YA BOOK GIVEAWAYS THIS WEEK
The Edge of Falling
by Rebecca Serle
Hardcover Giveaway
Simon Pulse
Released 3/18/2014
Growing up in privileged, Manhattan social circles, Caggie’s life should be perfect, and it almost was until the day that her younger sister drowned when Caggie was supposed to be watching her. Stricken by grief, Caggie pulls away from her friends and family, only to have everyone misinterpret a crucial moment when she supposedly saves a fellow classmate from suicide. Now she’s famous for something she didn’t do and everyone lauds her as a hero. But inside she still blames herself for the death of her sister and continues to pull away from everything in her life, best friend and perfect boyfriend included. Then Caggie meets Astor, the new boy at school, about whom rumours are swirling and known facts are few. In Astor she finds someone who just might understand her pain, because he has an inner pain of his own. But the more Caggie pulls away from her former life to be with Astor, the more she realises that his pain might be darker, and deeper, than anything she’s ever felt. His pain might be enough to end his life…and Caggie’s as well.
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YA BOOK GIVEAWAYS LAST WEEK: WINNERS
Acid
by Emma Pass
Hardcover
Delacorte Press
Released 3/11/2014
Winner – Candice James
The year is 2113. In Jenna Strong’s world, ACID—the most brutal controlling police force in history—rule supreme. No throwaway comment or whispered dissent goes unnoticed—or unpunished. And it was ACID agents who locked Jenna away for life, for a horrendous crime she struggles to remember. But Jenna’s violent prison time has taught her how to survive by any means necessary.
When a mysterious rebel group breaks her out, she must use her strength, speed, and skill to stay one step ahead of ACID, and try to uncover the truth about what really happened on that terrible night two years ago. They have taken her life, her freedom, and her true memories away from her. How can she reclaim anything when she doesn’t know who to trust?
Strong, gritty writing, irresistible psychological suspense, and action consume the novel as Jenna struggles to survive against the all-controlling ACID. Seriously sinister stuff.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Acid?
My favourite thing about ACID is London. It was loads of fun imagining the city, which I grew up near so am quite familiar with, a hundred years from now, and how it might have changed under ACID’s brutal regime (ACID are the Agency for Crime Investigation and Defence, a sinister police force who rule over the UK, now known as the Independent Republic of Britain or IRB). I’ve imagined that the city had been divided into three sectors – Outer, Middle and Upper – and where you live depends on your social standing, which is determined by ACID. Although all people in the IRB live under certain restrictions, life in Upper is extremely comfortable, with its citizens being given the best jobs, clothes, food and housing. Middle’s citizens don’t live in such luxury, but they get by. But in Outer, life is hard. The people there are forced to eat mostly cheap, synthetic food known as Sub, and work in hard, manual jobs. In their houses they have screens broadcasting ACID propaganda which they must watch for a certain number of hours every day, or risk arrest.
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Don’t Even Think About It
by Sarah Mlynowski
Hardcover
Delacorte Press
Released 3/11/2014
Winner – Sheri Larsen
After a homeroom of sophomores gets their flu shots, they didn’t expect one side effect: Telepathic powers. Now everyone can hear their friends’ thoughts. And their teachers’ thoughts. Even their parents’! The problem is: How long can they keep the secret that they can read minds? How did a story of “I’”s become “we”?
Seeing the cover and the back of the book, I was a little hesitant. ESP sounds pretty complicated just by its real name (Extrasensory Perception) and I didn’t know how well the author could pull it off. I was amazed at how easy it all sounded in the book. Definitely an A+ for being clear. The only part I didn’t particularly like was the ending, because it was sort of a cliffhanger. I also didn’t like their choices at the end, for which you’ll have to read to find out what they were.
A thing that I did like was the way it was written. It wasn’t in first person, and it wasn’t in third like most books are. Instead, the book refers to the main characters as “we.” Now that they can all read each other’s minds, what’s the point of not calling them a whole?
Another thing I enjoyed was the voice. I say this for a lot of books, but I really mean it. It takes talent to write like someone you’re not. A lot of authors are in their 20’s and 30’s, but they make it sound like a teen. These characters were well-developed, too, which is pretty awesome if you ask me!This book is also a great form of escapism. I don’t think readers can resist thinking about what it would be like if they had telepathy in real life!
Finally, the last thing I want to say is Is there going to be a second book? Since the end was so abrupt, there seems like there is. And what about that cryptic message I found on the top of the last page? “BOBA to come”? Seems like another mystery…
Anyway, I’d recommend this book to anyone who loves realistic fiction with just a bit of mystery. I’d give it a 5 out of 5 stars!
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Kissing in Italian
by Lauren Henderson
Hardcover
Delacorte Press
Released 3/11/2014
Winner – Nora Geer
In addition to her studies, Violet loves the arts, the shopping, and the friendships she’s found in Italy. But secretly, her main objective is to learn about her true identity and family history. She never imagined she would fall in love with handsome Italian Luca.
