Author Interview and Contest: Shannon Greenland's Native Tongue

The winner of last week's contest for The Winning Element is....

Liviania of In Bed with Books

Send me your mailing address (my e-mail is in the sidebar).

This week, Shannon is giving away a signed copy of book 4 in the Specialists series which comes out TODAY - Native Tongue. Not only that, she's also signing and giving away a set of all four books to our grand prize winner! So next Thursday August 7th, we'll have 2 winners - YAY! Contest details after the interview.

Ok now we’re on the 4th book in the series, Native Tongue and it comes out today. What are you doing to celebrate? Well, aside from a celebratory margarita at my fave place, I’ll be speaking to a roomful of writers this coming Saturday. And after that, I’ll be hitting the stores to sign stock—always a fun time.

Give us a quick summary of the book? A South American Indian girl has mysteriously emerged from the jungle carrying a centuries-old vase. Legend has it that this vase was important to the culture and heritage of at least fifteen different North and South American Indian tribes. And now that it has been discovered, all fifteen nations want it back. Enter Parrot—with his amazing linguistics skills—will serve as an official translator. Meanwhile, GiGi will be heading to a cave with ancient hieroglyphics that purportedly reveal the rightful owners of the vase. It’s up to GiGi and her coding expertise to try to decipher them. Of course there’s a hitch. One of the tribal chiefs is connected to Parrot’s past—in a bad way.

So, the Specialists team is down in South America in the jungle and they are served Monkey stew for their first breakfast – ew!! What’s the grossest/weirdest thing you were ever expected to eat? Did you eat it? I’m bummed to say nothing more exciting than pickled pigs feet. And, yep, I did eat it. Actually, I’ll eat about anything you put in front of me (except liver—talk about ew!)

Parrot has an amazing ability to pick up languages (I envy him!) and he speaks at least 16 fluently. Do you speak any foreign languages? I can get by in Spanish. Enough to ask where the bathroom is and, of course, for another margarita.

All the books are set in pretty exotic locales, fake, but certainly similar to real countries. Which places did you actually travel to for your research, if any? Oh, man, traveling is my vice. I’ll go in debt to see something cool. I’ve been a ton of places: Sweden, Switzerland, Finland, Germany, Austria, Venezuela, Columbia, Bermuda, Bahamas, Isle de Margarita, Canada, Mexico, and lots of others. I can’t say I traveled specifically to research for my books, but I can say I draw from experiences of that travel while I write my books. Next stop for me, though? Hawaii!

If you were asked to write a prequel novel that went deeper into one of the specialists back stories, which character would be the center of it and why? Oh, I would totally do TL (team leader Thomas Liba). There’s something about him that tugs at my heart strings. He’s got such a mysterious past. I would definitely love to explore it. Plus, he’s just plain sexy. LOL.

Do you have any other book related projects in the works that you can tell us about? What can we expect from you in the future? Oh, yes. I’m writing a teen romance right now tentatively titled EM. Its due out in 2010. It takes place on a fictitious island much like Bermuda. I’ve got a few other things brewing that I can’t talk about right now, but definitely keep watch on my website for announcements!

Thanks Shannon! I've had so much fun these past weeks and I wish you all the best in the future. And hopefully book 5 will get a publishing date soon, because I can't wait to read it!

So everyone, for a chance to win Native Tongue or the set of all 4 Specialist books, just comment on this post.

Extra entries for:

+2 Posting a link to the contest on your blog

+2 Commenting on my review of Native Tongue

and +1 for every comment you make on any post this week!

Only open to residents of the US and Canada!

PS - I posted this on the bloggy giveaways carnival. There are over 1,000 contests going on where you can win books, crafts, gift certificates, and much more. Check it out here.

Library Thing Tuesday (12)

Today's question: Cataloging sources. What cataloging sources do you use most? Any particular reason? Any idiosyncratic choices, or foreign sources, or sources you like better than others? Are you able to find most things through LT's almost 700 sources?

I have only needed to use amazon and amazon.fr so far. When adding books, I always just click on the first one that matches the title, not paying particular attention to the edition. I know some like to make sure that they catalogue the exact edition that sits on their shelf, but I am not that nit-picky.

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I've been nominated by several fellow bloggers for a blogging award!

