First Class Post (30)

First Class Post - because this post is first class!

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Weekly Gossip - Updated!

Here is your bookish news from the past week!

A fair amount of news from RHCB - first up, cover reveals! The Noughts and Crosses series by Malorie Blackman has been repackaged! Check out the new covers:




Pretty awesome, huh? I think they're amazing covers! Click on the covers to be taken to their Goodreads page.

Continue reading Weekly Gossip - Updated!

Weekly Gossip

Here is your bookish news from the past week.

First, a cover reveal!

Simon and Schuster Children's Books have released the cover for Infinite Sky by C.J. Flood.


What do we think? I think it's gorgeous! Intriguing!

Continue reading Weekly Gossip

Weekly Gossip

Here is your news from the past week!

First up, the cover reveals.

Rachel Vincent has released the US cover for Oath Bound, the third and final book in the Unbound Series.


I think it's beautiful! I currently much prefer the US covers than the UK, this cover in particular. What do you think?

Continue reading Weekly Gossip

Weekly Gossip

Here is your news from the past week!

First up, the trailers.

Velvet by Mary Hooper:



Stalk Mary on Twitter, Facebook and her website.

Continue reading Weekly Gossip

Weekly Gossip

Here is your news from the past week.

For this year's World Book Day (1st March), there will be a World Book Day app which will be available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch coming soon to the iTunes Store for free! The following comes from the World Book Day site...

Continue reading Weekly Gossip

News: Crow's Revenge by Marcus Alexander

On 2nd February, Puffin will publish Crow's Revenge by Marcus Alexander, the first in the Keeper of the Realm's series, and I have some great things to share with you all!

Keeper of the Realms: Crow's Revenge by Marcus Alexander (released 2nd February 2012) - 'I've just had a flesh-eating giant tearing around my house and now I'm in this strange land I don't know anything about!'

Charlie Keeper has been forced from her home by a bloodthirsty and terrifying stranger.

But in escaping she discovers her house holds the gateway to the Realm of Bellania - a place of myth, magic . . . and an evil Lord with a very bad attitude.

Now its fate rests squarely upon Charlie's shoulders. But before she can untangle the mystery that will save Bellania, she needs the answer to a life-changing secret her guardian, the dastardly Mr Crow, has been keeping from her . . . Just who is Charlie Keeper? from Amazon UK

Continue reading News: Crow's Revenge by Marcus Alexander

News: Fracture by Megan Miranda Extract and Trailer

Some cool news from Bloomsbury!

Eleven minutes might as well be eternity underwater. It only takes three minutes without air for loss of consciousness. Permanent brain damage begins at four minutes. And then, when the oxygen runs out, full cardiac arrest occurs. Death is possible at five minutes. Probable at seven. Definite at ten. Delaney Maxwell was underwater for eleven minutes. And she’s alive.

Intrigued? Then make sure you get your hands on a copy of Fracture by Megan Miranda, published 5th January 2012. If you can’t wait until then you can read an extract and take a look at the trailer:




Find out more about Megan on her website and follow her on Twitter/

There will be exciting competitions and news on the Facebook page throughout January. Make sure you ‘like’ it to keep up-to-date.

Continue reading News: Fracture by Megan Miranda Extract and Trailer

Bookish News!

This week's bookish news:

Cover reveals.

The US cover for Die For Me by Amy Plum has been changed to an edited version of the UK cover. Read Amy's thoughts here.



In the US, Nightshade by Andrea Cremer has had a cover change for the paperback release. Because of this, the hardback of Wolfsbane has had a cover change to match it. Read Andrea's thoughts here. (Sorry about image size, can't make any bigger.)





And the UK cover for Wolfsbane:



Finally, the cover for Crossed, the sequel to Matched by Ally Condie has also been released. Read Ally's thoughts here.



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Vicki of Heaven, Hell and Purgatory is organising a Northern UK Book Blogger Meet-Up. Anyone in the UK is welcome, but as most Northerners have trouble making it down to London, they're organising one up north. Check out the post and let Vicki know if you're interested!

