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  • ARC Review: Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia
  • ARC Review: The Secrets We Keep by Trisha Leaver
  • Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
  • Review: Karmic Hearts by Jhing Bautista
  • Review: The Conspiration of the Universe by Kenneth Olanday

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Interview with Teri Terry + Slated ARC Giveaway!

And DD2 continues! Now we are featuring an awesome book that I am pretty sure you all are so excited about. I am too!


We are dishing out some juicy info about Slated, so sit tight! Please welcome Teri Terry to our blog!

Follow Terry: Website | Twitter | Facebook

Teri has lived in France, Canada, Australia and England at more addresses than she can count, acquiring three degrees, a selection of passports and a silly name along
the way. The footpaths and canal ways of the Buckinghamshire Chilterns where she now lives inspired much of the setting of Slated. She hates broccoli, likes cats, and has finally worked out what she wants to do when she grows up.

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Your biggest inspiration in writing Slated?

Oh, go on, start with the toughest question first!

Though, when I think about it, writing a story about someone who doesn’t know who they are or where they come from was a natural place for me to go. We moved constantly when I was growing up, and I carried on dashing about the globe when I left home: always trying new things and new places. I think the sense of dislocation I’ve always felt, of not really belonging anywhere, comes out in Kyla.

What do you think is the perfect quote (from Slated) that can describe the book as a whole?

But how can I know who I am now, if I don’t know who I was?
(Kyla to Ben, chapter 23).

I think this encapsulates Kyla’s growing realization of what has been done to her, and the cost of it. Her search for - and fear of - who she was, are central to her story.

What's the future like in Slated? How different is it from the present?

Slated is set in a near future. Decades before it begins, in the 2020’s and 30’s, the UK closed borders and become isolationist after collapse of the EU. Student riots, gangs and terrorists were brutally quashed by a Law and Order Government. But the Lorders had to compromise in a coalition, to give underage criminals and terrorists a second chance and a new life: Slating.

Kyla’s story begins in 2054 England. Mobile phones are illegal to under 21s, there are only 3 channels on TV and unauthorized public assembly is forbidden. Computers and internet use are closely monitored. Teens still live with their parents, go to school, have friends. But they are watched; their lives are controlled. This true for all but particularly so for Slateds like Kyla.

Would you like to be "Slated"?

Definitely not!

Yet…there is a certain attraction to the idea of being able to start over, to have a second chance. Everyone, I’m sure, has moments they wish they could take back, events they’d rather forget than relive in their minds. Decisions they’d like to reverse. Yet you lose everything; it isn’t selective. I’ve never been in a dark enough place to want that.

What are the themes tackled in your novel?

Identity is a big one. Also learning to listen to yourself, to your instincts. Understanding that people are complicated: most of us are good and bad, not just one or the other. And no matter how hopeless things seem or how stacked against you, you still have a voice: you can’t stand by and be quiet when things are wrong.

Who's the character that is the hardest to write? The one you enjoyed writing the most? Do you have a favorite character?
Did you ever base Kyla (or any of your characters) on a real person(s)?


Kyla was my favorite character to write. She is strong, deceptively so, even though she doesn’t always know it. She was also tricky to write in some respects, because she does have different sides. Hidden sides. Especially in the sequel which I’ve just finished writing, but you’ll have to wait until 2013 for that one!

None of my characters are based on real people: they live entirely in my head. They have loud arguments there if I don’t pay enough attention to what they want.

Can you give us one line from your novel that you find important, striking or unforgettable?

I’d like to pick the last two lines of Slated: they are given as two sentences, though they need to be read together. But I can’t possibly quote that here, it would be too much of a spoiler!

Another that really sticks in my mind is the last line of chapter 1: ‘Failure is not an option.

Imagine being in a position where you can’t make mistakes, where any wrong move could be your last…

Tell us one thing that people do not know about Slated. (A random fact, a weird habit you have developed, etc.)

The prologue was a dream: honest! As soon as I woke up I grabbed a pen and notebook I keep by the side of the bed for these moments, and scribbled it down. It came from some unknown and dark place in my subconscious: the panic, the running. What was this girl running from? Why was someone shouting to never forget who she is? What is the wall she puts up?

It took me a long time to decide if I wanted to go to this strange, dark world, and what would happen there if I did. But eventually I couldn’t stop myself. The voices in my head wouldn’t shut up.

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And have you seen how the cover of Slated became what it was? (A captivating, haunting cover befitting such an intriguing book?) Check out the post at Notes from the Slushpile.

Slated by Teri Terry
Add Slated to your Goodreads list!

