17 & Gone Blog Tour

Welcome to the Presenting Lenore stop on the blog tour for Nova Ren Suma's 17 & GONE! I am super excited for this novel and I am going to read it as soon as I can steal some time away from revising. I'm bringing it with me this weekend to the SCWBI Europe Con, so let's see!

And now ... here's Nova!

Last year, when I was deep into writing 17 & Gone, I discovered an exciting new distraction and way to collect images that fascinated me: Pinterest. What started off as maybe one more thing to keep me from writing turned into a great source of inspiration, and my 17 & Gone inspiration board was born. I’d often write with the images up on my screen, staring at them in pauses between paragraphs. On each stop on this blog tour I’m highlighting one of the photos that spoke to me and helped me find my way through the darkness of writing this book. I first discovered this photo somewhere on Pinterest or maybe Tumblr and blindly repinned it to my own board, not knowing who the photographer was or where it came from. But when it came time to put this blog tour together, I started digging and discovered that this image that spoke to whole scenes of 17 & Gone—blurry and choppy and frightening—was in fact a grayed-out image from this color series by Lauren Treece.

Source: laurentreece.blogspot.com via Nova on Pinterest

She calls it “Dancing at Dusk and Campfire Curry.” 

The girls’ hands are tightly clasped, though there’s no singing. This isn’t summer camp. This isn’t the kind of night for belting out “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” and holding a flashlight to ghoul up your face and tell ghost stories. The ghosts tonight have already told their stories.  

—from 17 & Gone, page 317 

There’s a playfulness, a giddiness in the color version that’s stripped bare from the black-and-white version I used as my inspiration for writing. I guess you could see how much it stuck with me, how influenced I was by this image. It’s like a snapshot from a dream, and a scene toward the end of the book brings that dream to life.

 For spotlights on more images from my 17 & Gone inspiration board on Pinterest, keep following this blog tour! Last stop tomorrow Friday, 3/29 at Book Chic  

17 & Gone synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Lauren is having visions of girls who have gone missing. And all these girls have just one thing in common—they are 17 and gone without a trace. As Lauren struggles to shake these waking nightmares, impossible questions demand urgent answers: Why are the girls speaking to Lauren? How can she help them? And . . . is she next? As Lauren searches for clues, everything begins to unravel, and when a brush with death lands her in the hospital, a shocking truth emerges, changing everything.

The Colors of Madeleine Blog Tour - Yearning for Yellows

Yellow is one of my favorite colors - especially in winter! I'm thrilled to be the YELLOW stop on Jaclyn Moriarty's blog tour for her new novel A CORNER OF WHITE.

In honor of my stop, I've created a YELLOW board on Pinterest, including some of my favorite yellow book covers.

Normally, I would've read the novel by now, but I suspect my review copy is being held up in the German customs office. So ... hopefully I'll get it soon.  In the meantime, check out the summary:

A tale of two worlds, told in brilliant color. 

Readers have loved bestselling author Jaclyn Moriarty since The Year of Secret Assignments. Now she gives them A Corner of White, the first in a suspenseful, funny, genre-busting trilogy that brings her fantastic characters, laugh-out-loud descriptions, and brilliant plotting to a fantasy setting. 

Madeleine and her mother have run away from their former life and settled in a rainy corner of Cambridge, England (in our world). 

In another world, in the Kingdom of Cello, Elliot is in search of his father, who disappeared on the night his uncle Jon was found dead. The talk in the town is that Elliot's dad may have killed Jon and run away with the physics teacher. But Elliot refuses to believe it. And he is determined to find both his dad and the truth. 

As Madeleine and Elliot move closer to unraveling their mysteries, they begin to exchange messages across worlds — through an accidental gap that hasn't appeared in centuries. On both sides of the gap, even greater mysteries are unfolding — with more than one life at stake.

In our world, Madeleine is known for using bold colors in her clothing & accessories, but in the Kingdom of Cello, colors have a different role entirely. Read about Cello's color attacks in The Colors of Madeleine, but in the meantime, here are some fun things from our world to enjoy!