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The wonderful Michelle of Fluttering Butterflies is bringing back her blog feature, Awesome Women. Michelle says, "On my blog previously, I'd always tried to maintain a regular feature highlighting amazing and inspiring women but after several (fascinating!) guest posts, the feature kind of fizzled out. I'm really going to do my best to keep it going this time, with Saturdays being dedicated to profiles of individual women, fictional characters and to mix things up, some interviews with some incredible bloggers/authors."

Her first post is about favourite authors from her childhood, and the second is an interview with the lovely Vivienne from Serendipity. Check them out! There shall be an interview with me at some point soon, too!


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Richelle Mead had adult urban fantasy author of the Jane True series, Nicole Peeler guest post on her blog to discuss how young is too young when it comes to reading books not considered YA. Really interesting post!

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Alyxandra Harvey will be coming over to the UK in May to promote her forthcoming novel, Haunting Violet. You can find out more details on the facebook page.

Here's a note from Alyxandra about the book, and after that, a video of Alyxandra talking about the novel at her own haunted house in Canada.

Dear Reader

I love historical fantasy because I can lose myself in a world where Mr. Darcy might be just around the corner . . . or the ghost of a murdered girl out for revenge. It combines corsets and cravats with paranormal mysteries of every kind.
Haunting Violet takes place in Victorian England, during the 1870's, which was the pinnacle of the interest in mediums and séances. Talking to ghosts was all the rage in private parlours and public halls. The details of clothes and food and the popularity of séances are as accurate as I could make them to create a realistic backdrop for ghosts and spirit possession. But in the end people are people; we still just want to be happy. And 1870 or 2010, I love a girl who can kick butt . . . especially when wearing a corset. I hope you'll enjoy meeting Violet as she struggles to come to terms with her new gift for communicating with the dead . . . and as she chooses between a traditional safe life and an Irish pickpocket with a wicked grin.

Alyxandra Harvey





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Orion announce new YA imprint, Indigo:

The Orion Publishing Group is delighted to share the exciting news of the launch of INDIGO, the new imprint that will publish a wide variety of genres for teens and young adults by established authors and rising stars.

Launching in September 2011 INDIGO will publish four titles per month.

INDIGO will publish fiction for older teen readers focussing on the strengths of the publishing that currently sit on the popular and successful Gollancz and Orion Children's Books imprints.

A stellar list of authors will launch the new venture, becoming our first INDIGO authors: Mia James, Cinda Williams Chima, Harlan Coben, Kate Harrison, Holly Black, Marcus Sedgwick, Sara Grant, Sally Gardner, Chris Wooding, Anna Kendall, Cliff McNish, Sarah Silverwood, Alan Gibbons, James Dawson, Chloe Neill and Annabel Pitcher.

Read the press release for more info.


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Books to check out.

Jenna and Jonah's Fauxmance by Emily Frankland and Brendan Halpin (released 7th March 2011) - Teen TV celebrities Jenna and Jonah (real names, Charlie Tracker and Fielding Withers) make more money in a month than most people do in a lifetime. They can't stand to be in the same room as each other, but to boost the TV ratings their agents make them a 'real life' couple. Then the deception is uncovered by the paparazzi, and Charlie and Fielding have to disappear to weather the media storm. It's not until they're far off the grid of the Hollywood circuit that they realise there's more to each of them than shiny hair and a winning smile. From Amazon UK

You can read an extract of the first chapter here. Find out more about Brendan Halpin on his website, Facebook page, and on Twitter @bhalpin, and find out more about Emily Franklin on her website.


The Fall by Anthony McGowan (released 1st Mat) - Mog and his mates are bored. Their school’s a dump – the type of place kids get expelled to. Their lives seem pointless – they spend their time at school messing around or going out thieving. The most exciting thing to do is to jump over the beck: the polluted stream at the back of the school. And it’s there that two separate events occur which will change Mog’s life forever… From the press release.

This is Anthony McGowan's first book for Barrington Stoke, a publisher for dyslexic and reluctant readers.

Continue reading Bookish News!

Previous RHCB Extract Widgets

To clear up my sidebars, but to make sure you can still access the extracts if you wish, I'm putting them all here from now on.

Continue reading Previous RHCB Extract Widgets

News: Releases, First Chapters, Trailers, Giveaways, Book Awards, and Blogs!

