I'm so excited to be participating in the Bloomsbury Spark Six Month "Sparkiversary" today. Bloomsbury Spark is a one-of-a-kind, global, digital imprint from Bloomsbury Publishing dedicated to publishing a wide array of exciting fiction eBooks to teen, YA, and new adult readers. We have some fun excerpts, interview questions with authors and a fantastic giveaway!
The Books
DELIVER ME
by Kate Jarvik Birch
Excerpt from Deliver Me
The Grand Councilman watched as the first of the robes was placed over the girl’s shoulders before he turned back to us with an expression of satisfaction on his face. The look sent a chill through me. He looked back down at the ledger in front of him and called out the next number, “G458-89.”
G458-89.
Of course I recognized the number. It was imprinted in my mind, the digits as clear in my memory as they were tattooed into the soft skin of Odessa’s forearm. The breath of air I’d been holding escaped my lips and I turned to my best friend, pushing her forward to the podium.
Odessa, beautiful Odessa.
I knew she would be called. Maybe she hadn’t been first, but she was close. Pride pushed at the inside of my chest and I suppressed a cheer. If only we were allowed to clap at least, but the selection was a sacred moment and I had to keep my emotions contained. Later tonight I could tell Odessa how proud I was of her.
On the podium, one of the elegant Carrier robes was being placed over Odessa’s shoulders. From somewhere deep inside my head a low humming had begun. My fingers and toes felt strange, tingly. I rubbed my hands together, trying to concentrate on the Grand Councilman’s words.
Six more numbers were called and progressively, as each girl took her place on the stand, I began to see the panic setting in on Odessa’s face. Normally, she would have caught my eye and made a funny face to break the tension, but she hardly looked like herself up there. The color still hadn’t returned to her cheeks and a bit of perspiration had sprouted on her forehead. In her eyes I saw the look of someone desperate, someone hungry. Only one more number left to call. Around me some of the girls were weeping silently, maybe it was because they were overcome with the pressure of it all, or maybe they realized their dreams of being a Carrier were dying out, merely the flicker of a flame remaining.
The last robe hung limply on its form. Beneath the other selection robes the bodies of eight lucky girls fidgeted, waiting to see if one of their friends would be called. I caught Odessa’s eye and tried to smile, but my lips stuck to my teeth, tight and dry. The moments clicked slowly by, an eternity of waiting. What sort of future would I have if I wasn’t a Carrier?
Finally the Grand Councilman spoke, “The ninth and final Carrier is…D456-06.”
Odessa covered her face with her hands, but I couldn’t move; my body was completely numb.
It wasn’t my number. It wasn’t. My number hadn’t been called.
The Sound of Us
by Ashley Poston
Excerpt from The Sound of Us
Despite my best friend being a Roman Holiday aficionado, I only know three things about Roman Montgomery.
One, he has honey brown hair that’s usually gelled up in a wave.
Two, he doesn’t have any visible tattoos—although there were rumors he had a song quote below the belt.
And three, Roman Montgomery would never, ever be seen shopping at a cruddy old Stop-N-Shop in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Apparently, I don’t know anything about Roman Montgomery after all.
The longer he holds my gaze, the more I can’t write him off as a good look-alike—it’s the angle of his nose, the sharpness of his cheekbones, the way one eyebrow is always a little higher than the other. He’s gained a little weight since his last interview with GQ, or maybe it’s more muscle, I don’t know, but it’s definitely him.
Suddenly, I jerk my eyes away from his gaze. Oh, God, I have underwear with his face on them. I am beyond mortified. The blush on my cheeks is so hot, it probably matches my hair. And he seems entertained by it.
“I should be flattered, meeting you here again,” he goes on. “Last night we got off on the wrong foot.”
I quickly turn my back to him. Last night I even touted that I hated his band. See, this is why I shouldn’t talk to strangers. “It’s fine. I don’t care.”
“Let’s try again?”
“Uh—no, no thanks.”
