It's Back!

The Night is Dark and Full of Terrors.

Game of Thrones Season 2 premieres tomorrow night!

“Without music, life would be a mistake.” 
 ― Friedrich Nietzsche




  Love. this song.

Best Book Ever

 

I have a hard time nailing down my favorite book. Part of the reason is because I have so many and it's hard to narrow it down and pick just one. Most of the time when people ask me what my favorite book is, I say Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card or The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald because they're both books that have been favorites for such a long time.

But in the past few weeks, I've been talking books that I love and elements of stories that I love and even writers that inspire me. And on book keeps coming up more than others.

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Here's what I love about it. First, it's an amazing and page turning plot about a girl who was abandoned by her mother when she was eleven and is not struggling to just get more from her life. There are several mysteries that crop up in the book--to the point where I felt a little unsure of what was happening in the beginning, but I was well rewarded when everything tied together in the end. The characters are wonderful--they're full developed, well realized, and flawed in a way that makes them so real. I want these characters to be my friends. And as always, the writing is exceptionally beautiful, and there were a number of quotes that I read and thought "Yes, that is exactly how I've felt." And for those reasons, Jellicoe Road is my best book ever.

“The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference.” 
 ― Elie Wiesel

Midnight Tonight!

PLA

Thursday last week, I went to the Public Library Association or PLA. 

It was in Philadelphia, which was an easy train ride.

The first thing I saw was the Random House table which had Starters by Lissa Price on display.

I also saw some other apocalypsie titles including Little Dog Lost (the cutest picture book ever!) by Monica Carnesi and Darker Still by Leanne Renee Hieber.

Unraveling ARCs made an appearance at the HarperCollins Children's booth and a at the Follet booth.

I also tried to take some pictures when I walked around, but apparently I was walking too fast because most of them came out blurry.

I did get a picture of this lovely Hunger Games poster.

And even more exciting, I snagged ARCs of Masque of Red Death by Bethany Griffin, which I cannot wait to read, and I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga which looks deliciously disturbing.

“Two people in love, alone, isolated from the world, that's beautiful.” 
 ― Milan Kundera

Sometimes it seems that the going is just too rough 
And things go wrong no matter what I do 
Now and then it seems that life is just too much 
But you’ve got the love I need to see me through  

--Florence + The Machine

The Unraveling Trailer Giveaway (Win a Free iPad!)

Today, EW.com is debuting the book trailer for Unraveling. Check it out.

To celebrate and promote reading YA books, I'm throwing a Teen Reader Contest, and I'm giving away a free iPad 2.

Yes, you read that right. Keep reading and enter the contest for a chance to win a Free iPad!

I’m 15 at heart. I love romance and I have a passion for YA books. That’s the reason I wrote Unraveling.

Now that it's close to release, I want to share that passion with you.

THE PRIZES


One grand prize winner will win a free iPad, stocked with 20 of my favorite YA books, and a signed hardback copy of Unraveling.

Three runners up will win a signed hardback copy of Unraveling.

TO ENTER


Beginning Right Now through Sunday, April 22, 2012 at 11:59 PM (ET), fill out and submit the online entry form below with your name, age, complete address, email address, and your favorite book. You can only enter once.

Winner will be selected on April 23, 2012 in a random drawing from among all eligible entries received.

FOR 5 EXTRA ENTRIES


Post a thirty second video of yourself on youtube explain who your favorite character from a novel is and why. Then leave a link to the video and your full name in the comments section of this post. (And remember Youtube and this blog are public).

THE FINEPRINT


There’s no purchase necessary to enter or win. You must be between the ages of 12 and 25, and a legal resident of the 50 United States or District of Columbia. Void in Canada, Puerto Rico, and where prohibited by law. By entering, you agree I can share your name as the winner.

On Book Trailers...

I've been thinking a lot about book trailers recently. So I blogged about my top five favorite book trailers at Brave New Words today. Check it out HERE.

So the reason for all this book trailer thoughts? Several weeks ago I got to weigh in on the script and casting for my own book trailer for Unraveling. And TOMORROW, will be the release! More news to come soon.

“Sometimes I can hear my bones straining under the weight of all the lives I'm not living.” 
 ― Jonathan Safran Foer, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close