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The Fox and The Firebird - Page 20

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Thursday

September 29th, 2011
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Book Review: White Cat (Curse Workers #1) by Holly Black

An action-packed, magical, coming-of-age story

White Cat (Curse Workers, #1) by Holly Black
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: May 4, 2010
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Pages: 336 (320 Hardcover)
Source: Amazon Vine
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Holly Black's WHITE CAT leaps instantly into action. The hero, seventeen-year-old Cassel Sharpe, wakes up barefoot and shirtless on an icy-cold night, about to step off a roof at his boarding school. Cassel assumes he was sleepwalking and hopes to be able to put the incident behind him. But after he's rescued by the fire department, the school authorities kick him out to avoid the legal liability resulting from his death if he were to accidentally kill himself while sleepwalking again. Cassel is devastated. He desperately wants to escape the deviant lifestyle of his family and be normal, and he sees boarding school as his one, big chance to accomplish that.

Cassel comes from a family of "curse workers" who can, with the touch of a finger, injure people with magic. Their various powers range from manipulating thoughts and emotions to physically harming others, up to and including his grandfather's ability to put a "death curse" on someone which will instantly kill him. Curse work is illegal, and his family lives on the edge of the law, many of them working for the local mobster. Even when they aren't working curses for hire, they make money as grifters. But though Cassel's amoral mother raised him and his two older brothers to see all of life as a gamble and a con, several crucial factors have kept him from falling completely into the cesspool of his family's unrepentant corruption:

Unlike the rest of his family, he isn't delusional about his own omnipotence when he runs a con. All of his cons are small potatoes stuff, like being a bookie at his boarding school for minor bets, which cause little or no harm to anyone. Cassel is capable of empathy, and he doesn't like to hurt other people, which can't be said for almost everyone in his sociopathic family. Most important of all, he apparently has no curse-working ability, which means he wasn't born with a power that society claims can only be used for evil. Unfortunately, there is one, huge thing that links him powerfully to his family's taint. They are covering up for him the fact that he apparently killed his girlfriend when they were both very young teens.

Cassel has mixed memories about this event. It feels like a dream that happened to someone else. He can clearly remember standing over his girlfriend's body with blood on him, but he has no recollection as to why on earth he would commit such an unforgivable crime against someone he loved--and still loves and misses years later.

In spite of the enormous psychological burdens Cassel carries, he makes choices that are anything but weak. He doesn't give in and become a criminal as his two brothers have. And he doesn't crawl off in a corner and whine about his terrible fate. Instead, he shows amazing initiative for someone his age by getting himself into a private school and away from his family, while hobbled with the reasonable doubt that he can never fully achieve his dream of normality. Since he isn't normal, he can only try to present an illusion of it to others, and doing that makes him feel guilty, because it seems too much like running the same old cons his family has engaged in for generations.

The concept of the con is at the center of this story, and the core of any con is the ability to tell lies convincingly and to keep secrets. That's a very creative twist on the two major sources of conflict in any fictional story, no matter what the genre, lies and secrets. In plot-driven, action/adventure, mystery, suspense and thriller stories, lies and secrets keep the hero in constant danger from the villain and often unable to know for sure who the villain is. In character-driven, relationship stories, lies and secrets stand in the way of trust, which is the foundation of emotional intimacy, commitment, and stability in romantic, familial and friendship connections. WHITE CAT is a story with both of these types of plots intertwined, a mystery/suspense plot and multiple, character-driven relationship subplots. And overarching and unifying all of that is the primary, "A Plot," Cassel's conflicted relationship with himself as he attempts to find out who he really is by breaking through a multitude of lies and secrets layered on top of him since birth by his family and society as a whole.

It is incredibly difficult to seamlessly intertwine, as Holly Black has done, action and relationship plots without emotion bogging down the action or action fizzling out the emotion. But she does a brilliant job of keeping action and emotion constantly in balance as she skillfully leads us through Cassel's discovery of who among the people in his life are his antagonists and who are his allies. The glue she uses to pull it all together is a theme throughout the book of determinism versus free will. That's a rather deep philosophical concept for a popular-fiction novel whose goal is to "merely" entertain, but it is this profound and universal human struggle which makes Cassel's journey one that all teenagers (and most of us adults) can relate to. The need to break free of limiting societal labels and expectations about who we are and who we can hope to be.

