Looking for a historical novel set in Paris around the WWII years?

If so, you have plenty to choose from. Most are set during the war, with some extending to just before or after.  These covers have a noticeable element in common, too.

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Cover for THE MANIC PIXIE DREAM BOY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT!

The cover of my forthcoming novel was revealed last week, and I neglected to put it on this neglected blog, so I shall remedy that now!

Isn't it magnificent? The cover designer, Emily Harris, really captures the fun energy of the book. I love how she included the glass-shard hearts as they actually appear in a few scenes.

Here's a short summary:

Riley lives in TropeTown, where everyone plays stock roles in novels. Riley, a Manic Pixie Dream Boy, is sent to group therapy after going off-script. Riley knows that breaking the rules again could get him terminated, yet he feels there must be more to life than recycling the same cliches for readers' entertainment. Then he meets Zelda, a Manic Pixie Dream Girl (Geek Chic subtype), and falls head over heels in love. Zelda's in therapy too, along with several other Manic Pixies. But TropeTown has a dark secret, and if Riley and his fellow Manic Pixies don't get to the bottom of it, they may all be terminated.


Sound good? It comes out on March 5, 2019 from Carolrhoda Lab/Lerner but you can already:

Add to your goodreads
Preorder from indiebound
Preorder from B&N
Preorder from amazon

Let me know what you think! 

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Liz's Lists #4: Books on My Birthday Wishlist

Well I haven't done this feature in...over three years. (I forget that I have been blogging for a really long time.) Anyway, it's my birthday at the end of February (I feel so old), and as as result, I have been putting together a bookish wishlist for myself. That definitely counts as list-making, so please see below for all the books on my birthday wishlist!

[All images from Goodreads. Clicking on the image will take you to the book's Goodreads page]

There are more books, of course, but I've picked the ones I'd be most excited to read. So there you have it. Have you read any of these? Are there any books you recommend I add to my list?

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The Princess Diaries - New Covers and Series Appreciation

You may or may not know that I am a huge The Princess Diaries fan. Huge. The Princess Diaries was one of the first YA books I ever read and it's pretty much the reason why I now have a massive collection of YA and can't stop buying more books. To celebrate the series' 15th birthday (I feel so old) and the release of the new middle-grade spin off series AND the new adult The Princess Diaries book, Royal Wedding (which I am very excited to read - review coming soon), Macmillan has redesigned all the covers of the series, so I thought I'd do a side by side comparison and share it with you all!

I apologise for my photography - I have as much skill as a llama on wheels

So here you can see the new cover of book one (left) and the old covers for the entire series. I have to say, the old covers will always have a place in my heart, but I do really like the new ones too! I only have the first book in the new cover so far, but here's what they look like together:

Image courtesy of Macmillan

Aren't they pretty? I love the colours, and the faces the model makes on each book. Mia has always been a bit awkward so I think having awkward faces on the covers is brilliant and lets you know that the book is going to be funny (these books are hilarious - if you have not read them, I can't even tell you how much you're missing out). It looks like the books have been renamed too, and I think the new titles match the actual content of each book a bit more (though the old ones made it really easy to know which number book in the series you were reading). The new covers of books 1-3 are out July 2nd, and the new covers of books 4-5 are out August 27th. To find out more, and to see the rest of the new covers, click here.

Here's a direct comparison of the first books (ignore the "only 99p" mark on the old cover. There's a story about that - and about how I first came to love The Princess Diaries series - which you can read here). Very different, but honestly, I adore both. My old cover is very well loved (you can't see the pages but if you could, you'd be able to tell I've read that book many, many times) and the gold is a bit scratched up from when it's been taken off the shelf and reshelved lots of time. I think the old cover is still appealing - great font, a crown on the front, nice colour scheme - but the new one is a bit more modern and will appeal to younger people today more than the old cover. It's also more representative of what actually happens in the book - Mia's surprise at learning she's a princess (whereas the old cover just has a bunch of bottles of random cosmetics on it - and while I still love it, it's doesn't really tell you much).

Here's my entire collection! Ahh it's making me feel nostalgic. I remember waiting for books 9 and 10 to be released (on the right). I'm still pretty annoyed they're not the same size as the rest of my books as well, but I've learnt to live with it! :P. I feel a reread of this series coming on soon... And if you're wondering what those books at the top of the photo are, well, see below:

When I said I was a huge fan, I meant it. The four books at the bottom are novellas that were never released in the UK, so I bought the US editions. And the the large book at the top is a yearbook (from 2008!) that I *think* my mum may have bought for me (honestly, I can't remember, though it'd be fitting if she did, as she bought me the first TPD book and is why I got hooked on the series). I even had that flowery background as my wallpaper on my phone for years (it was a freebie from Meg Cabot's website if I remember correctly) and I used to constantly browse the Meg Cabot Message Boards as well. I was a little bit obsessed, if truth be told.

Now, I'm an adult (just about), and while I haven't read these books in a while, I still look back on them fondly, and I'm pretty sure that when I do eventually read them again, I will love them as much as I always did. So I'm sharing my collection with you, and hopefully you will be as excited as I am for these new covers, and the two new series that have just been released! My review of Royal Wedding should be coming soon, so keep an eye out for that if you're interested.

I hope you enjoyed this post, and please please please, if you've never read The Princess Diaries series before, pick it up. It's so fun and hilarious and a perfect set of books to read in the summer.

(P.S. If you're really old school, you may remember the old old covers of TPD series that looked like this:

Image from Amazon UK

I never had these covers, but remember seeing them in the library. They were redesigned to the gold crown style before the series was finished though - so I'm sort of glad I never had these ones, even though they're really cute, because the later books in the series wouldn't have matched the earlier books at all and that would have been a travesty.)