But apparently “no” is not in his vocabulary. He slips around in front of me so smoothly, it could be a dance move. He juts out his tattooed hand. “Hi, it’s nice to meet you.”
Is this a joke?
The Art of Falling
by Jenny Kaczorowski
Excerpt from The Art of Falling
Ben sat down on the ramp up to a guard tower. The light over the door traced the perfectly balanced proportions of his profile and shone in his close-cropped hair. He had the kind of strong, chiseled face that made her wish she were a sculptor instead of a painter.
“Sorry my sister is such a pain in the ass,” he said.
“Hey, that’s my best friend you’re talking about.” She settled beside him.
“Yes and I’ve been stuck in the same class as you two since kindergarten.”
“Another nine months and you’ll be free from us.”
He gave her a half laugh. “Don’t remind me.”
Bria shifted, leaning against the handrail. “Have you made a decision yet?”
“Not officially. I don’t sign until February, but I gave Oregon a verbal no last week.”
“Seriously? Abby said you had a full ride.”
He shrugged. “It didn’t feel right.”
“But Oregon is one of the best schools for football, right? Kind of seems like a big deal.”
Ben looked around the beach, still deserted save for a lone seagull, before his eyes settled on her. “I want there to be more to me than football, more than being that guy.”
She stilled, aware of her heart beating in her chest and the air filling her lungs. “Yeah. Yeah, I get that.”
“I don’t know.” He stretched out his long legs, gazing at the ocean. “I guess that’s why I’m out running after spending the entire day in practice. When I run, there’s no expectations, no demands. Just me and the sand and the sky and the surf.”
“I’m not exactly built for running,” she said, eyeing her figure, much too tall and all soft around the edges.
“You’re fine, Bria. Girls like Alyson Kane are the ones who aren’t built for running.”
Bria snorted. She’d give anything to squeeze into Alyson’s tiny cheerleading uniform. Her body just wouldn’t agree.
“So what about you?” Ben said. “Abby told me you visited some fancy art school in New York?”
“Oh. Yeah.” She looked down at her hands, picking at a fleck of paint clinging to her cuticle. “Pratt. I just have to get my application and portfolio in by November first for early decision, but admissions said I’m basically in if I want it.”
“Good for you. Wow. New York.”
“I know.”
He tapped his foot against hers. “Why don’t we do this anymore? Just hang out and talk.”
“Come on, Ben. It’s bad enough that you and Abby ended up in the same grade. You don’t need to feel bad for finding your own friends.”
“Abby says I’m not cool enough to hang out with you guys.”
Bria burst out laughing. Ben – star quarterback, perpetual crush, best smile in school – not cool enough? “The Queen of Cool herself is probably passed out drunk by now.”
“Hey. That’s my sister you’re talking about.”
“Sorry about that.” She bumped her arm against his, lingering a little longer than necessary. When she pulled away, something in his gaze made her hands fidget and her tongue trip over her words. “I mean, I love her, but you know...”
“Yeah. I know.” His laughter faded away, leaving something sweet and tender and totally unfunny in his eyes. He brushed his thumb along her cheekbone, the kind of simple, casual touch that made her insides turn to mush. “I’ve really missed you, Bria.”
Positively Mineby Christine Duval
Excerpt from Positively Mine
“The holidays can be stressful for everyone, but especially if you’re pregnant or just had a baby. As you leave here tonight and deal with potentially difficult people or situations over the holidays, I want you to focus on acceptance. In other words, don’t try to control the uncontrollable, and don’t try to change a person who can’t be changed. People are who they are.
With acceptance comes forgiveness, and with forgiveness comes inner peace, and we can all use some of that.”
Her words strike a nerve, and I can’t help speaking up. “But what if the problem isn’t that you can’t accept them, but they can’t accept you?” I ask.
“In what way?”
“It’s like, with my father, I’m the symbol for everything that has gone bad in his life. So instead of us getting closer, he pushes me further away. And now he’s getting married, and he’s about to start a new life with someone, and I’m afraid I’ll never get the chance to show him that I’m a real person, that I exist.”