Thanks Tina from http://bookshipper.blogspot.com/, Melsy at http://melsysplace.blogspot.com/, Alea at http://aleapopculture.blogspot.com/, Marie at http://www.bostonbibliophile.com/ and Alisha at http://thekoolaidmom.wordpress.com/. I adore all of your blogs too and visit often so consider yourselves awarded by me too.

Here are the rules:

1. Put the logo on your blog.

2. Add a link to the person who awarded you.

3. Nominate at least seven other blogs.

4. Add links to those blogs on your blog.

5. Leave a message for your nominee on their blog.

My 7 other nominees (besides the fab ladies who nommed me) are:

Melissa Walker at http://www.melissacwalker.com/blog/

Melissa is the author of the YA Violet series (which is what I am reading next - I swear!) and a freelance writer for magazines and I LOVE reading her blog - she always has fab features including win it wednesdays.

Steph at http://reviewerx.blogspot.com/

Honest reviews and an awesome selection of books keep me coming back again and again. Plus, I won my first ever contest on Steph's site! You know you rock that foreign country you live in...

Eli and Rae at http://nineseveneight.blogspot.com/

This is a fairly new blog but I'm addicted already. Love the rating system and the Dystopian fortnight.

Lauren and Keaton at http://shootingstarsmag.blogspot.com/

This blog not only features reviews of YA books, but also promotes cool music and movies. And they had a great series of contests where authors donated books that they had "marked up". I was lucky enough to win "Back Talk" by Alex Richards and she writes awesome little tidbits in red pen throughout the book. I cherish this copy!

Jen at http://jkrbooks.typepad.com/blog/

One of my fave places to go for children's book recommendations. Her reviews are always so insightful and I've added so many books to my wishlist thanks to her.

Gayle at http://everydayiwritethebook.typepad.com/books/

Gayle is a fellow Entertainment Weekly fan and reads a nice variety of books. She always makes me take a closer look at books that might not have interested me at first glance.

And finally ALL of my fellow LibraryThing bloggers (Kathleen has an awesome list of all of you right here)- I so enjoy reading your responses every Tuesday and I am a serious addict of the LT ARC Junkie thread. An intervention will need to be staged soon I'm afraid....

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Contests this week:

Win The Temptress Four by Gaby Triana at Reviewer X's blog. Be sure to read her review and interview with Gaby as well! Ends August 1st.

StudentofSaga is giving away a copy of Kamilla Reid's The Questory of Root Karbunkulus. To enter, just submit a question for the author at this post. Winner notified by e-mail on August 4th.

Bookish Ruth is giving away an ARC of Kaimira: The Sky Village if you comment on this post. Enter by August 6th.

Book Review: The Septembers of Shiraz by Dalia Sofer

In the past year and a half I’ve read three books that have to do with the aftermath of the 1979 Iranian revolution: Mark Bowden’s Guests of the Ayatollah: The Iran Hostage Crisis: The First Battle in America's War with Militant Islam by about the Tehran Embassy takeover, Azar Nafisi’s Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books and now The Septembers of Shiraz, the lone fictional account.


Despite being a novel, Septembers was probably the least passionate and most matter of fact of all three. Based loosely on her own family’s experience during this tumultuous time and their eventual flight from the country, the book is Sofer’s attempt to come to terms with her father’s stay in prison and her exile from the country she remembers from girlhood. Although many horrors occur – the father is tortured brutally by his zealot captors, opportunists loot the family’s business, a relative is burned with acid thrown by a mob – the writing does not sensationalize and the characters remain abnormally detached. My favorite parts were those chapters that followed daughter Shirin, whose secret defiance of the new regime lends the most suspense and passion to the narrative.

I also very much liked the lyrical writing. A sample passage: "The human body is like that. It needs a constant flow of nourishment, air, and love, to survive. Unlike currency, these things cannot be accumulated. At any given moment, either you have them, or you don't."

I found this easy to get into, easy to read but hard to put down. Glad I had the opportunity to read it as part of Everyday I Write the Book Blog's Online Book Club: "The Septembers of Shiraz" by Dalia Sofer. Thanks Gayle!

Book Review: Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway

Audrey breaks up with her self-absorbed musician boyfriend who promptly writes a song about their break up called “Audrey Wait”. It makes stars out of his band and as his “muse”, Audrey has to kiss her anonymity goodbye as she is relentlessly pursued by “fans”, paparazzi, and even other bands who think she can help them write a great song. The novel is Audrey telling her side of the story and trying to set straight all the misconceptions about her which have been printed in the gossip press.

