Published!

I have some exciting news to share. I am officially a published writer! But don't get too excited. It's not a novel or anything. I've been writing reviews for the School Library Journal, which is a publication written for librarians to read about different books coming out and make decisions regarding what to purchase for their library.

This is a small step in my writing career, but now, whenever I query agents, I'll be able to list it under my writing credentials, which will be a big plus. I'll be reviewing books every month, and my next review is already written and scheduled to come out in the June publication.

So, without further ado, here's my review for the new YA book The Program by Suzanne Young that just came out a couple of days ago:

Gr 10 Up--Four years ago, teen suicide became an epidemic, affecting one in every three teens. To combat it, a school district in Oregon developed "The Program," where teens are treated for their depression by erasing their memories and secluding them from their peers. As an increasing number of her classmates are taken away for treatment, 17-year-old Sloane Barstow knows better than to show emotion to anyone other than her boyfriend, James, especially since her brother drowned himself two years earlier, leaving her parents constantly on edge. But when her friend commits suicide and James is taken away, Sloane begins to slip into a depression that forces her into The Program, where she is gradually stripped of all memories of James and her past. As she struggles to start over, she finds herself questioning the integrity of The Program and why she is inexplicably drawn to a troublemaker named James. The story is intriguing, and while a little slow at times, teens will find themselves racing to the finish to see what happens to Sloane and James. Young has created strong characters that readers will fall in love with and has developed a captivating world that will not soon be forgotten. Recommend this one to fans of Lauren Oliver's "Delirium" and Veronica Roth's "Divergent" (both HarperCollins, 2011).--"Candyce Pruitt-Goddard, Hartford Public Library, CT" Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

SLJ Review: The After Girls

I recently received my second advanced reader copy to review for the School Library Journal (yay!). My review of The Program will be in the may issue of the School Library Journal, and it will be exciting to see my writing in print. I just finished reading The After Girls, and I have to say, it was challenging to get through, but I will give you more information after the review is published in June. In the meantime, here's a summary of the book:

The After Girls Summary:
Ella, Astrid, and Sydney were planning the perfect summer after high school graduation. But when Astrid commits suicide in a lonely cabin, the other girls' worlds are shattered. How could their best friend have done this--to herself and to them? They knew everything about Astrid. Shouldn't they have seen this coming? Couldn't they have saved her?

As Ella hunts for the truth, and Sydney tries to dull the pain, a chilling message from Astrid leaves them wondering whether their beloved friend is communicating from the after life. The girls embark on a journey to uncover Astrid's dark secrets. The answers to those questions--questions they never dreamed of asking--will change their lives forever.

Endlessly Review

In a time crunch to get to my next book review for SLJ, I just finished reading Endlessly by Kiersten White, which is the third in the Paranormalcy trilogy. I finished the second installment, Supernaturally, a few weeks ago, and started right onto the third one, but for some reason I found it really hard to get through. I was so close to the end of the series though, that I had to plow through. All in all I think it just needed to be majorly edited before being published.

Endlessly Summary:
Evie's paranormal past keeps coming back to haunt her. A new director at the International Paranormal Containment Agency wants to drag her back to headquarters. The Dark Faerie Queen is torturing humans in her poisonous realm. And supernatural creatures keep insisting that Evie is the only one who can save them from a mysterious, perilous fate.

The clock is ticking on the entire paranormal world. And its fate rests solely in Evie's hands.

So much for normal.

Endlessly Review:
The author's voice in this book was still really good, but not quite as excellent as it was in the first two books in the series. I was still interested in finding out how Evie's story ended, but getting there was a bit of a challenge. The book was almost 400 pages, but could have easlily been weeded down to 300 pages without missing out on much.

One thing that also irked me a little about the book was that throughout the first half, paranormals were pushing Evie to open this intergalactic gate for them to go through, and she was stubbornly refusing even though she didn't have the facts. It make sense for her to initally refuse, but after awhile, her refusal didn't make much sense anymore.

All in all, I'm glad I read it because I really wanted to know how Evie's story ended, but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. For anyone who really enjoyed the first two though, I would definitely recommend it.

Ruby Red Review

I finished reading Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier a few months ago, and fell in love with it. The plot is fairly simple, but the characters and story are both so engaging that I had to go to Amazon as soon as I finished it and purchase the sequel.