And he feels the same about her.
But there are certain rumors circulating, that if proven to be true will forbid that they end up together.
They need answers, but are they prepared for the truth?
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Liv, Forever
by Amy Talkington
Hardcover
Soho Teen
Released 3/11/2014
Winner – Rachelle Hayes
When Liv Bloom lands an art scholarship at Wickham Hall, it’s her ticket out of the foster system. Liv isn’t sure what to make of the school’s weird traditions and rituals, but she couldn’t be happier—especially when Malcolm Astor, fellow artist and scion of one of the school’s original families, starts falling for her. Fellow scholarship kid Gabe Nichols warns her not to get involved with a “Wicky,” but things are finally going Liv’s way, and all she wants to do is enjoy it.
But Liv’s bliss is cut short when she is viciously murdered. In death, she discovers that she’s the latest victim of a dark conspiracy that spans 150 years and many, many lives. Gabe, cursed with the ability to see their ghosts, turns out to be Liv’s only link to the world of the living.
Liv must rely on Gabe’s help to prove to Malcolm that she’s still present… lingering with the other spirits. Together, Liv, Gabe, and Malcolm fight to expose the terrible truth that haunts the halls of Wickham before more lives are lost.
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Never Ending
by Martyn Bedford
Hardcover
Wendy Lamb Books
Released 3/11/2014
Winner – Kirsten Wood
Shiv’s best mate, her brother Declan, is dead. It’s been all over the news. Consumed by grief and guilt, she agrees to become an inpatient at the Korsakoff Clinic. There she meets Mikey. Caron. The others. They share a similar torment. And there, subjected to the clinic’s unconventional therapy, they must face what they can’t bear to see.
Shiv is flooded with flashbacks, nightmares, haunting visions of Declan on their last, fateful family vacation in Greece. And with memories of Nikos, the beautiful young man on the tour boat. It started there, with him, beside the glittering sea . . . the beginning of the end.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Never Ending?
This might sound strange but my favourite thing about NEVER ENDING is that fact that I managed to finish it! It took me two and a half years to write this book and, at times, it was such a struggle that I almost gave up on it. (My publishers are probably screaming: “No, don’t tell them that!”) Part of the problem was that I began by writing a quite different version of this story – one that it took me a year to realise wasn’t working. So, I then set about rewriting it. Trouble was, I couldn’t quite let go of the previous version and the result was a kind of hybrid of the old idea and the new . . . which was even more of a mess!
Eventually, I more or less scrapped everything and started over again. This time, I found an approach to the story which DID work and, after two or three drafts (and some brilliant editorial input from my UK and U.S. editors and agents), I finally wrestled the book into shape. I’m really pleased with how it turned out in the end. But, most of all, I’m just relieved to have an actual book on my desk rather than hundreds of pages of manuscript that look like they’ve been crawled all over by a nest of ants with inky feet.
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Promise of Shadows
by Justina Ireland
Hardcover
plus paperback of Vengeance Bound
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Released 3/11/2014
Winner – Michelle Mason
Zephyr Mourning has never been very good at being a Harpy. She’d rather watch reality TV than learn forty-seven ways to kill a man, and she pretty much sucks at wielding magic. Zephyr was ready for a future pretending to be a normal human instead of a half-god assassin. But all that changes when her sister is murdered—and she uses a forbidden dark power to save herself from the same fate.
Zephyr is on the run from a punishment worse than death when an unexpected reunion with a childhood friend (a surprisingly HOT friend) changes everything. Because it seems like Zephyr might just be the Nyx, a dark goddess made flesh that is prophesied to change the power balance. For hundreds of years the half-gods have lived in fear, and Zephyr is supposed to change that.
But how is she supposed to save everyone when she can’t even save herself?
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Promise of Shadows?
Well, besides that gorgeous cover I absolutely love the main character, Zephyr. She is lazy and she isn’t hero material. Despite the support of everyone around her she has some real issues with confidence, and even the incredible powers she’s been gifted with aren’t enough to really make her believe in herself. She’s an incredibly flawed character, scared and uncertain, and I really dig that about her.
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The Mirk and Midnight Hour
by Jane Nickerson
Hardcover
Knopf Books for Young Readers
Released 3/11/2014
Winner – Debra Chavana
A Southern girl. A wounded soldier. A chilling force deep in the forest.
All collide at night’s darkest hour.
Seventeen-year-old Violet Dancey has been left at home in Mississippi with a laudanum-addicted stepmother and love-crazed stepsister while her father fights in the war—a war that has already claimed her twin brother.
When she comes across a severely injured Union soldier lying in an abandoned lodge deep in the woods, things begin to change. Thomas is the enemy—one of the men who might have killed her own brother—and yet she’s drawn to him. But Violet isn’t Thomas’s only visitor; someone has been tending to his wounds—keeping him alive—and it becomes chillingly clear that this care hasn’t been out of compassion.
