Stephen H. Provost

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Janet Racciato, author of "Jade"

Stephen H. Provost

Janet Racciato is the author of Jade and Time of the Assassin, the second installment of the Jade series, which focuses on Julie, who has the power to teleport to anywhere or anyone in the world. She sat down for an e-interview with The Open Book to discuss the series.

The Author

Name, age and occupation: Janet Racciato, 44, I am currently a stay-at-home mom, but I was the director of Together We Grow, a facility for children with special medical needs.

Where and with whom do you live? I live in Escondido, with my husband, two daughters, dogs and horses.

If you could co-write a book with any author, living or dead, whom would you choose? If I could co-write a book with any author it would be Jim Butcher. I think his stories are amazing.

Why do you write? I write because I have stories running around in my head that I think other people would enjoy too.

Where do you write? I write anywhere that I can find. I've done some of my best scenes while waiting in my car to pick up my kids from school.

What imaginary land would you like to visit? If I could live in any imaginary land I would choose to live on Pern, by Anne McCaffrey. It has vast unexplored areas and dragons and firelizards to impress.

What animal, real or imaginary, would you choose as your constant companion? I would choose Mouse, the temple dog from the Harry Dresden Files, as my constant companion.

Historical period you'd like to visit: I would love to visit Ancient Egypt.

Favorite board, card or video game: My favorite video game is a toss up between Diablo and Minecraft.

The Book

Genre and length: Jade, urban sci-fi, 368 pages.

When and where does it take place? It takes place in the present, and the main character lives in Oceanside, California, but she teleports all over the world.

How did you come up with the title? The title is based on the main character's alternate identity, her superhero name.

What inspired you to write it? About nine years ago I had two friends die. One was a Marine who died in the Middle East and I watched his family deal with their loss. The other was a very close friend, an uncle figure to my daughters, who died under mysterious circumstances. The Jade story was one that I told myself to help me fall asleep at night instead of thinking about the friends I had lost. I was feeling helpless, especially with the chaos in the Middle East at the time. I came up with a superhero who could help. The story evolved over the years, and after about seven years I decided to try to write it down. 

Is there a sequel in the works? It is a trilogy, with the second in the series, Time of the Assassin, just recently published. The final book, Mercy's Battle, is due out this year.

Where, how can you get it? Jade and its sequels are available on Amazon in paperback and ebook.

Who would want to ban it? If anyone would want to ban my book it would be China or North Korea.

To whom did you dedicate it and why? I dedicated Jade to my two daughters. They were always my biggest fans. Their love of my writing, even when I was just starting and was terrible, encouraged me to keep trying.

The Hero

Name, age and occupation: Julie, 19, nursing student.

Where and with whom does she live? She lives with her parents in Oceanside with a dog that she rescued using her powers.

Who would play your protagonist in a movie? I'm not sure who I'd want to play my protagonist. Maybe Dakota Fanning.

What real-life person would be your protagonist’s hero, mentor or role model? My protagonist's mentor would be the same person who was her role model in the story. Her Uncle Mark is based on a real person, our family's close friend who died. 

Who's her celebrity crush? Her celebrity crush is Brendan Fraser from The Mummy.

What's her biggest fear/phobia? Her biggest fear is being alone, of losing another friend.

What's her favorite quote or motto? Her favorite motto is Keep Calm, Zap On.

Weapon of choice: Her weapon of choice is a shotgun.