Ask the Author: James Kennedy
Answered Questions (4)
James Kennedy
Hi Bobbie! I'm so glad you enjoyed "Bride of the Tornado." (I guess I tend to write divisive books that aren't for everyone, so I extra-cherish everyone who says they enjoy my stuff.) This is a great question, because I've noticed a wide range of opinions about Cuthbert in various reviews. I appreciate that variety—I feel it's a good thing when a story can sustain many interpretations. That indicates depth in the text, and depth in the readers. So although I'll go ahead and give my own take on Cuthbert, I don't think that invalidates anybody else's opinion. Anyway, I think the key insight in your question is the last sentence: "She fought so hard to be alone." For me, that's exactly the goal. The thing she needed above all else was to be alone—to get out of that awful town that had awful plans for her. And it had to be a clean and total break, because it was a deeply evil place. Time and again she had opportunities to leave. But every time, she kept choosing human connection: with the tornado killer, with Cecilia, etc. That's what we should prioritize, right—human connection? But in this story, it was the wrong choice every time. Sometimes you have to make the difficult but necessary decision to sever all ties in order to survive. So even though Cuthbert had come around to actively helping her by the end of the book, she needed to cut ties with him too, regardless of whether he had evolved into a nicer and maybe even more heroic character than he'd been at the beginning. She didn't want to be with him. For me, she didn't owe it to him to be with him, or even to be nice to him, even if he had gone out of his way to help her. For me, the heroine's most crucial decision was to switch buses at the end, and not go off with Cuthbert. That meant she learned something about the necessity of acting on what she wanted, which was to be alone on her own terms. As for why she treated Cuthbert dismissively throughout the book: he was outright bullying her at the beginning. Aggressive, belittling, harassing. It takes more than a few instances of him being "nice," or even helping her, to make up for that. And in the end, she doesn't owe him her forgiveness anyway. I like to think that Cuthbert grows and changes throughout the book, and that he's learned some difficult truths about himself and the town where he's from. I certainly like him more at the end than at the beginning. But in the end, he's the final thing she has to let go of before she can truly escape. Thanks for the question, and I hope this answer is satisfying!
James Kennedy
It is an absolute mystery. I must admit I don't understand the ecosystem of Goodreads, the vagaries of the romance world, or book promotion. However, I do like it when somebody who would usually hate my stuff gets tricked into reading one of my novels, because there are two outcomes: (1) They end up unexpectedly enjoying something they wouldn't ordinarily try; or (2) I cause them pain.
James Kennedy
Earnest answer: I genuinely appreciate that you've taken the time to reach out to tell me how much you enjoyed the book. Reviews so far have been pretty good, but scanning Goodreads, it seems there are also a significant number of folks who didn't dig the ride, so a message like yours really encourages me. I am truly thankful for it!
James Kennedy
I am very OK and very normal! I get sort of carried away, being so normal and everything. Thanks for the 5-star review! I know DARE TO KNOW isn't for everyone so welcome to the club, a normal club. The plan is for my next book to come out in 2023. I wrote another book a few years ago called THE ORDER OF ODD-FISH, people were anxious to tell me how normal it was too, it made me feel really regular, to be that normal. Thank you!
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