Kyla's memory has been erased, her personality wiped blank, her memories lost forever.

She's been Slated.

The government claims she was a terrorist, and that they are giving her a second chance – as long as she plays by their rules. But echoes of the past whisper in Kyla's mind. Someone is lying to her, and nothing is as it seems. Who can she trust in her search for the truth?

Orchard Books, May 2012

GIVEAWAY TIME! 
WIN AN ARC OF SLATED BY TERI TERRY!

The lovely folks over at Hachette UK has given us an ARC to giveaway! You can read Slated 3 months before it's release! This is your chance! And yes, this is OPEN INTERNATIONALLY.

Fill out the form below and the very same question I asked Teri:

Would you like to be Slated? Why or why not? (If you don't know what Slated means, it's a process of wiping out someone's memory and giving that person an entire different identity.)


a Rafflecopter giveaway



61 comments:

  1. I'm not sure if I'd want to be Slated. Obviously, it sounds horrible, but the idea of being an entirely different person isn't unappealing.

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  2. As tempting as it sounds, I wouldn't want to be Slated. I mean, even if my life sucks at times, well...life is tough! And overall I'm happy to be who I am..soo...I wouldn't want another identity nor have my precious memories erased!

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  3. Hmmm, I don't think I'd want to be Slated as appealing as it may sound sometimes. Not that my life is perfect, but I don't want my memories gone and all.

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  4. I wouldn't mind getting a second chance. But I wouldn't want to leave my fiance and cats, so no I wouldn't be slated.

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  5. Memories are what makes us who and what we are so NO I definitely would not like to be slated.

    Thanks for the giveaway.

    Carol T

    buddytho {at} gmail DOT com

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  6. God, no! I'd absolutely HATE not being able to remember anything, or know if what im beng told is a lie, or if the guy sitting next to me might have been my boyfriend, or how to eat with chopsticks! Lol.

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  7. As tempting as it may be in some regards, ultimately I'd say NO! After all our lives and all that happens in it, all that we think and so makes our personality and if I were slated I'd cease to exist as a person.

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  8. There is no way I would want to be slated. All my memories make me who I am.

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  9. I don't think I would want to be slated. I love who I am and what I have. It would take a horrible thing happing to change that!

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  10. Definatly not- I'm me and, although my life is far from perfect, I am the way I am.

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  11. I don't think so. I like my life and memories :) And "those echoes from the past" thing sounds terrifying.

    Thanks for the giveaway!

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  12. Actually, I think I might. There is a lot I'd like to forget, and getting a fresh start--a second chance with a clean slate--sounds uber appealing right about now.

    Thanks for the giveaway!

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  13. I wouldn't like it. I don't have such bad memories and I don't want to forget my family and friends. I would like it only if my life was really miserable. Thank you for this great chance!!! :D

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  14. I think Slated sounds really good! It reminds me of a YA Bourne Identity with a strong female lead. I would love to read it, thanks for the giveaway :)

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  15. I wouldn't want to be slated, thank you very much! Can't think of anything more disorienting than not knowing who you are and starting from the blank canvas...

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  16. I wouldn't want to be slated. I like my life the way it is. I love my husband, family and friends!

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  17. No I wouldn't want to be slated. My character is very dear to me. I couldn't stand losing myself. I wouldn't be the same again.

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  18. AND I couldn't stand losing my husband.

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  19. I say no, but as Teri says the idea is attractive, to be able to start over to forget your mistakes, to have a second chance... but you'll lose EVERYTHING! You can't choose what memories remain or the ones you want to forget, everything is wiped out of your mind. So, no, thank you! Your life is made by the decisions you take even if they are wrong, that way you learn! Thanks for the giveaway! I really want to win this!! :) Fingers crossed!

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  20. No way! No matter how bad my memories are, there's no way I want to be slated.

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  21. No, I would never want to be slated. Memories are what make us who we are. Unless some terrible tragedies have happened to my life and made me too heartbroken to live, I would never want to be slated.

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  22. No, absolutly not! My memory is what make me who I am, I learned from them. Even the bad one is needed, so I wouldn't repeat same mistake in the future.

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  23. I don't think I would like to lose ALL of who I am. Too scary to think about.

    marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com

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  24. I would never like to be slated. The personality and the memory make us unique. Thus, I wouldn't agree to that.

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  25. Thanks for the interview and giveaway! I would never want to be slated - my memories are some of my most important possessions.

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  26. I don't think I'd like to be slated. Like Teri says you lose everything. No thanks.