Cassel lives in a harsh world, so this book has a very somber tone. It is not as dark, perhaps, as many of the dystopian novels so popular right now, but it has a similar ultimate villain. The destructive, adult, power structure within a corrupt society which mandates that an entire group of people is inferior because they are tainted by innate qualities they never chose to have.

Because Cassel is fighting against institutionalized bigotry, the odds are completely against him in the greatest gamble of his life. I think it is for that reason that the end of this book, while it resolves the major questions posed by the story, does not resolve Cassel's core concern about constructing his own identity, rather than having a depraved one forced upon him by society. I look forward to seeing how Black will ultimately resolve Cassel's dream of escaping a life that is nothing but a series of empty, dehumanizing cons.

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys urban fantasy, and most particularly to fans of Scott Westerfeld and Justine Larbalestier.

Kudos, also, to the publishers for the gorgeous cover!

Hero: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Writing: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Mystery Subplot: 5


Overall: 5

Book Review: White Cat (Curse Workers, #1) by Holly Black

An action-packed, magical, coming-of-age story

White Cat (Curse Workers, #1) by Holly Black
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: May 4, 2010
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Pages: 336 (320 Hardcover)
Source: Amazon Vine
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Holly Black's WHITE CAT leaps instantly into action. The hero, seventeen-year-old Cassel Sharpe, wakes up barefoot and shirtless on an icy-cold night, about to step off a roof at his boarding school. Cassel assumes he was sleepwalking and hopes to be able to put the incident behind him. But after he's rescued by the fire department, the school authorities kick him out to avoid the legal liability resulting from his death if he were to accidentally kill himself while sleepwalking again. Cassel is devastated. He desperately wants to escape the deviant lifestyle of his family and be normal, and he sees boarding school as his one, big chance to accomplish that.

Cassel comes from a family of "curse workers" who can, with the touch of a finger, injure people with magic. Their various powers range from manipulating thoughts and emotions to physically harming others, up to and including his grandfather's ability to put a "death curse" on someone which will instantly kill him. Curse work is illegal, and his family lives on the edge of the law, many of them working for the local mobster. Even when they aren't working curses for hire, they make money as grifters. But though Cassel's amoral mother raised him and his two older brothers to see all of life as a gamble and a con, several crucial factors have kept him from falling completely into the cesspool of his family's unrepentant corruption:

Unlike the rest of his family, he isn't delusional about his own omnipotence when he runs a con. All of his cons are small potatoes stuff, like being a bookie at his boarding school for minor bets, which cause little or no harm to anyone. Cassel is capable of empathy, and he doesn't like to hurt other people, which can't be said for almost everyone in his sociopathic family. Most important of all, he apparently has no curse-working ability, which means he wasn't born with a power that society claims can only be used for evil. Unfortunately, there is one, huge thing that links him powerfully to his family's taint. They are covering up for him the fact that he apparently killed his girlfriend when they were both very young teens.

Cassel has mixed memories about this event. It feels like a dream that happened to someone else. He can clearly remember standing over his girlfriend's body with blood on him, but he has no recollection as to why on earth he would commit such an unforgivable crime against someone he loved--and still loves and misses years later.

In spite of the enormous psychological burdens Cassel carries, he makes choices that are anything but weak. He doesn't give in and become a criminal as his two brothers have. And he doesn't crawl off in a corner and whine about his terrible fate. Instead, he shows amazing initiative for someone his age by getting himself into a private school and away from his family, while hobbled with the reasonable doubt that he can never fully achieve his dream of normality. Since he isn't normal, he can only try to present an illusion of it to others, and doing that makes him feel guilty, because it seems too much like running the same old cons his family has engaged in for generations.

The concept of the con is at the center of this story, and the core of any con is the ability to tell lies convincingly and to keep secrets. That's a very creative twist on the two major sources of conflict in any fictional story, no matter what the genre, lies and secrets. In plot-driven, action/adventure, mystery, suspense and thriller stories, lies and secrets keep the hero in constant danger from the villain and often unable to know for sure who the villain is. In character-driven, relationship stories, lies and secrets stand in the way of trust, which is the foundation of emotional intimacy, commitment, and stability in romantic, familial and friendship connections. WHITE CAT is a story with both of these types of plots intertwined, a mystery/suspense plot and multiple, character-driven relationship subplots. And overarching and unifying all of that is the primary, "A Plot," Cassel's conflicted relationship with himself as he attempts to find out who he really is by breaking through a multitude of lies and secrets layered on top of him since birth by his family and society as a whole.

