Interview with Bree Barton for Soul of Cinder
Soul of Cinder (Heart of Thorns #3)
by Bree Barton
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Release Date: January 12th 2021
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Synopsis:
The Twisted Sisters are coming home.
Prince Quin has returned to the river kingdom, ready to spearhead a rebellion and reclaim the throne. He vows to destroy Mia, Pilar, and Angelyne if they oppose him—even if he must use his newfound magic to set the world aflame.
Across the four kingdoms, the elements have been tipped askew. Volcanoes erupt, glaciers collapse, and cities sink into the western sands. After losing Angie, Mia and Pilar journey to the glass kingdom to seek help, though soon their fragile bonds of sisterhood begin to fray. Mia’s sensations are creeping back, and with them, a deep and searing grief. Pilar, terrified of being broken, once again seeks comfort in her fists. But when they hear rumors of a misty island that promises to erase all pain, they suddenly find themselves with an answer—if they are willing to pay the cost.
As tensions mount, the sisters are drawn back to the river kingdom for a final reckoning with the boy they each loved. The shattering conclusion to Bree Barton’s Heart of Thorns trilogy challenges why we grieve, whom we love—and how to mend a broken heart.
Can you briefly describe SOUL OF CINDER and its characters?
Absolutely! SOUL OF CINDER is the last installment of the story that began in HEART OF THORNS, the final reckoning of love, life, and death between our main characters. In HoT we stick with Mia Rose; in ToC we follow both Mia and Pilar with an occasional jolt of twisted Angelyne; and in SoC, we get a new point-of-view character in Prince Quin. Each of these characters is reeling from the losses they’ve suffered in the first two books, struggling to forgive—or not forgive—the people who have wronged them. They’re pitted against each other, in various ways, the irony being that they are also on parallel journeys, forced to engage with their brokenness—and desperately trying to cauterize the parts of themselves they believe can’t be healed. Tough luck for them, because this is a book about healing.Oh also volqanoes are erupting and forests are on fire and whole cities are sinking into the sand, so there’s that. It isn’t just the people who are broken: they’ve broken the four kingdoms, too. The question is, how can you heal the world if you can’t even heal yourself?
Could you describe your story with emojis?
Thank you. Thank you for this question. I have dreamed about being asked to describe my story with emojis for the past five years.
Who would you say is your favourite character from the story and why?
I’m going to go with Nelladine. We meet Nell in TEARS OF FROST, but we get to know her much better in SOUL OF CINDER as she takes Pilar and Mia to her homeland. She’s warm and generous and sometimes contradictory—she’s a complicated character, in part because she is in many ways a caretaker, meaning she has a habit of subverting her own desires to give other people what they want. Crafting Nell’s mental health journey was something I worked very hard on; it’s hard to bring in a new character for the last book of a trilogy, especially when you’re already balancing several main characters and POVs. But Nell is more than deserving of her own arc, and I hope I’ve done her justice.
How did the story occur to you? Did you find inspiration anywhere?
I really roughed up my characters in the first books, especially in ToF. Mia, Pilar, and Quin have all lost so much, and it’s my fault—like any author, I’ve made them suffer! So it was important to me that I help guide them back from that dark place. You’ll find pieces of my own healing journey reflected in this book, often with a fantasy twist. Yoga. Breathwork. Therapy. Finding a safe, supportive community. I wanted to fold in little gifts for my characters, things that have helped me heal over the last few years.
For me, travel is always a balm to the soul. I’ve been fortunate to see many beautiful places, and you’ll find hints of them in all four kingdoms—England in Glas Ddir, Peru in Fojo Karacao, Iceland in Luumia, Bahrain in Pembuk. My trip to the Middle East was particularly powerful, and my time there permeates the pages of SoC.
I also have to give a shout-out to Aysha Mutawea, a Bahraini lawyer, advocate, and feminist who gives whole new meaning to “badass woman.” Getting to know Aysha and seeing just a sliver of the world-altering work she does on a daily basis inspired me to write a better book.
If you could choose one song to describe your book, which one would it be?
Oooh, such a great question. Are you familiar with the Enneagram? It’s kind of like the Myers-Briggs personality assessment (ESTP, INFJ, etc.), only with the Enneagram there are nine unique types. You can take a free test online and then read about your results. It’s fun. Anyway a while back my sister sent me the Sleeping At Last album with a song for each personality type. I listened to my song. Cried. Listened to my sister’s song. Cried. Listened to our brother’s song. Cried. They really tap into what’s at the heart of each type. So at the risk of sounding cheesy, I’m going to choose Three for SOUL OF CINDER. It’s a really powerful song, and I think Mia, Pilar, and Quin would each find something of their own journeys reflected in it. Not sure they’d all cry, though. My money’d be on Quin.
If your book was going to be made into a movie, who would play your characters?
I loved The Queen’s Gambit so much, I’m going to have to cast Anya Taylor-Joy. I think she’d make a great Angelyne, but since she can do anything, I’ll cast her as Mia and cast Elle Fanning as Angie. I could totally see Moses Ingram as Nell—she blew me away in Gambit, and her energy feels right for the part. Quin’s got to be Timothée Chalamet, of course. Manny Jacinto as Tobin, assuming he could shuck off The Good Place sweetness and tap into his dark side. Camila Mendes was originally my top pick for Pilar, though I was so impressed by Park So-dam in Parasite I might have to ask the casting director to send them both in. Asante Blackk for Stone—When They See Us absolutely gutted me. As for Shay… is Anya Taylor-Joy still available? 😉
What drink and place do you think will go with your book to have a perfect book date?
Hmm let’s do the quarantine edition, then the post-vaccine edition. In quarantine I recommend you tuck yourself into something warm—blanket, snuggie, PJs—and brew a nice cuppa. Maybe something sweet and spicy, like you might find in Pembuk.
Once we’ve all been vaccinated and can finally leave our cocoons, take SOUL OF CINDER to the beach! Sip on some pulped papaya, or find the real-world equivalent to the creamy, frosty sweet concoction the Pembuka call fish ice. It’s not as bad as it sounds.
Can you recommend your readers any other books in case they are left hungry for more once they finish SOUL OF CINDER?
Read WENCH by Maxine Kaplan (out next week!), and MIRAGE by Somaiya Daud. Two fierce feminist fantasy books that create magic, wit, and brilliance on the page.
What would you say was the most difficult book in the series to write and why?
Definitely TEARS OF FROST. I think it was difficult for a lot of reasons—I was trying to launch HEART OF THORNS into the world at the same time, and it was extremely hard to travel and do events and promote the first book while trying to carve out enough quiet time and space to write the second.
But it was also a difficult book content-wise, because I had to delve deep into sexual assault and depression, both of which are extremely personal for me. The story demanded a lot emotionally, mentally—even physically—and I’m proud of the result. It’s far from perfect, but it’s one of the most honest things I’ve written, and I hope Mia and Pilar’s journey will bring hope and comfort to the readers who need it.
What’s next for you?
I have a middle grade coming out in 2022! It hasn’t been announced yet, so shhh. I can promise you loads of magic, mayhem, and mataki. ⚡ See, now you’ve gotten me started on emojis and I just can’t stop!
Bree Barton is a writer in Los Angeles. When she's not lost in whimsy, she works as a ghostwriter and dance teacher to teen girls. She is on Instagram and YouTube as Speak Breely, where she posts funny videos of her melancholy dog.
Bree is not a fan of corsets.
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