Ruby Red Summary:
Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era!


Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon--the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust.

Ruby Red Review:
This book was originally translated from German, so I was worried the translation would leave the writing feeling a bit choppy, but the translation was very well done. Gwen is a really great character, and Gideon is a character readers will love to hate in the beginning, but be rooting for Gwen to end up with in the end.

What struck me as so great about this book is that the plot is very simple, but the writing and the characters carry the reader to the end of the book. Now that I've finished the sequel, I'm really looking forward to reading Emerald Green when it comes out in October. The one thing I didn't really care for about the first two books is that between the first two books, only 2-3 weeks pass, which feels odd. So much is packed into those couple of weeks. It also makes the romance feel a little less real, but overall I still thought it was excellent.

I would highly recommend this book to fans of YA time travel novels, or anyone who enjoys a good romance.

Paranormalcy Review

I recently read the first two books in the Paranormalcy series by Kiersten White and loved them. I even managed to get one of my co-workers hooked. Not to mention a few teens who frequent the library.

Paranormalcy Summary:
Evie's always thought of herself as a normal teenager, even though she works for the International Paranormal Containment Agency, her ex-boyfriend is a faerie, she's falling for a shape-shifter, and she's the only person who can see through paranormals' glamours.

But Evie's about to realize that she may very well be at the center of a dark faerie prophecy promising destruction to all paranormal creatures.

So much for normal.

Paranormalcy Review:
Rigth away, even after reading the dust jacket, I knew the author had a really strong voice. If any of you have ever wondered what exactly voice is, it's the author's personality shining through the writing. A voice can be snarky, funny, sarcastic, etc. If any writers have yet to find a great example of strong voice, read this book. It's a great example.

For one thing, the premise of this book is so new and refreshing, especially when you consider that the paranormal genre is mostly vampires, angels, and werewolves these days. But this book introduces many new paranormal creatures, and paints old creatures in a new light.

On top of that, I fell in love with Evie, the main character, and loved the love story that White told. I was hooked until the very end and would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a fun, fresh read.

Beginnings

I've spent the last few months editing the first chapter of Desiderium, and while I still have a bit more work to put into it, I think I may have finally nailed the first paragraph of the book. My husband keeps asking me why I'm spending so much time on the first chapter. The answer: because beginnings are so hard. Not only is it hard to start the story in the right place, but also to gradually give information to the reader at the correct rate, and introduce the right number of characters at the right time. And on top of that, it's the first thing prospective agents will see, so it's important to get it right.

With that being said, sometimes I feel like this lady who seems very frustrated with her laptop. At any rate, I've decided to post the  first paragraph of my book.

Desiderium Opening:

A flickering yellow light draws my gaze to the steel band clinging to my wrist. It’s been weeks since I set off my bracelet, but it was bound to happen again sooner or later. Especially since I can’t seem to stop obsessing over how many things I have to do, and how little time there is to do them. Then before I know it, those thoughts quickly become something more—almost, just almost, wanting more time. The next thing I know, the dopamine in my bloodstream is dangerously close to the legal limit. I really need to be more careful. 

Feel free to give feedback of what you think. I'll be back later this week to give another book review. Back to writing...

School Library Journal Review

I recently received some good news (hopefully). I've been accepted to write reviews for the School Library Journal on a trial basis. I just submitted my first book review, and we'll hopefully be seeing it in the April edition, as long as the writing is up to snuff. If and when the review is published, I'll be sure to post it here, but in the meantime, here's a sneak peak at the book I'm reviewing, which is scheduled to come out in April. Cross your fingers for me that my review makes it into the journal.

 

The Program Summary:
In Sloane’s world, true feelings are forbidden, teen suicide is an epidemic, and the only solution is The Program.

Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane’s parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they’ll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who’s been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone—but so are their memories.

Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He’s promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they made to each other, it’s getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in. And The Program is coming for them.

Pitchapalooza

After spending hours working on a pitch for a Pitchapalooza event, I thought I would share my pitch with you. Summing up my book has been one of the hardest things for me to do, and I have to say, I'm finally happy with what I came up with. Let me know what you guys think.