Yearning for Yellows

1. Dress
2. Tea Pot
3. Notecards
4. Perfume
5. Watch

Giveaway:

One (1) winner receives The Colors of Madeleine prize pack in Yellow:
· Moleskine journal
· Pen
· Coffee mug
· Copy of A Corner of White

US only.  Please fill out this form by March 27 2013 at 11:59 pm CST to enter.

Links:

Today The Colors of Madeleine tour also stops by My Friend Amy’s Blog with a guest post from Jaclyn Moriarty introducing the character Madeleine!

Visit Jaclyn Moriarty’s Official Site


The rest of The Colors of Madeleine tour:

Monday, March 18th: Jaclyn stopped by Ex Libris Kate and Hobbitsies featured “Require-These Reds” on The Colors of Madeleine tour!

Friday, March 22nd: Novel Novice is interviewing Jaclyn Moriarty and Forever Young Adult is “Begging for Blues” on The Colors of Madeleine tour!

Tuesday, March 26th: Jaclyn is stopping by The Book Cellar and Mundie Moms is featuring “Gotta-Have Greens” on The Colors of Madeleine tour!

Thursday, March 28th: Jaclyn is stopping by The Readventurer and Alexa Loves Books is featuring “Oblige Me With Oranges” on The Colors of Madeleine tour!

Monday, April 1st: Jaclyn is stopping by Angie-ville and Gone With The Words is featuring “Wish-List Whites” on The Colors of Madeleine Tour!

Wednesday, April 3rd: Jaclyn is stopping by The Book Smugglers and Perpetual Page Turner is “Pining for Purples” on The Colors of Madeleine tour!

Friday, April 5th: Pure Imagination Blog is interviewing Jaclyn Moriarty and I Read Banned Books is “Greedy for Grays” on The Colors of Madeleine tour!

Return of Cat Tuesday (81) + Top Ten Tuesday

This picture makes me laugh.

This one? No so much.

Why? Well this week's Top Ten Tuesday topic is "books we've bought but still not read".  I should have read these by now. I am excited by each and every one of them.  But ... nope.

Finding this stack was actually harder than I thought, because a) I get a lot of books for review b) most of the books I buy are books I read as review copies that I loved or are books I read immediately.  But here they are:

A Northern Light - Jennifer Donnelly
Year of Wonders - Geraldine Brooks
I Am the Messenger - Markus Zusak (signed!)
Fever 1793 - Laure Halse Anderson
The Rest of Her Life - Laura Moriarty
The Crimson Petal and the White - Michel Faber
The Last Report of the Miracles at Little No Horse - Louise Erdrich
The Sheltering Sky - Paul Bowles
Chime - Franny Billingsley
How They Met and Other Stories - David Levithan

What bought books are still in your unread pile?  Are there any of these I need to start immediately?

Level 2 for Libraries

Surfacing today from the revision cave (working through a very long editorial letter for Level 3) to talk a bit about libraries.

Growing up, I practically lived at the library.  I was that girl who stalked the new releases shelf relentlessly and read between the stacks. My backpack was always weighed down by books. My library card was worn and chipped.

I was blessed to have access to libraries with shelves full of both classics and brand-new titles. I know not everyone is.  Whenever I read about library budgets being slashed, or see teens talking about how their libraries get very few new books, I'm heartbroken.  Of course I wish every library could provide every book that their patrons desire.

Last week, I made an offer on twitter to YA librarians -- if they had been unable to purchase LEVEL 2 for their collections because of budget cuts, I said I would be happy to donate one.  My thinking was that such a donation is a win-win. Librarians can offer their patrons something new, and LEVEL 2 is available to even more readers.

The response was so positive, I've decided to make the offer again, this time to my blog readers who may not have seen the tweets.

So, if you're a YA librarian at a community or school library in the US and you'd like to add LEVEL 2 to your collection but couldn't order it because of budget concerns, please fill out this form.  I'll send a copy to the first ten librarians that respond.

