Hot Key buy E Lockhart's We Were Liars

From Book Trade, news of a UK publishing deal for E Lockhart's We Were Liars:

Emma Matthewson, Editor-at-Large at Hot Key Books, has acquired UK and Ireland rights in National Book Award finalist and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart's YA novel WE WERE LIARS.

The book is already hotly anticipated in the industry as one of the top titles for 2014, and Hot Key Books will publish on 15 May, within days of Delacorte USA. They aim to make this one of the most talked about global launches of the year.

Described as: 'Thrilling, beautiful, and blisteringly smart ... utterly unforgettable' by John Green, WE WERE LIARS is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel that follows the tragic destruction of a wealthy, privileged family in New England.

A major sales and marketing campaign will support publication, including mailing out proof copies which are being produced within a week from the book's acquisition, as well as a big trade buzz-building campaign, including a dedicated helpline that booksellers can call to talk about the ending. The consumer launch will include a 'live read' on Twitter using the hashtag #wewereliars where readers will be asked to tweet as they read, plus blogger and vlogger outreach, promoting the global tumblr site wewereliars.tumblr.com and 'takeovers' on key consumer websites.

Sarah Odedina, Managing Director, says: 'Everyone at Hot Key Books is so excited and energised by having this breathtaking book on the list. It is a one-sitting heart-pounding read. It is quite simply unique and we know we are going to have a spectacular time bringing it to the attention of readers.'

Publishing Deal - Abbie Rushton

From today's The Bookseller, Abbie Rushton's debut, Unspeakable has been bought by Little, Brown and will appear under the Atom imprint:

Unspeakable tells the story of a the relationship between Megan, who hasn’t spoken for a year, and Jasmine, a new girl at Megan’s school.

Atom said it is committed to publishing important YA novels that deal with a range of contemporary and challenging issues, and Unspeakable tackles the themes of selective mutism and same-sex teen relationships.

“When I started to read Unspeakable I was gripped; by the time I had finished I was certain I'd found a fantastic new voice for UK YA,” said Agar [commissioning editor at Atom]. “The writing draws you in immediately and difficult topics are handled with ease. Unspeakable is a thriller, certainly, but it's the assured handling of first love and complicated friendships in this debut that will stay with readers long after they've turned the last page.”

Free Ebooks from Sainsbury's (J Wilson & J Patterson)

It was announced in The Bookseller yesterday that Sainsbury's are giving away some ebooks by Jacqueline Wilson and James Patterson when you buy own-brand cereal:

E-books by Sainsbury’s has teamed up with Penguin Random House to give away “millions” of free copies of Jacqueline Wilson and James Patterson e-books, in a promotion planned to last two years.

The supermarket's e-book arm is offering children the opportunity to download a free copy of Wilson’s Tracy Beaker and Hetty Feather (Random House Children's Books) and Patterson’s Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life and I Funny (Arrow) when they buy any packet of Sainsbury’s own-brand cereal from today (29th January).

Customers can enter the unique voucher code, or scan the QR code displayed on the cereal packet at www.sainsburysebooks.co.uk to download the book to a tablet or smartphone.

Shout Magazine - Free Book

The current issue (518) of Shout magazine comes with a free copy of Ask Amy Green: Love And Other Drama-Ramas by Sarah Webb:

Free Kindle book: My Soul to Take

I've only just noticed that Rachel Vincent's My Soul to Take is currently free on UK Kindle.

This is the first in the Soul Screamers series and I reviewed it when it was released in the UK in 2011.

Free ebook (short story) from Veronica Roth

Veronica Roth's Free Four, a short story set in the Divergent world is currently free as an ebook at Kobo and Sainsburys (ie epub). It's 49p at amazon.co.uk at the moment.

Fans of the Divergent series by No. 1 New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth will be thrilled by the knife-throwing scene from Divergent, now told from Four’s perspective. This brief story explores the world of the Divergent series through the eyes of the mysterious but charismatic Tobias Eaton, revealing previously unknown facets of his personality, backstory and relationships.

Publishing Deal - Holly Smale

A new publishing deal was announced yesterday for Holly Smale:

Roald Dahl Funny Prize finalist Holly Smale, the author of the biggest children's debut of 2013, GEEK GIRL, has signed a new three-book world rights deal with HarperCollins. Negotiated by Elizabeth Clifford, Commissioning Editor at HarperCollins Children's Books,  this new deal sees Holly's publishing extending to six titles.

The GEEK GIRL series champions loveable self confessed geek Harriet Manners as she struggles to navigate the glamorous yet ridiculous world of fashion. 

