Welcome to the Spring 2014 YA Scavenger Hunt
Welcome to YA Scavenger Hunt! This tri-annual event was first organized by author Colleen Houck as a way to give readers a chance to gain access to exclusive bonus material from their favorite authors…and a chance to win some awesome prizes! At this hunt, you not only get access to exclusive content from each author, you also get a clue for the hunt. Add up the clues, and you can enter for our prize–one lucky winner will receive one signed book from each author on the hunt in my team! But play fast: this contest (and all the exclusive bonus material) will only be online for 72 hours!
Go to the YA Scavenger Hunt page to find out all about the hunt. There are TWO contests going on simultaneously, and you can enter one or all! I am a part of the BLUE TEAM–but there is also a red team if you want a chance for a chance to win a whole different set of signed books!
If you’d like to find out more about the hunt, see links to all the authors participating, and see the full list of prizes up for grabs, go to the YA Scavenger Hunt homepage.
SCAVENGER HUNT PUZZLE
Directions: Below, you’ll notice that I’ve listed my favorite number. Collect the favorite numbers of all the authors on the blue team, and then add them up (don’t worry, you can use a calculator!).
Entry Form: Once you’ve added up all the numbers, make sure you fill out the form here to officially qualify for the grand prize. Only entries that have the correct number will qualify.
Rules: Open internationally, anyone below the age of 18 should have a parent or guardian’s permission to enter. To be eligible for the grand prize, you must submit the completed entry form by Sunday, April 6th at noon Pacific Time. Entries sent without the correct number or without contact information will not be considered.
Today, I am so excited to be hosting author P.J. Hoover for the YA Scavenger Hunt!
BIO:
P. J. Hoover first fell in love with Greek mythology in sixth grade thanks to the book Mythology by Edith Hamilton. After a fifteen year bout as an electrical engineer designing computer chips for a living, P. J. decided to take her own stab at mythology and started writing books for kids and teens. When not writing, P. J. spends time with her husband and two kids and enjoys practicing kung fu, solving Rubik’s cubes, and watching Star Trek. Her first novel for teens, Solstice (Tor Teen, June 2013), takes place in a global warming future and explores the parallel world of mythology beside our own. Her middle grade novel, Tut (Tor Children’s, 2014), tells the story of a young immortal King Tut, who’s been stuck in middle school for over 3,000 years and must defeat an ancient enemy with the help of a dorky kid from school, a mysterious Egyptian princess, and a one-eyed cat. P. J. is also a member of THE TEXAS SWEETHEARTS & SCOUNDRELS. For more information about P. J. (Tricia) Hoover, please visit her website www.pjhoover.com.
Find out more about P.J. on her website or buy the book here.
Book Description:
Piper’s world is dying. Each day brings hotter temperatures and heat bubbles that threaten to destroy the earth. Amid this global heating crisis, Piper lives under the oppressive rule of her mother, who suffocates her even more than the weather does. Everything changes on her eighteenth birthday, when her mother is called away on a mysterious errand and Piper seizes her first opportunity for freedom.
Piper discovers a universe she never knew existed—a sphere of gods and monsters—and realizes that her world is not the only one in crisis. While gods battle for control of the Underworld, Piper’s life spirals out of control as she struggles to find the answer to the secret that has been kept from her since birth.
EXCLUSIVE CONTENT
For her exclusive content, P.J. shared her top four dystopian inspirations for Solstice.
My Top Four Dystopian Inspirations for Solstice:
1) Summer 2011 in Austin
The summer of 2011 in Austin was like no other. It didn’t rain for the entire summer and was over one hundred degrees most of the days. It got to the point where you had to just accept the heat and let it bake into your body to not go crazy. This is how Piper is with the heat. She loves it and lets it become a part of her. And this is the image I wanted to get across in Solstice.
[image error] So hot! So dry!
2) A Hatred for Sunscreen
If you’re like me, dread fills you when it’s time to head to the pool with your kids because you know you have to slather them all up with sunscreen lest they get burned to a crisp. It’s hard to get off your hands and overall a pain in the butt. Enter Sunscreen tablets. I have a fantasy where all you have to do is take a (safe and organic) sunscreen tablet and you will not get burned by the sun. Maybe it even tastes like chocolate or peppermint or something equally delicious
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So messy! So many choices!
3) Food Love
I admit that I love certain foods. Like barbeque. And chocolate. And red wine. And fruit. My love for these foods totally carries over to my main character, Piper. And as I wrote Solstice, I went through horrible scenarios. What if I could never have chocolate again? What if wine was so expensive that only the very rich could afford it? What if some (or all) of these delicious foods and drinks were nearly impossible to get? How much more would I appreciate them then? That is the world of global warming and Solstice.
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My favorites! Esther Price in Dayton, Ohio!
4) Catholic Mass
Piper attends a funeral, and it happens to be at a Catholic church. I’ve been Catholic my entire life, and though yes, there is a ton of standing and sitting and kneeling, I lose myself in the tradition of the ceremony. The rituals lull me into a place of comfort, and this is the mood I wanted to get across for the funeral Piper attends. In addition, Piper lights a candle in church much like I often do. And she makes a special intention.
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What would your special intention be?
Okay, so there you have it. Four dystopian story inspirations for Solstice. Thank you for reading!
Now don’t forget to enter the contest for a chance to win a ton of signed books and more! To enter, you need to know that my favorite number is 11. Add up all the favorite numbers of the authors on the blue team and you’ll have all the secret code to enter for the grand prize!
CONTINUE THE HUNT
To keep going on your quest for the hunt, you need to check out the next author on the hunt, the sweet and fabulous Sara B. Larson!
EXTRA GIVEAWAY
I’m doing an extra giveaway and you can enter to win a signed hardcover of my debut sci-fi novel BURN OUT and a signed bookmark!
Enter the Rafflecopter below and earn an extra entry by leaving a comment below and tell me if you had to choose, would you choose extreme cold or extreme heat:
