I think everyone is aware of my undying love and affection for AG Howard. She is definitely one of my favorite people and I’m convinced her words are pure magic. It goes without saying that when I got the super special invite to be part of the blog tour for Ensnared, I said yes.
Before we get to all of the goodies from Anita {including TWO giveaways}, let’s check out the book!
After surviving a disastrous battle at prom, Alyssa has embraced her madness and gained perspective. She’s determined to rescue her two worlds and the people and netherlings she loves. Even if it means challenging Queen Red to a final battle of wills and wiles . . . and even if the only way to Wonderland, now that the rabbit hole is closed, is through the looking-glass world–a parallel dimension filled with mutated and violent netherling outcasts.
In the final installment of the wildly popular Splintered trilogy, Alyssa and her dad journey into the heart of magic and mayhem in search of her mom and to set right all that’s gone wrong. Together with Jeb and Morpheus, they must salvage Wonderland from the decay and destruction that has ensnared it. But if they succeed and come out alive, can everyone truly have their happily ever after?
Sounds amazing, right? {Yes, it totally is.} And doesn’t my boy look good? {Yes, Jeb is mine, I have proof.}
And without further ado, let’s welcome Anita to the blog!
Welcome to the Ensnared in a Winter Wonderland Tour, day four!
Today I’m going to share three deleted scenes from the original version of Splintered. When I first set out to write book one, Alyssa’s wasn’t the only point of view. Jebediah had his own chapters to narrate. They were the two characters carrying the book (sorry Morpheus fans, your guy’s inner thoughts needed to remain a mystery to the readers for obvious reasons, heh).
What made me decide to take out Jeb’s POV and put it all in Alyssa’s? Two things:
- The story was too long to be marketable, sitting at a whopping 360+ pages. For a debut author such as myself who had never proven I could draw a readership, that was too big of a book for most publishers to take a chance on (due to the cost of printing).
- With everyone knowing Jeb’s thoughts, it stifled the mystery of whether or not he reciprocated Alyssa’s feelings, which is something editors want to see a lot of: Tension.
So, during the rewrite, as I took out Jeb’s thoughts and narrative, a few other things changed (as often happens when a writer edits). There was a ripple effect: Originally, Alyssa, Jeb, Taelor, and a bunch of other kids were taking a trip to London paid for by Taelor’s dad. It was there that Alyssa and Jeb stumbled into a museum’s basement after following a fly sent by Morpheus, and found their way into a mirror portal to Wonderland, using the key she’d dug out of her Dad’s recliner.
But even before Alyssa left the states, she’d been getting mysterious text messages on her cell phone from someone claiming to know how to help her family (aka, his Royal Mothiness himself), which Jeb happened to see once without her knowing. Also, there was a prom scene where we all first met Corbin. Since that scene was deleted, Corbin was, too. One other change to note: Instead of being a star tennis player, Taelor was a singer in this version.
That’s all you need to know before plunging into the proverbial rabbit hole. Hope you enjoy this glimpse into what might’ve been, had I not changed the story to better fit the market…
To view the selected three Jeb excerpts (plus one bonus peek at a Morph and Jeb scene), click here.
Now, in honor of Jeb’s artistic muse and the girl who inspires it, I’m offering up this Splintered tote and a 2.5″ x 3.5″ gothic fairy flashcard print (signed by the artist) for the INTL prizes today:
Check out the rafflecopter below for entry options, and be sure to enter the other rafflecopter for a chance to win one of ten hardbacks (domestic only). See you tomorrow at Dark Faerie Tales for day five of the tour when I’ll reveal the entire first chapter of Ensnared, and offer a chance to win all three ARCs from the Splintered series (INTL)!
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A.G. Howard was inspired to write SPLINTERED while working at a school library. She always wondered what would’ve happened had the subtle creepiness of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland taken center stage, and she hopes her darker and funkier tribute to Carroll will inspire readers to seek out the stories that won her heart as a child.
When she’s not writing, A.G.’s pastimes are reading, rollerblading, gardening, and family vacations which often include impromptu side trips to 18th century graveyards or condemned schoolhouses to appease her overactive muse.
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Huge thanks to the ladies at Rockstar Book Tours for being awesome. And mega SMUGS to Anita for always spoiling me! Make sure you’re subscribing to Anita’s blog, following her on Twitter, liking her Facebook page, and adding all of her books to your TBR shelves on Goodreads.
Ensnared is released on January 6th and you can pre-order it at Indiebound | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Amazon
As Anita mentioned above, there are two giveaways below. Before you run amok and enter, definitely check out the other tour stops for all things Ensnared and more goodies to win!
12/1/2014– http://www.fiktshun.com/fiktshun/Fiktshun- Morpheus Post
12/2/2014– Two Chicks on Books– Jeb Post
12/3/2014– All The Write Notes– Playlist
12/4/2014– Adventures of a Book Junkie– Jeb Post
12/5/2014– Dark Faerie Tales– Ch 1 Reveal
Now. Run amok and good luck!
Jeb or morpheus? I still can’t decide!
LOVE the post, Stacee! You always do such great ones!!
So cool to see these deleted scenes, Anita! Love hearing about Jeb’s POV and how you ended up cutting it.
I’m facing similar “length” issues myself, so I totally get that!
