Happy reading,
Jocelyn, Martina, Jan, Shelly, Susan, Lisa, and Erin
YA BOOK GIVEAWAYS THIS WEEK
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
by Becky Albertalli
personalized swag pack Giveaway
U.S. Only
Balzer + Bray
Released 4/7/2015
Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.
With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda?
This is actually a hard question to answer, since I feel so close to the entire book. Every day, I change my mind about what I think is the heart of the story. That being said, I think my favorite moments are the emails exchanged between Simon and Blue. I loved writing them – sometimes, it almost felt like they wrote themselves. One of my favorite things about writing in that epistolary format is that it gives another character (Blue) a direct voice. He has a slightly different perspective than Simon, and I loved having the opportunity to show that. It also gave me a chance to play around with the differences between Simon’s unfiltered thoughts (in the narrative) and the way he presents himself to others (in the emails). Simon admits that he edits his emails to impress Blue, and he’s definitely, deliberately flirtatious. I loved showing those two sides of Simon, and it was interesting to explore what we do and don’t share with others, even when we think we’re being very open.
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Empire of Night
by Kelley Armstrong
paperback of Sea of Shadows (book 1) & hardcover of Empire of Night (book 2) Giveaway
U.S. Only
HarperCollins
Released 4/7/2015
Sisters Moria and Ashyn are the Keeper and Seeker of Edgewood. Or at least they were. Their village is gone. Their friends have betrayed them. And now, the emperor has sent them on a mission to rescue the captured children of Edgewood—accompanied by Prince Tyrus and a small band of imperial warriors. But the journey proves more perilous than any of them could have imagined. And with treachery and unrest mounting in the empire, the girls are running out of places to turn.
With all the pulse-pounding action and romance that have made her a #1 New York Times bestselling author, this second book in the Age of Legends trilogy will appeal to Kelley Armstrong’s legions of fans around the world and win her many new ones.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Empire of Night?
When I speak to other writers who do trilogies, they often lament the middle book. To them, it’s like act 2 of a regular book, which is often the hardest part to write—you know the setup and the conclusion, but then you need to keep a story interesting for 200 or so pages between them! To me, though, book 2 of a trilogy is my favourite. I’ve established the characters, setting and situation in book 1. I don’t need to actually resolve anything major until book 3. So the second book is total play-time for me. It’s where I can get creative and add anything I want, from action to mystery to romance, and just have fun with the characters. Of course, for me “having fun” with the characters is usually “making things steadily worse for them” but that’s what makes a story interesting! EMPIRE OF NIGHT was pure rising action and rising tension, taking the characters from bad to worse, and seeing them grow and develop because of it. It’s probably my favourite book in the Age of Legends trilogy, as is THE AWAKENING in Darkest Powers and THE CALLING in Darkness Rising.
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None of the Above
by I. W. Gregorio
Hardcover Giveaway
U.S. Only
Balzer + Bray
Released 4/7/2015
A groundbreaking story about a teenage girl who discovers she was born intersex . . . and what happens when her secret is revealed to the entire school. Incredibly compelling and sensitively told, None of the Above is a thought-provoking novel that explores what it means to be a boy, a girl, or something in between.
What if everything you knew about yourself changed in an instant?
When Kristin Lattimer is voted homecoming queen, it seems like another piece of her ideal life has fallen into place. She’s a champion hurdler with a full scholarship to college and she’s madly in love with her boyfriend. In fact, she’s decided that she’s ready to take things to the next level with him.
But Kristin’s first time isn’t the perfect moment she’s planned–something is very wrong. A visit to the doctor reveals the truth: Kristin is intersex, which means that though she outwardly looks like a girl, she has male chromosomes, not to mention boy “parts.”
Dealing with her body is difficult enough, but when her diagnosis is leaked to the whole school, Kristin’s entire identity is thrown into question. As her world unravels, can she come to terms with her new self?
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about None of the Above?