The entire group is looking at me, staring actually. Kyle is the first to speak up. “But you aren’t giving him a chance to accept you. You haven’t even told him you’re pregnant and you’re five months into it. You push him away as much as he does you.”
“That’s not true.”
Audrey chimes in. “It is, Laurel. You’re nice and all, but you’ve told, what? Two people you’re pregnant, other than us and a couple of doctors. You drive an hour to a support group when there is probably one right near Milton. How much longer are you going to keep this secret? If you told your dad, maybe he’d see that you’re a real person. Real people screw up.”
“Wow.” I wrap my arms across my chest. I feel invaded.
Until We End
by Frankie Brown
Pride’s Run
by Cat Kalen
Secret of Isobel Key
by Jen McConnel
Excerpt from The Secret of Isobel Key
“All right, you folk. Today we’ll be travellin’ out to Skye, the loveliest island anywhere in Scotland, or the world for that matter.” The soothing accent of their handsome tour guide carried through the small bus via the microphone, and Lou sat back in bliss, letting the words roll over her. The accents here in the Scottish Highlands almost made up for the dreary, damp weather, and she loved listening to the locals say just about anything. Admittedly, she would listen to Brian say anything, even without his accent. The tall, red-haired Scot reminded Lou of the men on the covers of the romance novels she’d sold at the bookstore, and she kept her eyes pinned on him as the bus bounced along. His khaki cargo pants rested casually on his hips, and he looked like a cross between a fashion model and the boy next door with his navy blue fleece zipped partway up. The green collared shirt he was wearing underneath the jacket was plain and simple, but Lou kept staring at the neckline, watching for any telltale curls of chest hair. Did his body hair match his flaming red head? Lou blushed at the thought and closed her eyes, wondering what it would be like to run her hands across Brian’s broad chest. Would he feel like sandpaper or satin under her fingertips?
A cymbal-shaking jolt of thunder abruptly pulled Lou out of her fantasy, and she blushed, glancing at Tammy. Her best friend seemed oblivious to her daydreams; Tammy was reading furiously in her guidebook, probably trying to learn everything about wherever they were headed. Lou glanced at Brian once more and then turned her attention to the window. The landscape was a brilliant emerald green, but the sky had begun to resemble heavy slate waiting to crush the unsuspecting earth beneath it. “It would be really beautiful, if it weren’t always raining,” Lou muttered to herself. Tammy looked up from her guidebook, her green eyes unfocused.
“What’dya say? Is it raining again? Aw, Lou, you remember what Brian said on the first day of the tour; everything’s more dramatic in Scotland!” Tammy sounded annoyingly perky for someone who would soon be hiking across a muddy landscape toward whatever rustic destination the tour would take them on today.
Not only did she sound perky, Lou considered, but she looked perky: perky and perfect. Her silken blonde hair looked tousled just enough to be sexy, and her skin seemed to be drinking up the moisture around them; her cheeks were dewy and soft. Lou wished she looked half as at ease as Tammy, but she knew that her lumpy hat and wild hair made her look more like a hobo than a hot college student on vacation, and she sighed. Traveling with Tammy wasn’t as much fun as she’d thought it would be.
Shifting in her seat, Lou gazed out the window at the rivulets of water cascading down the bus. “What would they call it if the sun came out? Just for a minute.”
“We’d call it a miracle,” a deep voice beside her shoulder answered. Lou’s heart sped up as she whipped around, red in the face. Brian, the tall, ruddy tour guide, was standing in the bus aisle beside her, smiling.
Her Secret Inheritance
by Jen McConnel
Road to Somewhere
by Kelley Lynn &
Jenny S. Morris
Beyond Our Stars
by Marie Langager
My Soon-To-Be-Sex Life
by Judith Tewes
The MapMaker’s Daughter
by Caroline Dunford
Sparkie 6 Month Anniversary - Author Q&A
What has been your best experience since the release of your book?
