Interview and Giveaway: Across the Wire by Stella Telleria

Description:

When Mia Mitchell, a hardcore but lonely former Marine, steps into an alley to pull some thugs off an unlucky foreigner, she walks into a fight she expects. What she doesn’t see coming is the foreigner making her a job offer any sane person would refuse. So, she takes it. She thinks she’s headed for some third-world country; instead she’s mysteriously transported to an Earth-like parallel world. That’s a mad left-hook.

Mia discovers a matriarchal dystopia where freedom doesn’t exist and fighting for it means execution. Lethal force bends all to the law; women fear for their families and un-wed men suffer slavery. Mia’s job is to train an underground syndicate of male freedom-fighters for a violent revolution. However, the guys don’t want a pair of X chromosomes showing them the way.

Eben, an escaped slave, is encouraged by Mia to become a leader among the men. But when he turns his quiet determination on her, it spells F.U.B.A.R. for cynical Mia. Their unexpected connection threatens more than her exit strategy; it threatens the power struggle festering with in the syndicate.

Haunted by nightmares and post-traumatic stress, unsure who to trust or how to get home, Mia struggles to stay alive as she realizes all is not what it seems.

MB's INTERVIEW

Thank you, Stella Telleria 

We (women) always say that if the world will be ruled by a woman it will be a better place. What it takes to create a “good” matriarchal dystopia? 

Well I don’t think a dystopia can be good since “dystopia” implies that there is something bad about it. But I think your question is how can we create a good matriarchal society. I’ll go with that question. :D 

I am an egalitarian. I believe that everyone is equal. I don’t think we can have a good matriarchal or patriarchal society because either one puts the focus on one of the two genders. The best society would be one without biases. 

There are any similarities between the Amazons’ society and the one of the Across the Wire? 

There are a few similarities one can draw between the ancient amazons, what little is known about them, and the society in Across the Wire. Both are considered warriors. 

In Across the Wire all women are subject to compulsory service in the military. This conscription and the social expectation of women to be experienced in hand-to-hand combat are the same in both cultures. The Amazon’s were rumored to live in an only female society and this is not true of the society in Across the Wire. However, the Amazons may also have kept conquered males as their slaves, which is true in my novel as well. 

Are the women better than men in general and in Across the Wire in particular? 

Women are not better than men in general or in Across the Wire. In Across the Wire, women have control of the society, but it does not make them better. 

Is there room for love in Across the Wire society? 

There is room for love in the matriarchal society in Across the Wire. The reader is shown this in a few subtle ways, but it is there nonetheless. I’m really trying hard not to gush about the sequel here. ;) 

What do you think about the messages between the lines and we will find such message in your book? 

I’m not sure which messages you are referring to, but as to the messages one can expect to find in my book, it’s an interesting question to pose. 

My goal was to invoke a little thought. I’ve had quite some varying reactions from readers, and their responses are telling. As with all books, readers bring their own biases and understandings to the experience of the story. After I read a book, I like to examine why I felt so strongly about certain aspects of it. Most of the time, my reaction is due to my opinion or past experiences but also due to the material as well. 

A little self-examination is always productive. 

I simply wanted to explore how our culture would have been different honed as matriarchal instead of patriarchal. All stereotypes and behaviors of ours, men and women, have been taught to us our entire lives. But what if they hadn’t? What if our culture had taught us differently? What would that culture look like? I was fascinated by this possibility and it’s no stretch of the imagination to realize how very different that world would be. 

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About the author:

All my life I’ve dreamed of stories or have had my nose buried in one. I live in Edmonton, Canada with my husband and my weird sense of humor. Across the Wire is my first novel.

I love old war movies, dystopian fiction, and any story with action, a good plot, and characters I'd get into a fight at the pub for. Not that I'm a brawler or anything. Unless you think that out-of-print book or vintage piece at the thrift shop is going home with you instead of me. Then, my friend, the gloves are off. 

Some say if you have your nose buried in a book, you're missing out on life. I say my nose is buried in a book because one life is not enough.

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