Against the dangers of war and ominous powers of voodoo, Violet must fight to protect her home and the people she loves.
From the author of Strands of Bronze and Gold comes a haunting love story and suspenseful thriller based on the ancient fairy tale of “Tam Lin.”
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about The Mirk and Midnight Hour?
The basic plot of a Southern girl meeting a wounded Union soldier is one I have played around with for ages. Through the years, I’ve made up tons of stories in my head as I’m falling asleep, and this is one of them. It’s so fun that I could take this old favorite, adapt it to loosely fit “The Ballad of Tam Lin”—a story I love—and create a book I would love to read myself. It’s kind of like having a dream come to life.
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MORE YOUNG ADULT FICTION IN STORES NEXT WEEK WITH AUTHOR INTERVIEWS
Pretty Sly
by Elisa Ludwig
Hardcover
Katherine Tegen Books
Released 3/18/2014
Sequel to Pretty Crooked…
Willa Fox was told to stay out of trouble. In fact, it was an order from a very serious juvenile court judge.
However, that was before Willa found her house ransacked and a mysterious email from her mother telling Willa she had to leave Paradise Valley for a while and not to come looking for her. Willa knows her mom’s in danger and that no one at school will miss her after her recent sticky-fingered stunts with the Glitterati. So with the help of her pal Tre and with her degenerate crush Aidan as her wingman, Willa violates her probation and hits the California highway in search of her mom.
But when Willa and Aidan’s journey turns dangerously criminal and they wind up being the focus of a national manhunt, they realize it’s sometimes easier to escape the law than the truth—and that everything Willa thought she knew about her mom, and her life, was wrong.
Pretty Sly is Elisa Ludwig’s fast-paced sequel to Pretty Crooked, the second book in a trilogy that’s pitch-perfect for fans of Ally Carter. With a daring heroine who has one-of-a-kind spunk, a roller-coaster Bonnie and Clyde romance, a thrilling mystery, and a shocking twist ending, this book will have readers rooting for Willa as she makes the wrong choices to do the right thing. Fans will be eagerly awaiting the series conclusion.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Pretty Sly?
My favorite thing about PRETTY SLY is that it’s a road trip book. I’ve always been drawn to road trip movies, especially Flirting with Disaster, Sideways, and those 80s classics Planes Trains and Automobiles and Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure. When you take your protagonist out of their element and give them a guiding mission, you have all sorts of potential for comedy, action and character growth. In the case of PRETTY SLY, Willa Fox is chasing the truth about her missing mother while being pursued by cops, so the book has a dynamic energy that made it very fun—and dare I say easy?—to write. As the author, it almost felt like I was traveling along with Willa, even though I never left my office in Philly.
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Side Effects May Vary
by Julie Murphy
Hardcover
Balzer + Bray
Released 3/18/2014
The Fault in Our Stars meets Sarah Dessen in this lyrical novel about a girl with cancer who creates a take-no-prisoners bucket list that sets off a war at school—only to discover she’s gone into remission.
When sixteen-year-old Alice is diagnosed with leukemia, she vows to spend her final months righting wrongs. So she convinces her best friend to help her with a crazy bucket list that’s as much about revenge as it is about hope. But just when Alice’s scores are settled, she goes into remission, and now she must face the consequences of all she’s said and done.
Contemporary realistic fiction fans who adore Susane Colasanti and Jenny Han and stories filled with romance and humor will find much to love in this incredible debut.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Side Effects May Vary?
My favorite part about Side Effects May Vary would be the contrast between Alice and Harvey. In a way, they are each other’s greatest weaknesses. So building that relationship was really challenging, yet rewarding. I also loved writing their parents. Parents are always my favorite part of writing a new project because they’re such a huge key in an unlocking the past of your main characters.
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Starling (Secrets of the Eternal Rose)
by Fiona Paul
Hardcover
Philomel
Released 3/20/2014
The dark, seductive conclusion to the thrilling Secrets of the Eternal Rose trilogy!
In the final book in the trilogy, Cass and Luca are back in Venice trying to find the Book of the Eternal Rose to clear Luca’s name and keep them both out of prison. But the hunters become the hunted when the Order of the Eternal Rose figures out their plan. Filled with twists and turns, danger and torrid romances, this novel brings the Secrets of the Eternal Rose novels to a thrilling, heart-pounding, sexy conclusion.
Author Question: What is your favorite thing about Starling (Secrets of the Eternal Rose)?
My favorite thing is that the book came together as the perfect end to the trilogy. The mystery is resolved. The love triangle is resolved. Betrayals are revealed and loose ends are neatly knotted. Main character Cassandra grows into a fierce and independent woman and her two love interests, Falco and Luca, undergo their own emotional growth.
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