Ashley Poston: Definitely all the support on Twitter and Facebook! I never thought I’d have so many people out of the blue just tweeting me to tell me how much they loved my story! It means a lot to me. I think every author has one story that’s their “baby” and mine is The Sound of Us. While it’s a very funny, very light-hearted YA/NA crossover (think Fangirl), its tackles some heavy-hitting stuff that’s pretty personal to me. And it’s surreal and wonderful and thrilling to read how much other people enjoyed it!
Caroline Dunford: I loved seeing the face of my heroine Sharra on the beautiful cover. She is just as I imagined her.
Cat Kalen: I am thrilled with reader response. I heard from students who were using my book for their school reports and it thrilled me.
Christine Duval: Really it is more than one moment. It is all the times women have come up to me, written to me, tweeted to me about how Positively Mine reminded them of their own situations. Many are women who were teen moms or who found themselves unexpectedly pregnant in college. I am so moved that something I created has had meaning in another person’s life.
Frankie Brown: Meeting so many wonderful people! The Sparkies are a wonderfully sweet, vivacious group, and the online YA book community is a ton of fun.
Jen McConnel: Listening to the amazing audiobook for the first time! My narrator, Carolyn Bonnyman, has the perfect voice for the story, and I could listen to her all day long. It’s funny, too; when I was revising the sequel, I heard it in her voice. She’s become an integral part of my story, and I’m so glad!
Jenny Kaczorowski: The moment my book popped up in my local library’s eMedia collection! More than any other publishing dream, I’ve always wanted to have something I wrote in libraries. I stumbled across it by accident and nearly screamed.
Jenny Morris: Reading people’s reviews and knowing they totally got our story. It’s still crazy to me that a total stranger is reading something that I wrote and relating to it.
Judith Tewes: My title isn’t out in the world yet (releases in July), but I’ve had a blast supporting my fellow Bloomsbury Spark authors as each new title has launched.
Kate Jarvik Birch: It might sound a little sadistic, but hearing that my book has brought someone to tears is one of the best feelings EVER—it’s also pretty awesome to hear that I’ve made them yell and cheer, but for some reason the tears feel like the biggest payoff.
Kelley Lynn: Fans (Eep! I still can’t believe I have fans…haha) contacting me wanting to talk about the book. I actually had one twelve-year-old girl somehow get a hold of my phone number. She called me and in this really sweet, shaky voice, asked how she could get a signed copy of my book. It was just so flattering and is totally the reason I do this.
Marie Langager: It’s an awesome feeling when you connect with readers. Especially when they’re in a country you’ve never been to!
Theresa DaLayne: Since my book doesn’t release until mid-August of this 2014, I probably haven’t had it yet. THE EDGE OF YOU is my new adult debut, and although Ron and Lilly’s story isn’t full of rainbows and gumdrops, it’s real. I think my favorite part about writing the story was reliving my years spent in Kodiak Island, Alaska, where I grew up. A few characters, like Lori for example, play a small but beautiful role, and are depictions of real people. It was an honor to incorporate part of my life into the story that will be shared with so many others.
What is the best thing about being part of Bloomsbury Spark?
Ashley Poston: Definitely the authors. We’re like one big family. I’m thankful and so very glad to have met every single one of them. They’re all so talented, and they’ve enriched my life more than they know!
Caroline Dunford: Everyone has been so warm and welcoming.
Cat Kalen: The support from Meredith and all the authors. Everyone is so giving, helpful and wonderful, not to mention talented!
Christine Duval: The enthusiasm of everyone involved with it! It has been so amazing watching Spark grow under Meredith’s guidance and I feel I’ve made a bunch of new friends on this journey. I love hearing about everyone’s successes and learning what’s coming next while watching our readership grow.
Frankie Brown: Again: the people. Meredith is incredible, and everyone at Bloomsbury--from the social media team to the cover designers--is passionate about what they do. It's infectious.
Jen McConnel: It’s so hard to pick one thing, but I’d have to say that the sense of community is amazing. The authors, the team at Bloomsbury, and our fearless leader, editor Meredith Rich, all come together to create a wonderful, enthusiastic literary family.
