Interview with Aura author Rebecca Lynn Talley

Aura by Rebecca Lynn Talley

"I half-turned to her and shrugged, still processing what I'd seen, or at least what I thought I'd seen, in Ms. Neal's eyes—like they weren't hers. Obviously, they were her eyes, but it looked like she'd plucked them from someone else's head. A dead someone else's head."
In the fight between good and evil, Light is your only weapon.
Crystal Scott finally feels like a normal teenager. She has a lead in the high school play, a best friend, and a gorgeous boyfriend. With prom only a few days away, Crystal’s ordinary life seems perfect.
Endowed with great Light because of her virtuous choices and her inherent gifts, Crystal’s aura has become visible to those with the ability to see auras. Unfortunately, her power has also attracted the attention of demons intent on destroying all Light.
When Vincent Crandall, the human host for a powerful demon, discovers that Crystal’s Light is strong enough to disrupt the connection between demons and their hosts, he realizes she may be able to sever the connection altogether. Determined to stop her from interfering with his plans to rule the world, he sends operatives to neutralize her Light.
After the operatives fail to disable Crystal, Vincent decides he must harness her power for himself. He kidnaps her parents, and Crystal is thrust into battle against a demon army she didn’t even know existed. With the help of a mysterious young man and his mother, Crystal must learn to use the power within her before Vincent kills her parents and exploits her Light.

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Author Rebecca Lynn Talley

Rebecca Lynn Talley grew up in the gorgeous seaside city of Santa Barbara, CA. She met, and married, her husband, Del, while attending Brigham Young University. She graduated from BYU with a degree in Communications. She currently lives in rural Colorado on a small ranch with a dog, too many cats to count, and a herd of goats. She and Del are the proud parents of ten wildly-creative, multi-talented children.

Rebecca is the author of a children's picture book, Grasshopper Pie (WindRiver 2003), a children's chapter book, Gabby's Secret (DuBon Publishing 2011), four novels, Heaven Scent (CFI 2008), Altared Plans (CFI 2009), The Upside of Down (CFI 2011), and Aura (DuBon Publishing 2012). She has also authored numerous children's stories and articles for both print and online magazines.

When she isn’t writing, Rebecca loves to date her husband, play with her kids, swim in the ocean, and dance to disco music while she cleans the house. She has folded at least one million loads of laundry, baked hundreds of batches of chocolate chip cookies, and eaten 5,478 gallons of ice cream.

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--Which character would you most/least like to have dinner with?

I would least like to have dinner with Bella from "Twilight." She's too boring for me. I'd love to have dinner with Rhett Butler from "Gone with the Wind."

--Do you have any other works in progress? Any teasers or release dates?

I'm currently working on a novel that is women's fiction. I am hoping to release it in the fall.

--What are some of your favorite books? Do you still have much time to read?

I love "Stargirl" by Jerry Spinelli. I also love "The Kindling" by Braden Bell, "The Reluctant Bachelorette" by Rachael Anderson, and "The Ugly Stepsister Fights Back" by Sariah Wilson. I have very little time to read now so I have to really enjoy the book to keep reading it.

--If a fairy godmother told you could be put into the world of your favorite book for 24 hours, which book would you pick and why?

I would pick Gone with the Wind so I could wear those elegant dresses and so I could talk some sense into Scarlett. I love that era and all the history that surrounds the Civil War.

--Do you need anything to write (music, coffee, etc)? Are there any songs on your playlist- songs that inspired you or that were playing while you wrote?

Time! I have a lot of kids so there's always lots of things going on. I always have my water bottle nearby and occasionally some Dove dark chocolate, but I'm just  thankful to find time to write so I use whatever I can get.

--If you could have any superpower what would you choose?

Time warping power. I'd love to be able to freeze time so I could get more done in a day. Or cloning. I'd love to clone myself to do all the housework so the real me could do all the fun stuff.

--Besides writing, what do you like to do in your free time?

Go on dates with my husband, play with my kids, swim in the ocean (when we're near one), dance to disco music, make jewelry, play the piano--well, more like plunk the keys on the piano.

--What is one thing you would tell your 15 year old self?

Don't worry, be happy. Enjoy the journey and stop stressing out about everything.

Lightning round: this or that?

Vanilla or chocolate?

Chocolate

Edward or Jacob?

Neither.

Hockey or soccer?

Soccer

Ebook or paper?

Paper

Salty or sweet?

Sweet

Beach or mountains?

Definitely beach

Phone call or email?

Phone call

Early bird or night owl?

Early bird, unfortunately

Dog or cat?

Cat

Messy or neat?

Neat

Ninjas or pirates?

Pirates

Reviews

This YA urban fantasy is fantastic! The story grabbed me from the start and kept me enthralled until the end! I love books that keep me thinking about the characters and events and possibilities even after putting them down...Aura is one of those books! Rebecca Lynn Talley has created characters you care about in a world begging for the special gifts they possess. I love the premise of Aura and imagine I'll be enjoying many more Light vs. Demon novels in the future....at least I hope there are more to come!
~KindleQueen

I loved the clasic good VS evil in Aura. I loved that Crystal made the conscious choice to be good inspite of feelings and doubts. I also loved the idea of demons posessing somone who had made dark choices, or greedy bargains. The book is clean and well handled inspite of the serious subject matter.Well done.
~C. Michelle Jefferies

This is one of those books that you hope will become widespread enough to make a positive impact in this world. Personally, I think this is a book every teenager should read and I will definitely be passing it along to my own kids. Thank you, Rebecca, for writing a beautiful story with a wonderful message! I hope you keep at it because now I want a sequel!
~Rachael Anderson

Aura sucked me in from the first page. The book is intense and well-written. I loved that Crystal is innocent and makes a conscious choice to stay that way in the face of intense pressure. I would recommend Aura to young adults on up.
~Cami Checketts

Wonderful, wonderful message. Probably the most solid moral message I’ve ever read in contemporary literature, but without being too heavy or feeling like a lecture. You could almost look at it like an allegory, I think, representing real life with fictional symbols. I’m trying to explain without giving anything away, and I think I’m doing a bad job. Anyway, I have four boys, but if I had a girl, I would definitely have her read it. The story is imaginative and creative, Crystal is a strong but believable heroine, caught up in high school cares and not realizing her own potential or the battle that is waged around and for her. I thought at times it was a bit predictable, and that the first half of the book drug a little. It probably could have been told quicker or perhaps made a little more interesting. But all in all, I enjoyed it. The story kept me going and the characters were sweet and compelling.
~May Abbey

Wow! I got this book for free and LOVED it! I can't wait to read any follow up books! (There WILL be follow up books, right?) In this story Crystal is full of light, thanks to making good choices, and she has to figure out how to keep the light in the midst of high school where temptation runs rampant and where she just wants to be an average girl! I like that things never went too far, and I felt like it was very well-written, with rounded out characters!
~Tamera Westhoff