Long live libraries!

Find out more about LEVEL 2 at my website.

Top Ten Tuesday: Series I Should Start

This week's Top Ten Tuesday is about series books we've been meaning to read.  I've always had a complicated relationship with series.  Despite an early infatuation with Babysitter's Club and Sweet Valley High, I shunned series for awhile. I'd always seem to start them and never finish.  Probably the only longer than 3 book series I've ever completed is Lemony Snicket's SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS (is that kind of sad?).  I still have some ARTEMIS FOWL books to catch up as well and I have three books left to go in the THURSDAY NEXT series.

Most series I've finished have been dystopian trilogies.  For example, HUNGER GAMES, CHAOS WALKING series by Patrick Ness, DELIRIUM series by Lauren Oliver, THE CHEMICAL GARDEN series by Lauren DeStefano, BIRTHMARKED series by Caragh O'Brien, ACROSS THE UNIVERSE series by Beth Revis, THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH series by Carrie Ryan, THE COLD AWAKENING series by Robin Wasserman, and of course I'm still in the middle of a ton of other dystopian series (although I've given up on some of those too).

That said, there are still some series I'm looking forward to starting.

1. The JESSICA DARLING series by Megan McCafferty.  I am starting SLOPPY FIRSTS soonest.

2. The BEKA COOPER series by Tamora Pierce.  Can you believe I've never read anything by this acclaimed fantasy author? Shameful!

3. The DEMON'S LEXICON series by Sarah Rees Brennan. I read "Undead is Very Hot Right Now", Sarah's short story in THE ETERNAL KISS anthology and I loved it, so ...

4. UNEARTHLY series by Cynthia Hand.  Kind of cheating because I did read the first few chapters of book 1 before I lost it.  But bloggers I trust have raved about this series, so I'm going to track it down.

5. SECRET SOCIETY GIRL series by Diana Peterfreund.  First two books were a gift from Carla! 

6. TOMORROW series by John Marsden. I have the first two books in this series too, and it's kinda dystopian so why haven't I started yet?!

7. A RESURRECTION OF MAGIC series by Kathleen Duey. I met Kathleen in Bologna way back when and bought the first two books.  When is the third coming out?

8. THE DARKEST POWERS series by Kelley Armstrong.  I got the first three books really cheap one year at the Frankfurt Book Fair. So maybe.

9. MIDNIGHTERS series by Scott Westerfeld. I kind of want to check these out. I got the first one at a used book store.

10. CURSE WORKERS series by Holly Black. These books sound really good. I think I have WHITE CAT around here somewhere ...

So many series, so little time!

What series have you been wanting to start? Have you read any of those I mentioned today? And what is your feeling about series in general? Love them? Hate them? Let me know.

Dystopian February Recap + Look Ahead

The 7th month dedicated to Dystopian comes to an end, and as I write this, I realize it's time to say farewell to this theme month for good. This February sort of limped along with only ten new reviews, no interviews and only one giveaway.

But that doesn't mean I'm saying farewell to dystopian - I'm convinced there are still good books to be found in this genre (and after all, I am closing in on 200 reads in the genre overall, so obviously I love it). And I'm not saying goodbye to the Zombie Chicken Merit Badges either.  When I do review a dystopian book, which could now happen ANYTIME, I will still award these.

Speaking of reviews, it's time to say (mostly) farewell to those as well. I'll still be talking and posting about the books I read, but instead of calling them reviews and treating them as critical assessments, I'll call them "What I'm Reading."  Dystopian novels will be the (possible) exception.

Here's a recap of what I reviewed this month.

