Renée Ahdieh has been an auto-buy author for me ever since I read The Wrath and the Dawn right when it first released. I was so excited for her to visit on her book tour for her latest release, The Beautiful, along with Sabaa Tahir.
It was so much fun listening to Renée and Sabaa in conversation together! It is abundantly clear that they are best friends and have a lot of fun together. Renée is so passionate and charismatic that I held on to every word she said. This was by far my favorite book event of the year!
Renée and Sabaa talked about a variety of things—from The Beautiful to their childhoods to their characters to world-building and setting. Renée fell in love with vampires after reading Anne Rice. Her writing was transportive and hypnotic, which inspired Renée’s writing. Renée likes to make her settings a character and New Orleans was a no brainer as it isn’t like any other place. There’s so good culture, people, and music. Renée felt completely at home there as a child of mixed parents.
It was so wonderful talking individually with Sabaa and Renée as they signed my books. Renée signed my huge stack (10+ books) and was so kind. If you ever have a chance to meet Renée (and Sabaa!) in person, you must go! A huge thank-you to Renée Ahdieh, Sabaa Tahir, Penguin Teen, and Mysterious Galaxy for the amazing event!
Woo! Sounds like such a fun event/tour. I am so glad you, and everyone, got to experience it!
Thank you! It was so great