Jenny Kaczorowski: The support! Meredith is an amazing editor, the cover artist for FALLING is amazing, and the other Spark authors are fantastic! Not only are we publishing siblings, but friends. I love having so many people with me on this journey!
Jenny Morris: The Sparkie Family. Meredith connected all of us together and the other authors really are amazingly supportive, and the best cheerleaders.
Judith Tewes: Bloomsbury Spark is in good hands with our editor, Meredith, and I love how she’s willing to take risks in her selections for this new YA / NA line. Spark titles (and authors) are ones to watch!
Kate Jarvik Birch: Being part of the Spark family has introduced me to a tight knit group of fantastic writers, all of whom support and buoy one another. Plus, it’s given me a chance to read some pretty stellar books by my fellow authors.
Kelley Lynn: Can I say everything? Everyone on the Bloomsbury Spark team is so wonderful. Meredith, and her supporting cast are the best. And the other authors in this family are so talented and nice. It’s just such a wonderful community to be a part of.
Marie Langager: I feel so lucky to be a part of this group of fantastic authors. So much support and so much fun. You really get to be a part of something special and make friends along the way!
Theresa DaLayne: My publishing career has had its peaks and valleys, but being a part of Bloomsbury Spark is most definitely a peak. My editor, Meredith, and the talented cover art department have worked hard to ensure I love the cover to my book. That’s something invaluable. And my fellow Sparkies are just about the best group of young adult and new adult authors I’ve had the honor of working with. With only six months under Spark’s belt, the future of our growing family is bright!
What are you working on now?
Ashley Poston: The sequels to THE SOUND OF US, actually! WE OWN THE NIGHT follows Ingrid, who hosts a late-night radio show to escape the reality of her small-town life, and finds herself drawn to a regular caller who is trying to escape his own life, too. It’s like Sleepless in Seattle if the main character was Rebel Wilson. YOU BURY ME is about two ex-best friends who find themselves on a road trip to complete a bucket list their late friend left behind. I’m really excited for both of them, and I hope you are, too! While they’re not direct sequels to Junie and Roman’s adventures in love, JuRo definitely make appearances (and maybe some other lovely secondary characters, too?)
Caroline Dunford: I have stories I'm working on, but I don't tend to reveal anything until the time is right!
Cat Kalen: I’m working on Pride Unleashed and Pride’s Pursuit the follow up books to Pride’s Run.
Christine Duval: The sequel to POSITIVELY MINE! The first draft is done, I am happy to say, and I am getting ready to send the detailed synopsis off to Bloomsbury!
Frankie Brown: A lot of different things! Stay tuned...
Jen McConnel: I’m shifting gears out of NA mode for awhile, and focusing on revising the second book in my YA fantasy series from Month9Books. It’s fun to flip flop between contemporary with a touch of paranormal and full-on fantasy, with witches and gods and goddesses popping up like whack-a-mole. GODS OF CHAOS, the sequel to DAUGHTER OF CHAOS, is due out next March...squee! There’s always another story to be told, and I can’t wait to see what comes next!
Jenny Kaczorowski: I am working on two follow-ups to THE ART OF FALLING, set in the same high school but following different characters. THE TRICK TO LANDING is about Summer, a semi-pro skateboarder trying to build a new life after a DUI. After moving to Oceanside, she meets Bastian, a brilliant photographer fighting for a future beyond the bleeding disorder that defines his life. Their romance is messy and painful, but very sweet. THE RHYTHM OF BREATHING follows Abby, Bria’s best friend in FALLING. When she kisses Jackie, the drummer in a metal band, on New Year’s Eve, she expects it to be a one-time fling. Instead, she finds herself head over heals for a boy with a dark past, deep scars and exactly what she needs to confront her own issues.
Jenny Morris: I am working on a story outline for a follow-up to ROAD TO SOMEWHERE. It follows Charlie to college and Lucy in her last few months of high school. Kelly Lynn and I are excited about the possibility of continuing the sisters’ story. I’m also working on another collaboration called REMEMBER. It’s Romeo and Juliette meets Total Recall.
