The Grace Tour with Kim Liggett Recap

I had the pleasure to attend the Boston stop for The Grace Tour at the Brookline Booksmith on Tuesday, October 8th, aka pub date for The Grace Year. I was so excited to see Kim Liggett along with moderator/author Sasha Alsberg and authors Holly Black, Rory Power and Libba Bray. I have been a huge fan of Kim Liggett’s books since I was fortunate enough to get an ARC of Blood and Salt at BEA 2015. Since then, Kim has published five books!

I met up with my friend Rachel for some ramen before heading over to Brookline Booksmith. I wanted to make sure I got a good seat so Rachel and I went to the bookstore fairly early. We browsed the store a bit and met a few YA book lovers. Rachel couldn’t stay for the event but I was so happy that I was able to see her for a little bit that night.

The panel itself was pretty hilarious. Sasha started off with an icebreaker. She asked everyone what is the most outlandish plot they wrote. She mentioned that she had a story where Justin Bieber and Criminal Minds merged together called FBI Girlfriend, Pop-Star Boyfriend.  Holly mentioned that she wrote Nights of the Silver Sun in which she mentioned she probably meant Moon. She wrote the story in 8th grade about the Interview with the Vampire mashed up with another book/show. Rory wrote a persuasive piece when she was 14-years-old about how a girl who convinced her parents to lease a horse for $20.00. Libba mentioned "all my crazy ideas have been published." She also talked about a vampire movie musical. Kim exclaimed she didn't start writing until she was 40 or so. She also said that there are no books in her drawers but at one point she had an idea for a necrophilia romance which was shot down.

Sasha talked about how The Grace Year is hauntingly beautiful yet she asks Kim, how do you scare your readers without showing it. Kim mentioned, "I don't think it's more horrifying compared to what we see everyday" when she talks about The Grace Year. With sexual assault, the Me Too Movement and how people are treated everyday, the apple is not far from the tree. Kim talks about how even thought she writes horror, she is afraid of everything.

Sasha discussed he mean girl trope and about what invokes girl on girl hatred. She mentioned about how there is a competition and how it can provide a story line and character development. She asked all the authors how do you tackle the mean girl trope and what do you think about it. Kim talked about how it is so easy to do. Girls should have offered a more helping hand. They shouldn’t bully. Kim mentioned about how this “book changed me. I changed how I view women. I grew up with Tierney.” Rory talked about how she “loves mean girls.” Her book has 40 mean girls stuck on an island. She talked about how “everyone sucks” and talks about feminism. Holly mentioned how we shouldn’t allow girls to be mean in fiction. Girls should have a complete set of emotions and not just being mean. Libba discussed about thinking about the internal misogyny and found families. There are so many ways to express feelings and sometimes people are not allowed access of rage. We need to practice being in the ring and to forge friendships. It’s about sparring and giving edges. Sasha talked about how girls should be empowering and there should be a mutual respect among people.

Sasha asked, "If your character lives until 80-years-old, what would they tell their grandchildren?" Rory thinks fondly about how her main character broke a nose over an orange. Holly mentioned how Aurora tells her children how Prince Philip ate a mouse heart. Kim exclaimed how Tierney tells how the grace year ended. Libba said two words..band camp.

In terms of mythology, Sasha asked Holly how she crafted her fairytale world and what she did for research. Holly talks about Brian Froud and Alan Lee’s book called Faeries and the movie Labyrinth. These frightening and folkloric creatures of nature intrigued her. She did a lot of research on England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. I love Brian Froud's work on faeries in general. I highly checking out his works and Amy Brown's.

Hearing from the authors about if they plan the twists and turns before the ending was fascinating. Libba talked about how she doesn't plan at all. She explores the human condition. Libba also mentioned about the project when she says "Help me, Baby Jesus." And the response is "Jesus can't help you." She goes where the series goes and where it takes her. In terms of being a plotter or a panster, Libba mentions how she puts the characters through so much and they go through so much growth. Of course she is panster.

Kim exclaimed that things get worse before they get better. She knew all of her story at once after getting inspired to write The Grace Year. This has never happened before with other novels. She was at Penn Station and noticed a family in front of her. There was a girl who was 13 to 14-years-old. There was a man passing by. He stared at the girl and looked up and down. A woman passed by and she looked at the girl but with a look of sadness. The girl was going back to boarding school. The parents were relieved since the girl was tucked away for a year, keeping her safe. It’s a brutal system. It’s a gut punch. The beginning and ending was written during the trip to DC. “I had to write the book,” Kim said. It was a profound and weird experience but she knew she had to have this story be told.

