Rebecca Lynn Talley grew up in the gorgeous seaside city of Santa Barbara, CA. She met, and married, her husband, Del, while attending Brigham Young University. She graduated from BYU with a degree in Communications. She currently lives in rural Colorado on a small ranch with a dog, too many cats to count, and a herd of goats. She and Del are the proud parents of ten wildly-creative, multi-talented children.
Rebecca is the author of a children's picture book, Grasshopper Pie (WindRiver 2003), a children's chapter book, Gabby's Secret (DuBon Publishing 2011), four novels, Heaven Scent (CFI 2008), Altared Plans (CFI 2009), The Upside of Down (CFI 2011), and Aura (DuBon Publishing 2012). She has also authored numerous children's stories and articles for both print and online magazines.
When she isn’t writing, Rebecca loves to date her husband, play with her kids, swim in the ocean, and dance to disco music while she cleans the house. She has folded at least one million loads of laundry, baked hundreds of batches of chocolate chip cookies, and eaten 5,478 gallons of ice cream.
games, playing on the Wii, making jewelry, going to the lake, going swimming, and watching movies.
What is your favorite food? Dark chocolate. Dove dark chocolate specifically.
What’s your favorite place in the entire world? I love going back to Santa Barbara, CA where I grew up. My parents died when I was very young, and my only memories of them are in Santa Barbara. Whenever I go back to visit, I feel close to them. Plus, I love the beach--the waves lapping against the shore, the cool sand beneath my feet, and the salty air on my lips.
What inspired you to write your first book? My first published book in 2003 was a children's picture book, Grasshopper Pie. It was based on an experience with my children when they tried to feed me a live grasshopper
What do you consider the most challenging about writing a novel, or about writing in general? For me, since I have so many kids, my biggest challenge is time. My kids are involved in so many activities and I homeschool my youngest so I have to be very creative in making time to write. Besides the picture book, I have also published a children's chapter book, four novels, and numerous articles and stories for children's magazines. I do make the time, but it's definitely a challenge.
How did you come up with the title? Interestingly enough, I can see auras. I thought it was some weird thing so I never talked to anyone about it. In researching it, though, I've found that it's not that weird after all. I wanted to write a book about a girl with a very bright aura.
Can you tell us about your main character? Crystal has moved around all of her life. She just wants to fit in and be a normal teenager even though she knows there's something different about her. She's made a conscious effort to make good choices, to be honest, to help others, and to keep her virginity. Because of those choices, and some inherent gifts, her aura is visible to those who can see auras. And her aura is a reflection of her power--the power she needs to fight a nasty demon intent on destroying her.
What was the hardest part about writing this book? Making the magic system work and make sense.
Did you learn anything from writing this book and what was it? I learned that fantasy is harder for me to write than realistic fiction. I had to dig pretty deep to make this story work.
Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp? Good will always overcome evil. We each have the power within us to defeat evil by making good choices.
Do you have any advice for writers? Never give up. Never surrender. If you want to write, do it. If you have story that burns inside you, write it. Believe in yourself and in your book.
"I half-turned to her and shrugged, still processing what I'd seen, or at least what I thought I'd seen, in Ms. Neal's eyes—like they weren't hers. Obviously, they were her eyes, but it looked like she'd plucked them from someone else's head. A dead someone else's head."
In the fight between good and evil, Light is your only weapon.
Crystal Scott finally feels like a normal teenager. She has a lead in the high school play, a best friend, and a gorgeous boyfriend. With prom only a few days away, Crystal’s ordinary life seems perfect.
Endowed with great Light because of her virtuous choices and her inherent gifts, Crystal’s aura has become visible to those with the ability to see auras. Unfortunately, her power has also attracted the attention of demons intent on destroying all Light.
When Vincent Crandall, the human host for a powerful demon, discovers that Crystal’s Light is strong enough to disrupt the connection between demons and their hosts, he realizes she may be able to sever the connection altogether. Determined to stop her from interfering with his plans to rule the world, he sends operatives to neutralize her Light.
After the operatives fail to disable Crystal, Vincent decides he must harness her power for himself. He kidnaps her parents, and Crystal is thrust into battle against a demon army she didn’t even know existed. With the help of a mysterious young man and his mother, Crystal must learn to use the power within her before Vincent kills her parents and exploits her Light.
Reviews
This YA urban fantasy is fantastic! The story grabbed me from the start and kept me enthralled until the end! I love books that keep me thinking about the characters and events and possibilities even after putting them down...Aura is one of those books! Rebecca Lynn Talley has created characters you care about in a world begging for the special gifts they possess. I love the premise of Aura and imagine I'll be enjoying many more Light vs. Demon novels in the future....at least I hope there are more to come!
~KindleQueen
I loved the clasic good VS evil in Aura. I loved that Crystal made the conscious choice to be good inspite of feelings and doubts. I also loved the idea of demons posessing somone who had made dark choices, or greedy bargains. The book is clean and well handled inspite of the serious subject matter.Well done.
~C. Michelle Jefferies
This is one of those books that you hope will become widespread enough to make a positive impact in this world. Personally, I think this is a book every teenager should read and I will definitely be passing it along to my own kids. Thank you, Rebecca, for writing a beautiful story with a wonderful message! I hope you keep at it because now I want a sequel!
~Rachael Anderson
Aura sucked me in from the first page. The book is intense and well-written. I loved that Crystal is innocent and makes a conscious choice to stay that way in the face of intense pressure. I would recommend Aura to young adults on up.
~Cami Checketts
Wonderful, wonderful message. Probably the most solid moral message I’ve ever read in contemporary literature, but without being too heavy or feeling like a lecture. You could almost look at it like an allegory, I think, representing real life with fictional symbols. I’m trying to explain without giving anything away, and I think I’m doing a bad job. Anyway, I have four boys, but if I had a girl, I would definitely have her read it. The story is imaginative and creative, Crystal is a strong but believable heroine, caught up in high school cares and not realizing her own potential or the battle that is waged around and for her. I thought at times it was a bit predictable, and that the first half of the book drug a little. It probably could have been told quicker or perhaps made a little more interesting. But all in all, I enjoyed it. The story kept me going and the characters were sweet and compelling.
~May Abbey
Wow! I got this book for free and LOVED it! I can't wait to read any follow up books! (There WILL be follow up books, right?) In this story Crystal is full of light, thanks to making good choices, and she has to figure out how to keep the light in the midst of high school where temptation runs rampant and where she just wants to be an average girl! I like that things never went too far, and I felt like it was very well-written, with rounded out characters!
~Tamera Westhoff
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