

Grace and her Russian friend, Alexi, share a special relationshipĪlexi has his own baggage because his mother abandoned him when he was a child and his father is cold and unfeeling, but he cares a great deal about Grace. It wouldn’t be a book for teen girls without it. Of course, there is romance in the Embassy Row series. Each one has a unique personality as well as a special talent or gift. I hope to do this with Team Seven, the nine students in my series. Each one of the teens was likable and interesting and drew me into their circle of friends. Carter does an excellent job of creating believable, unique characters.

She’s a bit klutzy and always getting into trouble. The fact that Grace’s mother is dead and Grace is struggling with mental issues might be too depressing for some readers, but I enjoy getting into the psyche of a damaged character and Ally Carter never gets too morose or carried away with Grace’s problems. The characters in my series also deal with various issues though none are as damaged as Grace. In Adria, Grace spots the “scarred man” she believes killed her mother and the adventure begins. As certain as Grace is about these facts, nobody else believes her-so there’s no one she can completely trust. Someday she is going to find the killer and make him pay. Grace Blakely is the main character in the Embassy Row series. In my Divine Destiny series, a group of diverse friends attends a special high school for talented youth. America, Russia, Israel, Brazil, and Germany are all represented. The young characters in Embassy Row come from different countries and live in Adria because their parents work at the embassies.

Obviously, Ally Carter’s readers didn’t have this problem, so that encourages me. They say the reader will get them confused. I have been warned by “experts” that Team Seven, the group of friends in my series, is too big. It’s difficult to find books with multiple characters or large groups of friends like my books. The three Embassy Row books involve a group of friends who live on Embassy Row in a fictional country called Adria. I like the Embassy Row series because it has the same feel and excitement as my (not yet published) Divine Destiny series.

We even prefer particular authors and writing techniques. We prefer specific genres, certain types of characters and plots. No one will like a book that’s poorly written, but we all have our own tastes and preferences. Why do I like this particular book? Why does it interest me? As a writer, when I find a book or series I really enjoy I ask myself why. The series consists of three books: All Fall Down, See How They Run, and Take the Key and Lock Her Up. I’ve just finished reading the Embassy Row young adult series by Ally Carter.