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  27. Hmm, I both would want that, and not. It would be easy to start life all over again :) but then, it wouldn't be so nice either.
    Thank you for this awesome giveaway. <3 This seems like an amazing book :D
    Love, Carina

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  28. God no. I've had a great life so far, and even though some things have been hard, like loosing my dad a few weeks ago, there's nothing I would want to forget.
    My memories are what makes me, well, me.

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  29. Nope! Even though it's tempting to get rid of the bad memories they are a part of who i am and i wouldn't change that. You need to remember the bad so you don't do it again too!

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  30. I wouldn't want to be Slated because even though I've had LOTS of tough times in my life, I've had lots of good times too, and I really wouldn't want to ever forget some of those. Some people are gone from my life but I still want to remember them, and that wouldn't be possible if I was Slated :D

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  31. I would. Every fresh start I had I would appreciate.

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  32. Nope! I find the idea quite terrifying!

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  33. In theory, I'd like to be Slated. But in practice, when I'd have to choose between being Slated or not, I think I'd choose not. I cherish my memories and who I am, and starting all over again would be a bit harsh!

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  34. Of course not! I don't want to be slated! Not knowing who you are must be the most horrifying feeling!

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  35. No. Forgetting everything meant no experiences, no memory and having no one(in theory)

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  36. No way, but I don't think I'd take the risk of doing anything to get me in that situation either.

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  37. Never! Our memories make us who we are. <3

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  38. I think no. I would not be stalled because it would mean not having a life, a story. I mean that had existed before, it was someone else, but now I have been "reset" to a new life that is not mine. It is confusing and while doentil stalled because how can someone give a new life? No, I would not want that happening to me. What am I want to be until I die is who I am.

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  39. No way, I love all of my memories, even the bad ones!

    the imagine tree at aol dot com

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  40. No I don't want to get slated even though I have bad memories I want to get rid off because my memories are one of my precious treasures.

    Thank you for this Awesome Giveaway!

    clarissa(dot)bulatao(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  41. As tempting as that would be sometimes, I would not want my memory replaced. The memories, good and bad, make me who I am today.

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  42. I'm not sure, some days would be a definite yes to being Slated and other days, a no.

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  43. I don't think, my memories are mine and I need all of them to grew up and learn from my mistakes :)

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  44. there are times i wish i could have something done like being slated, but i think for the most part i would't like losing everything.

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  45. Nope, the thought of losing everything I am and the memories that shaped me just seems so wrong.

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  46. Would I WANT to be Slated? To loose my memories and personality? It wouldn't be my first choice, no.

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  47. I wouldn't want to be slated, to have the life as I know it gone, no thanks.

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  48. I think that the idea of having a completely new start would be fascintating and although I would need to consider what I would be missing in my lovely life now - I would be excited to imagine what may also be out there for me!!

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  49. Awesome giveaway for a brilliant sounding book!!

    I don't think I would like to be Slated - I haven't got the perfect life, but what I have is mine and makes me the person I am

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  50. No, I don not want to be Slated. Memories are very important to a human being, especially if you want to preserve the memory of your love one that has past away. In that way they could live within you forever.
    Thank for the giveaway!

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  51. I woud't like to. Because this experiences make us who we are, even if they're bad.
    Of course there are so many thing i would like to forget, but I will be another person if I do, and I like how I am, So far.

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  52. Honestly, I would'nt want to be Slated. My memories are too precious, both the good and the bad ones.

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  53. I've had a difficult past with a lot of negative outcome, so I'm tempted to say "yes." I think I'd do it if it meant that my most trusted and loved would surround me and help me re-discover myself in the best ways---and to warn me against those who only have meant me harm.

    Thanks,
    Zara D. Garcia-Alvarez
    zgarcia(dot)alvarez(at)gmail(dot)com

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  54. No, I definitely would not like to be slated, pretty much for the exact reason Kyla states to Ben above - ‘But how can I know who I am now, if I don’t know who I was?’

    I agree with Teri and see the attraction of a new start...but everything I've seen, done, learned, all the mistakes I've made and will make...they're lessons and experiences to be a better me now and in the future. I can't imagine losing that.

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  55. I don't think I'd ever want to be slated. As much as there are moments that I'd love to be rid of, there are too many other important ones that I'd never want to forget.

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  56. I don't think I would like to be slated, even if there are things that I would love to forget..I think mistakes and bad things are here to help you improve, so you can't only have good memories or no memories at all!

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I love getting comments from my readers and fellow bookworms, and I try my best to respond to all of them. Feel free to give me a piece of your thoughts. Also, this is an award-free blog. I simply don't have the time to highlight them anymore, but thank you for thinking of my blog!

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