Sasha Peyton Smith chats The Rose Bargain bringing her joy

Imagine if the Queen of England was an immortal fae queen, and every person could be granted a wish? In this world, high society girls are expected to bargain for qualities that will win them suitors, but Ivy’s debut season became a competition to secure the heart of the Queen’s fae son, Prince Bram.

To celebrate the paperback release, we chatted with Sasha Peyton Smith, author of The Rose Bargain, about the book:

Hi Sasha! I’m so excited to have the chance to talk to you today to celebrate the upcoming release of your new YA historical fantasy novel, The Rose Bargain. For readers just hearing about the book, how would you describe it in five words?

Hi! Thank you so much for having me! This is tough, but I’ll go with: Victorian, faerie, balls, competitions, and princes

Can you tell us a little about your inspirations behind the story?

I first came up with the idea for The Rose Bargain in December of 2022, while at my childhood home for the holidays. I was fresh off the biggest failure of my career, nursing fresh wounds, and wondering, genuinely, if I’d ever write anything again. It was there, surrounded by all of my favourite novels from my childhood that the idea “what if the Queen of England was a faerie?” struck me like lightning.

It was such a sad point in my life, and the initial idea was so self-indulgent and silly, I decided to really lean into it. I wanted to write something that gave me all of the same feelings my most beloved books from when I was sixteen gave me. I was wondering if a book even could give me those feelings again. The Rose Bargain was a study in joy from the get.

You mentioned in your authors note that you wanted to write something that would bring you the same joy as the books you read during your teen years. What was teen Sasha reading and recommending?

I was a very early (and enthusiastic!) Twilight fan. I recently found my battered copy at my parents’ house and it was a first printing, first edition. I swear, I went from table to table at in my middle school lunch room telling the other girls all about Edward Cullen. As for other YA novels, I loved Anna and the French Kiss, the Delirium Series, The Hunger Games, and anything written by Libba Bray. Teen Sasha was also very into Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters (Persuasion and Wuthering Heights are still my favourites!)

The Rose Bargain features a fabulous cast of characters! Did you have a favourite character to write or one you found you saw yourself in?

I think it’s impossible not to see yourself in your main character at least a little. I poured a lot of myself into Ivy, especially regarding the deep love she has for her sister Lydia. But I also have such a soft spot for Faith Fairchild, the illegitimate daughter of a noble, a dancer in the royal ballet, and Prince Emmett’s ex. I took ballet class from ages 3-22, so it was fun to write a dancer! My favourite characters to write are always girls with sharp edges and soft hearts.

If you had the chance to make a bargain with Queen Mor, would you take it and if you did, what would you bargain for?

I’m much less brave than my characters. If I lived in this world, I would run as far away from the queen as possible! If forced to make a bargain, I would make it for something small, so the cost wouldn’t be too large. Maybe something like always picking the fastest line at airport security or always having my water bottle be full.

With royal balls, female friendships, sinister trials and dark secrets, The Rose Bargain was so much fun to read but did you have a favourite scene or element to write?

I threw so many of my favourite tropes into the Rose Bargain. I was definitely giggling and kicking my feet writing the just-one-bed scene! Writing that explosive finale was also a blast. I always write chronologically, so I’d been working up to those scenes for months!

For those of us dying for more after the epic cliff-hanger at the end of The Rose Bargain, is there anything you can share with us about what we can expect from book two?

I don’t want to reveal too much, but it probably won’t surprise readers that most of the book doesn’t take place in England! The first chapter is from Emmett’s point of view and I wrote it the same day I finished The Rose Bargain.