I am thrilled to be hosting a spot for THE GIFTED SOCIETY by Tatiana White Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
About The Book:
Author: Tatiana White
Pub. Date: February 13, 2024
Publisher: The Muse Papers
Formats: Hardcover, paperback, eBook
Pages: 529
Find it: Goodreads, https://books2read.com/THE-GIFTED-SOCIETY
Buy a signed copy from Tatiana!
Read for FREE with a Kindle Unlimited membership!
Sixteen-year-old Alexia has a secret; she’s a Varien—burdened with the gift of shooting stars through her skin. And after watching her best friend Sarai get falsely accused of murder upon changing into a Varien, Alexia wants no one to know. She keeps her secret tight and close until an accident with her strange abilities critically injures her father—threatening her identity to be revealed. Alexia flees and goes on the run to avoid death row.
While in transit, she meets Greta, a quirky antique shop owner who promises her safety with other Variens in a realm called The Grove.
Alexia is skeptical, but once she learns Sarai has been kidnapped from prison and taken to The Grove to be sacrificed by Revenirs, a secret society of hitmen, she becomes intent on finding and saving her from another dire fate.
Greta introduces Alexia to The Grove and her new home at Malveaux Prep Academy and Sanctuary—a premier school for Varien teens to study and hone their knowledge and skill. There, Alexia rooms with a pyrokinetic hot head who can’t stop kissing her boyfriend and takes tours with her assigned campus mentor—a wise-cracking morphing teleporter named Kyle.
With the help of her newfound friendships, Alexia delves deeper into The Grove’s hidden history for clues on the present. All she wants is to find Sarai and save her. But the closer she gets to the Revenirs, the more danger she and her friends are in. Alexia must decide if friendship is worth the wrath of war, suffering, and even worse … betrayal.
For fans of Legendborn and Gen V, The Gifted Society adds to the mosaic narrative discussion of who is allowed to harness power, adventure, and admiration. With its dark and light academia themes of fantasy and found family, it creates a world which provides a whimsical and sweet escape.
Review:
“The Gifted Society is a thrilling and action-packed tale that delves into the world of Variens, exploring the struggles of their lives. Tatiana White creates characters that fans of coming-of-age and YA fantasy will adore. The character arc for Alexia is impeccable. She is a young girl with powerful gifts, and the author’s ability to create natural reactions to her discovery of what she is capable of is ingenious. The characters are multifaceted and endearing, especially Alexia. The plot is engaging and suspenseful, with unexpected twists and turns that keep the reader on edge. The themes of identity, friendship, and sacrifice are skillfully developed throughout the story. Overall, this novel is a captivating read that will appeal to fans of young adult fantasy and adventure..”- Reader’s Favorite, ★★★★★
Top 5 favorite scenes and why
Blossom Ball-The Blossom Ball is the annual formal event that takes place at Malveaux Prep and Sanctuary Academy. Given all of the mental and emotional strife Alexia experiences in the novel, it was nice to write this luxurious and celebratory moment of joy and beauty. I feel like the dynamic in the book is always best when the entire crew is together. There’s a magic that takes place that I love writing and reading.
Adieu Lagoon-The first scene at Adieu Lagoon serves as a whimsical escape. It’s very cinematic and coming of age, but innocent. A marker of firsts. I really enjoy capturing that human experience and lacing it with fantastical elements to enhance the reader’s feelings.
The Knaves Labyrinth-This was a hard scene to write. I’ve re-written it a few times. It used to contain a different roster of characters, but it works better with less. I learned a lot about writing action and creating obstacles and trusting my character to move through them with the tools she has.
Blossom Ball Prep-This chapter is called ‘A New Nirvana’, and it marks a turning point for Alexia and her coming of age in girlhood, but also her journey. It was really important for me to display coming of age milestones experienced by a Black female protagonist. I don’t feel this is something I’ve seen normalized in literature or film, so it was imperative to give Black girls a moment to be loved on and romanticized. It’s a very Cinderella moment, and every time I re-read it, it instills hope and reads as a sweet moment we especially appreciate after having traveled through darkness.
Scenes with Andre-Andre, at this time, is my favorite person to write dialogue for. He has such a great rhythm and uniqueness to him. He’s three dimensional and familiar. Any time he’s with the kids, there’s bound to be comedic moments, but he also is such an integral element to the story. I didn’t create him until the last few rounds of re-writes, and his presence really grounded the story. He was what was missing.
About Tatiana White:
Tatiana White grew up on a creative diet of comics, poetry, film, essays, and books.
An advocate for diversity, Tatiana studied the mechanics of film, creative writing, and journalism with the overall goal of altering narratives and imagery imposed on black youths and adults. She achieved a bachelor’s degree in Mass Media Communications and went on to work for various Bay Area media staples before returning to her first love: storytelling.
When Tatiana’s not toiling over her computer, she’s occupied with her life as wife to her college sweetheart and full-time role as mother of two girls (or mutants, as she likes to call them) and a cantankerous schnauzer.
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Giveaway Details:
1 winner will receive a finished copy of THE GIFTED SOCIETY & swag, US Only.
Ends October 26th, midnight EST.
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e2389ba21869/?
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
| 10/7/2024 | Fire and Ice Reads | Book Playlist/IG Post |
| 10/8/2024 | Daily Waffle | Top 5 Favorite Scenes |
| 10/9/2024 | Two Chicks on Books | Dream Cast/IG Post |
| 10/10/2024 | Lady Hawkeye | Favorite Books & Movies/IG Post |
| 10/11/2024 | YA Books Central | Interview/IG Post |
| 10/11/2024 | bookloversbookreviews | IG Post |
| 10/12/2024 | @enthuse_reader | IG Review/TikTok Post |
Week Two:
| 10/13/2024 | Shauna’s Book Journal | Review/IG Post |
| 10/14/2024 | @stargirls.magical.tale | IG Review |
| 10/15/2024 | Edith’s Little Free Library | IG Review/TikTok Post |
| 10/15/2024 | @evergirl200 | IG Review |
| 10/16/2024 | thefashionistfiles | Review/IG Post |
| 10/17/2024 | @callistoscalling | IG Review |
| 10/18/2024 | Kim’s Book Reviews and Writing Aha’s | Review/IG Post |
| 10/19/2024 | @thepagelady | IG Review |
Week Three:
| 10/20/2024 | Lifestyle of Me | Review |
| 10/20/2024 | anitralovesbooksanddogs | IG Review |
| 10/21/2024 | Country Mamas With Kids | Review/IG Post |