New Book Spotlight

Legend of Ira Hill

A mini-interview with Sam Fletcher

Tell us about your new book?

Legend of Ira Hill is a young adult fantasy novel that follows an eighteen-year-old trailer park kid thrust into a world of magic and responsibilities he is little prepared for. It becomes a superhero team-up story as Ira recruits his talented friends to face off against a villain, but when horrors from his past affect his day-to-day behavior, he is forced to re-examine his priorities.

What aspect of the book was the most fun to write?

The book is loosely a portal fantasy, half taking place in coastal Washington and half taking place in hidden worlds and parallel dimensions, so the best part for me was immersing into places I’ve grown up and describing them in a fantastic way that allows them to fit within a broader magical world.

If there is one emotion or theme that you would hope that the reader connects with, what would that be?

I hope readers reflect upon their own flaws and how they may be manifesting in invisible ways the way that Ira is forced to throughout the book. Ira had a rough upbringing and has always felt alone and bitter because of it, so much so that he often ignores good things like the people who do care about him. Throughout the story, characters tackle all kinds of emotions we feel at times growing up—confusion, jealousy, anxiety—but in the end Ira realizes just how much his thoughts shape his reality and how much he is projecting his own insecurities onto perceived enemies.