Zombie Chicken Merit Badge for WRITING:

In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters (Read review)

Elemental by Antony John (Read Review)

Zombie Chicken Merit Badge for WORLDBUILDING:

Starglass by Phoebe North (Read review)

Stung by Bethany Wiggins (Read review)

Zombie Chicken Merit Badge for ROMANCE:

The Program by Suzanne Young (Read review)

Zombie Chicken Merit Badge for TWISTS:

Shades of Earth by Beth Revis (Read review)

Override by Heather Anastasiu (Read review)

Zombie Chicken Merit Badge for ACTION:

The Culling by Steven dos Santos (Read review)

Taken by Erin Bowman (Read review)

No Badge:

The Different Girl by Gordon Dahlquist (Read review)

At A Reader of Fictions (Dystopian February 2013 partner blog):

Three books I haven't read but that Christina highly recommends are - 

When We Wake by Karen Healey (Read her review)

Breaking Point by Kristen Simmons - sequel to Article 5 (Read her review)

Orelans by Sherri L. Smith (Read her review)

Coming up:

If you want to see what's next in my dystopian reading queue, check out my list on Goodreads.

Thanks to everyone who has made these dystopian months so much fun! What's on your list to read next? Anything I should be aware of?

Joint Review Discussion + Giveaway: In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters

I really enjoy doing these joint review discussions of dystopian reads, and this month I'm doing a couple with Christina of Reader of Fictions. These are more in-depth than my usual reviews and discuss plot points in a (mostly) non-spoilery way. Today we are discussing IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS.

Publisher's summary:

In 1918, the world seems on the verge of apocalypse. Americans roam the streets in gauze masks to ward off the deadly Spanish influenza, and the government ships young men to the front lines of a brutal war, creating an atmosphere of fear and confusion. Sixteen-year-old Mary Shelley Black watches as desperate mourners flock to séances and spirit photographers for comfort, but she herself has never believed in ghosts. During her bleakest moment, however, she’s forced to rethink her entire way of looking at life and death, for her first love—a boy who died in battle—returns in spirit form. But what does he want from her? 

Featuring haunting archival early-twentieth-century photographs, this is a tense, romantic story set in a past that is eerily like our own time.

Christina and I decided to discuss four topics: Atmosphere, Romance, History and Ghosts. The first two we discuss below, the second two we discuss over at Reader of Fictions.

Atmosphere

Lenore
A plague that kills a high percentage of people, dead, bloated bodies lying in the street, boys and men sent off to war, hucksters trying to make a quick buck off of desperate people, protesters arrested and jailed. Sounds like a typical post-apocalyptic novel right? But it’s not. It’s 1918 San Diego and Mary Shelley is staying with her aunt after her father’s imprisonment. She meets up with her childhood friend Stephen and his family - including an older brother who is a celebrated spirit photographer. And the deadly flu comes ever closer …

I just loved the spooky atmosphere of this novel.

Christina
Yes, the atmosphere is amazing. It’s very gothic and dark, full of shadowy corners and buzzing flies. Death is coming from every direction: the government, the woman coughing next to you, the cart of corpses down the street, the violent ghost inhabiting your body, the war... Mary Shelley, aptly named for a horror novel’s creator lives a life surrounded by horrors. I was so impressed by how well she managed everything. In this environment, I would be worthless.

Lenore
Yes! Mary Shelley was so determined to set things right for Stephen - even if it cost her her life. I admire that kind of moxie and dedication. And that’s how Winters manages to up the stakes even more - Mary Shelley has to solve a whole mystery involving Stephen. This mystery was so well plotted, too. I totally didn’t see those reveals coming.

Christina
Moxie is the perfect descriptor for Mary Shelley. She has that in spades. I kowtow to Winters’ mystery-plotting, because she totally fooled me. I thought I knew what was up, but she threw me off the scent! One of those where you’re blindsided, but then look back and go “I should have seen that coming!” since it’s been so perfectly set up.

Lenore
We should have seen it coming. But I love that we didn't.

Romance

Lenore
One of the main reasons I fell so hard for this novel was the connection between Mary Shelley and Stephen. By the time the novel opens, Stephen has already been shipped off to fight in Europe - so we mostly see their relationship develop via his letters (swoon!) and a flashback of their first kiss (double swoon!). And man …. I felt sooo bad for both of them. I ached for them to be back together.

