Guest Post - Piper from Solstice by P.J. Hoover

GUEST POST

PIPER FROM SOLSTICE

BY P.J. HOOVER

This heat wave has been unbearable, but it doesn’t come close to the heat in P.J. Hoover’s Solstice. With all these days over 100 degrees in Texas, it is the perfect time for me to interview Piper, the main character in Solstice. I couldn’t wait to ask her about her overheated life. Oh, and I had to get the scoop on the not-so-nice Melina in Piper’s world.

Wow! There is another Melina in the world. I have no doubt you are way nicer than the Melina in my world. She reminds me of devil spawn, but I’ll get to that later. Anyway, thank you so much for asking me to visit your blog! It’s so nice to escape the heat of my world and hang out with your readers!

When it comes to Shayne and Reese, who is the more romantic?
Romantic? That’s easy. Shayne is all about the romance. He’s the kind of guy who knows my favorite color and number, and remembers the first song we ever heard together. Reese would never remember those kind of details, but sometimes I think it’s because he’s so intense. He focuses on one thing at a time, but that one thing gets every bit of his attention. And when he sets his mind to something, he never gives up.


Is there a plant you are especially proud of growing?
As much as I love all plants and as much as I love flowers, you might think it’s something like the calla lily or a daisy or roses. But flowers for me are really easy, and so I don’t take extra pride in them. The plants I’m the most proud of growing are carnivorous plants. I know it sounds really weird, but it’s sort of a hobby of mine. They’re really temperamental and need super specific growing conditions to thrive. So next time you see a Venus Flytrap, think of me.

How do you occupy yourself when you are in the underworld?
Shayne wasn’t kidding when he told me what a huge responsibility the Underworld is. When I’m not judging souls for entry into one of the three lands, I’m trying to solve border disputes between Minos and Aeacus, or making sure boundaries are secure. It’s endless work. But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love it. I thrive on the justice I deliver. And fine, I do spend some time in the Elysian Fields hanging with Chloe. And of course, Shayne and I have this perfect little getaway off on the Island of the Blessed. Sure, it’s location is secret. And no, I won’t tell you where it is.


What is the most overprotective thing your mom ever did to you?
You mean besides burning me to ash and hiding me away for eighteen years? Wow, the list is endless. As a teen with an overprotective mom, everything feels like the worst. But I think some of the simplest things are the ones that registered the most for me. Things like wanting to pick out my clothes for school every day. Or insisting on visiting me in high school for lunch. As for the bizarre, I have plenty of those, too, but the one that freaks me out the most even when I think about it now is when I woke up in the middle of the night and found my mom staring at me. Not just one night, but every night for a month. It was the first month I went to public school. I don’t know what she was trying to do. Maybe see into my dreams or something. But I pretended like I didn’t notice, and pretty soon she stopped.

Spill the 411 on Melina.
Oh, Melina. That girl makes my fire of anger flare. Here’s what I’ve learned about Melina. She is out for one person and one person only. She may preach all this stuff about love and beauty, but the entire reason she even cares about that stuff is because it helps her become more beautiful and makes people fall in love with her. Here’s my advice on Melina. Keep your distance. Don’t look at her and don’t start talking to her. Remember, I warned you.
(And for the record, I know you are a nice Melina and very unlike the Melina in my world.)

Thanks again for letting me chat with you! It’s been so much fun! And thank you for reading about my world 



P. J. Hoover first fell in love with Greek mythology in sixth grade thanks to the book Mythology by Edith Hamilton. After a fifteen year bout as an electrical engineer designing computer chips for a living, P. J. decided to take her own stab at mythology and started writing books for kids and teens. P. J. is also a member of THE TEXAS SWEETHEARTS & SCOUNDRELS. When not writing, P. J. spends time with her husband and two kids and enjoys practicing Kung Fu, solving Rubik's cubes, and watching Star Trek. Her first novel for teens, Solstice, takes place in a Global Warming future and explores the parallel world of mythology beside our own. Her middle grade fantasy novels, The Emerald Tablet, The Navel of the World, and The Necropolis, chronicle the adventures of a boy who discovers he’s part of two feuding worlds hidden beneath the sea.