The time it was bookish mail -- 8

Welcome to another episode of Look What I Got in the Mail!  Let's proceed, shall we?

When I contacted Tellulah Darling about getting some signed copies of My Ex from Hell and My Date from Hell to giveaway during her interview post, I had also wanted to get a set for myself.  Not only did she donate the set for me to giveaway, Tellulah is just so awesome that she donated my set as well.  If you haven't read these books yet, you really need to.

 

When The Dream Thieves was about to be released, Fountain Bookstore, had an awesome pre-order thing set up with Maggie.  If you pre-ordered before a certain date, a pretty doodle of a raven would be added to Maggie's signature. So, of course I ordered a copy.  When I realized I didn't have a finished copy of The Raven Boys, I ordered one of those too. And when the copy came, I was blown away...it was more than I was expecting.

 

When I read The Infinite Moment of Us, I instantly fell in love with it.  I started stalking Lauren's website, hoping for a chance for her to tour near me at some point.  Alas, she was not.  When I saw that Kristen was going to Austen Teen Book Fest, I begged asked her to take my arc to get signed.  And since Kristen is so amazing, she agreed!

I got The Rule of Thirds from NetGalley and completely devoured it.  Seeing that Chantel was in Canada, I DM'd her on Twitter asking if there was a way to get signed copies.  She gave me the options to either send her a copy that she would sign and send back or to buy one through PayPal.  There was a bit of a shipping snafu, but eventually that pretty pretty book got into my hands!

If you follow me on Twitter, I'm sure you have seen my fangirling over A.G. Howard. Kristin from Beneath Shining Stars gave me an arc of Splintered and even though it took me some time to get to it [because it was swallowed by my TBR stacks], when I did, I was dying for more.  I may or may not have taken to Twitter and started harassing talking to Anita about Unhinged.

There is a long, detailed love story between us and I am far too lazy to chronicle it here.  I will tell you that it involves an Eggman, wine, Godiva and a not-so-secret rendezvous in Vegas. Needless to say, one day, this gorgeous thing showed up in my mailbox. Oh, and Anita gave me Jeb, I have proof.

We've established that I'm a spoiled brat and I love it. What pretties have you gotten recently?

The time it was all about Wonderland

By now we all know about my undying love and affection for A.G. Howard, yes? So, it sort of goes without saying that of course I was going to do whatever I could to help promote Unhinged. I bugged asked Anita if she would do an interview, she agreed.  And then I read The Moth in the Mirror and had another set of questions I wanted to ask... So, we had a redo.

But, before we get to the interview: take two, let's check out the book, yes?

Alyssa Gardner has been down the rabbit hole and faced the bandersnatch. She saved the life of Jeb, the guy she loves, and escaped the machinations of the disturbingly seductive Morpheus and the vindictive Queen Red. Now all she has to do is graduate high school and make it through prom so she can attend the prestigious art school in London she's always dreamed of.

That would be easier without her mother, freshly released from an asylum, acting overly protective and suspicious. And it would be much simpler if the mysterious Morpheus didn’t show up for school one day to tempt her with another dangerous quest in the dark, challenging Wonderland—where she (partly) belongs.

As prom and graduation creep closer, Alyssa juggles Morpheus’s unsettling presence in her real world with trying to tell Jeb the truth about a past he’s forgotten. Glimpses of Wonderland start to bleed through her art and into her world in very disturbing ways, and Morpheus warns that Queen Red won’t be far behind.

If Alyssa stays in the human realm, she could endanger Jeb, her parents, and everyone she loves. But if she steps through the rabbit hole again, she'll face a deadly battle that could cost more than just her head.

 Sounds amazing, right? [It totally is.]

 1. How did the idea of Splintered come to you?

I've always been a Carroll junkie. The man was a literary genius. But the idea first came to me when I went to see the Tim Burton & Disney Alice adaptation. The cinematography was so vivid and evocative that it stayed with me, and I started playing out my own Wonderland scenarios in my mind. One evening, I went to my writer's critique group and pitched the idea of a modern day Wonderland -- though darker and more twisted -- with a teen protagonist who was related to Alice Liddell, Carroll's real-life inspiration. My group's enthusiasm was palpable, and I knew I was onto something.

2. Alyssa. She's feisty and smart and unique. I absolutely adore her. What do you love most about her and why should we root for her?

