Seventeen-year-old Allie Anderson’s telekinetic powers are anything but useful–she can’t bring her father back, can’t stop her mother’s downward spiral into alcohol, and can’t keep her from falling in love with Ethan Bradley. Loving Ethan is easy, but it comes with a hefty price: Ethan is prohibited by his people from interacting with mortals–because he isn’t mortal himself.
When Allie and Ethan’s love is discovered, there’s someone who will do anything to keep them apart. If Allie can’t learn to control her powers and fight to save Ethan, this dark entity will make every attempt to stop her beating heart. And if that happens, not even the energy of an immortal can bring her back.
My Review
Author Interview
What inspired you to write your first book?
Okay, so don’t laugh, but Twilight officially inspired me to write Other Side of Forever. The funny thing is a friend recommended the book to me, but I kept putting it off because I wasn’t really into vampires. I mean, I like Bram Stoker and Anne Rice, but I only watched their movies, not read their books (shh…don’t tell anyone). But then Twilight came out on DVD, so I got kind of curious as to what all the hype was about. Let’s just say I was hooked by the end of the movie.
I then purchased all the books, read them a hundred times over, and decided I wanted to write my own story. You know, create my own world, my own characters, and end a story the way I want it to end.
I guess I would say the rest is history.
How did you come up with the title?
It’s kind of funny because Other Side of Forever wasn’t the original title for my novel. When I finished the first draft, I named it Eternal Sunrise, but as I began to edit the manuscript, I felt the title Other Side of Forever was a better fit since Allie is technically standing on the Other Side of Forever when she loses Ethan.
Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
I think there’s a message in every novel, and Other Side of Forever is no exception. Allie has a lot of issues; her father abandoning her as a child, her mother’s addiction to alcohol, the school bully, and being cursed by this stupid power that she’s unable to control. All these things combined make Allie lose sense of who she really is and what she can accomplish, and the truth is, a majority of teens, and even adults, go through the same inner struggle as Allie. They wonder who they are. What their purpose is.
But when Ethan walks into Allie’s life, everything changes. Not only does he have Allie second guessing herself, but he shows her how powerful she really is and brings out her true abilities. And then the unimaginable happens, Ethan is taken away from her and she finds herself and her friends threatened. Allie is put in a position to where she must figure out how to use her powers to her advantage to fight for everything she loves and believes in. So, there are multiple messages in Other Side of Forever, but the main one would be to believe in yourself.
How much of the book is realistic?
A majority of the setting in Other Side of Forever is realistic. The story takes place in Middletown, Delaware. I used real streets, a real school, and used a real Civil War prison to bring Ethan to life. I’m a huge history buff when it comes to the Civil War, so I loved doing the research on Fort Delaware, and it’s actually one of my favorite places to visit during the summer.
Are experiences based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
The only experience based on real life is the school bully. I was bullied in school by the same girl for years, but even though she never went to the extent Becca did, she made me feel like crap.
What books have most influenced your life most?
Wow, there are so many books that have influenced me. Twilight for one. That book helped me deal with a dark, I’ll call it, part of my life, and it also inspired me to write my own novel. A few other novels that have influenced and helped me advance in my writing career are: Before I Fall, Wintergirls, If I Stay, The Lovely Bones, Radiance, and Shimmer. And I’m still adding more to my list.
If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?
Hmm… that’s a hard one. I would have to say Stephen King or Laurie Halse Anderson. I’m a huge fan of both of them.
You can read an excerpt Here
You can buy it on Amazon
Born and raised in Delaware, Shannon Eckrich lives with her husband, two children, and chocolate lab, Chewy. She has always had an interest in the paranormal. Ghosts, angels, vampires, aliens, it doesn’t matter, she loves it all. When she’s not writing, you can find her consuming young adult novels. When she discovers an awesome book, one that has a huge impact on her, she has a hard time letting it go, even to lend it to a friend.
Along with reading and writing, she enjoys planting flowers with her daughter, going to the beach, or just hanging out with her family.
The author is giving away 2 Ebooks!