The best in the business at launching home-grown talent, HarperCollins Children's Books has seen GEEK GIRL off to a flying start. This trendsetting debut coined a new sub-genre 'clean teen' in the children's market. 

First published in March, GEEK GIRL is 2013's highest-selling UK debut in the children's and teen market. The hotly anticipated sequel , MODEL MISFIT, followed in October and series sales in the UK total over 100,000 copies.

Elizabeth Clifford said, "Holly has conquered the market with her fresh funny 'clean teen' series and looks set to dominate the charts for many years to come. I'm absolutely thrilled to sign up more GEEK GIRL books with the brilliant Holly Smale."  

Read the whole article at Book 2 Book.

Review: Lawless by Jeffrey Salane

Lawless by Jeffrey Salane (May 2013, Piccadilly Press, ISBN: 1848123213)

Twelve-year-old M Freeman has been home-schooled up until now but is then sent on an interview to the secretive Lawless school. She passes the interview and is immediately thrown into a new life. She barely has time to say goodbye to her mum (her father having died in a plane accident) and home before being whisked away in a limousine with her “guardian”, a teenager called Zara.

The journey to the Lawless School is very eventful and introduces M to the concept of the Fulbrights – a group opposed to Lawless and who attack the pupils at every opportunity.

After a headlining-grabbing few days, M settles down to learn along with her small group of friends. But Lawless is not just a private school, it's a private school for offspring of criminals who want to keep the family business going. This is all news to M but she soon feels at home and wants to learn about her mysterious father who is well known at Lawless.

Thus begins a twisty adventure tale with M not knowing whom she can trust, including Zara and one of the teachers - Miss Watts - who had been close to M's father. The school setting gets left behind as M runs her first heist - in Europe – and it's action all the way, the ending leaving you wanting more.

Lawless is billed as book one so I hope there's a sequel as there are many loose ends*. M is a resourceful, clever main character – perhaps too clever for her years – and the villains a bit megalomaniacal, but this was a fun read and with no bad language or even romance this is a suitable read for younger teens and below.

*breaking news - Justice is out in April 2014.

Kobo Offer on Catching Fire

Kobo has a deal on Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins at the moment.

Currently £2.84 but with the code CATCHINGFIRE75 it's just 71p.

This offer ends on 27 November.

Review: A Double Helping of the Origami Yoda series by Tom Angleberger

The Secret of the Fortune Wookie by Tom Angleberger (Sep. 2012, Amulet Books, ISBN: 1419705172) &
The Surprise Attack of Jabba the Puppett by Tom Angleberger (Sep. 2013, Amulet Books, ISBN: 1419710451)

Review: After finishing a very downbeat Scandinavian crime novel I decided I needed something light and funny to read and fortunately I had The Secret of the Fortune Wookie and The Surprise Attack of Jabba the Puppett, books three and four in the Origami Yoda series in my library book tbr.

As with the previous two, The Strange Case of Origami Yoda and Darth Paper Strikes Back they take the form of case files ie lots of short chapters from different pupils at McQuarrie Middle School collated by Tommy and annotated/doodled on by Harvey and Kellen.

With the absence of Dwight and his Origami Yoda it's Sara's turn to dispense Jedi wisdom via her Fortune Wookie and the case file is, is the Wookie as good as Yoda? Also what is happening with Dwight? He's at a new school and has had a personality transplant to a “normal” person but is he happy? And will he come back to McQuarrie after he's served his suspension?

In Jabba, rather than one finger puppet, many required are they, as the gang, form the origami rebel alliance to bring down the evil empire of FunTime, a new and tedious learning programme brought in to improve their test scores which has replaced all their non-academic modules such as drama and robot making. Each of the contributors to the case file has their own origami figure puppet – Tommy has Foldy-Wan Kenobi – and all must recruit more of their fellow pupils to the cause.

I really enjoyed these two books, they make me smile. I now feel I'm getting to know the individuals – Sara, Tommy, Kellen, Harvey, Dwight and more who contribute to the case files. I love the Star Wars theme and there are lots of clever doodles in the margin. The gang have to face a serious problem in Jabba and it's not resolved yet; I'll have to wait until next year's Princess Labelmaker to the Rescue to find out if they succeed.

Also available is Art2-D2's Guide to Folding and Doodling which shows you how to make many of the origami finger puppets and doodles and much more. It also comes with some coloured sheets of paper in it.

Read Unwind online at Pulseit (1 wk only)

Neal Shusterman's Unwind is this week's online read at Pulseit. You have to register and the book can be read in full until 20 October.

Blurb:
In a society where unwanted teens are salvaged for their body parts, three runaways fight the system that would "unwind" them

Connor's parents want to be rid of him because he's a troublemaker. Risa has no parents and is being unwound to cut orphanage costs. Lev's unwinding has been planned since his birth, as part of his family's strict religion. Brought together by chance, and kept together by desperation, these three unlikely companions make a harrowing cross-country journey, knowing their lives hang in the balance. If they can survive until their eighteenth birthday, they can't be harmed -- but when every piece of them, from their hands to their hearts, are wanted by a world gone mad, eighteen seems far, far away.

In Unwind, Boston Globe/Horn Book Award winner Neal Shusterman challenges readers' ideas about life -- not just where life begins, and where it ends, but what it truly means to be alive.

Publishing Deal - Teri Terry

Announced today on Book Trade, two new books for Orchard from Teri Terry, the first, Game of the Few (which sounds fantastic) is out in Autumn 2014.

Orchard Books announce a further two books from multi-award winning author, Teri Terry.

Game of the Few is a futuristic thriller scheduled for publication in Autumn 2014; the second book is untitled.

About Game of the Few: A futuristic thriller about a power-hungry organisation who manage the Game, a virtual world that the majority of people now live half their lives in.

Luna has always been able to exist in the virtual and real worlds at the same time, feeling what is happening in the real world while plugged into the Game. It is a secret she is warned to keep, so she hides her ability by being a Refuser: excluded by choice from the virtual spheres others inhabit. But when she is singled out for testing, she can't hide any longer. The safest thing to do would be to fail, to go back to a dead-end life, no future. But Luna is starting to hope for something better, and hope is a dangerous thing...

Read When You Were Mine online at Pulseit (1 wk only)

Rebecca Serle's When You Were Mine is this week's online read at Pulseit. You have to register and the book can be read in full until 14 October.

Blurb:
An intensely romantic, modern recounting of the greatest love story ever told—narrated by the girl Romeo was supposed to love.

Rosaline knows that she and Rob are destined to be together. Rose has been waiting for years for Rob to kiss her—and when he finally does, it’s perfect. But then Juliet moves back to town. Juliet, who used to be Rose’s best friend. Juliet, who now inexplicably hates her. Juliet, who is gorgeous, vindictive, and a little bit crazy...and who has set her sights on Rob. He doesn’t stand a chance.

Rose is devastated over losing Rob to Juliet. And when rumors start swirling about Juliet’s instability, her neediness, and her threats of suicide, Rose starts to fear not only for Rob’s heart, but also for his life. Because Shakespeare may have gotten the story wrong, but we all still know how it ends.

Blog Tour: Lucy Christopher's Favourite Crime Novels

I'm very pleased to welcome Lucy Christopher to Teenage Fiction for All Ages and as part of the blog tour to celebrate the release of The Killing Woods, Lucy will be sharing her five favourite crime novels.

Here's a bit about The Killing Woods:

Emily's dad is accused of murdering a teenage girl in the woods behind her house, the place she played in as a child. She's sure he's innocent, but what did happen? Determined to find out - and afraid of what she might discover - Emily seeks out the boyfriend of the murdered girl. He also knows these woods. Maybe they could help each other. But Damon Hillary has his own secrets about the dangerous games that are being played in the dark.







Lucy Christopher's Five Favourite Crime Novels


The Famous Five Series, Enid Blyton

Perhaps these novels aren’t strictly a crime series, but I grew up with the Famous Five and it’s hard not to imagine that my early reading of these stories of young people tackling crime and dark deeds hasn’t influenced me at least a little bit. Blyton’s trademark series was published between 1942 and 1961 so they are a little dated now, but at the heart of each one is a crime to be solved. Reading these novels, I grew up with dreams of going camping and foiling smugglers and the like. They aren’t dark or too serious or grizzly, but they’re full of heart and adventure.




Gone Girl, Gillian Flynn

There’s not much to say about this book that someone else hasn’t already said. It’s a sensation. As a Creative Writing lecturer as well as a writer, sometimes I find it hard to appreciate a new book on both the story and craft level, but I felt no such difficulty with this one. It’s interestingly plotted and intricately written. It also had the true marker of a good crime novel – it kept me up reading until the small hours of the morning.