This book will always hold a special place in my heart because of how intimately it’s intertwined with my day job as a doctor. Because it was inspired by a patient I treated and I felt a deep sense of responsibility re: the subject matter, it was a tricky book to write. I felt like I was constantly walking a tightrope between explaining too much, and not enough. I didn’t want to sound didactic, so I made sure to pace the plot well, but at the same time I did want people to learn from the book. I’m sure there will be some people who think I threaded the needle, and others who don’t! And it doesn’t sound very sexy, but the proudest moments of my debut year so far have been when readers say that it’s opened their mind – and that they read it in one sitting.
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Don’t Stay Up Late
by R.L. Stine
Hardcover Giveaway
U.S. Only
St. Martin’s Griffin; First Edition edition
Released 4/7/2015
R.L. Stine’s hugely successful young adult horror series Fear Street is back after almost 2 decades. Fear Street is a worldwide phenomenon and helped to kick off the young adult craze which is still going strong today. In the second new book in this series, Don’t Stay Up Late, Stine explores the unbridled terror of a damaged young lady sent on a doomed babysitting job.
Ever since a car accident killed her father and put Lisa and her mother into the hospital, Lisa can’t think straight. She’s plagued by nightmares and hallucinations that force her to relive the accident over and over again in vivid detail. When Lisa finds out that a neighbor is looking for a babysitter for her young son, she takes the job immediately, eager to keep busy and shake these disturbing images from her head.
But what promised to be an easy gig turns terrifying when Lisa begins to question exactly who — or what — she is babysitting.
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One Thing Stolen
by Beth Kephart
Hardcover Giveaway
U.S. Only
Chronicle Books
Released 4/7/2015
Something is not right with Nadia Cara. While spending a year in Florence, Italy, she’s become a thief. She has secrets. And when she tries to speak, the words seem far away. Nadia finds herself trapped by her own obsessions and following the trail of an elusive Italian boy whom only she has seen. Can Nadia be rescued or will she simply lose herself altogether? Set against the backdrop of a glimmering city, One Thing Stolen is an exploration of obsession, art, and a rare neurological disorder. It is a celebration of language, beauty, imagination, and the salvation of love.
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YA BOOK GIVEAWAYS LAST WEEK: WINNERS
What Waits in the Woods
by Kieran Scott
Hardcover
Point
Released 3/31/2015
Winner – Lisa Trinh
Seeing things. You were just seeing things.
For city girl Callie Velasquez, nothing sounds more terrifying than a night out in the wilderness. But, wanting to bond with her popular new friends, Lissa and Penelope, she agrees to join them on a camping trip. At least Callie’s sweet new boyfriend, Jeremy, will be coming too.
But nothing goes as planned. The group loses half their food supply. Then they lose their way. And with strange sounds all around her–the snap of a twig, a sinister laugh–Callie wonders if she’s losing her mind.
Tensions swirl among the group, with dark secrets suddenly revealed. And then, things take a fatal turn: Callie stumbles upon a cold dead body in the woods.
Is the murderer close by, watching them? Callie has to figure out where she can turn and who she can trust, before her own life is at stake.
Kieran Scott weaves a thrilling mystery that explores love, loyalty–and the dangerous decisions we make in order to survive.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about What Waits in the Woods?
I’d have to say the cliffhangers. WHAT WAITS IN THE WOODS is a thriller/mystery, which means there are plenty of opportunities to totally freak out readers. It’s always more satisfying to drop a bomb at the end of a chapter that makes people keep reading! There’s nothing I love more than a good cliffhanger at the end of a book or a TV show, so to be able to write one for almost every chapter was so much fun. I hope the readers enjoy it!
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MORE YOUNG ADULT FICTION IN STORES NEXT WEEK WITH AUTHOR INTERVIEWS
Ask the Dark
by Henry Turner
Hardcover
Clarion Books
Released 4/7/2015
Billy Zeets has a story to tell.
About being a vandal and petty thief.
About missing boys and an elusive killer.
And about what happens if a boy who breaks all the rules is the only person who can piece together the truth.
Gripping and powerful, this masterful debut novel comes to vivid life through the unique voice of a hero as unlikely as he is unforgettable.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Ask the Dark?