Thank you! I'm pretty sweet on her, too. ;) My favorite thing about Alyssa is that she's 100% human, even though she's not, if that makes sense? She's having to navigate the high school teen waters and feeling all the same insecurities as we do (did), albeit with the added obstacle of otherworldly stuff going on in her life. But even with that, the core of her insecurity stems from not yet knowing who she is, and we've all been there. I think this is what makes her human and relatable.

3. You recently wrote a novella featuring Jeb/Morpheus POV. Who was easier to work? Was it easier to  be in one of their head than in Alyssa's?

Haha. Pulling out the tough questions now, are you? ;) Both guys are complex individuals with their own dark pasts, but Jeb was easier because I once wrote from his POV. In the earliest version of SPLINTERED Alyssa and Jeb had alternating chapters. So I already knew his voice and thoughts inside and out. Plus, Jeb is first and foremost a gentleman, and didn't make life too difficult. Morpheus was a bit more of a challenge. Even when I was "in his head", I didn't always know what his motives were...or what he was going to say or do next. It was the same way in SPLINTERED and UNHINGED. He's often surprising me and taking the story on detours I didn't see coming. My job is to decide whether to follow his lead, or reign him in. Most often, I let him have his way (he can be quite persuasive). But sometimes I have to pull the boss card. He's definitely the most demanding character I've ever written. And Alyssa's head is the easiest to write from because I myself was once a teenage girl and living *some* of her issues.

4. Can we mention the last chapter in Splintered? There was a pretty big reveal and some satisfying closure, but it was sort of cliffhangery [or was that just me?]. Did you already know it was going to be a trilogy? 

I sold it to Amulet as a standalone with a two book potential. That's why the ending was closed with one thread left loose. I signed a two book contract, so I knew there would be another YA book, but they hadn't okayed a second Splintered. They had me set it aside and in fact had me working on a Phantom of the Opera spinoff instead. But when presale numbers started coming in for Splintered, they were ready to invest in UNHINGED. The problem was, we waited so long that my deadline was swiftly approaching so everything was rushed. When I got to the end of book 2, we all knew there would have to be a third, or I would have to change some major plotlines. But they had a meeting, and everyone loved the story as it was, so they signed me for the third book. All that to say, no. I didn't know it would be a trilogy and neither did my publisher, but I'm happy it worked out that way. I wasn't quite read to say goodbye to these characters yet.

5. What has been your favorite part about writing these books?

Rereading and studying Lewis Carroll's masterpieces.

6. Describe Unhinged in 5 words.

Frustrating
Frightening
Enlightening
Heartbreaking
Empowering

Speed [ish] round:

1. What three things would you take to a desert island?

Since you didn't specify whether the desert island is real or fantasy based, I'm choosing fantasy. Which means I only have to pack one thing: a genie in a bottle.

2. What are you reading right now?

I'm at the tail end of So Silver Bright by Lisa Mantchev. It's the last in a YA fantasy trilogy. I've read them all and love the uniqueness of the premise.

3. Who are your favorite swoony boys?

Living or fictional? Ryan Gosling, Jr. for my live guy. And for my fictional, Hareton from Wuthering Heights. One of the most underappreciated book heroes. He was loyal, devoted and patient, even in the face of abuse and scorn from the two people he loved most in the world. He was the one redeeming character in the story (If you've read it, reread the last 30 pages to see my point). He's definitely swoon-worthy.

4. Are there any authors that you fangirl over?

Heck yah! Here are my top six: Neil Gaiman, Alice Hoffman, Charlotte Bronte, Melissa Marr, Christina Rossetti, and of course Lewis Carroll.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Huge thanks, boxes of Godiva and squishy hugs to Anita for being so EPIC and taking the time to deal with my fangirling answer the questions.  Make sure you're following her on Twitter, liking her Facebook page, subscribing to her blog and adding all of her books to your GoodReads shelves.

To celebrate the upcoming release of Unhinged, I've got a signed hardcover copy of Splintered up for grabs.  Rules for the giveaway are under "terms and conditions" on the Rafflecopter widget and this contest is international! Also? Don't forget that Jeb is mine, I have proof.

**Good Luck!!** 

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The time it was a debut author hop

Hooray for another giveaway hop!!

This one is being hosted by Bookhounds and I Am a Reader, Not a Writer. 

There were many debut authors in 2013 who are amazing, but one woman in particular immediately came to mind: A.G. Howard.  I have a pretty big girl crush on her [she hasn't filed a restraining order yet] and Splintered is definitely one of my favorites of the year.

