Read an Excerpt from HEIR OF FIRE!

Is this cover awesome or IS IT AWESOME?!  Correct answer: all of the above.

I've got good news and bad news, Smithies.  Bad news first:  I'm leaving the spectacular Smith Public Library.  That means I won't be at book club meetings anymore, I won't be writing this blog anymore, and you won't see my smiling face around the library.  I'll be working at my new job at another library nearby(ish), so if you want to come visit me there (please do!), then talk to Veronica - she can tell you which library to visit.  But Jenn will be taking over the blog (yay!), so credit for all future witty remarks belongs to her.

I know, I know - but contain your hysterical sobs for my departure, because there's good news, too!

In case you haven't already found and devoured this on your own, a sneak preview of Heir of Fire has been released online!  Heir of Fire is the latest installment in Sarah J. Maas' Throne of Glass series, and it's due to be published September 2, 2014.  Make sure you're sitting down when you read this excerpt - as I like to say, it's like a fire at a circus:  INTENSE.  (Get it? "In tents" = "intense", har har har puns.)

CLICK HERE TO READ THE EXCERPT

I know a few of you (by which I mean a lot of you) are as big fans of Throne of Glass and the sequel, Crown of Midnight, as I am - we've read both books in book club (read all our Throne of Glass-related posts here) and skyped with Sarah Maas a few times - so if you want more extras as soon as they're available, check out Sarah's blog and the official Throne of Glass facebook page!

There's also info on the Throne of Glass facebook page about how you could be a part of the Heir of Fire book trailer!  Click here for the official rules and etc.

Bloomsbury (the publisher) has also released this synopsis for Heir of Fire:

Celaena has survived deadly contests and shattering heartbreak—but at an unspeakable cost. Now, she must travel to a new land to confront her darkest truth . . . a truth about her heritage that could change her life—and her future—forever. Meanwhile, brutal and monstrous forces are gathering on the horizon, intent on enslaving her world. Will Celaena find the strength to not only fight her inner demons, but to take on the evil that is about to be unleashed?

The bestselling series that has captured readers all over the world reaches new heights in this sequel to the New York Times best-selling Crown of Midnight. Packed with heart-pounding action, fierce new characters, and swoon-worthy romance, this third book will enthrall readers from start to finish.

That's it for me, Smithies!  It's been real, it's been fun, so I guess that means it's been real fun; I'll miss you!  Play the video to hear my official exit music - as you listen, imagine me walking away, putting on sunglasses as something explodes behind me.  Or driving fast cars.  Or whatever.

Alyssa out.

March: The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson

This is a redesigned American cover, which is the edition we're handing out.  Which to you prefer?

Crazy February weather we've had, am I right?! Sorry the last meeting was cancelled.  But don't worry - if you're DYING to discuss February's romantic read, My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick, you're still in luck, because we'll discuss February's book, as well March's book (The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson) at our next meeting on March 6th!

However, if all that gooey Valentine's stuff has left you feeling MURDEROUS, you're still in luck! (Unless you've gone an murdered someone.  This won't help with that.)

Our next book, The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson, is a mystery/thriller set in London.  Read the synopsis below:

The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson

Jack the Ripper is back, and he's coming for Rory next.... 

Earlier American editions
had this pic for cover art.
Which do you like better?

Louisiana teenager Rory Deveaux arrives in London to start a new life at boarding school just as a series of brutal murders mimicking the horrific Jack the Ripper killing spree of more than a century ago has broken out across the city. The police are left with few leads and no witnesses. Except one. Rory spotted the man believed to be the prime suspect. But she is the only one who saw him - the only one who can see him. And now Rory has become his next target...unless she can tap her previously unknown abilities to turn the tables.

I've already finished reading it because I could not put it down.  If the synopsis didn't convince you, trust me;  IT.  IS.  SO.  CREEPY.

Check back here on the blog - I've got some special posts with history about Jack the Ripper and other cool extras!  And don't forget to come to the meeting on March 6th at 7pm.

Book trailer goodness below.

Romantic February Read! My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

That's right, our next book is romantic.  Teen book club will get you in the mood for lurrrrve just in time for Valentine's Day with our next book, My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick.  Here's a synopsis:

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

"One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts. All the time."

