Congratulations on your release!
Give us a quick one paragraph summary of your latest release.
In Fortune’s Fall, 17-year-old Nyssa Ardelone, dream interpreter to the American president, learns that her mentor lied about the president’s latest dream to save the residents of Nyssa’s hometown, where the president ordered a gas attack to thwart a suspected rebellion. Nyssa’s parents are among the survivors. Nyssa flees the security of her own well-planned life to bring the survivors an antidote as well as an interpretation of another dream only she can give. But the president launches a deadly pursuit, and Nyssa must evade him at all costs, learning on her journey that faith in God is the only thing that can save her.
Is this book part of a series, or a stand-alone?
Book one in a trilogy.
Tell us a little about yourself.
I’m a homeschooling mom of two girls who should go to bed earlier but tends to watch Netflix after the kiddos are asleep. I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember, and I married a wonderful guy who supports my dream to the point of his own exhaustion. (Example: He isn’t a morning person. Our two year old is. When I was writing FORTUNE’S FALL, he would get up with her before the sun almost every day so I could write in peace.) I also love dark chocolate and coffee. My happy place is sitting in my office on a rainy day with coffee and chocolate.
How did you get the idea for your book?
After our pastor did a sermon series on the book of Nehemiah, I began to research his life as well as the life of Daniel and the Babylonian exile of the Jews. When I learned that only the elite Jews were exiled to Babylon and everyone else was left behind to fend for themselves, a story began to brew. What if the Jews who were left behind not only survived, but they thrived, waiting somewhere for their ultimate return to Jerusalem?
Fortune’s Fall was born from that question, only I set it in a futuristic America. It’s the tale of a people exiled to an unfamiliar place against their will, those they left behind, and a girl’s quest to reunite them.
Are you a plotter or a pantser?
I’m a plotter who occasionally goes down a rabbit hole.
What do you do when you experience writer’s block?
I take a nap. I’m a big fan of naps, haha.
Is anything in your book based on real life experiences?
Sort of. I’ve always had dreams that are totally nuts and intense, and a few years ago, I started writing mine down. This happened to coincide with the early brainstorming stages of Fortune’s Fall. Eventually, several of those dreams I’d written down made their way into the story.
Are you working on anything new? Tease us a little bit!
Yes! The second book in The Exiled Trilogy. The exiles are in trouble, and it’s up to Nyssa to save them.
Where can readers find you?
On her website: :https://katherinebarger.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KBargerAuthor/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kbargerauthor/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kbargerauthor
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While her classmates prepare for elite careers across America, Nyssa Ardelone trains for her secret job as the president’s dream interpreter. But when her mentor lies to the president about the prophecy in his latest dream, Nyssa must figure out why before the lie unravels. What she learns could destroy her own future.
Fearful of a rumored rebellion, the president has launched a gas attack on Nyssa’s hometown, and her mentor lied about the dream to protect the survivors from more harm. When Nyssa learns her parents were injured in the attack, she flees with a stranger sent to steal the antidote—a stranger who claims to know her.
Together, they race to deliver the cure as well as an interpretation of another prophetic dream only Nyssa can provide. But a devastating loss dulls her caution, and she learns too late that not everyone is trustworthy. To survive the president’s deadly pursuit, Nyssa must break every rule she’s ever followed, learning along the way that faith is the only thing that can save her.
Anaiah Press 