Indies Introduce Q&A with Kaitlyn Cavalancia

Kaitlyn Cavalancia is the author of Mystery Royale, a Winter/Spring 2025 Indies Introduce young adult selection, and January/February 2025 Kids’ Next List pick. 

Jessica Hahl of Books Inc. in San Leandro, California, served on the bookseller panel that selected Cavalancia’s book for Indies Introduce.

Hahl said of the book, “A mysterious and perilous game is afoot at the Stoutmire Estate as seven candidates gather to determine the inheritor of a magical legacy. Sharp-edged characters inhabit a labyrinth of curious rooms, seeking the answer to a strange riddle: What does death fear? This atmospheric mystery was brimming with red herrings and conspiracies, all shrouded in a sinister fae mist; perfect for fans of Holly Black and Melissa Albert. If you’ve ever wanted to smash Knives Out with Labyrinth, this book is for you!”

Cavalancia sat down with Hahl to discuss her debut title. This is a transcript of their discussion. You can listen to the interview on the ABA podcast, BookED.

Jessica Hahl: Hello and welcome! I am Jessica Hahl from Books Inc. in the Bay Area, and I am delighted to be joined by the Indies Introduce author Kaitlyn Cavalancia.

Kaitlyn Cavalancia grew up devouring mystery and fantasy novels, certain that the right wardrobe would contain a door to another world. She's an orthodontist who fights crooked teeth during the day and writes books brimming with murder and magic at night. Currently, she lives in western Pennsylvania with her husband, son, and a dog.

Kaitlyn, thank you so much for joining me!

Kaitlyn Cavalancia: Jessica, thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited to be here!

JH: I was so invested in Mystery Royale from moment one. My first question for you is, would you accept a suspicious invitation to compete for an inheritance?

KC: I'd like to think that I'm adventurous and daring enough to accept the invitation, and I think that the delivery method of the letters themselves would be enough to convince me — the fact that they're hinting at something magical. If I find a letter concealed in my breakfast burrito, I have to know how and why it got there. I definitely would have to go. If I didn't, my childhood self would never forgive me. 

JH: How far do you think you would have made it through the mystery if you accepted the Stoutmire invitation?

KC: If I could stay calm, and get past the murder, and not be rattled by the Stoutmire family themselves — a group of eccentric, highly opinionated, certainly intimidating people — then I think I'd have a fair chance. I'm just a very inquisitive person. I love puzzles. I love riddles. I definitely wouldn't sleep — not even an hour — while I was there until I had this thing solved.

JH: Excellent. A lot of the moments of mystery hinge around the character Xavier's parties. Is there a party that you wish you could attend, either one of the ones that happens in the book or one of the ones that is hinted at the in the book?

KC: I love this question, but it's a difficult one, because I have the unfair advantage of knowing what's lurking at these parties and what dangers are beneath. They all appear magical and enchanting, but once you're there, there's something more sinister under the surface. I would actually choose the card party. If there was a tiny Knight folded from playing cards who arrived to escort me to a party full of gambling and games in the billiards room, I think I would just be delighted and enchanted. I've always been enamored by tiny things. I remember when I was little, I had a little book that would teach you how to craft tiny teacups and tiny cakes. If there was a set of miniature kings and queens folded from paper and serving drinks, that sounds like a good time.

JH: Your bio mentions C. S. Lewis and going through a magical wardrobe. And reading this, I felt like it was smashing Labyrinth and Knives Out. So I'm curious, what books might you bring along on your Stoutmire mystery royale to help you kind of get through to the end?

KC: It sounds silly, but I would have to pack a variety of textbooks on different subjects. Mullery does well in the competition, because she has such an aptitude for school, and that's no coincidence. Mullery is me when I was 16 years old. I was the kid that read my summer reading books five times, and I was always taking notes. So that would be the first thing I would pack. I'd have to bring blank notebooks, because we all know the best way to solve a murder mystery is with excellent note-taking. I would also bring something I love to read, probably Karen McManus or Holly Jackson. I think they're the queens of mystery thrillers, and would keep me in the right mindset.

JH: One of the things that enchanted me from the beginning is that Mystery Royale is told from multiple perspectives. Which character's voice came to you first, and which character's point of view did you enjoy inhabiting the most as you were writing?

KC: The very first idea I had about the book, I remember so vividly. It woke me at 3:00 am in a cold sweat, and I wrote it down in a notebook on my bedside table. I had this image of a girl whose mom had just burned their house down, and the only thing she left her was a warning: run if the strange finds you. At the time, it didn't really make sense, but it was one of those ideas that just kept haunting me until I finally wanted to write it. In a way, Mullery found me first, because that was the first thought I had of her. But oddly enough, she was the hardest one to write. She has a quieter demeanor, and that can be powerful, but it takes more finesse. The other characters are very polarizing, and there's a lot of action. She's quieter, but I did enjoy writing her.

I would say my favorite perspective was Lyric. He has such a troubling backstory, such a complicated relationship with his uncle, and just so much pent-up anger towards his family, that I felt his scenes were dramatic and explosive and also deeply heartfelt. I'm not an easily angered person, but it was kind of exhilarating to tap into a different mindset and write from his perspective.

JH: I loved Lyric.

KC: I'm glad! I love Lyric too.

JH: There were so many twists, red herrings, and false trails. I felt like I had this giant conspiracy board in the margins as I was reading. I'm curious about the writing process for that, because it's a lot to keep track of. How did you avoid getting lost in this labyrinth?

KC: Thank you for saying that! I have always loved mysteries. My earliest memory is reading old Nancy Drew books, originals from 1940. They smelled old, and they had mysterious inscriptions to uncles and aunts inside, because they were all secondhand. I just devoured them. My dad loves thrillers and mystery movies, so when I got older we would always watch. And the game was always, how fast can we guess the killer? Can we guess who did it? The best ones were always the ones that you never knew right up until the end. I knew I wanted a mystery that I myself liked to read and watch, one where I was guessing, guessing, guessing, and even at the reveal, you're still not sure.

The first thing I did was make sure I had the central artery of the book. Who dies? How? When? How does it end? And from there, I branched out. Something I do when I'm plotting is I'll plant threads. I'll have a character say something suspicious, or hide something in their pocket, or be in a room they shouldn't be. I have no idea where it's going to go, but I'm planting all these little threads. I like to think that my subconscious, as I'm writing, is remembering where they are. And when one makes sense, I'll just drag and pull that thread through the story, and so it's seeding all these little bits of doubt throughout. That, I think, makes a great mystery.

JH: I hope I found many of them; I'm sure I missed some! Amazing!

I'm so looking forward to January 7, when I can put this book on the shelf at my store and at my home. Thank you so much for joining us. Bonus question: when will we get to hear more from these characters?

KC: They will be back. The sequel will come out 2026, and I actually sent the first draft to my editor in September! I'm super excited about it. It was so fun to write a book where I already knew the characters and the world, because I could really expand and layer the story. There's a new mystery — it kind of hints at the end of book one of what that will be — some new characters, lots of familiar faces, and big twists, big turns.

JH: I can't wait.

KC: Yes, me either.

JH: Yay!

Mystery Royale by Kaitlyn Cavalancia (Hyperion, 9781368099080, Hardcover Young Adult Mystery, $18.99) On Sale: 1/7/2025

Find Cavalancia on Instagram at @kcavbooks.

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