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, messy, affectionate. And every day from her rooftop perch, Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs up next to her and changes everything.

As the two fall fiercely for each other, stumbling through the awkwardness and awesomeness of first love, Jase's family embraces Samantha - even as she keeps him a secret from her own. Then something unthinkable happens, and the bottom drops out of Samantha's world. She's suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?

A transporting debut about family, friendship, first romance, and how to be true to one person you love without betraying another.

Well dern, they're practically a modern-day Romeo and Juliet.  Let's hope their story ends better...

We'll discuss the book - however it ends - on Thursday, February 6th at 6pm for our next meeting.  See you then!

Meeting Tonight!

AAAAaaannnndd we're back!  Happy new year, Smithies, and welcome back to book club!  Kick off the new year in the best way possible - book club meeting!  Tonight we'll be meeting to discuss Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck, and (IMPORTANT) we'll be meeting in the teen room, instead of the usual spot of the lobby, at 6pm.  Be there like shareware!

In case all the fruitcake and Christmas cookies went to your head, here's a reminder of what Tiger's Curse is about:

Passion. Fate. Loyalty.

Would you risk it all to change your destiny? 

The last thing Kelsey Hayes thought she’d be doing this summer was trying to break a 300-year-old Indian curse. With a mysterious white tiger named Ren. Halfway around the world. But that’s exactly what happened. Face-to-face with dark forces, spellbinding magic, and mystical worlds where nothing is what it seems, Kelsey risks everything to piece together an ancient prophecy that could break the curse forever.

Blam-o.  See you tonight at 6pm in the teen room!

January: Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck

Looking for something to read over Christmas Break?  Grab the tiger by the tail and get to reading our book for January:

Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck

Passion. Fate. Loyalty.

Would you risk it all to change your destiny? 

The last thing Kelsey Hayes thought she’d be doing this summer was trying to break a 300-year-old Indian curse. With a mysterious white tiger named Ren. Halfway around the world. But that’s exactly what happened. Face-to-face with dark forces, spellbinding magic, and mystical worlds where nothing is what it seems, Kelsey risks everything to piece together an ancient prophecy that could break the curse forever.

And if all of that's not enough, the guy in this book is totes dreamy.

We didn't have copies of this book to hand out at the last meeting, but we do now!  Come to the teen room reference desk to sign up and claim your copy.  We have a few library copies and an audiobook available to check out!  I'll see you at the meeting on January 9th, 6pm @SPL!  

Now check out this sweet book trailer for Tiger's Curse:

December Highlights: SKYPE-tacular!

Sarah Maas with the German cover for Throne of Glass!  Celaena's wearing some sweet threads, no?  Photo credit: magazin.dtv.de

So last weekend's weather was a little bit incredibly intense (Winter-pocalypse 2013!)...

Fortunately, Skype still works in bad weather, so we still got to talk with Throne of Glass and Crown of Midnight author Sarah Maas during our meeting last Thursday (the weather was fine in California, apparently)!

In case the ice kept you away from the library, here are some highlights from our conversation with Sarah:

• She started out writing fanfiction: Sarah didn't start out writing bestselling books.  Back in the day, she wrote fanfiction for fun - even mash-up fanfiction about, for example, Harry Potter with Sailor Moon!  "It was terrible!" she says.  Read some fanfiction on the site Sarah used to post hers:  Fanfiction.net

• She started writing Throne of Glass at 16!: She had the idea while watching Cinderella - the music was so dramatic when Cinderella runs away from the ball, it sounded almost as if she had done something criminal.  "So I started thinking, 'What could she have actually done that would deserve being chased from the ball like that?'"  Like... try to assassinate someone?  Hm... 

• Throne of Glass had tons of fans before it was even published:  Before it was called Throne of Glass, Celaena's story was titled Queen of Glass and was posted on a website called Fictionpress.com, where people can publish original works of fiction online.  At one point, Queen of Glass was the most read story on the website!  "It was my refuge," says Sarah.

Unofficial cover art.

• Cool background info on the Crown of Midnight cover art:  Sarah says that Celaena was originally illustrated as being craaaaazy thin on the cover art for Crown of Midnight, and Sarah took a stand to have her illustrated at a healthier weight (is Sarah awesome or what?!).  Besides being an unhealthy image for teens, she says, it's also untrue to Celaena's character*!  