It is incredibly difficult to seamlessly intertwine, as Holly Black has done, action and relationship plots without emotion bogging down the action or action fizzling out the emotion. But she does a brilliant job of keeping action and emotion constantly in balance as she skillfully leads us through Cassel's discovery of who among the people in his life are his antagonists and who are his allies. The glue she uses to pull it all together is a theme throughout the book of determinism versus free will. That's a rather deep philosophical concept for a popular-fiction novel whose goal is to "merely" entertain, but it is this profound and universal human struggle which makes Cassel's journey one that all teenagers (and most of us adults) can relate to. The need to break free of limiting societal labels and expectations about who we are and who we can hope to be.

Cassel lives in a harsh world, so this book has a very somber tone. It is not as dark, perhaps, as many of the dystopian novels so popular right now, but it has a similar ultimate villain. The destructive, adult, power structure within a corrupt society which mandates that an entire group of people is inferior because they are tainted by innate qualities they never chose to have.

Because Cassel is fighting against institutionalized bigotry, the odds are completely against him in the greatest gamble of his life. I think it is for that reason that the end of this book, while it resolves the major questions posed by the story, does not resolve Cassel's core concern about constructing his own identity, rather than having a depraved one forced upon him by society. I look forward to seeing how Black will ultimately resolve Cassel's dream of escaping a life that is nothing but a series of empty, dehumanizing cons.

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys urban fantasy, and most particularly to fans of Scott Westerfeld and Justine Larbalestier.

Kudos, also, to the publishers for the gorgeous cover! 

Hero: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Writing: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Mystery Subplot: 5


Overall: 5

The Fox and The Firebird - Page 19

I've finished Page 19 of The Fox and The Firebird. For more information on the comic, please visit http://www.fairytaletwisted.com

If you like my comic, please vote for The Fox and The Firebird on Topwebcomics.com.
Thursday

September 22nd, 2011
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Book Review: The Iron Queen (Iron Fey, #3) by Julie Kagawa

The final battle against the Iron Fey

The Iron Queen (Iron Fey, #3) by Julie Kagawa
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: January 25, 2011
Publisher: Harlequin
Pages: 368
Source: Purchased
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

If you have not read the other two books in this series, The Iron King and The Iron Daughter , do not read this review, because it will contain spoilers for you.

At the end of The Iron Daughter, Meghan Chase has been exiled from the land of the fey. The fey Winter Prince she loves, Ash, has chosen to go into exile with her, losing his title as prince in the process. They are joined by her long-time friend and protector, the Summer fey Puck AKA Robin Goodfellow. But soon after the three of them have found a way to settle into the human world, they are summoned back to the fey world to save it from the Iron Fey. These dangerous fey have a new "false king" who is determined that nothing short of total annihilation of the rest of the fey will serve his purposes, and the only hope of the land of Faery is Meghan. She killed an Iron King once before, and maybe she can kill one again.

My favorite part of this book is the romance between Meghan and Ash. Now that they are committed to each other, Kagawa gives them much more time onstage together. It is great to have many more chances than in the previous two books to spend time with them as a couple. Individually, Meghan has grown up a lot over the series, showing resilience, backbone and fighting spirit in this book. Ash is, as always, the consummate warrior, utterly fearless and unbeatable on the battlefield, but he is also an amazingly sensitive and gentle mate for Meghan--in short, the ideal romantic hero.

Puck continues to be a central character in this book as he was in the previous two books. Grimalkin is a key player in the main storyline as well--which made me very happy because he is one of my favorite characters in the series.

Once again, as in the previous two books, Kagawa excels at world-building. Her imagination is awe-inspiring, as her Faery world is extremely complex. The theme of a journey continues in this book as for the other two, with an interesting bit of magic that allows Puck, Ash and Grimalkin to accompany Meghan in her life-or-death mission to take down the Iron King. For those who like lots of adventure, skirmishes and outright battles, this book will be a welcome addition to their collection of fantasy novels.

A particular aspect of the ending (which I won't specify to avoid a spoiler) may disappoint those who are rooting for Ash and Meghan as a couple. Fortunately, there is a sequel, The Iron Knight, which will be released 10/25/11, which continues their story.