Audrey is hilariously sarcastic – which is what gets her in trouble since sarcasm doesn’t come off well in print. Fortunately, she has an awesome best friend ( who tries to get her to take advantage of swag, but Audrey won’t “sell out”) a sweet new boyfriend, and supportive parents to help her get through the crazy times.

My favorite part of the book? The chapter headings – all lyrics from rock songs – that helped set the scene for each of the 41 chapters. I was delighted to see such favorites as The Smith’s “There is a light that never goes out”, Radiohead’s “Fake Plastic Trees”, Regina Spektor’s “Fidelity”, The Decemberists’ “Of Angels and Angles” and Stars’ “Your Ex-Lover is Dead”. I am planning to look up the songs I’m unfamiliar with and if they rock as much as the songs I am familiar with, then I’m eternally thankful to Author Robin Benway for putting together such an awesome playlist.

A must for fans of great music and great YA.

Book Review: Specialists: The Winning Element by Shannon Greenland

It’s GiGi’s third mission and this time, it’s personal. She has a chance to bring down the notorious criminal who was responsible for her parent’s deaths. Lust for revenge makes her give team leader TL an ultimatum which results in her having to design the mission herself. And when she goes over intel and looks for a suitable cover, she realizes that she’s going to have to bring sullen goth girl chemical specialist Beaker with her – and that they’ll have to pose as cheerleaders.

This slim addition to the Specialist series has a ton packed in its 230 pages. We get to know Beaker’s back story as well as more about GiGi’s. We get to see Beaker and GiGi in intense and hilarious cheer training sessions to get ready for the mission (the required back handspring maneuver pretty much killed any cheerleading aspirations I had – oh who am I kidding? I can’t even do a cartwheel!) And we get the mission itself which is full of fun spy gadgets (my favorite being a tracker that can be blown from a pencil up to 20 feet away and feels like a mosquito bite when it penetrates the skin and enters the bloodstream), close calls, and surprises. GiGi makes some mistakes, but she has a great team to back her up – and hey, we all make mistakes, right? The point is to learn from them and move on.

Another great action filled spy novel! Don't forget to comment on this review for an extra entry to my contest to win a signed copy of the book.

Book Trailer: Undone by Brooke Taylor

Here's one I can't wait to read:




Enter to win it at Reviewer X's site (open only until Sunday so don't delay)!

Author Interview and Contest: Shannon Greenland: The Winning Element

First up, last week's winner of Down to the Wire is....

Brenna!

Congrats and send me your mailing address so I can pass it on to Shannon (my e-mail address is in the sidebar).

Now let's talk with Shannon about book 3 in the Specialists Series: The Winning Element.

What's book 3 all about? GiGi learns about a notorious chemical smuggler currently at large. Not only is he a present danger, but he was responsible for the deaths of GiGi's parents. The government has been trying to track him down for years, and with GiGi's fierce determination (and TL's help), the Specialists are hired to capture him. And this time, GiGi's in charge of the mission. Only, she can't do this alone. She needs Beaker's chemistry expertise. But when their cover has to be cheerleaders at a national cheerleading competition, Goth-girl Beaker is not too pleased.

All of your characters are really different. Do you ever incorporate parts of your personality into your characters? Or any traits/quirks of friends/people you know? I get asked this question a lot. I have a notebook that I carry around with me. Every time I see someone do or say something unique, I jot it down. And when I’m building a character, I refer back to that notebook. For example, I once saw a Goth girl sitting in the mall. She was clearly upset about something as she scowled and chomped a piece of gum. I looked at her and thought “Beaker!”

Most of the Specialists lost their parents at an early age, but Beaker's mother is still alive. How does this affect her psychologically? Actually, someone else’s parent is alive, too. But you’ll learn that in Native Tongue. It does affect Beaker, though, in that she’s the only one with crappy memories of her parent. The rest came from loving homes, but various circumstances took their parents at different times.

GiGi and Beaker have to pose as cheerleaders on this latest mission. Did you ever do any cheerleading yourself? I never did cheerleading, but I attended a cheer camp a few summers ago as I was researching to write this book. I’ll tell you something—those girls work hard!

Thanks Shannon!

Now for this week’s giveaway! You have a chance of winning a signed copy of The Winning Element just by commenting on this post.

Extra entries? Sure!

