Jennifer Shaw Wolf is here today with the debut of her book trailer for her soon to be released book, Breaking Beautiful, courtesy of the Teen Book Scene. Thank you for being here today, Jennifer! You can follow along with the blog tourhere, or by clicking through the banner. Enjoy!
About seventeen years ago I stood in front of some executives from Bonneville Communications to tell them why I was majoring in Broadcast Communications and why I deserved their scholarship money. My speech went something like this: "Being a broadcasting major is like finding out exactly what I want to do with my life, that I never knew I wanted." As confusing as that phrase might be, I won the scholarship. Then I got my degree in broadcasting, went on to be a stay-at-home mom and never worked (ha ha) a day in my life.
Even though I have never had a "real" job in broadcasting, video-production has been one of my hobbies, loves, and passions since my first year of college. In school, my emphasis was in production (behind the camera) as opposed to news (in front of the camera), but we were encouraged to try both sides. After spending a few months as a very pregnant student reporter I never wanted to go in front of the camera again. (I've been trying to work up the nerve to vlog, but still haven't gotten there yet.)
The part of video production that I love is editing the pieces together to create a story, from something as small as telling a couple's love story for a wedding video to a mini-documentary that followed a three day pioneer reenactment done by teens from my church.
What I've learned about visually telling a story has helped me a with writing (the the "what I wanted to do with my life that I've always known I wanted"). I visualize a scene over and over in my mind before and as I write it, and once it's written I look for the "heart" of the shot (or line or paragraph or chapter) and trim away what doesn't work, just like I do when I edit videos.
Today I FINALLY get to debut the combination of my two loves, writing and video production. I've had the book trailer for BREAKING BEAUTIFUL in my mind since I first started writing the story. Right when I was ready to really get started on it, some personal things came up and I ended up having to scale back my original idea a lot, but I couldn't be happier with the result.
I had so much creating this trailer. I loved working with my "Allie," Brooklyn. She's one of my son's friends, an amazing teen actress (and singer) and just a really fun girl. I put her through a lot of to geth this finished; lying on a cold ledge, running in heels, and taking time out of her spring break vacation, but she was always willing to do it. I'm also grateful to North Thurston high school in Lacey, Washington and for letting me use the school locker area and to the Librarian, Steve Coker for helping me arrange that. And since we're doing the academy award thing; thanks to my amazing videographer-husband David and my son and other teen actors, David, Tristan (best creepy voice ever), Jennifer, Chelsie, Mellissa, Josh, Ben, and Jesse.
So with way ado that is probably necessary here is the trailer for BREAKING BEAUTIFUL.
Allie lost everything the night her boyfriend, Trip, died in a horrible car accident—including her memory of the event. As their small town mourns his death, Allie is afraid to remember because doing so means delving into what she’s kept hidden for so long: the horrible reality of their abusive relationship.
When the police reopen the investigation, it casts suspicion on Allie and her best friend, Blake, especially as their budding romance raises eyebrows around town. Allie knows she must tell the truth. Can she reach deep enough to remember that night so she can finally break free? Debut writer Jennifer Shaw Wolf takes readers on an emotional ride through the murky waters of love, shame, and, ultimately, forgiveness.
Matt Myklusch is here again today with an inspiring guest post. This post was originally published on WriteOnCon. You can find the link to the original posting here. Thank you to Matt and the team behind WriteOnCon for allowing me to re-post this article. You can follow along with the Teen Book Sceneblog tour for The Secret War here. Enjoy!
Moments that Matter
by author Matt Myklusch
I remember watching the Olympics many years ago and an American swimmer was being interviewed. I don’t remember his name. I guess it’s not important. What is important is that he was heavily favored for his event. So much so, that in the interview, he spoke as if it were a given that he’d be taking home the gold. If I recall, he said something along the lines of the following:
“I don’t need the medal. I’m going to give the medal to some people who I care a great deal about. They can have the medal, that’s for them. I have the moment. The moment is everything.”
A bit arrogant? Probably more than a bit, considering the company he was in. But, this guy was coming up on the defining moment of his swimming career. He’d spent entire life building up to it, and he was determined to own it. I have to respect that. I’ll never forget that guy whose name I can’t remember. “The moment is everything.” I couldn’t agree more.