Christina
You’re going to call me hard-hearted, but I didn’t feel them as much as you did. I would have loved to see a few more scenes of them playing together as children, and to have read a few more letters. I do feel ever so badly for Stephen, though. That kid grew up with his abusive older brother and decided the best way to escape was the war. Bad plan, buddy. Bad plan. Their romance did have some of the best romantic lines, though. Ones that made me want to fistbump Cat Winters, like this one from one of Stephen’s letters: “Don't ever worry what the boys who don't appreciate originality think of you. They're fools.” Keep in mind, folks, that the quote is from the ARC, so it could change, but I hope it doesn’t.

Lenore
I adore that line! And sometimes, a line like that goes a long way to winning me over. I mean, yeah - I would GLADLY take more Stephen/Mary Shelley interaction anyday, but I didn’t need more. I thought Winters packed so much emotion and longing into so little. It’s so hard to do, too.

I nearly gave this a Zombie Chicken Merit Badge for Romance, but in the end, I decided for the Writing badge.

Don't miss the rest of the discussion over at Reader of Fictions!


---

IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS doesn't come out until April 2nd, but luckily for my readers, the publisher has donated five advance copies for giveaway! Fill out this form by March 8, 2013 at 11:59 pm CST to enter. US only. Visit the author's website for more information about the book.

See index of all dystopian reviews at Presenting Lenore

FTC disclosure: NetGalley + I gave my ALA copy to Christina for the purpose of this discussion

Book Review: The Program by Suzanne Young

Teen suicide has become a contagious epidemic - and the only cure is The Program: a six week hospital stay that takes your memories.  Despite being at high risk due to her brother's suicide, Sloane doesn't ever want to go into The Program.  She's seen how it's hollowed out her best friend Lacey and made her a shadow of her former self.  But when her beloved boyfriend James get infected, Sloane knows they'll be coming for her next ...

Despite the novel being about suicide, I wasn't prepared for how oppressively depressing some parts of THE PROGRAM turned out to be. This atmosphere is perfect for this near-future world where teens would rather swallow QuikDeath than be institutionalized and practically lobotomized, but it's not exactly fun reading.

The overarching theme here, though, is touching. It's the idea that the heart knows even if the mind forgets.  The chemistry between Sloane and James is palpable and you can feel it in your bones that these two will somehow find a way to get back together.

Both the premise and the execution reminded me of ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND mixed with MEMENTO NORA (by Angie Smibert), so it's a good bet for fans of those works. I'm not sure if there a sinister government conspiracy behind The Program (perhaps we'll find our more in future installments), but the fact that memories can be stolen from you without your permission is certainly a scary dystopian-ish thought.

THE PROGRAM comes out April 30, 2013. Find out more about it at the author's website.

FTC disclosure: Review copy requested from publisher.

See index of all dystopian reviews on Presenting Lenore  

Top Ten Tuesday: Auto-Buy Authors

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. I've never participated before, but this is too good a topic to pass up!

Because the question this week is which authors you love enough to automatically buy their books - like preorder them before you even know what they're about - because you love their work that much.

In order to qualify for my list, an author has to have at least three books out (that I've read) and the three can't all be part of a series. Ready? Let's go! In no particular order ...

Top Ten (+1)

AS King

Fabulously innovative and always thought-provoking. I've read all of her published work. Favorites: DUST OF 100 DOGS and VERA DIETZ

Lauren Oliver

LO delivers on high concept premises with emotionally rich executions. I've read everything except THE SPINDLERS (gotta get on that since it is on my shelf!). Favorite: BEFORE I FALL.

