To celebrate the release of her new book The Tesla Legacy, we asked author KK Pérez to tell us 10 things she'd like all readers to know about her, that they may not yet know!

1. I spent nearly a decade in Asia working as a journalist covering travel, arts, and culture, and one of the most fascinating places I went for a story was North Korea. At the time I went, journalists weren’t allowed in the country and I had to surrender both my passport and cellphone at the airport, which was...nerve-wracking to say the least.

2. I love all things that go bump in the night––especially vampires. I even teach a university course on vampire literature. Before you ask, Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu is my favourite take on vampire lore. And yes, I have both the Buffy and Angel DVD box-sets and I keep a DVD player exclusively so I can watch the DVD “extras” that you don’t get on Netflix or iTunes #sorrynotsorry.

3. At university, I went full Tolkien studying Old Irish, Middle Welsh, Old Norse, Middle English and Old French! Elvish is basically Middle Welsh, if you ask me.

4. I wrote my PhD on Morgan la Fey, King Arthur’s half-sister and enchantress extraordinaire. I’ve never met a sorceress I didn’t like. Did you know that she originated as a Celtic Sovereignty Goddess and was originally a quite beneficent figure in the legends?

5. Up until high school, I wanted to be a marine biologist and veterinarian. I think I was mostly hoping to talk to dolphins. So I became a mermaid instead. In all seriousness, I wish I had studied more science which is one of the reasons I’m an advocate for Women in STEM, both in the real world and in YA literature.

6. I rowed crew for my first year at university before I decided that if you have to crack the ice to get your oar in the river, then it’s too cold to be in a boat! There also may have been the issue of being dumped by my first great love the night before I had to get up at 5am in February––needless to say I didn’t sleep a wink.

7. Being half-Argentine, I was once at a family wedding that was delayed so everyone could watch Argentina play in the World Cup Final. My father wore a black armband for a week when the squad got knocked out during the Round of 16 back in 1994. I will also fight you over Maradona’s Hand of God.

8. My other half is Norwegian and during WWII my great-grandparents lived under house arrest with Nazi officers in their home for five years. My grandfather was a merchant marine captain for the Allies and he sent my great-grandmother sardines from every port where he docked so that she’d know he was alive.

9. I grew up in Manhattan and, like many New Yorkers, I’ve still never gotten a driver’s license. It’s on my list of things to accomplish before I turn 40 but the roads may be safer without me seeing as I have backseat driver rage!

10. Both alligator and crocodile taste like chicken, take my word for it. Emu, too.

The Tesla Legacy by KK Pérez is available now.