I think about this when I’m writing because it’s the presence or absence of moments like these – moments that really matter – that make or break any story. There’s only going to be a couple of them. I’m talking about big moments, unforgettable moments… “You Can’t Handle the Truth” moments.
When I write, I always start out knowing what the big moments are in my stories. That is usually the first spark of any idea I have. The trick for me is writing my way up to them. Back when I first started writing, I just wanted to get there. My focus was on getting done. I looked at plot as paramount, and my characters as little more than tools to advance the plot. As a result, the big turning points in my work always lacked punch. There was no real connection with the characters. I didn’t realize that even if I had written a scene as well as Aaron Sorkin wrote that speech from A Few Good Men, it wouldn’t have mattered. Not if I phoned in the set up.
Powerful dialogue is important, but it’s not enough to make us care all by itself. What makes the moment matter is everything that comes before it. The only reason we care what happens in a story is because we care about the characters. That’s where we get invested. It’s like in baseball… If you follow a team and only watch them play in Game 7 of the World Series, you might be happy if they win, but you’ll never care about the game as much as the person who watched every single game that season. The person who did that loves the team. They live and die with every pitch.
Writers need their readers to love their characters and live and die with their actions every step of the way. That’s when the promise of the big moment is made, in the build up. The emotional investment that the reader puts into a character is what gives those big turning point moments punch.
When writing The Jack Blank Adventures, I worked hard to make Jack, my main character, somebody that people could immediately sympathize with and root for. He’s an orphan growing up at St. Barnaby’s Home for the Hopeless, Abandoned, Forgotten, and Lost. He doesn’t know anything about who he is or where he comes from. His name is Jack Blank because he was found on the doorstep of St. Barnaby’s in a basket with the name “Jack” written on the handle. Growing up, every time he had to write his name on a test or homework assignment, he just wrote “Jack” and left the rest blank. Jack Blank. After a while, the name simply stuck.
St. Barnaby’s is built on a stretch of swampland alongside the New Jersey Turnpike. Every year the whole place sinks a little further into the muck. They say for a kid growing up at St. Barnaby’s, staying above swamp level is about as much as you can hope for in life, and it doesn’t look like things will be much different for Jack. He actually takes a career aptitude test there that tells him he will have a long and fruitful career as a toilet brush cleaner! Not exactly the fast track.
Luckily, a robot-zombie comes out of the swamp and tries to kill Jack before that happens. He survives using some super powers he didn’t even know he had, and earns himself a trip to the Imagine Nation, the place where all the fantastic and unbelievable things in our world originate— including him. It’s a world filled with super-heroes, super-villains, aliens, robots, ninjas, and more, but when Jack gets there he runs into more trouble. It turns out Jack is either going to be the savior of the Imagine Nation, or the worst threat its ever faced.
Most people are convinced Jack is going to be the latter, but here’s the thing. He doesn’t let that define him. He has his own ideas about the future. That’s the key with Jack, the quality that I think connects him with readers and makes him likable. Admirable even. He’s a courageous underdog. Someone who won’t give up. And, the central question that drives all of his actions in the story is understandable, realistic, and something the reader wants to know as well. Who is he? The questions about Jack’s past mysterious tie into the problems looming in his future. What is he going to grow up to be?
If I’ve done my job right, I’ve created a situation that everyone can relate to (the desire to break away from mundane, bleak circumstances and escape to a magical world that is full of possibility) and I’ve inserted into that situation a character that people will get behind. The world Jack goes to is larger than life, and the things that happen to him there are too, but they only matter if they are set up properly. All of that build up has to be viewed through the lens of character.
That’s how I approach my writing today. I am less concerned about getting done and more concerned with getting it right. Before I let myself move on from one chapter to the next, each individual chapter has to feel right to me. I can’t define what “right” is, but I know it when I see it. And, I absolutely know when something feels wrong.
Each chapter has to pass muster before I write the next one, and when I get a block of 5 or 6 chapters together, I stop and read them straight through too. I want to see how they play. Are character’s actions staying consistent with who they are? Do they all have their own personality, voice, and vocabulary? Are they engaging and likable (or hate-able, depending on who they are in the story)? Is the story moving? The action in the chapters has to move the story at a pace that feels right. The individual chapter endings and beginnings have to fit into each other like songs in a good playlist. You never know if they do or not until you read a bunch of them together. That’s when you find out if you’re taking the reader to the place you want them to go. If your characters, plot, and setting are all intertwining to maintain emotional investment. If you’re building up moments that matter.
Those moments are the difference between a good story and a great story. In order to deliver on the promise of a big moment, the writer has to know what it is ahead of time, build up to it properly, and own it. Kind of like the swimmer I told you about earlier. One other thing I remember about him? He took home the gold, just like he said he would.
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Matt Myklusch has been drawing ever since he could first hold a pencil, and super heroes have always filled up the majority of the pages in his sketchbooks. That lifelong love of comic books spurred him to create the Jack Blank Adventure series from Simon & Schuster, Aladdin. Books I and II, THE ACCIDENTAL HERO (2010) and THE SECRET WAR (2011) are in stores now. Matt has recently left his job at MTV to write full time. He lives in New Jersey with his wife and family, where he is hard at work on the next book in the JACK BLANK series.
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THE SECRET WAR by Matt Myklusch: Picking up a year after the events of Jack Blank and the Imagine Nation, Jack and his fellow students are now well into their School of Thought training and are “sidekicking” for official, card-carrying super heroes. But, even though Jack feels more at home in the Imagine Nation, he’s still hiding secrets from his friends Skerren and Allegra, both about his shocking connection to their enemy Revile and about his “Top Secret” school assignment, which involves investigating the RÜstov computer virus that affects the Mechas. Jack is busy trying to find out how far the RÜstov sleeper virus has spread, working to find a cure, and striving to avoid the dire future that Revile warned him about. Meanwhile, Jonas Smart is working just as hard to discover what Jack is hiding from everyone. When a rogue Secreteer–the protectors of secrets of inhabitants of the Imagine Nation–starts selling secrets to the highest bidder, Smart is ready and waiting. Jack knows that if Smart finds out the truth about him and Revile, he’s as good as dead. When Jack discovers that the Secreteer causing all this trouble also has information about his father, the distractions really start piling up. If Jack is going to help prevent a second RÜstov invasion, keep Smart from discovering his secrets, and find out what a shadowy, half-mad Secreteer knows about his long-lost father, he’ll need to learn to trust his friends, and to find the true path toward becoming a hero himself.
Shawn Thomas Odyssey is here today with a guest post courtesy of the Teen Book Sceneblog tour for his new release, The Wizard of Dark Street. Thank you for being here Shawn! You can follow along with the tour here, or by clicking through the banner. Enjoy!
Since I am currently out and about on a bookstore tour, promoting my magical/mystery novel The Wizard Of Dark Street, and having a blast making the rounds on a splendid blog tour set up by the fantastic crew at Teen Book Scene, I thought it might be interesting to talk a bit about some of my favorite TV shows.
What, huh? You don’t want to talk about books? This is a book blog after all! Yes, I know, and I do love books more than just about any form of entertainment. But it would be careless of me to neglect to mention some of my most memorable moments in front of what my grandmother so affectionately called the “boob tube”.
Veronica Mars: Short lived on the small screen, true, but may it live long and prosper in my heart. A teen girl gumshoe who’s witty, smart, and cute as a button? Who could resist? The cast of characters was simply to fantastic for words, and the writing sensational. If only I had been so cool in high school.
Six Feet Under: One of the best family dramas ever created, in my opinion. The perfect balance of dark humor and emotional rollercoaster. With a new death each week, the show gave me a sense of appreciation for all that I have, and a reminder that life is to be lived right now, and not in the future. Oh, and the last episode of season five? Hands down the best TV show finale ever made. Simply took my breath away.
The Sopranos: Never knew it was possible to relate so much with Mafiosos. But that, of course, was the brilliance of the show, and to me is what great storytelling is all about: showing us the humanity behind the mask. Several other HBO shows that did a brilliant job of this would be The Wire, Roam, and Deadwood (and I don’t mention this last one simply because I composed a lot of the music for the show, but because it, like the Sopranos, had this mind-boggling ability to transform bad guys into, if not good guys, then at least someone we could understand and care for…no small task with a group of thieves and sociopaths).
