I’m delighted to have Liselle Sambury over on the blog today to talk about her forthcoming debut novel, Blood Like Magic!
About the Book
Blood Like Magic by Liselle SamburySeries: Blood Like Magic
Published by Margaret K. McElderry on June 15, 2021
Genres: Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Pages: 496
Format: Hardcover
After years of waiting for her Calling—a trial every witch must pass in order to come into their powers—the one thing Voya Thomas didn’t expect was to fail. When Voya’s ancestor gives her an unprecedented second chance to complete her Calling, she agrees—and then is horrified when her task is to kill her first love. And this time, failure means every Thomas witch will be stripped of their magic.
Voya is determined to save her family’s magic no matter the cost. The problem is, Voya has never been in love, so for her to succeed, she’ll first have to find the perfect guy—and fast. Fortunately, a genetic matchmaking program has just hit the market. Her plan is to join the program, fall in love, and complete her task before the deadline. What she doesn’t count on is being paired with the infuriating Luc—how can she fall in love with a guy who seemingly wants nothing to do with her?
With mounting pressure from her family, Voya is caught between her morality and her duty to her bloodline. If she wants to save their heritage and Luc, she’ll have to find something her ancestor wants more than blood. And in witchcraft, blood is everything.
Interview
Tell us a little about yourself and your journey to publication.
Hello! I’m Liselle Sambury and I’m a Trinidadian-Canadian author. I was raised in Toronto and started writing when I was sixteen, encouraged a lot by my high school writing club. I dabbled in adult literary short fiction during my university years, but in the end, decided to return to young adult fantasy and sci-fi which has always been my first love. I wrote two books before Blood Like Magic which I had tried to get published without success. Ultimately, I’m really happy that this is my debut novel.
Who are some of the authors that inspired you during your writing journey?
I was really inspired by seeing other Black women succeed within publishing and putting out books that highlighted those characters. It showed me that there was space for the sorts of books that I wanted to write which was really helpful. Dhonielle Clayton was one of these authors because The Belles was the fantasy starring a Black girl that I wish I had growing up. I was also inspired by the vast worlds that authors like Leigh Bardugo and Suzanne Collins created, even as someone who hasn’t yet explored high fantasy much.
If you could spend a day with a character from Blood Like Magic, who would it be and what would you do?
I would probably spend the day with Voya because then we could just bake or try out a bunch of fun restaurants. We share a lot of food-related interests. This is assuming that she forgives me for all the mean things I do to her in the book. But I think she’s a more forgiving person than most, so I think that it would work out.
What were some of the ideas you had in mind when you started writing Blood Like Magic? How has it changed or stayed the same?
I always had that opening image of a girl lounging in a bath of blood, and that opening has pretty much stayed the same through all the iterations of the novel. I also started with the idea that you needed to spill blood to use magic or otherwise could use a gift without any blood. The details of that magic system changed quite a bit because I had to keep adapting it such that it made sense within the world. A lot of what changed in the book from the start to the end was how the genetic matchmaking system worked. I rewrote half of the book twice trying to get that bit right. At first, Voya and Luc were forced to go on dates, then there weren’t enough dates, so I added more, then I scrapped the dates altogether and Voya ends up just actively pursuing him.
What life experiences or historical research did you draw from while writing Blood Like Magic?
Definitely I put in a lot of my experiences growing up in a Trinidadian-Canadian household into the book through all the Caribbean food that’s brought up in the novel and more. I also incorporated quite a bit of Toronto landmarks and the Caribana festival that happens annually. My family was also blended and had eight members living in the same house at the same time. In terms of historical research, I looked into both the history of slavery in Canada and my own family’s history as slaves and immigration paths. I ended up creating a unique history for Voya’s family and the other Black witches out of mostly historical things I learned, but I found it really helped me connect to the themes of ancestry to know more about my own.
I love the strong family focus in Blood Like Magic. Could you tell us a little about Voya’s family and how they came to be?
When I created Voya’s family, it was with my family in mind. Though I will make very clear that none of the characters in the book are representations of specific family members. I grew up in Toronto in one house where I lived with my mom, grandpa, my step-grandma and her brother and nieces and nephews. So, like Voya, I was surrounded by cousins, but they were a lot older than I was. But I had loved growing up in a house that felt full. That was the sort of energy that I wanted to bring to Voya’s household. I also generally love complicated family dynamics in stories and find that if you’re living with basically your entire family, things tend to get naturally complicated.
What did you enjoy most about writing Blood Like Magic? What did you find challenging?
I love working with the characters and how they interact with each other. Strong character development is my favourite part of any book and so unsurprisingly, it’s also really important to me in my writing. Especially in Blood Like Magic, there are so many family members and other characters to play with, so it’s especially fun even if that bit makes it hard sometimes. The most challenging part for me was my worldbuilding. I didn’t start with a great foundation for it, so I had to keep changing and adapting a lot of it in every edit. I’m also a person who doesn’t love explaining things which made it even harder for me because I would wish that I could just do something without question and shout “magic!”, but that’s not exactly how that works.
What are some trends in YA that you’re excited about? Any book recommendations?
I’m so excited about the horror and horror mashups that are emerging in young adult, especially from Black authors. I cannot wait for Tiffany D. Jackson’s White Smoke, Ryan Douglass’s The Taking of Jake Livingston, and Bethany C. Morrow’s Cherish Farrah. As for horror YA recommendations, I loved Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare. It’s a super fun slasher with killer clowns.
What are you working on right now?
Right now, I’m taking a little break after doing Blood Like Magic sequel edits but once it’s done I’m hoping to go back to working on the adult horror I drafted in April. It’s a bit of a departure from my young adult work, and to be honest I kind of hated it when I finished, but I’m excited about my new ideas for revision and making it something I love just as much as my other books.
What’s a question that I didn’t ask that you’d like to answer?
You got everything covered! Thank you so much for having me!
Thank you for joining us on the blog, Liselle!
Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight says
I LOVED the book, and am so excited for the sequels, and really whatever Liselle writes next! I am so very happy for her! Thanks for sharing this awesome interview!
Crystal says
Same! I can’t wait to read Blood Like Magic 2 and everything else Liselle writes! 🙂
Amber Elise @ Du Livre says
I read this book and really enjoyed it! I’m really curious about this sequel…
Crystal says
It’s so good! I can’t wait to read the sequel! 🙂
Natalie Aguirre says
Congrats to Liselle on her debut book. Her story sounds unique. Sometimes I struggle in creating my world building too. Can’t wait to read her book. Natalie @ Literary Rambles
Crystal says
I love Blood Like Magic. I hope that you enjoy it!