Can’t wait for Ensnared! YAY!
Thank you so much!
<3
I stumbled across an ARC of Splintered in the basement of a used bookstore a few years back. All I could see was the spine of the book, and the font of “Splintered” was enough to make me yank it from the dusty, musty box and read the blurb on the back. I read it as soon as I got home and discovered I had a new fav author! Anita is amazing! I can’t wait to get Ensnared!!!
I feel almost like if I read the deleted scenes it wouldn’t be Splintered anymore lol Cuz they’re from pretty much alternate world versions of the story xD I am so very curious.
Anywho, congrats on getting to Ensnared you wonderfully creative genius! hahaha Can’t wait to see what happens in this next installment. ^^
I’m so excited for this! It’s been so long since I’ve found a book with a Wonderland twist that wasn’t awful or graphic. I’ve raved about this series over and over, and I can’t wait to give out copies as Christmas gifts!
I am SO excited to read Ensnared! I love this whole series. It’s my favorite re-telling YA out there! You’re an awesome author, A.G. :)
– Beckie @ Bittersweet Enchantment
I can’t WAIT for Ensnared. So far, everything about it seems fantastic, and thanks so much for giving us these deleted scenes to read from Splintered!
I’ve been wanting to read these books and I’d love to read them all in one go! Can’t wait till this one is out!
*cries about the end of deleted scenes*
Jeb’s pretty fascinating, in his own way…though I (obviously lol) still favor Morpheus and find him much more intriguing. Very cool to see what could have been, though–wow, what a difference, huh?
Thanks for sharing!!
I love this series! A.G. Howard is a favorite of mine!
Perfect post Stacee! I love all the deleted scenes with Jeb (your “hubs!” ;) Thanks for sharing this and I’m sure I don’t need to tell how how excited I am for Ensnared! Lol Thanks for the fabulous post and giveaway!<3
As a die hard Jeb girl, this is my FAVORITE post on the whole ENSNARED tour. I love taking a dip inside my boy toy’s–er, ahem, Mr. Holt’s brain. The only way it could have been better is if he was thinking about me.
The covers are brilliant and that tote is devine. I first heard about Splintered in a Harry Potter social site bookclub, but we could not post images in the tbreads, so I had no idea what the book looked like. I was in the library one day and saw the gorgeous cover from across the room, displayed on top of a YA shelf. I went directly over and picked it up, and said to myself, “Oh, it’s the book those two girls were raving about.” The inslde was just as amazing as the outside. I have been hooked on A.G. Howard ever since. Thanks for this stellar giveaway contest and for hosting this blog stop. A.G.’s blog tours are always top notch!
Can we not be team both? :) I love both guys.
These scenes are amazing!
EXCITEMENT! <3
Such a great book tour!! beautiful post!! That tote is so beautiful
SO flipping excited for this one;) Thanks for the chance :) XXXX
My sister is the HUGEST fan of this series! Can’t wait to finish it. Thanks for the giveaway!
This book is gonna be bombtastic ENSNARED
Totally loving this tour! Thanks so much, I don’t know how I’ve lived until now without this series in my life. *gives virtual hugs to everyone*
Can’t wait to read Ensnared!!! I’m a huge fan of the Splintered Trilogy ♥
Thanks for the giveaway!!! :)
Thanks for the giveaway!!! (:
I love the artwork!
I’m in love with this series! Can’t wait to read Ensnared! <3
Can. Not. Wait.
I am really enjoying this virtual book tour – thank you!!!
Hello AC! The splintered trilogy sounds great! I can’t wait to read these books. I love the covers, very imaginative. Thank you
Sorry A.G. i called you A C in my previous comment, thank you for the wonderful books and giveaways.
I’m reading Unhinged right now and loving it! Can’t wait to read Ensnared too!
All of the Splintered covers are SO beautiful! And Jeb looks amazing in this cover. <3
By the way, thank you for this giveaway!
I’m so in love with the covers in this series – they are so beautiful! Ensnared is just the best though because of Jeb (but you know that!) I still haven’t read Unhinged but Splintered was beyond gorgeous so I can’t wait until I get to the last two in the trilogy. Thanks for the giveaways!
I cannot wait to finally read Ensnared!! I loved the first 2 and cannot wait to see what happens next :)
SO EXCITING!!!!
I can’t wait to read this. I love this series!
I can’t wait!!!!! Team Morph btw :D
I’m so excited for Ensnared! It was great to hear A.G. Howard talk about the cover design process for it (and Splintered and Unhinged) on the Mighty Mississippi Book Blast tour. Thanks for the giveaways!
aargh i’m so impatient for the release but this five day tour was great!
I’ve been waiting for this since Unhinged came out!!!
Thank you for the giveaway, its so awesome!!!! I am so excited for Ensnared !
Thanks for the giveaway! These books have the most awesome covers!
Ahhh I can’t wait for this book to come out! I love Jeb :)
I love this series and the covers are gorgeous! I can’t wait to read Ensnared!
EH. tote bag. wait. SPLINTERED TOTE BAG.
The tote bag and faery print look so pretty!
Having too much material to whittle down must be difficult. How to cut it short is a tough question without losing some of what you have put into it.
I really need to read this series. It sounds wonderful.