• She's working on a new series: Aside from working the Throne of Glass series, Sarah's working on a new series called A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES.  It's a retelling of Beauty and the Beast in which the character Beauty is a huntress.  It's for an age group a little older than teens called "New Adult", and it'll be out in Winter 2015!  For more info on the story, click here; for more info on this series, click here; to read a snippet, click here.

• Check out her new online project, The Starkillers Cycle!:  After some vacation-fueled brainstorming, Sarah and her BFF, Susan Dennard (author of the Something Strange and Deadly YA series - visit Susan's website here), have started a collaborative work of fiction that will live online and can be read on the series' tumblr.  Titled The Starkillers Cycle, it's a type of sci-fi called a space opera (think Star Wars, kinda); read the authors' intro and disclaimer about content, then read the first chapter (also this hilarious interview with the two of them).

• WE GOT SOME INFO ON Throne of Glass BOOK #3!!:  ... very little info, though.  No, she didn't tell us the title of Book #3, but we now know that it will have three narratives following three different storylines: one for Celaena, one for Chaol and Dorian, and one for a new character - someone who is connected with the Iron Witch Clan of the Western Wastes.  Remember Yellowlegs, the witch with iron teeth in Crown of Midnight?  Oh yeah.  THOSE Iron Witches.

• She's got some book recommendations: Looking for something to read until Sarah's next book is out?  She's got some suggestions:  Sabriel by Garth Nix, Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta (Sarah told us the hilarious story of when she met the author... and got a little too excited: "I was crying hysterically"), Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo, and, of course, the Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien (she went to all see all the movies at midnight when they came out - and dressed up. As who?  "Eowyn!").

A ginormous THANK YOU to Sarah for skyping with us!!  We got so much good info and insight into her inspirations, being a writer and her new projects (I'm definitely checking out both of them)! ... although I'm such a fan of this series that she could have just read aloud from the phone book and I'd still call the meeting a win.

Did you enjoy Crown of Midnight, and are you looking forward to Sarah's next projects?  Are you a fan of fanfiction, or a writer yourself?  Let us know in the comments!

* So why wouldn't Celaena be super-skinny, as she was first illustrated for the Crown of Midnight cover art?  Celaena was malnourished as a slave in Endovier in Throne of Glass, and if there's something Celaena DOES NOT LIKE, it's slavery.  Being skinny was a reminder of her time as a slave, so she's unlikely to have stayed that way on purpose once she was freed!

A Real-Life Crown of Midnight

The Midnight Tiara.

While you're finishing up reading Crown of Midnight for tomorrow's skype sesh with Sarah Maas, chew on this:  there's a real, non-fictional "crown of midnight"!

More specifically, it's a tiara of midnight - the Midnight Tiara, worn by Crown Princess Mary of the royal Danish court*.  Don't be fooled by the twigs, leaves and berries: this tiara's 31 flower buds are made of over 1,300 small diamond brilliants and polished moonstones, and its leaves and branches are hand graved in 18 carat rose gold, white gold, and black oxidized silver (nope, none of that creepy black substance from the Crown of Midnight novel). The colors are meant to look like a starry moonlit sky at midnight, hence the name "the Midnight Tiara."



Crown Princess Mary wearing the Midnight Tiara with matching earrings and broach.

*Call me immature, but this is what I think of

 every time I read "Royal Danish Court". Mm,

 danishes.

It was designed by Charlotte Lynggaard of the jewel firm Ole Lynggaard, a jeweler to the Danish royal court.  It's a more modern-looking tiara, and it has an unusual, modern ownership deal; instead of the Danish royal court owning the tiara, the jewel firm, Ole Lynggaard, retains ownership of the tiara, but Princess Mary is the only person allowed to borrow it from them. It's a pretty sweet deal - Princess Mary gets another cool tiara to wear, and Ole Lynggaard gets publicity.  The tiara even has a matching broach and earrings - fashion win!

That's it for now!  Don't forget to come to tomorrow's meeting (6pm @ SPL) to skype with Sarah Maas herself (tiaras are optional).  Have your questions for Sarah ready - see you then!