Dexter: I really did not expect to like this one, but I became a real fan after the first few episodes. How is it possible that a show could survive when its main character is a serial killer? I’ll tell you how. The secret is in the music. Now don’t get me wrong. The writing is top notch, and the acting spot on and believable. The interpersonal relationships really make the show human, even when Dexter is struggling with his own humanity on the inside. But the real magic of the show is the music. It’s the music that turns blood baths in to light-hearted romps into the world of vigilantism at its most extreme. Everybody wants Dexter as their brother.
Bones: This one I started watching simply because the guy who played Angel was on it…David Boreanaz. But it was the fantastic cast of characters that truly sold me on the show. (Is it obvious yet that I’m a character person?) But let’s not forget the beautifully ludicrous scientific plots. In my opinion, the more outrageous and over the top, the better, and the scientific team’s ability to deduce the location of a killer’s birthplace by the discovery of a dust mote on an eyelash is true entertainment. Disbelief suspended? Check! I Love it.
Buffy and Angel: These have to be two of my all time favorites. Buffy the Vampire Slayer took my breath away with its originality, humor, genius cast, and a truly stellar writing team that never failed to capture my imagination fully in the ever-expanding Buffyverse. For me, Buffy (the TV show) is the perfect B-movie times one-hundred. And Angel was right up there with it. Talk about characters that transformed. Just think of shy Willow Rosenberg becoming an all-powerful witch, or bumbling Wesley Wyndam-Pryce’s transformation into a seriously believable badass. Dear Mr. Whedon, please give us more, more more!
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: This 1980’s British (Granada Television) series is the quintessential Sherlock Holmes. And in this humble writer’s opinion, no other performer has ever managed to capture Holmes’ idiosyncrasies and quirky yet brilliant methods better than Jeremy Brett. His portrayal is nothing short of genius; each episode a masterpiece of suspense. Is it cheesy? Absolutely. Is it outrageous? With out a doubt. Are the mysteries baffling? Indubitably. Is it the perfect Sherlock Holmes? I believe the answer is elementary: YES, YES INDEED!
The Wizard of Dark Street is available in bookstores nationwide and online in both hardback and eBook formats.
I have to say that many of the shows you have listed here are some of my favourites as well. My ultimate favourite would have to be Buffy though!
Thank you so much for being here today, Shawn! I can't wait to read The Wizard of Dark Street. It sounds awesome!
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Oona Crate was born to be the Wizard's apprentice, but she has another destiny in mind.
Despite possessing the rare gift of Natural Magic, Oona wants to be a detective. Eager for a case, she is determined to prove that logic can be just as powerful as wizardry. But when someone attacks her uncle--the Wizard of Dark Street--Oona is forced to delve even deeper into the world of magic.
Full of odd characters, evil henchmen, and a street where nothing is normal, The Wizard of Dark Street will have you guessing until the very end.
The Moon In Habock’s Mirror is my fourth novel but my first fantasy. The story came to me in a dream. It was so vivid—I remember all the scenes playing out before me. I couldn’t shake the idea that I was supposed to do more with it than just dream it. And so I got up (it was about three o’clock in the morning) and started writing what would be the first few chapters of the book. I knew exactly where it was headed because I saw it all while I was sleeping. Other parts were added to give it volume and depth and then off I went on a rollercoaster adventure.
My favourite part of writing this novel was when I was able to see life through Habock’s eyes. I had so much fun writing for him. He was such a complex character with so many secrets and I knew that if I could just get inside his mind, then I would be able to turn the tables and really have some fun. Scarlett was more simple, a rogue character in need of guidance. To me, the momentum really kicked in when Habock and Scarlett began conversing with one another. Both characters’ personalities ignited and we were able to see some of the burdens they were harbouring. The dynamics between those two really inspired me even though I was the one writing them. They made me take a closer look at relationships in general and see life in a different view. And ultimately want to write more about them. Habock and Scarlett will return one day. For them, it’s only a matter of time.
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'THE MOON IN HABOCK’S MIRROR', follows the life of Scarlett Cavanaugh, a golden-hearted but reckless fifteen-year-old. Although born with a hole in her heart, she has learned to live life without limits—in contrast to her twin sister, Gwendolyn. A few weeks before the girls’ sweet sixteenth birthday party, Scarlett is punished after breaking curfew with a school boy. In lieu of a weekend with friends, she is instead banished to the attic in her house, to clean. It is there that Scarlett discovers a mysterious diary, a mirror with secrets, and a pet’s unnatural mother tongue.
