Today we are chatting with Kristina Forest, author of ZYLA & KAI
Read on for more about her, the book, and a giveaway!
Meet Kristina Forest:
Kristina Forest is an author of romance books for young adults. Her novels include I Wanna Be Where You Are, Now That I’ve Found You and Zyla & Kai. She earned her MFA in Creative Writing at The New School, and she can often be found rearranging her bookshelf.
About the Book: Zyla & Kai
A fresh love story about the will they, won’t they—and why can’t they—of first love.
While on a school trip to the Poconos Mountains (in the middle of a storm) high school seniors, Zyla Matthews and Kai Johnson, run away together leaving their friends and family confused. As far as everyone knows, Zyla and Kai have been broken up for months. And honestly? Their break up hadn’t surprised anyone. Zyla and Kai met while working together at an amusement park the previous summer, and they couldn’t have been more different.
Zyla was a cynic about love. She’d witnessed the dissolution of her parents’ marriage early in life, and it left an indelible impression. Her only aim was graduating and going to fashion school abroad. Until she met Kai.
Kai was a serial dater and a hopeless romantic. He’d put a temporary pause on his dating life before senior year to focus on school and getting into his dream HBCU. Until he met Zyla.
Alternating between the past and present, we see the love story unfold from Zyla’s and Kai’s perspectives: how they first became the unlikeliest of friends over the summer, how they fell in love during the school year, and why they ultimately broke up… Or did they?
Romantic, heart-stirring, and a little mysterious, Zyla & Kai will keep readers guessing until the last chapter.
~Author Chat~
YABC: Who is your favorite character in the book?
It would be a tie between Zyla and Kai, but I feel like that answer is kind of obvious since they’re the titular characters. So I’ll say that my favorite side character is Zyla’s best friend, Beatrice, who is unapologetically herself. She’s confident and funny and a very good friend.
YABC: Thinking way back to the beginning, what’s the most important thing you’ve learned as a writer from then to now?
You can’t force a book. Sometimes ideas need to marinate and be put aside. Forcing a book to come together is one of the most miserable experiences lol.
YABC: What do you like most about the cover of the book?
I like that the illustrator, Adriana Bellet, brought Zyla and Kai to life exactly the way I pictured them. A lot of what I love is in the small details. Like Zyla’s hair style and her septum nose ring, and the way that Kai is smiling, but Zyla isn’t.
YABC: What’s a book you’ve recently read and loved?
Confessions of An Alleged Good Girl by Joya Goffney
YABC: What’s up next for you?
Next is my adult romance debut, The Neighbor Favor, will publish next Spring and I’ll start working on my next YA soon.
YABC: Which was the most difficult or emotional scene to narrate?
The breakup scene (this is not a spoiler–the plot description tells you that Zyla and Kai break up at some point) because emotions are high and everyone is hurting! But honestly, those scenes are also a little fun to write too.
YABC: Which character gave you the most trouble when writing your latest book?
Kai didn’t give me any trouble but writing his scenes with his therapist took the most time because I wanted to make sure that their conversations came across as realistic.
YABC: What is the main message or lesson you would like your reader to remember from this book?
That true love exists and the only people who really know what goes on in a relationship are the ones who are in it.
Book’s Title: ZYLA & KAI
Author: KRISTINA FOREST
Release Date: JUNE 7, 2022
Publisher: KOKILA
ISBN-10 : 0593407245
ISBN-13 : 978-0593407240
Genre: YA Romance
Reading age : 12 – 17 years
*GIVEAWAY DETAILS*
One winner will receive a copy of ZYLA & KAI (Kristina Forest) ~ US ONLY
*Click the Rafflecopter link below to enter the giveaway*
This looks like such a feel good cute book for summer!
I love this fun cover and can’t wait to read this book!
The cover is fun, and the story sounds romantic and mysterious.