Author Interview (and a Giveaway!): Kimberly Duffy & The Weight of Air

Please join me in welcoming the fabulous Kimberly Duffy to the blog today to chat about her new novel, The Weight of Air! I’m so honored to have her here today!

Kimberly Duffy is a Long Island native currently living in southwest Ohio. When she’s not homeschooling her four kids, she writes historical fiction that takes her readers back in time and across oceans. She loves trips that require a passport, recipe books, and practicing kissing scenes with her husband of twenty–three years. He doesn’t mind. Learn more at kimberlyduffy.com.

THE WEIGHT OF AIR by Kimberly Duffy
GENRE: Inspirational Historical Fiction
PUBLISHER: Bethany House
RELEASE DATE: February 7, 2023
PAGES: 394

Two women–bound by blood, torn apart by circumstance–find together that true strength comes in many forms.

In 1911, Mabel MacGinnis is Europe’s strongest woman and has performed beside her father in the Manzo Brothers Circus her entire life. When he dies unexpectedly, she loses everything she’s ever known and sets off in the company of acrobat Jake Cunningham in hope of finding the mother she thought was dead.

Isabella Moreau, America’s most feted aerialist, has given everything to the circus. But age and injury now threaten her security, and Isabella, stalked by old fears, makes a choice that risks everything. Then her daughter Mabel appears alongside the man who never wanted to see Isabella again, and she is forced to face the truth of where, and in what, she derives her worth.

As Mabel and Isabella’s lives become entangled beneath the glittering lights and flying trapeze of Madison Square Garden, their resiliency and resolve are tested as they learn the truth of what it means to be strong.

“Kimberly Duffy not only delivers a beautiful escape, but she also adds layers of emotional depth to build a captivating story readers will love.”–JULIE CANTRELL, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Perennials

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Hi Kimberly! Welcome back to the blog!

Kimberly: Summer! I find cold weather painful, and in warm weather, I can release my inner hippy and wear maxi skirts and crocheted tops.

Carrie: i am the exact opposite lol – there is just no excuse for abominably hot & sticky Georgia summers 😛

Kimberly: Tea, but only herbal because I’m allergic to caffeine. I just recently found an herbal-based Earl Grey, which is my favorite, and I’m super excited about it.

Carrie: that noise you heard is all of us gasping at the thought of being allergic to caffeine haha. But yay for herbal-based faves that hit the spot!!

Kimberly: Netflix. I like a variety of genres when it comes to shows and movies, and I get bored pretty quickly with Hallmark. The only time I watch it is around Christmas. I enjoy foreign films, historical dramas, new releases, and documentaries so Netflix works better for me. I also like to binge shows when I have the time, so I’ll save them up and watch them all at once between projects.

Carrie: Bingeing shows is fun!

Kimberly: Ocean, for sure! I grew up on Long Island, and my summers were spent at the beach. I feel centered and most myself when I’m near the ocean. One day, I’m going to have to leave Ohio and move to a coast because I always feel a little trapped here.

Carrie: I grew up landlocked in Illinois and Kentucky so I’m partial to the mountains but I can see why your heart would beat for the ocean 🙂

Q: Around here I like to say that reading is my superpower. If YOU had a superpower, what would it be?

Kimberly: Cooking. I’m very proficient in the kitchen, and I make almost everything from scratch. It’s easy for me to throw something together with just a few random ingredients. I once decided to eyeball ingredients I was measuring for muffins and then check to make sure it was right, and every one was within a teaspoon or two of what the recipe called for (except for the salt and baking powder, which were spot on).

Carrie: that is awesome – i want to be like you when i grow up (says me, who has no spatial measurement sense and must have a recipe)

Q: When you walk into a bookstore, where do you head first?

Kimberly: Cookbooks. I have a nice collection. I especially like historical and other country’s cookbooks.

Carrie: oh that does sound like fun!

Q: What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever Googled while researching a book?

Kimberly: Cockroach mating habits. Seriously, it’s as gross as it sounds, but there’s a scene in A Mosaic of Wings that required me to understand what it looks like. Don’t do it! I promise, you will regret it.

Carrie: ew. LOL

Q: Which of your main characters in The Weight of Air is most like you?

Kimberly: Isabella. I’m extremely independent, and I don’t like admitting there may be weakness in me. It’s hard for me to trust people and their motives, too. I hate that about myself and I don’t even know why it’s the case. I’ve also struggled with anxiety and OCD like Isabella.

Carrie: I think I would relate to Isabella on several levels too ♥

Q: Did you have the whole plot outlined before you started writing The Weight of Air, or did you let the characters dictate what came next?

Kimberly: I always plot my stories (everything but the spiritual arc, which I like to happen organically), and this one was no different. Every scene gets its own index card, and then I write linearly—from scene one to the last. Except, this time, Isabella did her own thing. She became more complex, more sympathetic, and more devastating than I’d originally intended.

Carrie: oh that’s interesting!!

Q: What do you most want readers to take away from The Weight of Air?

Kimberly: I want readers to know that they are not alone in their loneliness, depression, anxiety, and weakness. There are many, many people struggling silently with these things because, sometimes, the church doesn’t do a great job listening. Life is a complex mix of good, bad, joy, sadness, love, failure, freedom, and success. One season we walk through doesn’t determine who we must be forever and ever.

Carrie: so very true ♥ ♥ ♥

Thank you so much for taking time to talk with me! 🙂 Before we say goodbye for today, tell us what‘s coming up next for you.

Kimberly: I’m currently working on two projects—a historical AND a contemporary romance. They’re completely different from one another, but I’m enjoying it.

Bethany House is offering a print copy of The Weight of Air by Kimberly Duffy to one of my readers! (US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.) This giveaway is subject to Reading Is My SuperPower’s giveaway policies which can be found here. Enter via the Rafflecopter form below.

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What about you? What makes you want to read The Weight of Air by Kimberly Duffy?