Sarah Waters

Atmospheric writing and intricate plotting. Only missing TIPPING THE VELVET and I plan to read that one this year. Favorite: FINGERSMITH

Courtney Summers

Gets to the truth of her characters. Fearless. I've read all her published work. Favorite: SOME GIRLS ARE

David Mitchell

Experimental in a way that breaks my brain in an awesome way. I've read all but one (saving it for a rainy day!) Favorite: GHOSTWRITTEN

Tana French

Insightful and thrilling. I've read all her published work. Favorite: THE LIKENESS

Laini Taylor

Imaginative, lush writing. Though I'm not into her faerie middle grade series (very much an "it's me, not her" thing), I love everything else. Favorite: Goblin Fruit from LIPS TOUCH

Beth Kephart

Gorgeous turns of phrase. I've either read or bought all of her YA books. Favorite: UNDERCOVER

Mary E. Pearson

Excellent plotting and emotionally resonant scene building. I've either read or bought all of her recent books. Favorite: THE MILES BETWEEN

Leila Sales

Leila's writing is so perceptive and funny. I think her upcoming book THIS SONG WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE is her best yet.

BONUS:

Ann Bonwill

I adore her picture books! I buy at least three copies of each. Favorite: I DON'T WANT TO BE A PEA

5 others with potential to be on this list (where I have read at least 2):

Megan McCafferty

I've only read BUMPED & THUMPED (fangirled!), but I've no doubt that once I start her Jessica Darling series, she'll be "bumped up" to my main list. 

CK Kelly Martin

I loved YESTERDAY and enjoyed MY BEATING TEENAGE HEART, so I gotta read more.

Diana Peterfreund

Her writing in the killer unicorn series was so intelligent, I need to read her other two series stat.

Gayle Forman

IF I STAY was one of my all-time faves (still need to read WHERE SHE WENT). And I enjoyed JUST ONE DAY and am totes looking forward to JUST ONE YEAR.

Beth Revis

Beth knows how to bring the BIG twists. I can't wait to see what she has for us next!

5 other writers I love (but I have to check them out first):

Jasper Fforde

I enjoy his Thursday Next series and SHADES OF GREY was awesome, but so far I've had no interest in his YA stuff or the Nursery Crimes series.

Lemony Snicket/Daniel Handler

The Series of Unfortunate Events kind of fizzled out at the end, and I didn't really need all the cash-in books, but I definitely take notice when he has a new book coming out.

Margaret Atwood

I do love most of her work, but I like to read a chapter first to see if the book is going to gel with me or not. 

Barbara Kingsolver 

Same as above.

Douglas Coupland

He has such great high-concept work, but I've yet to be completely wowed by one of his novels.

I'm sure I'm forgetting some, but let's stop there!

Who are your auto-buy authors?

Book Review: Elemental by Antony John

Because he has no element, Thomas is an outcast on his island.  People shrink away from his touch for fear of catching the “nothing”. One day a storm comes and the children of the colony are separated from the adult Guardians (who are kidnapped by pirates). Trapped between the plague-ridden mainland and the pirates, Thomas will uncover long-buried secrets that could be the key to saving everyone.

ELEMENTAL is getting the Zombie Chicken Merit Badge for writing because I absolutely loved the way the writing made the setting come alive.  Thomas and the Guardians live on a tiny island separated from Roanoke (yes – the lost colony island!) and when they’re trapped on Roanoke, everyone’s powers become much stronger.  There’s definitely something creepy about this island folks!

Although the novel starts out with a hunter-gatherer society living on a beach, it soon becomes clear that we’re in a post-apocalyptic future.  The islands have escaped the plague, but other survivors are confined to ships.  We’re not sure about the larger state of the world, but it doesn’t look hopeful.

Much of the novel is about Thomas discovering truths about his world, his companions and himself. Though there are moments of heart-pumping action, the tension is mostly supplied by the well-paced teasing out of revelations.

Some things I loved: Alice! She had an awesome “element” and was just so kick-ass and unapologetic about it. The epilogue. Because it promises some awesomeness to come in future installments of the series. The cat. Post-apocalyptic kitties FTW!

ELEMENTAL is available now. Find out more about it at the author's website.

FTC disclosure: Bought

See index of all dystopian reviews on Presenting Lenore