I've been ill over the past week, and various bits of news have stacked up, so here they all are for you.

Tahlia Newland has made the first chapter of her YA fantasy novel, Lethal Inheritance, on her blog.

Blurb:

If last night was real then Ariel should be dead, but her mother has disappeared, there are bruise marks on her neck and that hideous beast in the photo looks frighteningly familiar.

When demons kidnap her mother, Ariel is catapulted into a mysterious realm in a hidden layer of reality. Stuck on a rescue mission she doesn’t want, she must negotiate an intriguing and unpredictable world where demons who feed on fear are hunting her, and they’re aiming to kill.

She needs help fast, but can she trust the quirky old guide who says he can teach her how to fine tune her mind into a powerful weapon? And what should she do about Nick, whose power is more than he or she can handle? From Tahlia's Blog.

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Kelly Oram, author of Being Jamie Baker will be giving away a signed book each week in the month of November. You can find out all the details here.

To keep her secret safe Jamie socially exiles herself, earning the title of Rocklin High’s resident ice queen. But during a super-charged encounter with star quarterback Ryan Miller she literally kisses anonymity goodbye. Now the annoyingly irresistible Ryan will stop at nothing to melt the heart of the ice queen and find out what makes her so special.

Unfortunately, Ryan is not the only person on to her secret. Will Jamie learn to contain her unstable powers before being discovered by the media, or turned into a government lab rat?

More importantly, can she throw Ryan Miller off her trail before falling in love with him? From Kelly Oram's blog.

Check out the trailer below, and read the first chapter here.




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A fair number of YA books have been nominated for the Coventry Inspiration Book Award. I have heard from a number of people, about three I think, asking me to vote and to ask other people to vote. I can't exactly do that, so I'm doing a compromise. The compromise being, I'll tell you that the vote is public and you need to vote (that's one done), and give you the list of categories you can vote in:

Never Too Young
What's The Story ?
Our Special Favourites
Raring 2 Read
Read It Or Else!
Simply The Book
Scene It, Read It
Fancy A Quickie
Word of Mouth
Murder & Mayhem
As Time Goes By
Alternative Realities
Not all are YA novels, but there are the categories, so I've not left anyone out.

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Sarah Beth Durst's latest novel, Enchanted Ivy, is now out!

A story about getting into college. You know, taking the campus tour, talking to the gargoyles, flirting with the were-tigers, riding the dragons...

While visiting the campus of Princeton University, 16-year-old Lily discovers a secret gate to a magical realm and must race against time to save herself, her world, and any hope she has of college admission. From Sarah Beth Durst's website

You can read the first chapter here.

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And a message from Angela Morrison:

Hey friends,

As a thank you to all of you who've stood by me when Penguin rejected UNBROKEN CONNECTION (Taken by Storm Book #2) and encouraged me to release it independently, I decided to blog CAYMAN SUMMER (Book #3) as I write it.

I wouldn't even be writing this book without your loyalty and support. I want you with me every step of the journey.

I plan to post my messy rough drafts, revised scenes, half-baked poems and polished chapters. You will be able to see my creative process from start to finish.

I launched the blog FRIDAY, October 15th! Here's the link: http://caymansummer.blogspot.com/ Please stop in and take a look, become a follower, leave lots and lots of comments. And don't forget to feed the fish!

The blog is set up so the archive goes from the cover (posted in September), to the next post and the next. I think it will make more sense and kind of simulate a book if you start with the cover post and work forward.

If you haven't read UNBROKEN CONNECTION yet, don't worry. The blog isn't going anywhere. UNBROKEN CONNECTION is still just $2.99 via The Kindle Store and you can download free software for your computer or iTouch or phone from Amazon.

So far the launch has gone great. I'd love to hear what you all think. I'm new to blogging--and you are all pros! I've still got to add pages for each book and links to my website. Any other tips?

Thanks, too, for continuing to be there for me. I wouldn't be doing this without you.

Angela

I've read the first few drafts myself, and they're brilliant! I highly recommend you check it out.

Continue reading News: Releases, First Chapters, Trailers, Giveaways, Book Awards, and Blogs!