Author Q&A with Maaja Wentz
Q: What is Feeding Frenzy?
A: Feeding Frenzy is a fast-paced story about a young woman facing impossible odds. To save her friends and her town, Tonya must dig deep and find courage and abilities she never knew she had. I experienced university as the most exciting time of my life because that’s when you find yourself.
Q: That sounds like every young woman’s struggle to grow up. Why include magic?
A: Urban fantasy is more fun when fireballs fly, and necromancers go rogue.
Q: Who will enjoy this book?
A: Feeding Frenzy is about a deadly eating epidemic on a college campus. It’s a quirky page-turner like a Janet Evanovich caper, but with more magic than romance. Imagine a mashup of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Stephanie Meyer’s The Host, with a pinch of Linsey Hall, and Christopher Moore. Really, I must stop pinching authors!
Q: Is it paranormal, horror, or campus comedy?
A: Feeding Frenzy is a creepy urban fantasy that will make you laugh, featuring a female protagonist who is bullied before she fights back. Tonya isn’t just another kick-ass loner with a sword. She’s part of a community she wants to save, and a family with secrets and conflicts.
Q: Are your characters inspired by real people?
A: My characters grow out of my imagination, plus memories of friends and university experiences. For example, I have family in Peru where I lived for a month. I read about and study Peruvian culture and the Spanish language.
Roberto, is a rich, handsome Peruvian in Loon Lake for university. To write his character, I combine memories of Peru with my experiences as an exchange student in France.
Q: What’s the most surprising thing about this book?
A: Zombie fans started calling this a zombie novel. It’s true, there is an outbreak of uncontrollable eating in Feeding Frenzy, but no brains were harmed in the making of this story.
Comparable Titles: It’s an urban fantasy mashup of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Stephanie Meyer’s The Host, with a pinch of Linsey Hall, and Christopher Moore.
Discussion Questions
Feeding Frenzy is a supernatural thriller in which Tonya, a first-year college student, must face up to unpleasant family secrets.
- In a world rife with real conspiracies, how does it feel to read about similar situations in a fantasy setting?
- Can there be mystery without a detective and a dead body?
- Feeding Frenzy, the main characters are young adults, just starting their studies at a small Canadian university. What was your life like right after high school?
- At the climax of this book, Tonya and Helen commit a crime. Was it justified? Should they be made to pay for it?
- Tonya develops powers that she has always been forbidden to use. Is this a metaphor for real life experiences or a plot device? Discuss.
- How much ghoulishness is okay in literature for adults? Mystery novels? Books considered YA?
- This book has been described as both a sweet story, and a zombie novel. Can a novelist have it both ways?
- What was the craziest thing that happened in this story?
- What was the most memorable moment?
- If you had to recommend this book to one person, what kind of person would they be?