Billy makes people see the hero in themselves. That’s my favorite thing. Just as much as the story shows his investigation of a killer, it also shows his investigation and discovery of himself. I think – I hope – he becomes an example of what is often overlooked in the human spirit.
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Fig
by Sarah Elizabeth Schantz
Hardcover
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Released 4/7/2015
Love and sacrifice intertwine in this brilliant and provocative debut of rare beauty about a girl dealing with her mother’s schizophrenia and her own mental illness.
Fig’s world lies somewhere between reality and fantasy.
But as she watches Mama slowly come undone, it becomes hard to tell what is real and what is not, what is fun and what is frightening. To save Mama, Fig begins a fierce battle to bring her back. She knows that her daily sacrifices, like not touching metal one day or avoiding water the next, are the only way to cure Mama.
The problem is that in the process of a daily sacrifice, Fig begins to lose herself as well, increasingly isolating herself from her classmates and engaging in self-destructive behavior that only further sets her apart.
Spanning the course of Fig’s childhood from age six to nineteen, this deeply provocative novel is more than a portrait of a mother, a daughter, and the struggle that comes with all-consuming love. It is an acutely honest and often painful portrayal of life with mental illness and the lengths to which a young woman must go to handle the ordeals—real or imaginary—thrown her way.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Fig?
I’m pleased with the success I had regarding the initial constraints I made for myself when I first sat down to write the book. I knew I had to write the novel from Fig’s point of view because I was interested in using a child’s perspective as an unreliable narrator to tell the story of a woman coming undone. To properly express the trauma, I had to tell the story in present tense—this was the only way to make the reader experience what Fig experiences.
But I’d also like to address the fact that Fig is no longer a pile of papers or an electronic file, but an actual BOOK. In the beginning of the novel, Mama shows Fig how books have spines like people do, and she says, “Books are bodies too and the pages are the wings that make them fly.” This is what I thought about when I held the hardcover of Fig for the very first time. With the help of everyone at McElderry, Fig is a breathtakingly BEAUTIFUL book, and it really does FLY. The aesthetic is stunning—I mean, just look at it! The imagery of the bird and the unraveling spools of thread, not to mention the actual font inside, or the particular shade of purple—the design not only grabs your attention, it actually aches to be picked up. I haven’t yet seen it on a shelf, but I when I do I’ll probably die from happiness.
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Kissing Ted Callahan (and Other Guys)
by Amy Spalding
Hardcover
Poppy
Released 4/7/2015
Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist meets Easy A in this hilariously realistic story of sneaking out, making out, and playing in a band.
After catching their bandmates in a compromising position, sixteen-year-old Los Angelenos Riley and Reid become painfully aware of the romance missing from their own lives. And so a pact is formed: they’ll both try to make something happen with their respective crushes and document the experiences in a shared notebook.
While Reid struggles with the moral dilemma of adopting a dog to win over someone’s heart, Riley tries to make progress with Ted Callahan, who she’s been obsessed with forever-His floppy hair! His undeniable intelligence! But suddenly cute guys are popping up everywhere. How did she never notice them before?! With their love lives going from 0 to 60 in the blink of an eye, Riley and Reid realize the results of their pact may be more than they bargained for.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Kissing Ted Callahan (and Other Guys)?
I wrote Kissing Ted Callahan when I was worried I would never get published, and decided to just write something fun that would make me and my friends laugh. It feels special to know that soon that book will be out in the world.
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Skandal
by Lindsay Smith
Hardcover
Roaring Brook Press
Released 4/7/2015
The dramatic sequel to Sekret, this psychic Cold War espionage thriller follows Yulia to Washington, DC, where she fights to discover the truth about her family without losing control of her mind.
My mind is mine alone.
Life in Washington, D.C., is not the safe haven Yulia hoped for when she risked everything to flee communist Russia. Her father is reckless and aloof, and Valentin is distant and haunted by his past. Her mother is being targeted by the CIA and the US government is suspicious of Yulia’s allegiance. And when super-psychics start turning up in the US capitol, it seems that even Rostov is still a threat. Ultimately, Yulia must keep control of her own mind to save the people she loves and avoid an international Skandal.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Skandal?