A newly-acquainted friend named Habock, leads Scarlett into the future through an unsuspecting portal. In his attempt to show how her life has changed, they accidentally become trapped in another time and their journey soon diverges. With a little guidance from a celestial spirit, each learns the truth about the past as they both encounter new friends and enemies along the way. In the hopes of finding one another, Scarlett and Habock instead become part of a deceptive plot, devised by those who wish to destroy their family lines.
A jumble of truth, deceit, fear and illusion, we watch as Habock and Scarlett take us on their rollercoaster adventure.
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Kara Bartley has always been interested in animals, so it comes as no surprise that her world is surrounded by them in both her life and imagination. She has a bachelor’s degree in Biology/Earth Science, a post-graduate diploma in Geographic Information Systems and a master’s degree in Vertebrate Paleontology. In the spring of 2002, she began writing her first novel The Siamese Mummy while on a dig for fossils in Kansas. The book was later released in 2006.
Kara is also the author of The Unearthlings and Call of Adhara. She lives in Niagara Falls with her three Siamese cats—Apollo, Achilles and Agamemnon. Her horse Dapplynn is her biggest companion, and anxiously awaits the day that she too will have a guest appearance in one of her mother’s books.
Keri Mikulski is here today with a guest post courtesy of the Teen Book Sceneblog tour for her book, Stealing Bases. Thank you for being here today, Keri! You can follow along with the tour here, or by clicking through the banner. Enjoy!
How did your history with playing sports affect your writing about them?
Thanks so much, Corrine!
Writing Sporty Books from an Insider’s Perspective
Every page, every sentence, and every word of my sporty novels are affected by my athletic history. From teammates to game scenes to sensory details, it’s all pulled from my past.
Since I’m officially a ‘has been’ I can’t play sports like I used to. Today, my life gets in the way and I can’t play everyday. But when I sit down to write a new novel or even revise a scene, I see, hear, smell, touch, and taste the sport again. Instantly, I’m back on the mound, field, or court playing like I used to. The opportunity to play again through my writing is definitely the best perk of writing sporty fiction.
Other perks….
1. Teammates – After participating in athletics for many years, I have a ton of teammates and athletes to pull from. While I’m developing my characters, I usually add one unique characteristic of an ex-teammate or player I coached and embellish the rest. I also love to add tiny shout-outs to my teammates. Like in Stealing Bases, Coach Kate is named after a teammate and friend, Kate Ormsby.
2. Sporty Scenes – Most of the time, I’ve played the sport I’m writing about; therefore, my novels don’t require a bunch of specific background research for my sporty scenes. I use my previous knowledge from my playing and/or coaching days. However, I always rely on at least one beta-reader and/or expert on hand to double check the book before I send it to my editor.
3. When Research is Required – What could be better? I can continue to play co-ed soccer competitively and call it research. Gym membership - research. Watching ESPN obsessively– research. The tennis lessons I’m just signed up for – research.
The opportunity to write sporty fiction for girls is a dream come true for me. I feel truly blessed and I’m so thankful to continue doing what I love.
Thanks bunches for having me today.
You are more than welcome! Thank you for being here today, Keri! I loved this insider's look into the making of your sporty books. =)
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Keri Mikulski is the author of Head Games (Penguin/Razorbill, 2011), Stealing Bases(Penguin/Razorbill, 2011), and Making Waves (Penguin/Razorbill, 2012). A three-sport athlete in high school, Keri worked as a magazine columnist, personal trainer, lifeguard, registered nurse, middle school teacher, and high school coach. Currently, she teaches college writing courses at Rowan University and Stockton College while working toward a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing. Keri splits her time between the New Jersey suburbs and the shore with her husband and daughter. Find out more at http://www.kerimikulski.com.
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Reformed mean girl Kylie Collins desperately wants to put the craziness of basketball season behind her. (And with it, her cheater ex, Zachary Murphy.) Maybe she'll finally be able to silence her snarky streak and concentrate on her lifelong dream - being recruited for Division One softball.
But when Kylie arrives at her first softball practice of the season, she comes face-to-face with her worst nightmare: Amber McDonald, the best pitcher in the state.