+1 entry for blogging about this contest
+1 entry for commenting on my review tomorrow
+ 1 entry for leaving Shannon a comment over at her blog (may I suggest her summer top 5 post?)

If you do all 4, I will double your entries for a total of 8. And they also count towards the grand prize drawing for all 4 signed books – what a deal!

Guest Review: Eleanor reviews PJ Hoover's The Emerald Tablet

PJ Hoover sent me her forthcoming middle grade book “The Emerald Tablet” for review and since I was spending the week with a child in the target group, I gave it to her to read first. Her name is Eleanor, she is 10 years old and she is a huge fan of the fantasy genre, so this was perfect for her. After reading the first chapter, she turned to me and said, “This is FREAKING awesome!” Now if that isn’t a ringing endorsement, I don’t know what is! I will review this myself (next week hopefully), but first, here is her review.

The book is about a boy named Benjamin. He sees his mom disappear in thin air, but it’s not a big shock to him since his life is pretty abnormal to begin with. He, his whole family and his friend Andy are all able to lift objects using their minds and have conversations without speaking out loud. Benjamin touches a mirror which tells him that he must attend 8 weeks of summer school which he teleports to. At the school he meets Andy and 4 other new friends. One day they find an emerald tablet that tells them that the walls protecting them from Atlantis are weakening and it is up to them to find a solution. This is where the book really gets exciting.

My favorite part of the book is when Helios comes and fights with Mr. Burton. It is very suspenseful. I also liked how the characters all got along and worked together toward a common goal. And I ended up being very surprised by which characters were revealed as villains at the end. I would highly recommend this to anyone who likes a great fantasy read.

Library Thing Tuesday (11)

Today's topic: Recommendations. Do you use LT's recommendations feature? Have you found any good books by using it? Do you use the anti-recommendations, or the "special sauce" recommendations? How do you find out about books you want to read?

I have glanced at the recommendations, but I haven't invested any time in the feature yet. I really should one of these days. The anti-recommendations said I should steer clear of a bunch of christian books - even after I added quite a few to my library. I used to find most of my books through friends or my browsing people's lists on amazon. I also found YA or children's books through the publisher's catalogs that I'd pick up at book fairs. Since about April, I've found most of my books through people's book review blogs. And I have bought a couple of books that were in the Early Review program that I didn't get chosen for. My wishlist keeps growing and growing...


**** Contests ****

The Book Vault is giving away a copy of Francey by Martin Dubow. Enter by July 31st.

Dar is giving away a copy of The Host! Enter by July 24th.

Another chance to win the 14 books from Hachette at bookroomreviews! Enter by August 9th. I AM going to win these one of these days!!

Book Review: Oh. My. Gods. by Tera Lynn Childs

As a talented long distance runner, Phoebe practically worships her Nikes. When her mother marries a Greek after 8 days of courtship and decides to move with her from Southern CA to a secret Greek isle, Phoebe finds out that Nike and all the other Gods are real – and their numerous descendents are her new neighbors and classmates. All Phoebe cares about is making the grade and winning races so she can get a scholarship to USC. But how is she going to do that as a nothos when everyone around her has supernatural powers and most of the school seems to hate her?

I am a big fan of Greek mythology so the concept intrigued me and the “advance praise” on the back cover from the Gods (“This novel will wind up on many keeper shelves – or there will be thunderbolts to pay” – Zeus) made me laugh out loud. I had a hard time with the first chapter though. Everything just happened so fast. One minute she’s winning a race at a USC cross country summer camp and the next her mother tells her they’re moving overseas. Just like that they’ve packed two suitcases and are on a plane. WHAT?! Who does that?! To me that was even more unbelievable than finding out the Greek gods really exist.

But once they’re settled on the island, the novel finds its flow and it’s a super fun read. I thought it was clever that even at god school you have your cliques – the cheerleaders are descendants of Aphrodite, the jocks of Ares, the nerds of Hephaestus and so on. Phoebe has to deal with the machinations of her evil stepsister Stella and her Hera buddy Adara while nursing her crush on bad boy runner Griffin. Fortunately, she is befriended by Nicole and Troy – two characters I would have liked to have read more about.

One of the major themes of the book was that sometimes change happens quickly – and you can embrace it and adapt to it, or you can stay bitter and stuck in the past. In that context, I can sort of see the first chapter in a new light, and have to admit that as a device it fits what the author is trying to convey.

Better get it, lest Zeus smite you!