Reader Talk: The Thief by Aine Crabtree

A few months ago I (Tyler Anne) had the pleasure of meeting a young woman named Aine Crabtree. She was in the edits stage of her debut novel called The Thief.

I have been lucky enough to be able to read the book and fall in love with its story and characters. This post is a spotlight on the upcoming book and its wonderful author!

The Thief will be available as an e-book for Kindle, Nook, and other platforms on June 30, 2013.

Genre 

YA urban fantasy

Approx. page length 
400 

Blurb 
Once upon a time, two girls from opposite corners of the globe collide in a deceptively sleepy town in the deep south. Their unlikely friendship becomes the catalyst that unravels Havenwood's most closely guarded secrets, and will change their lives forever.

Jul Graham doesn't know what to expect when she's sent to live with her grandmother after her father's abrupt disappearance, but it certainly isn't a private school full of foreign students and a magic mirror in her backyard. Her new best friend is a blonde girl who speaks Japanese, and all of the adults - including her grandmother - treat Jul like she's some sort of time bomb. On top of that, she's a subject of interest to her new classmates, who don't seem entirely normal themselves. What is Havenwood hiding?

Reviews
In Aine Crabtree's "The Thief", three students from three different worlds come together in an elaborate private school in the rural Southern United States. Jul is a beautiful, timid girl from New York, Camille is a mysterious orphan from Tokyo, raised by an even more mysterious guardian, and Mac is a mischievously outgoing but charmingly naive boy living in the town he grew up in.
 When mysterious circumstances begin occurring, these students' worlds begin to collide. What begins as an attempt to solve the disappearances of some trivial items soon leads to the teens' unraveling of secrets within the school, and its history that connect them to each other and to centuries-old conflicts spanning across the world - and perhaps even beyond. 
Crabtree's multiple-narrator perspective allows the reader to sympathize with all of her characters, and the exciting nature will keep you turning the pages voraciously.
--Sam Neely

The debut novel in Aine Crabtree’s Archetype series is an exciting beginning to what will surely be an epic adventure! The more you read, the more intrigued you will become, and you will thoroughly enjoy this story as it unfolds layers of legend that continue to cause stirrings in the modern world. Despite some of their more supernatural tendencies, these characters feel real and you will cheer for them, laugh with them, and cry for them as the world they thought they knew begins to reveal itself and they are pushed ever closer to the truth.
--Meg Lawson

My Review
Throughout the past ten years or so I have read countless YA series. Ones that follow only one main character to series like Crabtree’s that follow multiple. I have to say, normally I shy away from more than one narrator in a story but “The Thief” threw me for a loop. Each of her characters had a special something that hooked me. I was intrigued from the get-go by Jul’s quiet nature, Camille’s rebellious tendencies, and, of course, Mac’s good heart and humor. Not to mention my crush over Rhys and sweet love for quiet Destin kept me happily reading. The story could have been worthless and I’d still read it—I’d follow Crabtree’s characters anywhere. They are just that relatable and likeable. Luckily, however, the story was a grand adventure that I had a blast reading. I can’t wait until the second book in the series comes out! And the third, and the fourth, and so on!

A Mini Interview with Aine Crabtree
What was the biggest inspiration for writing The Thief? 

This didn’t consciously hit me for a long time, but the more I put the series together the more I realize the X-Men have been a major source of inspiration. I was a huge fan of the cartoon that ran in the 90s, and I’ve noticed a lot of similar themes cropping up. It was probably the first thing I came in contact with as a kid that embedded the idea of ensemble casts in my head. Bleach, The Venture Brothers, A Song of Ice and Fire, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and The Last Airbender (the animated series) are also high up on the list of things that have lent me their strength. I could go on ad nauseum, probably.

What was your favorite part of The Thief?
Probably the scene in the cafeteria where Jul is trying to avoid Rhys and inadvertently assembles all three narrators at one lunch table. There’s just so much going on in that one little section. All three of them have completely different things going on, and as the reader you’re aware of what Jul and Mac are probably thinking even though the scene is from Camille’s perspective. I’m just very pleased with the way that particular bit turned out.

Who is your favorite character and why?
I’m a little split here. Mac is made of magic writer fuel. Many times when I’ve been stuck, I’ve been able to switch to a Mac chapter and still forge forward. No matter how dire things get, Mac is always there to put things in perspective and make me laugh. If writers were witches, Mac would be my familiar.

Now if we’re talking about who I’d love the most if I were reading this series…that would have to be Kei. I really love Kei. He has this wonderful capacity for pissing off every other character in some way or other.

In three words describe your book.
Mirrored, woven, broken.

Links
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Blog - Twitter - Book Site

Aine Crabtree is the creator / earth mother goddess of an alternate universe, where the good are sacrificed upon the Altar of Cliffhangers and the wicked flourish to prolong the dramatic tension. She lives in Huntsville, AL with Spike, the world’s cutest kitten, plotting her escape to somewhere less humid. She is still waiting to be recruited by the X-Men. 

The Thief is her first novel. 

Tv Inspiration + Lost: Multiple POVs

TV Inspiration is a Summer blogging series that the Annes came up with to help spread inspiring content based on two popular TV series. Holli Anne's series is Parks and Recreation. Her Intro post can be found here. Tyler Anne's series is Lost. Her Intro post can be found here. 
This post is Tyler Anne's Tv Inspiration. 