You Against Me, Jenny Downham

Like The Killing Woods, You Against Me also contains a dual narration between a boy and a girl. Both of these characters are trying to uncover the truth of the most serious event of their lives up to now – the sexual abuse of a girl they both know. Part of the reason I like this book so much, aside from the fact that it’s so well written, is that Downham’s approach to the subject matter is bold and fresh and utterly convincing. This is emotional, skilful writing. UK YA at its best.






I Am the Cheese, Robert Cormier

Entering the YA library somewhere in between The Famous Five and Gone Girl, Cormier’s 1977 novel has been a favourite of mine since I first read it. This book is not afraid to break rules – you only have to look at its deeply layered, twist-filled plot to see this. The first person narration never wavers as Adam gradually begins to uncover the mystery of who he really is and what happened to his parents.




The Hound of the Baskervilles, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Is a detective story the same as a crime story? You can’t have a detective without a crime, and you can’t think of detectives for too long without coming back to the prototype for the modern detective. Holmes is an interesting and strong protagonist, focused to the point of obsession, often alienating those around him: an early anti-hero. The Hound of the Baskervilles is the quintessential Sherlock Holmes’ story - full of mystery, suspense and a brilliantly moody setting.





Many thanks to Lucy Christopher for stopping by and thanks to Riot Communications and Chicken House for arranging it.

Catch-up with the rest of the Tour here.

Review: Burn for Burn by Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian

Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian (February 2013, Simon & Schuster Childrens Books, ISBN: 1471116883)

Burn for Burn is the first book in a new trilogy from Jenny Han co-writing with Siobhan Vivian set on Jar Island. The chapters alternate between three girls: Lillia, rich who is BFF to Rennie; Kat, not so rich and ostracised by lies told by Rennie and Mary who returns to the island after a few years absence. All three girls have been hurt, Lillia by a boy, Kat by Rennie and Mary by the star quarterback. When they are accidentally thrown together an idea sparks and Kat decides to act on it. Lilia and Mary don't need much persuading and they meet in secret to plan the ultimate revenge on their three enemies...

As with the Summer I Turned Pretty

trilogy (by Jenny Han) I absolutely flew through Burn for Burn. I could appreciate that the girls wanted revenge but they do get more than they bargained for resulting in an ending which leaves the reader desperate to get Fire for Fire. I hoped that one assumption they'd made would turn out to be false and, really, how far should the girls go to right a wrong? Initially I found the chapters from Mary's point of view the least interesting of the three (and her experiences the most painful to read) but it looks like she's more than she seems...

The sequel Fire for Fire has recently been released in the UK.

NB. As the characters are around eighteen, there is some adult content.

[Burn for Burn can be read online at Pulseit until 6 October 2013.]

Read Burn for Burn online at Pulseit (1 wk only)

Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian's Burn for Burn is this week's online read at Pulseit. You have to register and the book can be read in full until 6 October.

[My review of Burn for Burn is here and I thankfully have the sequel to hand.]

Blurb:
Payback is paradise in this start to a trilogy from New York Times bestselling author Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian.

Postcard-perfect Jar Island is home to charming tourist shops, pristine beaches, amazing oceanfront homes—and three girls secretly plotting revenge.

KAT is sick and tired of being bullied by her former best friend.

LILLIA has always looked out for her little sister, so when she discovers that one of her guy friends has been secretly hooking up with her, she’s going to put a stop to it.

MARY is perpetually haunted by a traumatic event from years past, and the boy who’s responsible has yet to get what’s coming to him.

None of the girls can act on their revenge fantasies alone without being suspected. But together…anything is possible.

With an alliance in place, there will be no more “I wish I’d said…” or “If I could go back and do things differently...” These girls will show Jar Island that revenge is a dish best enjoyed together.

Read Chantress online at Pulseit (1 wk only)

Amy Butler Greenfield's Chantress is this week's online read at Pulseit. You have to register and the book can be read in full until 29 September.

Blurb:
Lucy’s Chantress magic will make her the most powerful—and most hunted—girl in England.

“Sing, and the darkness will find you.” This warning has haunted fifteen-year-old Lucy ever since she was eight and shipwrecked on a lonely island. Lucy’s guardian, Norrie, has lots of rules, but the most important is that Lucy must never sing. Not ever. Now it is 1667, Lucy is fifteen, and on All Hallows’ Eve, Lucy hears a tantalizing melody on the wind. She can’t help but sing—and she is swept into darkness.

When she awakes in England, Lucy hears powerful men discussing Chantresses—women who can sing magic into the world. They are hunting her, but she escapes and finds sanctuary with the Invisible College, an organization plotting to overthrow the nefarious Lord Protector. The only person powerful enough to bring about his downfall is a Chantress. And Lucy is the last one in England.