Now, Kylie's forced to warm the bench as Amber wows crowds again and again. With all the drama happening out on the softball diamond, Kylie finds herself drawn back to bad habits-sabotaging people and hanging out with a certain Zachary Murphy. . .
Dana Reinhardt is here today with a guest post courtesy of the Teen Book Sceneblog tour for her book, The Summer I Learned to Fly. Thank you for being here, Dana! You can follow along with the tour here, or by clicking through the banner. Enjoy!
How do you tackle writing from Male POV to Female POV? What stays the same, what changes. Are there any quirks or rituals that you perform to get into a male/female mindset?
The Things a Brother Knows is the only book I’ve written from a male POV and I get asked all the time about whether that was unusually challenging, considering, I’m not, you know, male. But I think it’s always challenging writing from the perspective of any character that I am not, which is all of my characters. That being said, Drew from The Summer I Learned to Fly probably came the most naturally to me. For one thing, I was roughly her age in 1986. And my mom owned a gourmet cheese store, so I could speak about Cotswald and Port Wine Cheddar with an effortless authority. Our external similarities end there, but I found it very easy to relate to her longing for something more, for something bigger to happen in her life. And I can also remember what it is like to live in a world where the answer to every question isn’t a click away.
Thank you for this post, and for being here today, Dana!
Drew's a bit of a loner. She has a pet rat, her dead dad's Book of Lists, an encyclopedic knowledge of cheese from working at her mom's cheese shop, and a crush on Nick, the surf bum who works behind the counter. It's the summer before eighth grade and Drew's days seem like business as usual, until one night after closing time, when she meets a strange boy in the alley named Emmett Crane. Who he is, why he's there, where the cut on his cheek came from, and his bottomless knowledge of rats are all mysteries Drew will untangle as they are drawn closer together, and Drew enters into the first true friendship, and adventure, of her life.
Angela Carlie is here today with a guest post courtesy of the Teen Book Sceneblog tour for her book, Land of Corn Chips. Thank you for being here, Angela! You can follow along with the tour here, or by clicking through the banner. Enjoy!
A behind the scenes look at the making of Land of Corn Chips.
Hi Corrine! Thank you so much for having me on your blog today. You gave me several wonderful topics to choose from for this guest post and I had a hard time deciding.
Believe it or not, I’m a parent of a child who doesn’t like to read fiction. Gasp! I know, right? He does, however, enjoy reading non-fiction, especially books on historical events. So at least there’s that to be thankful for.
About two years ago I challenged myself to write a fiction book he would enjoy. He’s a football player, so there had to be football involved in this story. Nate, the protagonist in Land of Corn Chips, loves playing football.
When my son was a few years younger, I worked in a chip factory and he used to love visiting me at work. He’d want to ride on the forklifts and watch the workers load the chips into trailers. Chip factories are somewhat automated and he’d enjoy watching boxes of product travel along moving belts. Of course he was never allowed to ride on a forklift, but what if he could? He’d totally have a blast and Nate does exactly that in this novel.
What kid doesn’t go through a phase when he owns or wants to own every WWE figure available? My son and nephews absolutely loved WWE and knew every wrestler and would save their allowances and birthday money to buy all the figures they possibly could. I even took them to see a live WWE show once when it was in Portland. They thought the divas were hot and the action was awesome. Nate loves wrestling too and gets the opportunity to wrestle some pretty tough opponents.
Stir in a few gruesome scenes with blood and guts, some zombie kids, a couple crazy dictators who may or may not have magical powers, and a few flying dragons and you have a work of fiction kids will love. Including my son, the non-fiction reader.
Thanks again, Corrine. Have a nice day!
Thank you for this post, Angela! I hope your son enjoyed Land of Corn Chips! It sounds like such a fun read! Thank you for being here today!
Eleven-year-old Nate Hansen never believed in dragons before an eccentric man with a purple-feather hat kidnaps him. Spirited to the Land of Corn Chips on the back of a mechanical yellow dragon, Nate must find a way to avoid being ground into compost. His only hope of escape is to earn the friendship of the local wrestling gang and zombie kids, and to believe in a parent he no longer trusts.
Suzanne Young is here today courtesy of the Teen Book Sceneblog tour for her new release, A Need So Beautiful. Thank you for being here, Suzanne! You can follow along with the tour here, or by clicking through the banner. Enjoy!