Sasha asked the panelists about how they feel about backlash when they kill off a character or if they put the character through a tough feat. Sasha talked about how she appreciates the invoking of emotions. Holly feels like a message is being sent in a bottle. She disconnects with sending emotional and angry feelings and how someone receives it.

The authors discussed about what was one thing they wish they knew before they published books. Rory said that she was lazy and said yes a lot to things. She didn’t know what she was getting into. She learned how the brain thinks and how to control her impulse. Sasha exclaimed that she wished she took a public speaking course and she learned that editors don’t edit the whole book for you.

Sasha talked about creativity and asked the authors about “what is something that refilled the creative well beyond your writing?” Sasha mentioned about how she likes to paint. Kim used to be a backup singer in the 80’s. She had Aqua Net hair and she started being a backup singer when she was 16-years-old. Kim fell in love with stories this way. She mentioned about how deep hurts come from young adulthood. It’s the heard of the matter. Everything else are symptoms. Right now, Kim doesn’t sing anymore. She had massive stage fright. She stepped in front to do a showcase and she froze. Normally, she doesn’t see everyone since she is not in the spotlight. Kim exclaimed how living your own life refills the well. She had a lot of life experience and she talking about enjoying yourself. Libba is a frontwoman of a band. She writes and records music. Occasionally she will have some performances. Rory watches TV such as Criminal on Netflix. Holly loves gothic interior decorating.

Sasha had several rounds of lighting speed questions and answers.

1. What is your favorite toothpaste?
Some answers included Sensodyne, Biotene and Tom’s.

2. What is your favorite writing instrument?
Libba: Pen and paper
Kim: Rollerball
Rory: Laptop
Holly: Laptop

3. What is your least favorite word? You cannot use moist.
Libba: Trump!
Kim: Winger
Rory: Fester
Holly: Carbunkle

4. What is your favorite baking dishes?
Libba: Seamless
Kim: Brisk chicken
Rory: Microwave
Holly: Pumpkin bread
Sasha: I can't bake cookies at al.

5. What is your favorite fall snack.
Libba: Pumpkin spice..."souls of my enemies"
Kim: Apples
Rory: Cheez-its
Holly: Coffee

6. Coffee or wine?
Libba: Coffee!
Kim: Coffee!
Rory: Yes!
Holly: Ditto

7. What is your favorite city?
Sasha: London
Libba: Providence...and all 14 that live there.
Kim: Rome
Rory: Edinburgh
Holly: London and Edinburgh

8. What is your least favorite clothing?
Sasha: Socks
Libba: Bra
Kim: Bra
Rory: Tights
Holly: Bra

Sasha asked the authors what they are reading currently or what they just finished reading. Libba mentioned Wilder Girls, Three Women and Middlegame. Holly said Wayward's Son. Sasha then ends her series of questions with, "What is next for you?" Sasha talked about an urban folklore fantasy. Libba said a vampire music musical but she really is working on the last book of the Diviners series, King of Crows. Kim is currently working on two novels. One is adult and one is YA. Both has to do about what ring women together. Rory is working on a new standalone that is coming out in 2020. She describes it as corn of horror and field of nightmares. Holly is finishing up the highly anticipated Queen of Nothing.

Sasha opened up questions to the audience. One reader/teacher mentioned how they are introducing social justice themes into their curriculum for their students. They asked the authors what is one thing you wanted to hear as a 16-year-old? What did you want to know? The authors talked about rules and permission. They are not trying to play by the rules to win because rules aren't set up for us to win. We need to dismantle the system. You don't have to ask for permission to do this.

Someone asked Rory about the integration of girls discovering queerness and the exploration and how that is natural. Rory responds with how it's an important element. It's not just one particular experience. She poses the question, "Do I want to be her or be with her?" Another person wanted to hear Rory talk more about the antagonists vs. protagonists. Rory mentioned, "Everyone is a protagonist in your own story." She loves terrible girls. Rory talks about how the darker parts of a story is acknowledging parts of themselves.

The panel ended with a signing and I was so excited to see Kim again. I saw Kim a couple time back in 2015 at BEA and the Boston Teen Author Festival when Blood and Salt was published. I haven't seen her since and I was ecstatic when she told me she will be around the Boston area in October. Of course, I made sure to block it out on my calendar. It was so great to be able to catch up for a few minutes with Kim and to congratulate her on her 5th published novel! I have been a fan since Blood and Salt, which is her debut novel. Definitely check out all of Kim's novels which include Blood & Salt, The Last Harvest, Heart of Ash, The Unfortunates and The Grace Year.