Judith Tewes: I’m gearing up for the release of MY SOON-TO-BE SEX LIFE, can’t wait for the blog tour madness to begin.
Kate Jarvik Birch: What am I NOT working on now? I’m just finishing up co-writing a middle grade novel about unlikely friends navigating middle school while trying to discover whether magic is real. I’ve got another YA novel, PERFECTED, coming out July 1st from Entangled Teen and I’m busy writing the sequel, which is due out next year. I’ve got some picture book projects in the works and still need to find the time to write the screenplay I’ve been marinating for years. Phew, I’m exhausted just thinking about it!
Kelley Lynn: Jenny S. Morris and I are working on the sequel to ROAD TO SOMEWHERE. We just love being back in Charlie and Lucy’s world! I’m working on the final edits for another edition to the Bloomsbury Spark family, ONE WISH AWAY, which is a science fiction twist on the ‘when you wish upon a star’ theme. I’m also negotiating a contract for another YA Contemporary and my super duper agent, Jamie Bodnar Drowley, and I are putting the finishing touches on a YA Thriller so we can start submitting that soon. Busy, busy, busy
Marie Langager: I’m finishing up a project that has been a long time in the making. Imagine a protagonist who’s a little bit like Jo March but hears voices and is very, very angry. She’s viewed by many as odd and unfixable. In this character’s world the Archbishop teaches her to stay away from the lying peddlers of magic. This book is madness, magic, darkness, and lots of cool new magical weapons!
Theresa DaLayne: I’m working on a few projects at the moment. One is a new adult story about a nineteen-year-old California socialite with a kleptomaniac habit that gets her in big trouble. It started out as a fun, rich-girl-gets-forced-into-being-a-maid kind of story, but when my main character meets a kind-hearted guy with a humanitarian streak, her eyes are opened to a whole new world. That’s where the real life change happens, and I can’t wait to see where my agent puts it! I’m also working on the first of a new adult thriller series, tentatively titled, GLACIER PEAK. It’s totally different than anything I’ve ever written in the sense that most times, my heroine grows into her role as a leader. In this story, my main character struts into the story with a snarky attitude, the mouth of a sailor and a hair trigger temper. When her father goes missing, she sets out on an epic five-day hike through the wilderness to find him. And when she meets a guy covered in tats with a hidden agenda, the temperature in the tent goes from zero to smoldering. It’s all set in the rural mountains of Washington State, where the weather is unpredictable, the wild animals are hungry, and the romance is ice-melting.
This is a FANTASTIC giveaway!
A
Kindle Paperwhite loaded with all of these titles (also please use image
attached with all the covers included):
1) The Sound of Us by Ashley Poston
2) The Art of Falling by Jenny Kaczorowski
3) The Secret of Isobel Key by Jen McConnel PLUS its sequel
4) Her Secret Inheritance
5) Positively Mine by Christine Duval
6) Deliver Me by Kate Jarvik Birch
7) Pride’s Run by Cat Kalen
8) Road to Somewhere by Jenny S. Morris and Kelley Lynn
9) Beyond Our Stars by Marie Langager
10) The Mapmaker’s Daughter by Caroline Dunford
11) Until We End by Frankie Brown
12) An ARC of My Soon-To-Be Sex Life by Judith Tewes
1) The Sound of Us by Ashley Poston
2) The Art of Falling by Jenny Kaczorowski
3) The Secret of Isobel Key by Jen McConnel PLUS its sequel
4) Her Secret Inheritance
5) Positively Mine by Christine Duval
6) Deliver Me by Kate Jarvik Birch
7) Pride’s Run by Cat Kalen
8) Road to Somewhere by Jenny S. Morris and Kelley Lynn
9) Beyond Our Stars by Marie Langager
10) The Mapmaker’s Daughter by Caroline Dunford
11) Until We End by Frankie Brown
12) An ARC of My Soon-To-Be Sex Life by Judith Tewes
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