Summer Reads I’m Most Excited About:
With A Need so Beautiful coming out in the summer, I’ve had a chance to check out the other books in the Summer 11 season, and I have to tell you, I have my eye on quite a few of them. Here are the summer reads I’m most excited about!
Imaginary Girls- Nove Ren Suma
The Day Before- Lisa Schroeder
Hourglass- Myra McEntire
Possession-Elana Johnson
Luminous- Dawn Metcalf
There are a billion others, but I only have so much time! So these are on the top of my HUGE summer reading pile! What’s on yours???
Great selection, Suzanne! These are all on my to-read list, or have read and are amazing list! I hope you enjoy them when you do read them!! =)
We all want to be remembered. Charlotte's destiny is to be Forgotten...
Charlotte’s best friend thinks Charlotte might be psychic. Her boyfriend thinks she’s cheating on him. But Charlotte knows what’s really wrong: She is one of the Forgotten, a kind of angel on earth, who feels the Need—a powerful, uncontrollable draw to help someone, usually a stranger.
But Charlotte never wanted this responsibility. What she wants is to help her best friend, whose life is spiraling out of control. She wants to lie in her boyfriend's arms forever. But as the Need grows stronger, it begins to take a dangerous toll on Charlotte. And who she was, is, and will become--her mark on this earth, her very existence--is in jeopardy of disappearing completely.
Charlotte will be forced to choose: Should she embrace her fate as a Forgotten, a fate that promises to rip her from the lives of those she loves forever? Or is she willing to fight against her destiny--no matter how dark the consequences.
The Witch of Babylon features John Madison, a New York art dealer caught up in the aftermath of the looting of the Baghdad Museum. It includes an elaborate puzzle that must be solved in order to locate a missing biblical antiquity and a spectacular lost treasure, as well as alchemy, murder, and the Mesopotamian cult of Istar. Alternating between war-torn Baghdad and New York, with forays into ancient Mesopotamian culture, The Witch of Babylon takes readers deep inside the world of Assyriology and its little-known but profound significance for the modern world.
Genre: Adult Fiction, Historical, Religious Thriller, Suspense
Publisher: Penguin Canada
Publication Date: June 7, 2011
Format: ARC
Source: Received from publicist. Many thanks goes to Bronwyn from Penguin Canada for sending me a copy of this book for review. I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review.
John Madison is still reeling from the death of his brother, Samuel, when suddenly, Hal, one of his longtime friends, is murdered. Madison is pulled into a terrifying game of historical and Biblical proportions when he realizes that Hal stole an artifact from his deceased brother, Samuel. When an arcane group comes after John for the artifact, he will have to track it down to save not only himself, but those around him. With danger lurking ever closer, he will have to solve the riddles left to him by Hal before he is pulled in too deep. What follows will unveil a complex yet famous myth hidden within the annals of history. John is a complex character. He lives his life in shades of gray, but he is not all bad. He is quite knowledgeable about certain elements pertaining to art and archaeology, however when tasked with figuring out the riddles given to him by his deceased friend, he struggles. He reaches out to certain people and entrusts the riddles with them, but they still take a while to figure things out. I found that dragged for me. However, the history used, and the amount of research that went into this book is phenomenal. I am an avid fan of anything historical and I love reading up on it. Though The Witch of Babylon does not necessarily have as staggering a reveal as The Da Vinci Code, it still has an excellent theological, and mythological premise. I was hooked when it first opened up and we started to get to the meat of the story. I loved reading about the history, as well as the action that follows as John races against time to save his life and the lives of those closest to him. With complex characters, and an intricately woven plot, this is a fast-paced read. The mythological and theological ramifications just add to the story. Though The Witch of Babylon starts off slow, it ramps up speed as it keeps the reader invested in the outcome. All in all, a thrilling race against time as John travels half-way across the world to find a hidden and stolen artifact. Those who enjoy religious thrillers, or thrillers in general are sure to enjoy The Witch of Babylon.
Guest Post
Bad Guys Volume Two
By D.J. McIntosh
The clear split between good and evil in many thrillers makes for heart-pounding suspense but is a world carved into clear lines of black and white, hero and villain, the most satisfying kind of read? On another blog I argue that a “bad guy” (or lady as the case may be) can be one dimensional, that is without any apparent redeeming features or an explanation of their motives other than being driven by “pure evil”, provided the author makes that character fascinating to us and unique. And we like to be scared out of our shoes by a really bad apple and then see the hero deliver the coup d’etat in the end.