I love SKANDAL for all the ways it holds a mirror up to my first book, SEKRET—and also the ways it doesn’t! Sequels are so intimidating. I wanted to deliver on what audiences loved about the first book, while introducing new story elements, and forcing my characters to grow, as well. By changing the setting from the Soviet Union to America, I was able to look at the Cold War in a whole new perspective. Yulia wrestles with being an outsider trying to blend in, this time, instead of a peer trying to escape. Plus, it was so fun to write a jazz club scene in 1964 Washington, DC!
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The Truth about Us
by Janet Gurtler
Paperback
Sourcebooks Fire
Released 4/7/2015
A powerful and gripping contemporary YA from the author of I’m Not Her that’s “Just right for fans of Sarah Dessen and Jodi Picoult.”-Booklist
The truth is that Jess knows she screwed up.
She’s made mistakes, betrayed her best friend, and now she’s paying for it. Her dad is making her spend the whole summer volunteering at the local soup kitchen.
The truth is she wishes she was the care-free party-girl everyone thinks she is.
She pretends it’s all fine. That her “perfect” family is fine. But it’s not. And no one notices the lie…until she meets Flynn. He’s the only one who really sees her. The only one who listens.
The truth is that Jess is falling apart – and no one seems to care.
But Flynn is the definition of “the wrong side of the tracks.” When Jess’s parents look at him they only see the differences-not how much they need each other. They don’t get that the person who shouldn’t fit in your world… might just be the one to make you feel like you belong.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about The Truth about Us?
My very favorite thing about THE TRUTH ABOUT US is the relationship that develops between Jess and Flynn. I really think these two are good for each other and they’re probably the most romantic young adult couple I’ve written. My other favorite thing was Wilf, the grandfather figure for Jess
in the book. I named him after a grandfather I never met, and kind of got to make up a nice grandfather relationship that I always wanted to have.
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MORE YOUNG ADULT NOVELS NEW IN STORES NEXT WEEK
Anastasia and Her Sisters
by Carolyn Meyer
Hardcover
Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books
Released 4/7/2015
There’s a heavy price to pay for royalty in this compelling—and true—story of Anastasia Romanov and fellow grand duchesses of Russia, from an award-winning novelist.
It’s summer in 1914 and the Romanovs are aboard the Standart, the Russian royal yacht. Tsar Nicholas, Tsaritsa Alexandra, their four daughters, and the youngest child, Tsarevitch Alexei, are sailing to Romania to meet Crown Prince Carol and his parents. It seems like a fairy tale existence for the four grand duchesses, dressed in beautiful clothes, traveling from palace to palace. But it’s not.
Life inside the palace is far from a fairy tale. The girls’ younger brother suffers from an excruciatingly painful and deadly blood disease, and their parents have chosen to shield the Russian people from the severity of the future tsar’s condition. The secrets and strain are hard on the family, and conditions are equally dire beyond the palace walls. Peasants chafe under the burden of extreme poverty and Tsar Nicholas’s leadership power weakens. And when the unthinkable happens—Germany declares war on Russia—nothing in Anastasia’s world will ever be the same.
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Awakening
by Shannon Duffy
Hardcover
Entangled: Teen
Released 4/7/2015
A thrilling, futuristic sci-fi novel set in a unique and thought-provoking world, from author Shannon Duffy.
Desiree Six (because she was born on a Friday) believes in everything the Protectorate stands for. She likes the safety and security of having her entire life planned out—her career, her mate, even the date of her death. She doesn’t even think to question when Darian, her childhood friend and neighbor, is convicted of murdering his parents. They had seemed like such a loving family. But if he was convicted, then he must have done it.
Then Darian shows up in her room late one night. He has escaped from the Terrorscape—a nightmare machine used to punish all Noncompliants—and needs Desiree’s help. What he tells her rocks her world to its core and makes her doubt everything she’s ever been told. With this new information, will Desiree and Darian be able to escape the Protectorate before it’s too late?
