Today is my stop on the tour for The Crack at the Heart of Everything hosted by TBR and Beyond Tours. I had the honor of interviewing Fiona Fenn and I have to say she really took her time with these questions. So keep on reading more to find out about this book and what I talked about with Fiona!
The Crack at the Heart of Everything by Fiona Fenn
Genre: Adult Fantasy Romance
Publishing Date: November 12, 2024
He accidentally cursed himself…
When the consequences get him exiled to the land he helped terrorize, can this evil wizard find redemption… and love?
Orpheus can’t believe it’s come to this. After helping his childhood friend conquer the realm by raising an army of hell-beasts, the befuddled dark sorcerer finds himself banished when the price of his magic endangers the palace. Isolated and betrayed, the feared spellcaster isn’t exactly thrilled when his irritating and handsome rival keeps stepping between him and certain doom.
Ill at ease in the barren wasteland his powers created, Orpheus slowly warms to the charismatic ex-general’s relentless overtures. But as his feelings grow more intense, the former villain struggles with an inconvenient calling towards heroism.
Will dabbling in good deeds get him killed or open the doors to happily ever after?
The Crack at the Heart of Everything is the charmingly swoon-worthy first book in an epic LGBTQ+ fantasy series. If you like character-driven stories, snarky humor, and well-earned redemption arcs, then you’ll adore Fiona Fenn’s unexpected hero’s journey.
Content Warning: Mentions of childhood abuse (non-sexual in nature, non-graphic), mentions of childhood food scarcity, and death of an animal (non-graphic)
Book Links
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Author Interview
What inspired you to write The Crack at the Heart of Everything?
The character dynamic between Orpheus and Fenrir 🙂 I wanted to write about a surface-level pathetic wizard falling for a himbo white night, and then both of them defying the expectations set upon them. Orpheus became the focus from the start. I have a thing for villains and the more pathetic the better. I always end up simping for the cranky lonely grump who has driven everyone who might love them away because they believe themselves unworthy of goodness or just feel like the world isn’t worth it because they’ve been betrayed by it all their lives. Oh my gosh, is that too specific? Give me that character and I will be their biggest fan. I can’t find enough of them in modern media to fuel my obsession so now I’ve devolved to writing them myself, hah!
What has been the favorite part of your publishing journey so far?
Seeing my cover for the first time! Honestly, publishing this book has been one of the most difficult experiences of my life. I was very naive going into the experience regarding how brutal the constant rejection would be. I am lucky that I was querying the kind of book publishers were actively looking for, but if I’d chosen to write my Climate-punk Sci-fi space opera idea first, I wouldn’t be answering these interview questions right now! But signing the deal with Tiny Fox and then seeing the first draft of my cover a couple months later really set in stone how this was real, this was my book, and within a year it was going to be in people’s hands. That was absolutely the highlight of the experience for me.
If you were a character in The Crack at the Heart of Everything , what kind of character would you be?
Who would I be? Orpheus is literally a part of me. Every character is to a certain extent, but he and I share very similar flaws and strengths, and being a wizard would be undeniably fun. If I could CHOOSE who I wanted to be. Probably Lore. I’d do a better job of ruling an Empire, for sure. But getting to ride around a skeleton warlord while the world bows at my feet just seems too good to pass by!
Describe The Crack at the Heart of Everything in five words or less.
Cat dunked in a bathtub he filled himself – which is eight words but release is in a week and my brain is pudding right now, haha.
What is your favorite quote from The Crack at the Heart of Everything?
“You had to go and show me a world worth living for,” Orpheus hissed, tears choking his throat—pain strangling his heart, “and then make it impossible for me to give up.”
What do you hope readers take away from your story?
That no one is too broken to be saved.
Could you give us 5 random facts about The Crack at the Heart of Everything (think the story, writing, publishing, anything that comes to mind)?
TCATHOE’s original draft was written in 3 months. Edits happened over 2. Began querying at the 6 month mark since putting down the first word.
Tiny Fox requested my full manuscript within an hour of submitting my query and had an offer for me within 3 weeks of that. When “it” happened, it happened lightning fast!
I dream about returning to my Pennsylvania countryside roots and that had a huge impact on the story.
I’ve been writing fanfic for over 20 years and that absolutely impacted how and why I write TCATHOE.
I cut a very spicy scene from TCATHOE’s final MS and if anyone wants it you should sign up for my newsletter 🙂
Tour Schedule
If you’re curious about this book after the interview with Fiona, click here for the full tour schedule. Other amazing bloggers and bookstagrammers are also talking about this book throughout the week.
About the Author
Fiona Fenn is an author of fantasy novels that put complicated “heroes” front and center. A fan of villains, redemption arcs, and intense explorations of healing in all its forms, her debut novel, The Crack at the Heart of Everything, is a love letter to every villain who could have done better but never got the chance.
Author Links
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I want to say a big thank you to Fiona for such amazing interview answers. After reading her answers and the synopsis, I have to say I’ll be giving The Crack at the Heart of Everything a try soon.