I just read a galley of The Iron Knight that I received through NetGalley, and I learned through an interview included at the end of the book why Kagawa decided to write a fourth book in this series when she had originally planned it as a trilogy. She states: "The Iron Knight came about because I love Ultimate Noble Sacrifice endings, and my editor...liked HEAs (Happily Ever Afters). I had a very specific character arc in mind for Meghan, and Iron Queen was supposed to be the end of her journey....But my editor convinced me that we couldn't leave [the series where it stopped at the end of The Iron Queen with] Meg and Ash apart...."

It sounds like it was the idea of the editor, not the author, to write one more book (and only one) to tie up this series, but Kagawa figured out a way to write it that she herself could believe in and live with. In it she continues the theme that she does so well in the other three books in this series, that of a heroic journey, and it is written entirely from the point of view of Ash. Fans of this series will not be disappointed, and those who love Ash will be particularly pleased to be allowed to spend so much time with him. In addition, Grimalkin plays a major role, which for me as a huge fan of his was wonderful.

Heroine: 4

Subcharacters: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Writing: 4

Action-Adventure Plot: 4

Romantic Subplot: 4


Overall: 4

Book Review: The Iron Daughter (Iron Fey, #2) by Julie Kagawa

An outstanding sequel in a great young adult urban fantasy trilogy

The Iron Daughter (Iron Fey, #2) by Julie Kagawa
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: August 1, 2010
Publisher: Harlequin
Pages: 304
Source: Amazon Vine
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Meghan begins this second book in The Iron Fey trilogy imprisoned by the Winter faery Queen, and deserted by Ash, the Winter Faery prince she thought loved her. Worse, war is about to break out between the Summer and Winter Court, and there seems to be nothing Meghan can do to stop it. No one will believe that the Iron Fey exist, and her magical powers have been cut off.

Once again, the world-building in this series is astounding. The action is intense and neverending. Every character--even those with bit parts--is vividly realized and simply springs off the page. And best of all, the romance is emotionally intense. Ash is a strong, ethical and very sexy romantic hero.

Julie Kagawa is an outstanding writer, and I highly recommend this series to anyone who enjoys excellent urban fantasy with a really good romance subplot.

Heroine: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Writing: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Romantic Subplot: 4


Overall: 5

Book Review: The Iron King (Iron Fey, #1) by Julie Kagawa

Action packed adventure in fairyland!

The Iron King (Iron Fey, #1) by Julie Kagawa
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: February 1, 2010
Publisher: Harlequin
Pages: 368
Source: Amazon Vine
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Meghan Chase has never fit in, either at home or at school, ever since her father disappeared right before her eyes when she was only six. But her life isn't particularly out of the ordinary, other than living on a farm with her mother, step-father and four-year-old brother in an obscure area of the country. Her major complaint is not having a boyfriend and her mother not remembering her birthday--until the day she turns sixteen. Suddenly, her world implodes. Her little brother is kidnapped and her best friend, Robbie, reveals that he's not what she thought he was all these years. He's a powerful fae (fairy) who offers to be her guide to rescue her brother from an enemy who has taken him to a place beyond her wildest imaginings.

Meghan's wild journey through the Nevernever (fairyland) is a nonstop ride. It is a world filled with wicked fae, many of whom want to not only kill her, but eat her, too. Yet she has allies, as well, most impressive among them an amazing talking cat named Grimalkin, and her friend Robbie, who turns out to be Puck from Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream. Most fascinating of all is Ash, a Prince of the Winter Court of the fae, who can't decide if he wants to kiss Meghan or kill her.

I enjoyed the action of this story, but I loved most the romantic subplot. Ash is not just a gorgeous prop, but brave, resourceful and protective of the heroine, as well as respecting her innate strength. I can't wait to see how this romance progresses in the next two books of this trilogy.

Overall, the sheer inventiveness of this story is mind boggling. There are endless types of fae, with all kinds of powers who represent many different challenges and dangers for the heroine to overcome. And the ultimate Big Bad, the titular Iron King, is one of the most fascinating villains I've ever seen in a fantasy novel.

Note for concerned parents: Though the book has many scary moments, the violence is not overly graphic. There is no foul language to speak of, and only a couple of chaste kisses for sexual content.

I recommend this book highly not only to teens, but to adults who like a rip-roaring story by a truly excellent writer. If you are looking for a fast, exciting, really fun read, and you enjoy fantasy-adventure, you are going to love this book.