Desiderium Pitch:

At any given time, there is exactly one Desiderium walking the Earth with the power to turn desires into reality. With the world constantly at the mercy of one person's whims, governments around the world are forced to outlaw desire and execute anyone suspected of having the ability. The only problem: as soon as the Desiderium is killed, the ability is passed onto another, and no one, not even the new Desiderium, is aware of their identity until they desire something so strongly it actually happens.

Preoccupied with covering up her own secrets, seventeen-year-old Rhiley Winters has little trouble suppressing her desires. Usually. And like everyone else, she is more than eager to let the government monitor her desires in exchange for protection. That is, until one morning when she wishes for more time and finds it standing still around her.

Monument 14

I just finished reading Monument 14 per a co-worker's recommendation and I loved it. It's definitely not a book for younger teens, but I would recommend it to anyone 15 and up. If I had to stick it into a certain genre though, I'm not sure what I would choose. It's sort of apocalypic, but not fully.

Monument 14 Summary:
Your mother hollers that you’re going to miss the bus. She can see it coming down the street. You don’t stop and hug her and tell her you love her. You don’t thank her for being a good, kind, patient mother. Of course not—you launch yourself down the stairs and make a run for the corner. Only, if it’s the last time you’ll ever see your mother, you sort of start to wish you’d stopped and did those things. Maybe even missed the bus. But the bus was barreling down our street, so I ran.

Fourteen kids. One superstore. A million things that go wrong. In Emmy Laybourne’s action-packed debut novel, six high school kids (some popular, some not), two eighth graders (one a tech genius), and six little kids trapped together in a chain superstore build a refuge for themselves inside. While outside, a series of escalating disasters, beginning with a monster hailstorm and ending with a chemical weapons spill, seems to be tearing the world—as they know it—apart.

Monument 14 Review:
I really enjoyed this book. The characters were all vastly different, which gave the story a type of variety that I usually don't see in YA books. Not to mention that the main character's voice was intriguing fun. I've been told that I have a dry sense of humor so my opinion might be biased, but I personally loved the protagonist's sarcasm. Although I will say that it took me at least 15 pages to figure out that the main character was a boy. The description doesn't let on, and we didn't hear his name until quite a few pages in (at least not that I saw).

I couldn't put this book down. In the beginning they were trapped in the store and I thought that the story would be sort of stagnant, but then the author threw in a bunch of other variables that made the story fresh and interesting. Personally, I'm not to fond of Dean's decision at the end of the book, but I'm looking forward to the sequel coming out next June. It should definitely be interesting.

Pizza, Love, and Other Stuff that Made Me Famous

A couple of weeks ago I attended a webinar that provides authors with tips on writing query letters, and came with a critique from an agent that I'm excited to hear back about. I'm beginning to feel like I'm almost ready to send Desiderium out to agents again. As always, it's a lot better, but who knows if it's getting close to where it needs to be. Wish me luck!

In other news, I'm working on outlining an idea for a stand-alone novel that I'm really excited about. It's a story I'm itching to tell, and I'm hoping that moving on to another book will bring me more luck with Desiderium. Only time will tell though. Onto the review...

Pizza, Love, and Other Stuff that made me Famous Summary:
Can a spot on a teen reality show really lead to a scholarship at an elite cooking school AND a summer romance?

Sixteen-year-old Sophie Nicolaides was practically raised in the kitchen of her family’s Italian-Greek restaurant, Taverna Ristorante. When her best friend, Alex, tries to convince her to audition for a new reality show, Teen Test Kitchen, Sophie is reluctant. But the prize includes a full scholarship to one of America's finest culinary schools and a summer in Napa, California, not to mention fame.

Once on-set, Sophie immediately finds herself in the thick of the drama—including a secret burn book, cutthroat celebrity judges, and a very cute French chef. Sophie must figure out a way to survive all the heat and still stay true to herself. A terrific YA offering--fresh, fun, and sprinkled with romance.

Pizza, Love, and Other Stuff that made me Famous Review:
First of all, let me start off by saying that the title is indeed a mouthful, but charming no less. At first I was reluctant to pick this book up because it was only 230 pages, which is rather short, but I was sold on it after reading the first couple of pages. This author's voice was incredibly engaging and fun.

I have a couple of protests about the ending, but I have to say that I loved this book and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a fun read.