem cell transplant, but there’s no DNA match from her family.
When Dr. Juliet Ryder, crime lab DNA specialist learns her niece has cancer she’s happy to be first in line for a DNA cheek swab. And is totally flummoxed by the fact that neither she or Mindy’s mom her sister Lauren don’t share any DNA meaning Mindy isn’t biologically related to them. When Juliet confronts her sister about it she learns about her sister’s dark secret.
Lauren Wright’s whole perfect life has been a big fat lie that’s about to bite her, but she’s going to have to come clean because her daughter’s life is on the line. The real question is just how many secrets she’ll have to reveal to mollify her family and how she’ll convince them to keep Mindy in the dark.
Meet JT:New York Times and USA Today bestselling author J.T. Ellison writes standalone domestic noir and psychological thriller series, the latter starring Nashville Homicide Lt. Taylor Jackson and medical examiner Dr. Samantha Owens, and pens the international thriller series “A Brit in the FBI" with #1 New York Times bestselling author Catherine Coulter. Cohost of the EMMY Award-winning literary television series A Word on Words, Ellison lives in Nashville with her husband and twin kittens.
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This sounds really good and you always have such great interviews. Thanks for the chance of a win.
ReplyDeleteMelanie @ Hot Listens & Books of My Heart
Awe thanks Melanie. Good luck. It was fab and I hope you get to read it and join in my goodreads group read.
DeleteThanks for this captivating and fascinating novel. Love the setting, topic and subject which interests me greatly.
ReplyDeletegood luck traveler!
DeleteGreat interview. The book sounds fantastic, I love reading about lies, and secrets.
ReplyDeleteOh the lies and secrets, you can't even imagine Anita I was like wha, wow, holy cow the whole time LOL
DeleteLove the premise of this story...secrets are always fun to read. This sounds like a book that I might enjoy.
ReplyDeleteYes Mary right up your dark alley :)
DeleteLol "you assume I am mild-mannered" hehe
ReplyDeleteI know right, I'm still chuckling about it. But I bet her husband sleeps with one eye open too
DeleteLooking forward to reading this one! I really enjoyed Lie to Me -- and that it was set in Brentwood, TN. I have been to that area often.
ReplyDeleteOh Lie To Me was sooooo good. This is so different Dianna but just as good if not better.
DeleteI love how Mindy comes across, it I read thrillers (I'd have to sleep with two eyes open) this one would hook me in. I love how she can go to town and really write that villian and give them full rein.
ReplyDeleteI know its like she's another person when she writes and for me a non-creative person I just can't fathom it.
Delete