It takes a very talented writer to deliver a villain who may be entirely blackhearted but captures our imagination all the same. Often, though, “bad guys” are cartoonish because we’ve seen them so many times before. You could almost list them: the greedy developer, the serial killer who embodies “pure evil”, the mean dowager fiercely hiding a family secret. The constant portrayal of some of these stock-in-trade bad guys can actually do harm in the real world. In political thrillers for example, villains frequently come from Arabic countries and the heroes from the west. We read almost nothing that reflects the great cultural and intellectual heritage of the Middle East. Another common “bad guy” is the eco-terrorist – the over zealous animal rights activist or despot who stdardly acts in order to save the planet. These characatures cast a pall over all environmental activists.
I think this is why novels where the lines of black and white merge to grey stand out so well. In his superb novel, The Meaning of Night, Michael Cox gave us a masterful portrait of a protagonist who commits fearful acts but whom, we desperately with hope will survive. I believe Cox achieved this because the “bad guy” has himself been grieviously wronged and the author makes us vividly aware of the man’s emotional pain.
Ian Rankin does a brilliant job of turning one of his lead characters, an assassin, into a compelling figure we have compassion for by telling his story in the first person and the “good guy” police detective in third person. Rankin adds the final touch by giving his protagonist a life threatening illness that draws us onside.
So what do you think? Do you like your villains to be thoroughly bad or is a touch of humanity more to your liking?
Leah Cypess is here today with a guest post as part of the Teen Book Sceneblog tour for her new release, Nighstpell. Thank you for being here, Leah! You can follow along with the tour here, or by clicking through the banner. Enjoy!
Quite a while ago, Lindsey Leavitt (author of Princess for Hire & Sean Griswold’s Head), wrote a blog post [http://lindsey-leavitt.livejournal.com/134437.html] in which she coined the phrase “GloMos” – the unexpected glorious moments of being a published author. I love this concept, because once you’ve finally achieved your dream of being published, it is all too easy to forget how amazing that is and start focusing instead on the unexpected negatives.
There have been a lot of GloMos for me in my publishing journey, but by far the best was when Robin McKinley, out of the blue, wrote a blog post in which she raved about how much she loved Mistwood. ROBIN MCKINLEY! And as far as I know, my publisher didn’t even send her the book. She just read it and liked it! (It’s here[http://robinmckinleysblog.com/2010/05/31/mistwood-by-leah-cypess], just by the way. In case you’re interested.)
Another glorious moment was the first positive review of Nightspell, which was actually a line from a librarian on twitter: Angie Manfredi (http://www.fatgirlreading.com) who, while reading the ARC, wrote a quick line predicting that Nightspell will end up on a bunch of “Best” lists for 2011. Whether she’s right or not, it meant a lot to me. The revision process for Nightspell was grueling, and by the time the ARC went out, I could no longer look at it objectively. Until I read that tweet, I literally thought that maybe everyone in the world would hate the book. This wasn’t helped by the fact that the VERY first review of it was a two-star indictment on goodreads. (Yeah, you can look that one up too if you want. But I’m not linking to it.)
There have been others, of course – but so far, those are my two top picks. Just thinking about them makes me smile. Thanks, Lindsey, for the concept of GloMos!
Thanks for sharing your GloMo's with us, Leah! I love that Robin McKinley endorsed Mistwood. I absolutely loved Mistwood!! =)
A stand-alone companion novel to the much-acclaimed MISTWOOD. When Darri rides into Ghostland, a country where the living walk with the dead, she has only one goal: to rescue her younger sister Callie, who was sent to Ghostland as a hostage four years ago. But Callie has changed in those four years, and now has secrets of her own. In her quest to save her sister from herself, Darri will be forced to outmaneuver a handsome ghost prince, an ancient sorcerer, and a manipulative tribal warrior (who happens to be her brother). When Darri discovers the source of the spell that has kept the dead in Ghostland chained to this earth, she faces a decision that will force her to reexamine beliefs she has never before questioned - and lead her into the heart of a conspiracy that threatens the very balance of power between the living and the dead.
