Debs Blog Tour: Shadowed Summer by Saundra Mitchell

Hey Y'all! First, thanks so much to everyone who has entered the giveaway for a signed/personalized copy of The Forest of Hands and Teeth! I'm super excited about all the comments!! Keep those entries coming and I'll choose winners tonight!

Today's guest on the Debs Blog Tour is someone y'all know from recent posts: Saundra Mitchell! For those of you unfamiliar with Saundra and her amazing debut, SHADOWED SUMMER, here are the deets:

About the Book:


Nothing ever happened in Ondine, Louisiana, not even the summer Elijah Landry disappeared. His mother knew he ascended to heaven, the police believed he ran away, and his girlfriend thought he was murdered.

Decades later, certain she saw his ghost in the town cemetery, fourteen-year-old Iris Rhame is determined to find out the truth behind "The Incident With the Landry Boy."

Enlisting the help of her best friend Collette, and forced to endure the company of Collette's latest crush, Ben, Iris spends a summer digging into the past and stirring old ghosts, in search of a boy she never knew.

What she doesn't realize is that in a town as small as Ondine, every secret is a family secret.


About the author:

A screenwriter and author, Saundra Mitchell penned the screenplays for the Fresh Films and Girls in the Director's Chair short film series. Her short story "Ready to Wear" was nominated for a Pushcart Prize, and her first feature film, Revenge Ends, debuted on the festival circuit in 2008. In her free time, she enjoys ghost hunting, papermaking, and spending time with her husband and her two children.

The interview:

What's been one of the most exciting moments in your journey to publication?



My very first signing has definitely been the highlight. Everything has been amazing, but the signing was two straight hours of surreal pleasure. I've never had a party before so it was a first in a lot of ways!

Is there anything you can't write without?

At the most essential level, my computer. If I had to write longhand, I could write the great American novel and no one- including me!- would be able to read it!

When stuck on a story which do you choose: write make-out scene or explode something?

Explode something, always explode something. Sarah Rees Brennan says I'm doing it wrong, but I like the pyrotechnics.

Can you share a favorite line you've written either in this book or a WIP?

"Wind kissed my ear, cool and soft, and I heard a voice. It sounded like clover tastes, green and new and sweet."

Finally: pro fast zombie or anti fast zombies?

I like the way you do them; I won't say anything else because I don't want to spoil your book.