This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence. Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.

When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.

Soooooooo. Up for grabs.....

A signed hardcover copy of Splintered, an arc of Unhinged and a necklace that will make sense once you've read Unhinged [thank you, Anita].  And this giveaway is international!

Rules for the giveaway are listed under the "terms and conditions" on the Rafflecopter widget.

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Now that you've entered here, check out all of the other blogs on the hop [listed below] for a bazillion chances to win other phenomenal books! You can also check out the host blogs at: Bookhounds and I Am a Reader, Not a Writer

**Good Luck!!**

The time it was a weekend in Vegas

Going to Vegas Valley Book Festival was pretty much a given. I heard about it from Crystal when we went to her B&N for the Fierce Reads tour in June. She had said something about it in passing and when I looked it up and saw the glorious list of authors, my head almost exploded.

I slowly accumulated my books and made stacks around my office. The stacks fluctuated as authors were added and canceled....eventually, my total number of books was 47. 

We had plans to get to Vegas on Friday, the 1st, which was also Hubs's birthday. When I heard that AG Howard was doing an offsite signing at Crystal's B&N, I forced persuaded Hubs to go there first. 

We got there around 3:30 and sat in the cafe until Anita got there. And just after 4pm, I went over to the table armed with Godiva truffles, a couple of bottles of wine and some other prizes. Anita jumped up and we hugged and gushed and hugged some more. 

I ended up sitting at the signing table with her and in between her talking with other readers, we chatted about all sorts of things. 

She signed all eleventy billion copies I had for her and gave me some super cool Unhinged swag. Once the signing time was over, I fed Anita the books for her to sign and I may or may not have put some on the "YA Bestsellers shelf". 

 

We hugged and took photos with a promise to see each other tomorrow....and then started talking on twitter. From there, Hubs and I checked into our hotel and then headed to Gordon Ramsay's BurGR. 

The maître d' offered us a seat at the bar that faced the kitchens and by accepting it, we got to skip the 45 minute wait in line. While he was talking to us, he learned it was Hubs's birthday and gave him a free shot of Jameson. 

And the food? Gah. It was beyond amazing. 

After stuffing ourselves, we wandered the strip for a while before heading back to our hotel for some much needed sleep. 

Saturday morning found us heading down to the event area early. We found excellent parking and headed in around 10am. Mostly so I could make sure to get a finished copy of Crash into You. We grabbed some food and wandered back to the tents to see some panels.

 

We caught the last ten minutes of the Serial Killers and Surprise Endings panel. At the end of the panel, Kasie West turned around and saw me and shouted "STACEEEEEE". I went into the tent and hugged her and said hello. Natalie Whipple came over and said hi and then Michelle Gagnon came over and we chatted a bit.

We got to the Classical Remix panel just in time for it to start. It had AG Howard, Vivi Barnes, Gena Showalter, Mary Lindsey, Claire LaZebnik, Eileen Cook and Stacey Jay. [I wanted to take notes, but my phone just wouldn't let me.  I did do some live tweeting, so check out #vvbf for tweets during the event]

When Anita introduced herself, she saw me and said hi. [This woman is so damn adorable. Are you reading her books yet?] After watching most of this panel, we snuck over to the other tent. We ended up watching the last 15 minutes of the Then and Back Again panel with Tamara Ireland Stone, Rachel Harris, Alexandra Monir and others.

After that panel, I went over to say hi to Tamara [who waved while up on the panel]. We chatted for a minute and then went back over to find Anita and say hello again.

While we were standing there, Gena Showalter was signing books and taking photos with a small group of people who were waiting for her. I briefly thought about doing that, but I have so many books, it would be near impossible. I got a picture with Gena and told her I had eleventy billion books for her. She said that's what she liked to hear. :D

I then went to Anita to say hi and tell her how amazing her panel went. We chatted for a bit and then we had to go check on our parking situation. We stayed in the car until around 3:30. Hubs was sleeping and I was charging my phone.

We went straight to the Resurrecting the Future panel with Alexandra Bracken, Kimberly Derting, Anna Carey, Chris Howard, and Lydia Kang.

They started setting up the panel signing area around 4 and Hubs and I went over to set up a HQ of sorts.

I went to Stacey Kade first. We talked about The Rules and how she had arc requests of the second one up already. I told her that I had just gotten an e-arc of The Bitter Pill and we chatted about that. And of course, our conversations on Twitter.

