Dream
Cast for Emily’s Trial
Some writers
“cast” their characters before they pen the first word of their
story. I didn’t search for actors or models to serve as references
for my characters before I wrote Emily’s
House, Book 1 of the Akasha
Chronicles. But when I set out to write Book 2, Emily’s
Trial, I decided to give casting my
characters a shot.
It was a lot of
fun to search out real-world faces to match the characters I’d
created in my mind. There aren’t any exact matches of course. But
I’ve come pretty close here.
Allow me to
introduce you to the cast of Emily’s
Trial:
Emily
Adams – played by Rachel
Hurd-Wood. Emily is the main character, reluctant hero, ordinary girl
with a painful past turned modern Celtic Priestess. Emily’s
signature long, red hair and piercing green eyes make her a somewhat
hard character to cast. Emily is beautiful but in a natural way. She
doesn’t wear much makeup and tends to let her hair go au
naturel. But when I came across this
picture of Rachel Hurd-Wood, it was like looking at a picture of the
snapshot of Emily I’ve had in my head for about five years now!
Actress
Rachel Hurd-Wood
But hold on, when
we cast the model to pose as Emily for the cover of Emily’s
Trial, I think we found a girl that
may be even more of a dead ringer for Emily than Rachel. Here’s
Ashley playing Emily Adams for the cover of Emily’s
Trial.
Behind
the Scenes, Photo Teresa Yeh
Ashley
as Emily Adams
Cover
Art by Phatpuppy Art
Armed with her
magical dagger and wearing the golden torc, forged long ago by faerie
hands, Emily is ready to take on the forces of darkness in Emily’s
Trial. But will desire tempt her to
use the powerful magic entrusted to her in a forbidden way? And what
will happen to her and her friends if she succumbs to the forces of
temptation?
Fanny Katz
– played by Allisyn Ashley Arm. Fanny is the wisecracking, loyal
friend to Emily. The two friends have known each other since
pre-school. Fanny has always had Emily’s back. But in Emily’s
Trial, the friendship is tested.
Will their bond survive the ordeal of Emily’s
Trial?
Fanny’s strong,
athletic and although physically small, can kick the ass of just
about anybody. When I’m writing, Fanny’s voice comes out with a
potty mouth! So to keep the Akasha Chronicles series YA appropriate,
I’ve had to tone down her language ;-) It has been a fun challenge
to try to find other ways to say her trash-mouth phrases that won’t
scald the ears of parents and librarians!
I came across
this picture of Allisyn Ashley Arm and couldn’t believe the
resemblance to the Fanny in my mind! Just add unruly, curly hair and
you’ve got Fanny.
Actress
Allisyn Ashley Arm
Owen Breen
– played by Ian Somerhalder. How hot does a guy have to be to get
Emily to put her friendships – the most valuable thing to her –
at risk? How about Ian Somerhalder hot?
Actor
Ian Somerhalder
Those smoldering
eyes, the full lips, the dark hair. Ian is slightly older than Owen,
and Owen has dark, chocolate-brown eyes. But the swagger is all Owen.
I think Ian Somerhalder could persuade me to do anything he wanted me
to. Hell, I don’t think it would take much persuading!
Jake Stevens
– Played by Sterling Beaumon. If you’ve read book 1, Emily’s
House, then you know that Jake and
Emily have been best friends since they were little kids. Jake is
super-smart and as loyal as they come. What he lacks in courage, he
makes up for with his calm, level-headed reason. When the shit hits
the fan, and you find yourself in a big mess, Jake is the go-to guy
to come up with a plan to get you out (a good thing, because Emily
has a way of getting herself into lots of messes!).
Jake is what you
might call a “late bloomer”. In Emily’s Trial, he’s now 16
but still waiting to “fill out” a bit. When I came across a
picture of Sterling Beaumon, I thought he was perfect to play Jake.
Just add glasses and you’ve got Jake Stevens.
Actor
Sterling Beaumon, Photo Getty Images
Astute readers of
book 1 may have guessed it, but in Emily’s
Trial, it’s confirmed – Jake has
been crushing on Emily - big time! But the oblivious Miss Adams
hasn’t put it together. When they’re thrust into danger, will
Emily start to crush on him too? And if she does, is it too late for
them?
Sterling sure is
aging well! Perhaps a look at Jake in the last installment of the
Akasha Chronicles, Emily’s Heart,
coming 2013.
Sterling
Beaumon
What’s
a story without some conflict – antagonists? Emily’s got plenty
of antagonists in Emily’s Trial.
Her old nemesis Greta Hoffman makes an appearance in Emily’s
Trial.
In
Emily’s House,
we learned that Greta was the kind of girl that, as a child, could
melt the hearts of adults with her blonde curls and large, blue eyes.
Greta still uses her physical beauty and charm to get what she wants.
There
are plenty of blonde-haired, blue-eyes beauties in Hollywood. But
whoever plays Greta has to have something other than good looks.
After all, Greta has to hold her own against Emily Adams – no
wimpy, lithe runway walker will do!
Greta
Hoffman – Played by AnnaSophia
Robb. When I saw this picture of AnnaSophia, I thought this is
Greta! I can picture her as a popular, a cheerleader, and a teacher’s
favorite. But this picture also captures that side of Greta that no
one knows – the secret side. There’s more to her than meets the
eye. What role will she play in Emily’s
Trial? And I promise you, there’s
more of her to come in Book 3, Emily’s
Heart.
Actress
AnnaSophia Robb, Photo by Jonathan Ressler
One
last character to get you in the spirit of it all. A nasty creature –
sometimes I wonder where my brain comes up with this stuff! Should I
be worried?!
In
Emily’s Trial,
Emily and crew meet perhaps the ugliest beast they’ve ever seen.
What would happen if you took this . . .
And
mixed it with this . . .
The
mixture would turn out to look a lot like Dorcha, a strange creature
that roams the Umbra Perdita.
There
are other characters to meet in the pages of Emily’s
Trial, but I have to leave you some
surprises.
Happy
reading
Author
Bio
Natalie
is the author of The Akasha Chronicles, a young adult fantasy
trilogy. When not writing, blogging, Facebooking, Tweeting,
Wattpadding or eating chocolate, Natalie nurtures her young daughter,
feeds her dog too many treats, and can’t resist watching Ancient
Aliens, no matter how absurd the show becomes.
Natalie
enjoys travel, good wine, and excellent food shared with family and
friends. She was raised an Ohio farm girl, now lives in the desert
Southwest, and dreams of living in a high rise in a big city.
“Books
are my friends, ideas my passion.”
Natalie
enjoys chatting with readers, so stop by and say hi:
Twitter:
@NatalieWright_
Facebook:
NatalieWright.Author
Pinterest:
http://pinterest.com/natwrites/