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I Am Her Revenge
by Meredith Moore
Hardcover
Razorbill
Released 4/7/2015
She can be anyone you want her to be.
Vivian was raised with one purpose in life: to exact revenge on behalf of her mother. Manipulative and cruel, Mother has deprived Vivian not only of a childhood, but of an original identity. With an endless arsenal of enticing personalities at her disposal, Vivian is a veritable weapon of deception.
And she can destroy anyone.
When it’s time to strike, she enrolls in a boarding school on the English moors, where she will zero in on her target: sweet and innocent Ben, the son of the man who broke Mother’s heart twenty years ago.
Anyone… except for the woman who created her.
With every secret she uncovers, Vivian comes one step closer to learning who she really is. But the more she learns about herself, the more dangerous this cat and mouse game becomes. Because Mother will stop at nothing to make sure the truth dies with her.
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Lies I Told
by Michelle Zink
Hardcover
HarperTeen
Released 4/7/2015
What if, after spending a lifetime deceiving everyone around you, you discovered the biggest lies were the ones you’ve told yourself?
Grace Fontaine has everything: beauty, money, confidence, and the perfect family.
But it’s all a lie.
Grace has been adopted into a family of thieves who con affluent people out of money, jewelry, art, and anything else of value. Grace has never had any difficulty pulling off a job, but when things start to go wrong on the Fontaines’ biggest heist yet, Grace finds herself breaking more and more of the rules designed to keep her from getting caught…including the most important one of all: never fall for your mark.
Perfect for fans of Ally Carter, Cecily von Ziegesar, and Gail Carriger, this thrilling, high-stakes novel deftly explores the roles of identity and loyalty while offering a window into the world of the rich and fabulous.
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Miss Mayhem
by Rachel Hawkins
Hardcover
G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers
Released 4/7/2015
New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hawkins is sassier than ever in this page-turning follow up to Rebel Belle, perfect for fans of Buffy and Veronica Mars.
Life is almost back to normal for Harper Price. The Ephors have been silent after their deadly attack at Cotillion months ago, and best friend Bee has returned after a mysterious disappearance. Now Harper can return her focus to the important things in life: school, canoodling with David, her nemesis-turned-ward-slash-boyfie, and even competing in the Miss Pine Grove pageant.
Unfortunately, supernatural chores are never done. The Ephors have decided they’d rather train David than kill him. The catch: Harper has to come along for the ride, but she can’t stay David’s Paladin unless she undergoes an ancient trial that will either kill her . . . or connect her to David for life.
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Palace of Lies
by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Hardcover
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Released 4/7/2015
Desmia discovers the reality of royalty is far from a fairy tale in this third adventure set in the Cinderella-esque world of Just Ella and Palace of Mirrors, from New York Times bestselling author Margaret Peterson Haddix.
Desmia and her twelve sister-princesses are ruling Suala together at last, a united front. The kingdom seems to have finally gotten its happily ever after, but Desmia, trained by a lifetime of palace intrigue, is not so sure. She desperately wants to believe all is well, but she can’t help seeing danger around every corner.
And then the unthinkable happens, and Desmia’s worst fears are confirmed. Now, without the support of the sister-princesses she’s grown to rely on or the trappings of royalty that have always convinced people to listen to her, Desmia must find the courage to seek out the truth on her own terms—and to determine the course of two kingdoms.
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The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things
by Ann Aguirre
Hardcover
Feiwel & Friends
Released 4/7/2015
Sage Czinski is trying really hard to be perfect. If she manages it, people won’t peer beyond the surface, or ask hard questions about her past. She’s learned to substitute causes for relationships, and it’s working just fine… until Shane Cavendish strolls into her math class. He’s a little antisocial, a lot beautiful, and everything she never knew she always wanted.
Shane Cavendish just wants to be left alone to play guitar and work on his music. He’s got heartbreak and loneliness in his rearview mirror, and this new school represents his last chance. He doesn’t expect to be happy; he only wants to graduate and move on. He never counted on a girl like Sage.
But love doesn’t mend all broken things, and sometimes life has to fall apart before it can be put back together again…
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