When I think of multiple POVs in writing or reading, I think of Lost and its use of a very large ensemble cast. Sure, Jack is arguably the main main character but you also bounce around to more than a handful of other characters. This was a big reason why I was hooked by the first few of episodes.

You have a plane crash and multiple survivors. The hope of rescue is pretty slim to none. Then during the pilot you start to meet these random individuals aside from Jack. I have to admit the first two episodes (technically the Pilot) I started stereotyping everyone.

Kate was just another pretty face.
Sawyer was just another dumb redneck.
Charlie was a just another musician with a drug problem.
Jin was just another overbearing jackass of a husband.
Sun was just another passive and abused wife.
Shannon was just another stuck up rich girl.
Michael was just another struggling dad trying to connect with his son.
Locke was just another creepy old man with a lot of knives.
Jack was just another hero.

These are some of the characters you follow throughout the show--whether following them around the Island or watching some of their flashbacks. The stereotypes you put the characters in start crumbling as you progress through each one of their stories. Some fall away quickly, others take time to undo. For example, by episode two you get to see some of Kate's backstory and realize that she's not your average Jane. However, you definitely don't have her pegged down completely either.

What is the point I'm trying to make?
One of the wonderful reasons I love Lost is because I get to experience it through multiple POVs. By following these different narrators I'm able to appreciate their development and the story more.

Now, let's talk about...

Multiple Points of View in Writing & Books
I have to admit that up until a few years ago I was a one-character type of girl. Whether it was first person or third, I was content with only following one person around the story. Sure, I had read a few books that had more than one person that told the story but the authors had lost my interest with some very common multiple POV snafus. Now, I'm more open to the tactic and even have become fond of certain books because of it.

Common Multiple POV Mistakes
One book I read a while back was written in two parts--one was from the POV of a boy, the other from a girl. The author chose to have two POVs because the characters were on the opposing sides of a political and religious battle. Having two different perspectives throughout the book was a smart choice because it helped enrich the overall story. However, when the narrators were in the same scene the author showed us each perspective every single time. I understand that this technique can work to further the character's development but sometimes readers don't necessarily have to be in the same room twice to understand what happened and what was seen and felt.

Another reason I have disliked the multiple POV style is lousy transitions from one person to the next. I've read books that break POV shifts into different chapters or marked off sections and I've read books that simply pick up during the next paragraph. This is the easiest way to lose me as a reader. You've chosen to have multiple narrators and that's fine but please make sure your transitions are clear and keep the readers from mass confusion. If we are reading Becky's thoughts about Jeff in one paragraph and then suddenly we're in Michael's head thinking about how he wishes he could still play football, chances are we will get annoyed as readers.

The last multiple POV ick that I've come across is switching to a narrator for no reason at all. Sure, I'm a fan of Becky but don't take me out of Michael's intense fight aftermath to only plop me down into her life while she does her mundane routines. Make sure you put me there for a reason and not just because you wanted some filler. I didn't buy your book for filler. I bought it for a good story. If you aren't furthering the character or overall plot, then don't make me read about Becky brushing her teeth.

I've recently found a writing blog that's extremely helpful and well-written. It's called The Other Side of the Story and it's by Janice Hardy. If you're an established author, an aspiring writer, or somewhere in between I suggest you check it out. She has many posts about POVs that can be found here.

Thoughts on Multiple POVs
I decided to ask the members of our Writer Talk group on Facebook (if you want to join go here) about their thoughts on one narrator per story versus multiple narrators. Here's some good points they made on the subject.

Aine Crabtree, a soon-to-be published author of The Thief, praised multiple POVs.

"As someone whose book is from multiple POVs...very much prefer it that way. I tend to get tired of one voice over a long enough time, and I get curious about what's going on in the heads of other characters. Inevitably I feel like I'm missing out on a lot of levels of the story if I'm restricted to one character's head."

Eli Carnley, another writer from the group, agreed.

"I'm starting to prefer or at least enjoy stories with multiple perspectives. My current project is first person from one character's perspective and I'm finding the constraints to be more than I'd originally bargained for."

My personal thoughts on the matter have started to change recently. I love following the one person through a journey and, just like real life, never knowing everything that goes on with the other characters and some parts of the story. However, reading stories like The Thief (you'll be able to read it soon too!) has made me reevaluate my earlier nose-wrinkling at them. I guess, to me, it all boils down to the quality of the characters you have. If they are good then I won't mind being passed around between them.

Pros & Cons
I feel like I'm almost bashing the idea of having multiple narrators in this post but I really am not. This is, as a writer, one of the first things you have to figure out before starting to write your book. Will you have just one POV or multiple? I've wrestled with the idea many times and created the following pros and con list to help.

Pro

• You can add more interest, story, and character development by having more than one narrator.
• You avoid being monotonous if you aren't stuck with the same person for the duration of the story.
• You can explore and control larger settings and situations.
• When the story starts to lag, switching to another narrator can keep the readers entertained.

Con

• You can lose reader interest if you have too many narrators with weak transitions.
• You have to make sure each character is solid so the reader will follow them.
• You may lose a more involved intimacy with your characters that you might have if there was only one. Typically, readers invest a lot in one character. With multiple POVs this could be harder for them.
• You can lose the tension you've spent building up by switching to another narrator. 

Now, there are more of both, but for brevity's sake (because this is already a pretty big post!) I only listed the pros and cons that stick out in my mind. I guess, for me, it all just depends on the story and what I want to accomplish with it on whether or not I break out multiple POVs.

Which do you prefer?

-Tyler Anne (aka Chick Tyler)