Heroine: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 5

Writing: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Romantic Subplot: 4


Overall: 5

The Fox and The Firebird - Page 18

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Thursday

September 15th, 2011
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Book Review: Trial by Fire (Raised by Wolves, #2) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

A stellar second installment in the "Raised by Wolves" young-adult, urban-fantasy series

Trial by Fire (Raised by Wolves, #2) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: June 8, 2010
Publisher: Egmont USA
Pages: 432
Source: Amazon Vine
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

The story begins not long after where the first book in this series, Raised by Wolves, ended. If you have not read that book, please do not read this review as it contains spoilers for that book.

Sixteen-year-old Bryn has settled in as the human, but preternaturally resilient alpha of her small pack of werewolves, ranging in age from toddlers to teenagers. Bryn's three closest friends and most stalwart supporters are still in the pack. First is Chase, a resilient like Bryn who was turned into a werewolf by the bite of a rabid were (the villain of Book 1) and is her love interest. Next is Devon, a gorgeous, quirky metrosexual who loves show tunes. He is her second-in-command and is destined to be an alpha himself someday as a pure were born of two weres--unlike most weres who are born of human mothers because were females are extremely rare (they only survive in the womb when they are part of a pair of fraternal twins). Devon has been Bryn's best friend since she was eight and first came to live with weres. Third is Lake, one of those extremely rare were females. She is Bryn's age, is in love with weapons of all kinds, and is highly desired as a potential mate by every grown were within several states.

The major conflict of the story begins when a 14-year-old were male who has been brutally tortured by a coven of psychics begs Bryn to take him in and keep him safe from his own alpha--Devon's evil older brother Shay--who gave him to the vicious psychics. Bryn is put in the terrible dilemma of wanting to protect a vulnerable boy, but at the same time faced with the possibility of a devastating were war if she violates the rules of the werewolf Senate. No alpha can steal a pack member from any other alpha, not even if that alpha is wrongly harming a vulnerable member of his pack. These rules seem cruel, but they serve to stave off even worse situations of alphas invading the territory of other alphas and staring inter-pack wars. Shay knows these rules, and he is trying to find a way around them, because he wants nothing more than to destroy Bryn and steal all the young females in her pack, most especially Lake, whom he wants for himself.

Bryn is protective and compassionate and when she is put between the rock and a hard place of Shay and the coven of evil psychics, she has no choice but to find a way to fight harder, rather than smarter against her enemies, because she and her very young pack are horribly outmatched.

I loved this book every bit as much as Book 1. I raced through the pages. Barnes is a master at urban fantasy. She fulfills in spades its prime directive of a powerful, noble Warrior who gets into trouble because of her protective instincts. She also provides compelling fantasy world-building, truly evil villains and tons of action. And on top of all that she offers what most adult urban fantasy too often fails to present--a marvelous family of affiliation of close friends and allies, and a lovely, warm romantic subplot with Chase. Her writing itself is also terrific, smooth, readable and often unobtrusively lyrical. I cannot wait for the next installment.

Heroine: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Fantasy World-Building: 4

Writing: 5

Action-Adventure Plot: 5

Mystery Subplot: 5

Romantic Subplot: 5


Overall: 5

Interview at Books Are Wonderful

Books Are Wonderful has posted an interview with us (Kate McMurry and Marie August). The interview can be found here. We are also posting a copy of this interview below:

An Interview with Mother-and-Daughter Writing Team, Kate McMurry and Marie August, Coauthors of the Young Adult Novel, Girl vs Ghost (Book 1, Misdirected Magic Trilogy)
Kate McMurry (katemcmurry.com) is married with two grown children, one of whom is her coauthor, Marie August. Kate and her husband Chris share their home with an adorable rat terrier named Dottie. Kate has worked as an English teacher, a therapist, a paralegal, and a freelance writer. Girl vs Ghost, a paranormal, romantic comedy targeted primarily at teens age 12-16, is her first published novel.
Marie August (marieaugust.com) has a bachelors degree in visual art and has written fiction since her teens, with the guidance and encouragement of her mother, Kate McMurry. Marie and Kate have partnered as a fiction team since 2006. As a special promotion for the release of Girl vs Ghost, Marie produced a webcomic of the first chapter which is posted at misdirectedmagic.com. She also writes and illustrates a fairytale webcomic called The Fox and the Firebird at www.fairytaletwisted.com.
Q: How did the two of you get started as a writing team? Kate and Marie: We've always had a close, personal relationship, not only as mother and daughter but as friends, because we share a great many interests, in particular writing fiction. For years we each struggled along on our own with individual projects, periodically critiquing each other's writing. Marie was creating young-adult fantasy stories and Kate wrote adult romantic comedy. Then in 2006 Marie suggested that if we joined forces, we could get a lot more done together than we ever managed to do apart. She was absolutely correct. Not only have we been much more productive together, our separate projects melded together into what we write now, young-adult, paranormal, romantic comedy. Our teamwork has had an additional wonderful perk of giving us an excuse to spend much more time together than we might have been able to do in the ordinary course of events.Q: Where did you get the idea for Girl vs Ghost, and what made you decide to write it as a trilogy? (Book 1,Girl vs Ghost, was released in April, 2011; Book 2, Witch vs Wizard is scheduled for release in November, 2011, and Book 3, Spells vs Spirits will follow in the spring of 2012.)Kate and Marie: Marie came up with the original inspiration when she was still in her teens. She had envisioned a different ending for the story than we ultimately decided on together, and there was at least one important character in her initial conception whom we ended up not using, but the basic storyline is much the same.We planned to write Girl vs Ghost as a single title when we began working on it in 2006, but when our "fantasy bible" of the magic of our story world grew to over 25,000 words and the biographies of the various characters totaled altogether over 44,000 words, it struck us that there was too much story to limit to only one book.Q: Why did you decide to write your book as a comic romance with only one love interest rather than a dark, paranormal romance with a love triangle, which is extremely popular right now?Kate and Marie: While YA romances with a couple of dark and dangerous males who are mad for the heroine can be quite fun to read, we've both always loved a good romantic comedy where there is no doubt from the start of the story who we should be rooting for the heroine to end up with. When fantasy elements are added to romantic comedy as well, it provides endless possibilities for humorous romantic conflict through the crazy situations it creates.Q: Do you enjoy reading YA fiction as well as writing it? If so, what are some of your favorite authors?Kate and Marie: We are both big fans of YA, particularly YA with fantasy elements. In fact, our love of YA was a major inspiration for writing it.Like millions of others we've devoured the Harry Potter books and the Twilight series (and enjoyed the movies based on them). We've recently been impressed with Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series, the Angel series by Lee Weatherly, the Raised by Wolves series by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, the Dark Mirror series by Mary Jo Putney, the Goblin Wars series by Kersten Hamilton, the Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, and the Steampunk Chronicles by Kady Cross.Our favorite authors of comic YA novels, many of which have fantasy elements, are Meg Cabot, Janet Rallison, Tera Lynn Childs, Suzanne Selfors, Wendy Toliver, Allison van Diepen, Kristin Walker, Rosemary Clement-Moore, Tina Ferraro, Aimee Ferris, Maryrose Wood, Alex Flinn, Martha Freeman, Ebony McKenna, and Sydney Salter. Q: Any writing tips you'd like to pass on to aspiring authors of YA fiction?Kate and Marie: If you want to write fiction, it's a good idea to write in a genre that you love to read. One good way to learn to write fiction is to analyze any book that you particularly admire to try and figure out how the author did it. It's also a good idea to take classes on writing fiction, either locally or online, and look for a compatible local writer's group to get feedback on your writing. Q: Any final thoughts?Kate and Marie: Any time you read a novel that you love, consider supporting that author's work by writing a review on booklover sites such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Goodreads, or posting a comment on a blog such as this one. Positive reviews by readers are a double blessing. They encourage the author whose work you enjoy to produce more books, and they help other readers who are looking for the same type of books that you enjoy to discover the work of talented authors.Last but certainly not least, we are very grateful to Shanella for interviewing us on her wonderful blog!Buy Girl vs. Ghost (Misdirected Magic, Book 1) : Isabel Lindley doesn't believe in magic, but her best friend, Tripp, is obsessed with witchcraft. Strictly as a favor, Isabel agrees to help with a spell and is shocked when the ghost of a teenage boy splat-lands in her bedroom. Her friend is thrilled—even though only Isabel can see or hear the ghost—but Isabel is horrified. She's the most ordinary sixteen-year-old girl on the planet. What is she supposed to do with a ghost who doesn't know his own name, how he died, or why the heck he's tied to Isabel with a psychic chain? Her only hope to take back her life is to help him solve the mystery of his demise so he can go to the Light. Or wherever. She's not particular, as long as the ghost is gone. Sample Chapter 1 of this book! (pdf)
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