Lucy struggles to master the song-spells and harness her power, but the Lord Protector is moving quickly. And her feelings for Nat, an Invisible College apprentice and scientist who deeply distrusts her magic, only add to her confusion…

Time is running out, and the fate of England hangs in the balance in this entrancing novel that is atmospheric and lyrical, dangerous and romantic.

Read Just Like Fate online at Pulseit (1 wk only)

Cat Patrick & Suzanne Young's Just Like Fate is this week's online read at Pulseit. You have to register and the book can be read in full until 22 September.

Blurb:
One decision changes everything in this compelling novel that explores split realities of romance and family loyalties.

Caroline is at a crossroads.

Her grandmother is sick, maybe dying. Like the rest of her family, Caroline’s been at Gram’s bedside since the stroke. With the pressure building, all Caroline wants to do is escape—both her family and the reality of Gram’s failing health. So when Caroline’s best friend offers to take her to a party one fateful Friday night, she must choose: Stay by Gram’s side for what might be her final hours, or go to the party and live her life.

The consequences of this one decision will split Caroline’s fate into two separate paths—and she is about to live them both. And though there are two distinct ways for her fate to unfold, there is only one happy ending…

Review: Dead Jealous by Sharon Jones

Dead Jealous by Sharon Jones (July 2013, Orchard Books, ISBN: 1408327546)

Dead Jealous is the first book in the Poppy Sinclair thriller series and is set in the Lake District. Poppy is sixteen and has come with her mum and step-dad Jonathan to an alternative/new-age festival on the shores of Scariswater where her mum and Jonathan are to have a handfasting ceremony. They are regular attendees to the annual festival but of late Poppy doesn't believe in the pagan ways.

Poppy is in love with her best-friend Michael but he has a girlfriend and to protect herself, Poppy has been turning away from him. At the festival she meets the gorgeous, slightly older, Tariq – can he take her mind off Michael?

On the first night Poppy seeking seclusion climbs a hill and meets Beth. Beth is looking for a girl she's in love with – Maya – who hasn't been seen since last year's event. Though Poppy and Beth only meet briefly, they connect and so when Poppy discovers Beth's dead body in the lake she knows it was murder. The police think it's an accident and despite Poppy's assertion that it wasn't, do very little. So it's up to Poppy, with occasional help from Michael, to get to the bottom of things.

One of my favourite adult crime series is Martin Edwards's Lake District mysteries so I was very much looking forward to Dead Jealous and I wasn't disappointed. Good use is made of the setting – both the countryside with its erratic mobile phone signal reception, and the new age festival including tarot reading and sweat tents. Poppy is haunted by Beth and Maya – possibly in more than just a manner of speaking as it's left to the reader to choose whether there's something supernatural going on or whether it's just that Poppy is under a lot of strain. As Poppy works through the mysteries she also resolves some personal issues. I'm very much looking forward to the sequel, Dead Silent, which is set in another of my favourite places (Cambridge) and is out in February 2014.

NB. As Poppy is sixteen, there are some references to sex, some F-words and there are some drug mentions as well (plus a few dead bodies!).

Publishing Deal - Maggie Stiefvater

Good news for Shiver fans as Scholastic announce Sinner a companion novel from Maggie Stiefvater. Read the whole press release at Booktrade:

Scholastic has bought world rights in a companion book to the Shiver trilogy by Maggie Stiefvater, set to feature Shiver character Cole St Clair.

Sinner will be published simultaneously in the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada on July 1st 2014. The deal was negotiated by Scholastic publisher David Levithan with Laura Rennert from Andrea Brown Literary Agency.

Levithan said: "Legions of fans—myself included—have wanted Maggie to return to the world of Shiver,and now she's found an ingenious, sexy, utterly compelling way to do it."

Scholastic UK group m.d. Catherine Bell said: "Maggie's loyal fans will devour Sinner and new generations of readers have the pleasure of succumbing to the addictive world of The Wolves of Mercy Falls afresh."

Stiefvater said: "For me, finishing the Shiver trilogy was a bittersweet moment—I knew that I wouldn't be returning to Mercy Falls once Sam and Grace's story was over. But Cole and Isabel still lurked in the back of my mind. Both of them were only half-fixed at the end of the trilogy, and I wanted to know if they could be fixed the rest of the way."

Sinner will be published as a £14.99 hardback and simultaneous e-book.