The Grace Year by Kim Liggett

Title: The Grace Year
Author: Kim Liggett
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Publication date: October 8, 2019
Pages: 416
Source/format: e-ARC//Publisher

Rating: ☆☆☆☆

Synopsis (from goodreads.com):

A speculative thriller in the vein of The Handmaid’s Tale and The Power. Optioned by Universal and Elizabeth Banks to be a major motion picture!

“A visceral, darkly haunting fever dream of a novel and an absolute page-turner. Liggett’s deeply suspenseful book brilliantly explores the high cost of a misogynistic world that denies women power and does it with a heart-in-your-throat, action-driven story that’s equal parts horror-laden fairy tale, survival story, romance, and resistance manifesto. I couldn’t stop reading.” – Libba Bray, New York Times bestselling author

Survive the year.

No one speaks of the grace year. It’s forbidden.

In Garner County, girls are told they have the power to lure grown men from their beds, to drive women mad with jealousy. They believe their very skin emits a powerful aphrodisiac, the potent essence of youth, of a girl on the edge of womanhood. That’s why they’re banished for their sixteenth year, to release their magic into the wild so they can return purified and ready for marriage. But not all of them will make it home alive.

Sixteen-year-old Tierney James dreams of a better life—a society that doesn’t pit friend against friend or woman against woman, but as her own grace year draws near, she quickly realizes that it’s not just the brutal elements they must fear. It’s not even the poachers in the woods, men who are waiting for a chance to grab one of the girls in order to make a fortune on the black market. Their greatest threat may very well be each other.

With sharp prose and gritty realism, The Grace Year examines the complex and sometimes twisted relationships between girls, the women they eventually become, and the difficult decisions they make in-between.

M Y  T H O U G H T S

“They call us the weaker sex. It’s pounded into us every Sunday in church, how everything’s Eve’s fault for not expelling her magic when she had the chance, but I still can’t understand why the girls don’t get a say. Sure, there are secret arrangements, whispers in the dark, but why must the boys get to decide everything? As far as I can tell, we all have hearts. We all have brains. There are only a few differences I can see, and most men seem to think with that part anyway.”

Kim Liggett starts The Grace Year strong summarizing what a grace year is. It's supposed to be a time where young girls at the age of sixteen will release their magic into the wild in order to stop luring men from their beds, to stop making boys go mad, and to stop wives being driven with jealousy.

Tierney James is one of 33 girls who will leave for a grace year. As part of a promise of marriage, a boy will lift a veil of a girl of his choosing on Veiling Day. This year there are only 12 boys. However, Tierney doesn't want to get married. Those who are not paired up with a boy will live a life of hard work in a labor house. The girls must survive a year within the forest fending and foraging for themselves. After being purified, they can live a life as a wife who bears many children and takes care of her husband or to be a laborer in the mills, fields, etc.

Tierney is shocked but mostly furious when she can't set her life on her own terms. Tierney becomes the wild card. Besides not being able to live a life she wants, Tierney is stuck with mean-spirited and controlling Kiersten along with the other girls for a year. Kiersten rules with fear and the girls listen to her a la The Crucible. The madness spreads like crazy. However, Tierney is one of the girls who fights back. Tierney's decision for not giving into Kiersten's whim sparks a beginning of a rebellion. Women are pitting against each other in a catfight while trying to stay away from the poachers. It's the survival of the fittest.

Liggett's YA dystopian novel may be a break from her normal thrillers and horror novels but The Grace Year is poignant and thought-provoking. Her writing is gritty yet harrowing. There are hints regarding her love for horror sneakingly woven into the novel. The inklings of blood from the punishment tree to the madness the girls endure remind me of Liggett's previous books. After all she is the YA horror queen!

The novel does have some gruesome scenes that may not be for the faint of heart. Also, there is a teenage pregnancy present. Innocence is the color white during the childhood of a girl. Blood is the color red during the survival of a grace year. Death is the color black to the binding marriage that a woman endures. These colors are depicted in the hair ribbons in the females' hair.

If you are looking for a dystopian thriller that fuses classics with more contemporary novels, The Grace Year is for you. I agree with many other readers that The Grace Year is one part The Handmaid’s Tale, one part The Crucible, one part The Hunger Games, and one part Lord of the Flies. The Grace Year will become a new classic that will be read and liked by many generations to come.

FAVORITE QUOTES

“ “Someday, you’ll get a flower. It might be a little withered round the edges, but it’ll mean just the same. Love’s not just for the marrieds, you know, it’s for everyone,” she says as she slips a bloom into my hand. Uncurling my fingers, I find a deep purple iris, the petals and falls perfectly formed.”

“ “Hope,” I whisper, my eyes welling up. I don’t hope for a flower from a boy, but I hope for a better life. A truthful life. I’m not usually sentimental, but there’s something about it that feels like a sign. Like its own kind of magic.”