I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the Places We’ve Never Been Blog Tour hosted by TBR & Beyond Tours.
Check out my interview post below!
About the Book
Title: Places We’ve Never Been
Author: Kasie West
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Publishing date: May 31st, 2022
Synopsis:
A sweet and swoony contemporary Young Adult novel about a cross-country family road trip that puts one girl and her childhood best friend on an unexpected road to romance!
Norah hasn’t seen her childhood best friend, Skyler, in years. When he first moved away, they’d talk all the time, but lately their relationship has been reduced to liking each other’s Instagram posts. That’s why Norah can’t wait for the joint RV road trip their families have planned for the summer.
But when Skyler finally arrives, he seems…like he’d rather be anywhere else. Hurt and confused, Norah reacts in kind. Suddenly, her oldest friendship is on the rocks.
An unexpected summer spent driving across the country leads both Norah and Skyler down new roads and to new discoveries. Before long, they are, once again, seeing each other in a different light. Can their friendship-turned-rivalry turn into something more?
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Interview
Having published a number of books now, how has your writing process changed?
I’m much much more self-critical now. And I stress more about repeating myself. Sometimes I’ll write a scene and think, ‘Is this too similar to that one scene in P.S. or that one dialogue exchange in Sunkissed?’ I have to really strive to let all that go in the drafting process and worry about it in the editing process. Because drafting for me needs to be done with abandon. When I hit that magical place of writing like that, where the words flow and the story plays out like a movie in my head, that’s when I find my rhythm and magic. It’s much harder to get to that place these days. But eventually, I find it.
What was your favorite book to write?
Going along with that last question you asked, I think my very first contemporary (The Distance Between Us) was my favorite to write because one, I didn’t have to worry, like I mentioned above, about repeating myself or any of the elements being similar to past books. Two, I honestly wasn’t sure if it would ever get published. I had been writing speculative fiction before that and my secret passion was contemporary romance. I wasn’t sure I had what it took to write contemporary. It is a genre that is very character driven versus plot driven. I hadn’t tried that before. It felt like I was doing something just for me at the time and that was kind of fun. And, because, I fell in love with writing contemporary romance and readers were so kind to me, I kept going. I love writing it so much. But, that very first book had just a little extra bit of giddiness involved in the process that I think back on fondly.
If you could write any other genre (YA or Adult) what would it be?
I have written YA Science Fiction with the first books I published—Pivot Point and Split Second. I loved writing sci-fi. I loved the bigness of it. And the super powers. And the playing with time and choices. It made me happy. I could see myself writing in that genre again. I could also see myself writing adult romance. That’s one of my favorite genres to read and I’d love to try my hand at it some day. But for now, I’m loving YA contemporary romance. It’s my home and I love it here.
What other authors inspire you when it comes to your writing?
Sarah Dessen was always a huge inspiration to me. I also love Stephanie Perkins. Ana and the French Kiss is one of my very favorite contemporaries and I go back to that one time and again. I have also always been a huge fan of Jenny Han.
What are some of your recent book recs?
I’ve been reading a lot of adult romance lately so of course I’m a big fan of Emily Henry. In the YA world, my favorite read of the last year was XOXO by Axie Oh. That was so much fun.
Thank you so much for your time! I hope you enjoy reading PLACES WE’VE NEVER BEEN as much as I enjoyed writing it. And I hope it inspires you to take a trip (big or small) soon!
Author Bio
Kasie West is the author of many YA novels, including The Fill-in Boyfriend, P.S. I Like You, Lucky in Love, and Listen to Your Heart. Her books have been named ALA-YALSA Quick Picks, JLG selections, and ALA-YALSA Best Books for Young Adults. When she’s not writing, she’s binge-watching television, devouring books, or bury-ing her toes in the sand of the Central Coast. Kasie lives in Fresno, California, with her family.
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Tour Schedule
May 30th
Stuck in Fiction – Promotional Post
The Book Dutchesses – Promotional Post
Books and Ladders – Review
May 31st
Nine Bookish Lives – Interview
Lost in Neverland – Review
Jen Jen Reviews – Review
Purposely Unperfect – Review & Playlist
June 1st
TeaTimeLit – Review
Confessions of a YA Reader – Promotional Post
I’m All Booked Up – Review
June 2nd
Kait Plus Books – Interview
Sophie Reads YA – Review
Paiges of Novels – Review & Playlist
PopTheButterfly Reads – Review
June 3rd
The Clever Reader – Interview
heylittlesiren – Review
Whispering Stories – Review & Favorite Quotes
June 4th
paperbacktomes – Mood Board
The Book View – Review & Mood Board
Cindy’s Love of Books – Review
One More Chapter – Review
June 5th
The Human Curveball – Review
The Bookish Raven – Review
bookloversbookreviews – Promotional Post & Tik Tok
Instagram Tour
May 30th
augustisreading – Review & Favorite Quotes
cozybooktraveller – Book Look & Top 5 Reasons to Read Places We’ve Never Been
booksandladders – Blogger’s Choice
May 31st
justa.gal.andherbooks – Review
booksaremagictoo – Review
ninebookishlives – Blogger’s Choice
purposelyunperfect – Blogger’s Choice
June 1st
writingrosereads – Promotional Post
bookish.caterpillar – Review
lady_westfall19 – Review
readbycait – Blogger’s Choice
imallbookedupya – Blogger’s Choice
June 2nd
tbrandbeyond – Promotional Post
bhaneereads_ – Review
dhirviepages – Review & Favorite Quotes
paiges_of_novels – Blogger’s Choice
popthebutterfly – Blogger’s Choice
June 3rd
austismreading_mom – Review
bluepoohreads22 – Review & Favorite Quotes
gryffindorbookishnerd – Promotional Post
thecleverreader – Blogger’s Choice
heylittlesiren – Blogger’s Choice
June 4th
tinybooknest – 15 Reactions While Reading Places We’ve Never Been
katiereads23 – Review
paperbacktomes – Blogger’s Choice
_leahreads – Blogger’s Choice
June 5th
bookdreamr – Book Look
TheShopOfStarlight – Review
the_bookish_raven – Blogger’s Choice
bookloversbookreviews – Blogger’s Choice
The Clever Reader 
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