I’ve said this before and I probably will again, but I love learning more about the books that I love or am interested in. Today I have an interview with Melissa de la Cruz about her book Going Dark. This is my stop on the book tour hosted by TBR and Beyond Tours.
Keep on reading to find out more about the book and the questions I asked Melissa!
Going Dark by Melissa de la Cruz
Genre: Young Adult Thriller
Publishing Date: February 7, 2023
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz comes a ripped-from-the-headlines new adult mystery about all the missing girls who fall off the radar…
#WhereisAmeliaAshley
The Influencer
Amelia Ashley shares everything with her followers – her favorite hole-in-the-wall restaurants, her best fashion tips, and her European trip-of-a-lifetime with her hot boyfriend.
The Boyfriend
Josh has no choice but to return home without Amelia after she abandons him in Rome. He has no clue where she went or how her blood got in his suitcase. Why won’t anyone believe him?
The Hacker
To Harper Delgado, Amelia Ashley is just another missing white girl whipping up a media frenzy. But with each digital knot she untangles about the influencer, Harper wonders: who is Amelia Ashley?
The Other Girl
Two years ago, another girl went missing, one who never made headlines or had a trending hashtag.
The Truth
Amelia’s disappearance has captured the world’s attention. What comes next? Watch this space…
Book Links
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Author Interview
What inspired you to write Going Dark?
I have always been fascinated by the media coverage of certain true crime cases – who of us cannot forget Natalee Holloway or Gabby Petito, their pictures and their stories splashed across TV and the Internet, while so many women of color never get the same kind of coverage or concern. All these cases are tragedies but some are given more attention than others. So it sparked an idea…
What has been the favorite part of your publishing journey so far?
To me it’s just about sitting in a room, writing on my computer and entertaining myself. Whether my heart is beating while I’m writing the fast-paced chapters or laughing at my own jokes, I enjoy being in my imagination and my own world.
If you were a character in Going Dark, what kind of character would you be?
I would be an extra in my books. I wouldn’t even have a name. Unnamed character in the party or something. I love my stable, uneventful life with my family and friends. My books are too wild or scary I would never want to be a character in a book. No way!
Describe Going Dark in five words or less.
Thriller That Makes You Think
What is your favorite quote from Going Dark?
The stars were so bright. And she wanted to count every last one. (This is the ending line and I love it.)
What do you hope readers take away from your story?
I hope they think before believing anything they read online. When I was a kid we learned not to believe everything we read in the newspaper, now with the Internet, it’s best to be skeptical of how everything is presented.
Could you give us 5 random facts about Going Dark (think the story, writing, publishing, anything that comes to mind)?
Josh Reuter’s last name means “highway man” or “thief.” I hope that’s not too much of a spoiler!
I wrote the book in three months.
We sold the pitch in a phone call.
I’ve worked with my editor of Going Dark, Laura Schrieber, over ten years ago on The Ring and the Crown, which is soon to be a show on Disney Plus, and my publisher, Emily Meehan, for almost twenty years now.
Two characters in the book were inspired by sisters I knew growing up who looked very, very different from each other. (Again I hope that’s not a spoiler, oh well, it probably is lol.)
Tour Schedule
If you’ve become more curious about the book, click here for the full tour schedule. Many other amazing bloggers and bookstagrammers have been posting about Going Dark.
About the Author
Melissa de la Cruz is the #1 New York Times, #1 Publisher’s Weekly and #1 IndieBound bestselling author of many critically acclaimed and award-winning novels for readers of all ages. Many of her more than fifty books have also topped USA Today, Wall Street Journal and Los Angeles Times bestseller lists and been published in over twenty countries.
De la Cruz’s novel, The Isle of the Lost, the prequel to the Disney Channel Original Movie Descendants, spent more than fifty weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, fifteen at #1, and has over a million copies in print. Descendants starring Kristen Chenoweth and Dove Cameron was the #1 cable TV movie of 2015, and #5 of all time, and its soundtrack the #1 bestselling album on iTunes. The series’ subsequent books, Return to the Isle of the Lost and Rise of the Isle of the Lost, were also New York Times bestsellers for many weeks.
De la Cruz is also known for the Blue Bloods series (with three million copies in print), and the Witches of East End series. Her recent book releases include New York Times bestsellers The Queen’s Assassin and the Alex & Eliza series, as well as the graphic novel Gotham High and The Birthday Girl. Her next release is her upcoming middle grade series launch, Never After, publishing December 2020.
De la Cruz’s Hallmark Christmas movies, Christmas in Angel Falls and Pride Prejudice and Mistletoe (based on her novel), were both the top-rated movies for their Christmas season on the Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies and Mysteries. 29 Dates, her YA novel about a Korean exchange student, will soon be a feature-length movie on Disney’s streaming service, Disney+.
Melissa is also the founder and principal of Melissa de la Cruz Studio at Disney Publishing, which will create and package books in every genre and age range but with a focus on middle grade and young adult, from a diverse group of new and established writers that will appeal to all the platforms across the Disney company for a global audience. The projects will reflect Melissa’s humor and taste and range from adventure, romance and fantasy to contemporary stories.
Melissa de la Cruz is the co-director of YALLFEST (Charleston, SC) and the co-founder of YALLWEST (Santa Monica, CA), the two largest and most vibrant young adult book festivals in the country, attracting more than 30,000 readers every year.
Melissa de la Cruz grew up in Manila and moved to San Francisco with her family, where she graduated high school salutatorian from The Convent of the Sacred Heart. At Columbia University, she majored in art history and English. She lives in West Hollywood with her husband and daughter.
Author Links
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First of all, a big thank you to Melissa for taking time and answering my questions. I was already intrigued about this book, but even more so now. It’s great learning about what inspired a story.
