Roll out the red carpet…
Open the champagne…
It’s time to enter the Hall of Fame!

Today, the amazing Anna Silver celebrates her first book birthday with the release of OTHERBORN by Sapphire Star Publishing. HUGE congrats to Anna, I’m really excited for you!

It is my great pleasure to take part in Anna’s blogtour and she has been grilling her protagonist’s best friend and secret crush with questions about life and love. Let’s give Rye a warm welcome as we turn over the floor to the OTHERBORN charater interview. Take it away, Anna and Rye!

In OTHERBORN, Rye is the protagonist London’s longtime best friend and secret crush. They live in the same building, go to the same school, and play in the same band. In fact, after London began dreaming, Rye was the first to experience “night pictures” as well. Bound by more than one lifetime, there’s very little that London and Rye don’t share. In this interview, we’ll attempt to get to know London’s love interest a little better.

Rye, define New.

Well, if I were speaking strictly as a Waller, New is not to be trusted. First, it’s impossible. Second, it’s tainted. It means the same thing as waste, as danger. If something is New, it’s not reprocessed or even scrapped. It’s born. From some unknowable, untrustworthy place. New is never a good thing.

But if I were speaking as myself, not as I was taught, but as the boy who sat by London’s side all those afternoons writing that song, giving rise to every chord like it was something precious, then I would say that New is wondrous. It’s incredible. It’s living. New is what we were born to do, it’s who we were born to be. Otherwise, we’re just empty shells.

What do you find beautiful, Rye?

Strength. I think survivors are beautiful. Like myself, like London, like Tora. By city standards, Avery would probably be considered the most beautiful one in our little group, but not to me. She hasn’t had to really reach for anything in this life. Everything has been handed to her. I think beauty is made, not born.

How do you feel about living in Capital City?

The city can be a tough place. Life behind the walls isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Sure, most of us get the basics handed to us via rations, but there is still plenty of suffering here. There are homeless people inside the walls. There are gangs. There’s this sense of order on the surface, but underneath the city is brimming with lawlessness. And there’s a lot that’s missing from this life. Justice. Liberty. Choice. Things you don’t always realize you’re doing without until you really need them. You can survive here, but you’ll never thrive.

Rye, if you could have any assignment, what would it be?

I’d love to drive a reprocessing route like my dad. I’ve been in his truck before and I love the massiveness of it, like an expansion of my own body. I feel untouchable in there. There’s a certain power to being able to operate something like that, especially when so few can. It pays okay, nothing too exciting, but you’ll never starve. And there is a status to being a driver these days, like you’re special, you did something to deserve that respect.

What’s your happiest memory?

The first time I heard London sing. I remember her sitting on the floor of my room while I turned on a disc Pauly had let her borrow. Her eyes were closed and she was barefoot, and she was rocking ever so slightly to the music. And then this soft sound began to move through her, a whisper that grew and grew. Her voice was tremulous and gravelly but powerful. I was hooked.

What’s your worst memory?

The day I was told my mother died. I don’t like to talk about it really. Suffice to say, my dad broke the news. We were wrecked for weeks after. I don’t think I could have gotten through that time without London.

Rye… I have to ask this. Have you ever been in love?

The question should be, have I ever not been in love? I think I’ve been in love with London since we met as kids. Maybe before. It’s like the day I saw her, the world became complete for me. I didn’t realize it though, for a long time. Or I denied it, take your pick. I was scared. What if your world rejects you? What then? So, it’s kinda been this secret of mine since birth.

If you could have anything pre-Crisis with you behind the walls, what would it be?

That’s tough. There’s so much I’ve heard about, seen. Some of it might just be rumor, you know? Who can say? I guess, if I had to pick one thing, it would be books. More books. A library full. But then, that’s not really just one thing, is it?

Thanks so much, Rye, for your candid answers. You’ve given me goosebumps, you really have. It was fabulous meeting you here today, thanks for stopping by. Now let’s introduce Anna’s book in more detail.

Otherborn

London and her teenage friends live in a reprocessed world.

Confined within CapitalCity’s concrete walls, London has done the impossible and the illegal. She’s created something New– a song. But her mentor, club owner Pauly, is not impressed. Since the historic Energy Crisis forced everyone behind walls generations ago, the Tycoons have ensured there is truly nothing new allowed under the sun. Pauly warns London to keep her song to herself, if she knows what’s good for her.

What he doesn’t know is that London is keeping an even bigger secret: she dreams. And she’s not alone. London’s band-mates and friends have begun dreaming as well, seeing themselves in “night pictures” as beings from another world. As Otherborn, they must piece together the story of their astral avatars, the Others, in order to save their world from a dreamless, hopeless future.

When Pauly is murdered and an Otherborn goes missing, London realizes someone is hunting them down. Escaping along the Outroads, they brave the deserted Houselands with only their dreams to guide them. Can they find their friend before the assassin finds them? Will being Otherborn save their lives, or destroy them?

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What the readers say about OTHERBORN

“Anna Silver weaves a dark new world full of taut suspense and characters that leap off the page.” –Sophie Jordan, NYT bestselling author of the Firelight trilogy

“Travel to a world where dreaming is a radical act that can save the world… Anna Silver’s post-apocalyptic vision is rich with imagery and metaphysical ideas, grounded by vivid, three-dimensional characters. A truly fresh take on dystopian.” –Nina Berry, author of the OTHERKIN series

“Silver built the right amount of conflict and tension to draw readers into her dystopian world, and created characters who are leery, yet determined to embrace New.” –Natasha Hanova, author of Edge of Truth

About Anna Silver

Anna Silver grew up with a passion for words, books, and storytelling. She began writing as a child and eventually landed at St. Edward’s University in Austin where she studied English Writing & Rhetoric. She has always nurtured a vivid imagination and a love for art, expression, and fantasy. Currently she resides in the greater Houston area with her family and pets where she continues to read, write, and dream. Otherborn is her first published novel.