 

From Stacey, I went to Mary Lindsey. She was surprised to see my arcs of Fragile Spirits and said they were the first she had signed. We talked about a possible third and when I told her that she sent me one of them for review, Mary asked my twitter handle. And with my telling, she jumped up and we hugged. We ended up chatting about what the tag line was going to be. And when it was all over, we took some pictures.

  

Gena Showalter was next. There were a couple of people in line for her, but it went quickly. She laughed when she saw my stack and said she remembered that I said I had a lot of books. She's a quick signer and had the stack done in no time. 

  

Josie Angelini was the last person I had for the tent one authors. We talked about the ending of the series, if I had liked it [I did], and the ending of Allegiant. Before we were able to really get into conversation about it, a line started forming.

 

While we waited for the switch over to the tent two authors, we chatted with Gretchen McNeil, Chris Howard and Tamara Ireland Stone. Then we took over the same table and Hubs watched my stuff while I ran around, getting stuff signed.

First up was Kasie West. We were chatting it up, talking about Tee Fury shirts and how many copies of The Distance Between Us I had while she signed. I got her to sign Xander over in one of Jaime's books. Annnnnnnd then we noticed that there was a huge line waiting for her.

  

Rachel Harris was the next author who was available. She asked who I was on twitter and I admitted that I was horrible at self promotion. She stocked me up with all sorts of swag after she signed.

  

I started to get in line for Amy Plum, but saw that the line for Katie McGarry was pretty short, so I went to her first. She told me that it was her first time being in Vegas, that she didn't travel a lot when she was young and in the past year, she's been all over the place. We talked about the awesomeness that is Crash into You and Isaiah and Rachel. I gushed over the book and the ending and really, just all of it.

I really wanted a photo, but Hubs was still standing guard. Thankfully, Crystal got in line behind me and was willing to take one for me.

  

Since her line had gone down a bit, Amy Plum was next. She was excited to see a big stack of books to sign. I told her that I was stocking up for giveaways since it's rare that she signs in the US. When she got to my arc of Die for Me, she said that the cover of Kate in the boat was super rare now. Amy offered bookmarks while signing.  I was able to get the woman standing behind me [not Crystal] to take a picture of us before I ran back to my table.

  

Seeing Jennifer E. Smith was a quick thing.  She signed my books, saying that she hadn't seen an arc of This is What Happy Looks Like in a while.  As she was signing, she started laughing, saying that her handwriting is already bad and it was only getting worse. 

  

While I was walking up to Lydia Kang, she immediately noticed that I had an arc of Control. She said that she only had one and people kept asking her if they could have it and she wanted to know where I got my copy.  I said that I thought I got it from ALA [now that I've been thinking of it, I think I actually got it from the super secret back room].

After she signed the book, she started pitching Chris Howard's book.  I told her that I already had it and Chris said, "Yeah, we went to Disneyland together." That made me start to laugh because it made it sound like we were BFFs who went to Disneyland together all the time.  Lydia admitted that she had never been to Disneyland and somehow that led to Chris telling Lydia that I needed to be her tour guide.

 

Alexandra Bracken was a quick stop. We said hi and she said it was so nice to meet me and then got to signing.  It was nearing the end of the time for the signing, so people were running around.  After she was done, I thanked her and ran back to the table.

  

Jennifer Lynn Barnes was also a quick stop.  I had her sign my arc of The Naturals and when she commented on it, I told her that I won it from Hyperion and showed her the post-it that they wrote me.  After thanking her, I ran off to see the last person I had books for.

 

Tamara Ireland Stone was my last authors for the entire event.  We chatted while she signed, she asked if she should sign my UK copy of Time After Time "To Kevin" since I'm her Kevin Bacon.  She said that it was a lot harder to sign to people that she knew, so I started laughing and saying, "You can have Bennett forever, I will never, ever give him to anyone else."

Did you see? Yep, Bennett is STILL mine.

After she signed my things, she stood up and we got some photos.  Tamara mentioned how we didn't get any photos of us during her launch party [I'm still bummed that I didn't remember to take photos when I was in Berkeley] and wanted to make sure that we took some. We hugged a few times and then I went back to the table/HQ to pack up the books and head back to the hotel.

As we were walking out, we saw Gretchen one last time.  I congratulated her [again] on the wedding and told her that I expected to see the dress...

Vegas Valley Book Festival was amazing.  The line up of authors was unlike anything I've seen before and I'm sure it'll be an annual trip for us...whether Hubs likes it or not.