The Reading Hedgehog: A Spark Unseen Blog Hop, Day 5

Follow this link to learn more about the blog hop!

That's right; The Reading Hedgehog has been asked to be part of Sharon Cameron's blog hop for her new book - A Spark Unseen! Sharon was kind enough to do an interview with me, which you can find below. Also, check out my review for The Dark Unwinding and A Spark Unseen!

Mara A: Tell us a bit about A Spark Unseen.

Sharon Cameron: A Spark Unseen is the continuing tale of Katharine and her uncle Tully, the search for the elusive Lane Moreau, and what happens when one man’s “toy” becomes a path to ultimate military power. This was a super fun story to write, since it gave me the chance to expand on themes from The Dark Unwinding (like home, family, creativity, and what we think is “normal”) and present them in a different sort of story. The Dark Unwinding was a gothic mystery; A Spark Unseen is at its heart a spy adventure. But both novels are ultimately about Katharine Tulman coming into her own, inside and out. The Katharine at the conclusion of A Spark Unseen barely resembles the Katharine in Chapter One of The Dark Unwinding. As a writer, I find that incredibly satisfying.

Mara A: Who is your favorite character in "A Spark Unseen" and why?

Sharon Cameron: As far as the characters that are new to this book, it would have to be Henri Marchand, a French aristocrat with a fondness for secrets and sleight of hand. I adored coming up with ways for him to flirt, act dashing, think too much of himself, and be a decent guy all at the same time. I wouldn’t let him date my daughter, though.

Mara A: Throughout the writing process, which character did you "get along with" best, and who gave you the most trouble?

Sharon Cameron: I had a ball creating Mrs. Hardcastle. I think I am so steeped in the writings of authors like Oscar Wilde and P.G. Wodehouse that the irritating, middle-aged, controlling, over the top, “aunt” character comes very naturally to me. The hardest to write was definitely Napoleon III. I didn’t want him to be a particularly sympathetic character, but I also didn’t want to portray him unfairly. It took a lot of research to feel like I was doing justice to both my story and the true history.

Mara A: What inspired you to write The Dark Unwinding and A Spark Unseen?

Sharon Cameron: Definitely the history of Welbeck Abbey, the real house that provides the basis for Stranwyne Keep in The Dark Unwinding. Welbeck was such a wonderfully strange and bizarre place in the 1850s and 1860s; it set my imagination on fire. I (like Mary Brown) would give a lot to find myself locked in a place like that. (Oh, the exploring!) But for A Spark Unseen, it was really just an inability to let go of all these characters I had become so fond of. There was more to their story, and I had to write what happened to them next. Couldn’t help it!

Mara A: What can Readers expect next? Do you have a new book in the works? Tell us a bit about it, if you can.

Sharon Cameron: I do have a new book! A brand new project that I’m VERY excited about, also to be published with Scholastic Press. Look for an announcement coming soon. But in the meantime, I’ll tease you with three words: corsets, swords, and decapitation!

About the Book:

The thrilling sequel to Sharon Cameron’s blockbuster gothic steampunk romance, THE DARK UNWINDING, will captivate readers anew with mystery and intrigue aplenty.

When Katharine Tulman wakes in the middle of the night and accidentally foils a kidnapping attempt on her uncle, she realizes Stranwyne Keep is no longer safe for Uncle Tully and his genius inventions. She flees to Paris, where she hopes to remain undetected and also find the mysterious and handsome Lane, who is suspected to be dead.

But the search for Lane is not easy, and Katharine soon finds herself embroiled in a labyrinth of political intrigue. And with unexpected enemies and allies at every turn, Katharine will have to figure out whom she can trust–if anyone–to protect her uncle from danger once and for all.

Filled with deadly twists, whispering romance, and heart-stopping suspense, this sequel to THE DARK UNWINDING whisks readers off on another thrilling adventure.