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Cover Reveal: Endsinger by Jay Kristoff + Giveaway

Time to reveal the cover for ENDSINGER, the last book in the Lotus War trilogy that began with STORMDANCER. 

Breathtaking, isn't it?!

Jay just informed me which chapter contains animal death in KINSLAYER (commence ripping out of chapter 52 ...), so now I can finally get caught up on this series in time for the ENDSLINGER release date of Sept. 23rd!

THE JACKET COPY:

A TREMBLING EARTH
The flames of civil war sweep across the Shima Imperium. With their plans to renew the Kazumitsu dynasty foiled, the Lotus Guild unleash their deadliest creation—a mechanical goliath known as the Earthcrusher, intended to unite the shattered Empire under a yoke of fear. With the Tiger Clan and their puppet Daimyo Hiro in tow, the Guild marches toward a battle for absolute dominion over the Isles.

A BROKEN REBELLION
Yukiko and Buruu are forced to take leadership of the Kagé rebellion, gathering new allies and old friends in an effort to unite the country against the chi-mongers. But the ghosts of Buruu’s past stand between them and the army they need, and Kin’s betrayal has destroyed all trust among their allies. When a new foe joins the war tearing the Imperium apart, it will be all the pair can do to muster the strength to fight, let alone win.

A FINAL BATTLE
The traitor Kin walks the halls of Guild power, his destiny only a bloody knife-stroke away. Hana and Yoshi struggle to find their place in a world now looking to them as heroes. Secret cabals within the Lotus Guild claw and struggle; one toward darkness, the other toward light. And as the earth splits asunder, as armies destroy each other for rule over an empire of lifeless ash and the final secret about blood lotus is revealed, the people of Shima will learn one last, horrifying truth.

There is nothing a mother won't do to keep her children by her side.

Nothing.

GIVEAWAY: 

For a chance to win some kick-ass prizes including the signed trilogy (all three books in hardcover + extras!!) and a hug from Jay, head over to Jay's website and answer the following question:

4. Name the guildsman who betrayed the rebellion at the end of Kinslayer.

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Cover Reveal: Promise of Shadows by Justina Ireland

Have you read VENGEANCE BOUND yet?  I have, and it rocks.  So I was super excited to learn that Justina Ireland has a new book coming out next year (March 11, 2014 to be exact) and that is about a Harpy, one of my favorite mythological creatures. 

Check out this premise:

Zephyr Mourning has never been very good at being a Harpy. She'd rather watch reality TV than learn forty-seven ways to kill a man, and she pretty much sucks at wielding magic. Zephyr was ready for a future pretending to be a normal human instead of a half-god assassin. But all that changes when her sister is murdered--and she uses a forbidden dark power to save herself from the same fate. 

Zephyr is on the run from a punishment worse than death when an unexpected reunion with a childhood friend (a surprisingly HOT friend) changes everything. Because it seems like Zephyr might just be the Nyx, a dark goddess made flesh that is prophesied to change the power balance. For hundreds of years the half-gods have lived in fear, and Zephyr is supposed to change that. 

But how is she supposed to save everyone when she can’t even save herself?

And now, check out the stunning cover:

Here's what Justina has to say about the cover:

My editor asked me what I wanted for the cover and I said "A really cool one."

Not helpful.

So I told her I really liked font-driven covers. She gave that to the designer, Lucy Ruth Cummins, and they came up with this lovely thing.

Awesome! Go ahead, put PROMISE OF SHADOWS on your Goodreads shelf, and visit Justina's website for more info on her books.

What do you think about the cover?

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Cover Reveal: Kinslayer by Jay Kristoff + giveaway

You may remember how much I enjoyed STORMDANCER - so obvs I'm pumped for KINSLAYER and this cover reveal.

The following summary of KINSLAYER has spoilers for STORMDANCER so read at your own risk:

A SHATTERED EMPIRE  

The mad Shōgun Yoritomo has been assassinated by the Stormdancer Yukiko, and the threat of civil war looms over the Shima Imperium. The Lotus Guild conspires to renew the nation’s broken dynasty and crush the growing rebellion simultaneously - by endorsing a new Shōgun who desires nothing more than to see Yukiko dead. 

A DARK LEGACY 

Yukiko and the mighty thunder tiger Buruu have been cast in the role of heroes by the Kagé rebellion. But Yukiko herself is blinded by rage over her father’s death, and her ability to hear the thoughts of beasts is swelling beyond her power to control. Along with Buruu, Yukiko’s anchor is Kin, the rebel Guildsman who helped her escape from Yoritomo’s clutches. But Kin has his own secrets, and is haunted by visions of a future he’d rather die than see realized.

A GATHERING STORM 

Kagé assassins lurk within the Shōgun’s palace, plotting to end the new dynasty before it begins. A waif from Kigen’s gutters begins a friendship that could undo the entire empire. A new enemy gathers its strength, readying to push the fracturing Shima imperium into a war it cannot hope to survive. And across raging oceans, amongst islands of black glass, Yukiko and Buruu will face foes no katana or talon can defeat. The ghosts of a blood-stained past.

The US cover:

The UK cover:

Jay is also doing a quiz! So if you answer my question over at his blog, you just might win something incredibly fabulous. 

3. What kind of animal is Buruu?

Want a chance to read KINSLAYER early? Enter via this form by May 29, 2013 at 11:59 pm CST. US only.

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Cover Reveal! The Memory of After by Lenore Appelhans

Today I have something very special …  I get to announce the new title and paperback cover of LEVEL 2.

Going forward, LEVEL 2 will now be known as THE MEMORY OF AFTER, and the sequel, LEVEL 3, will know be known as CHASING BEFORE.

So, introducing THE MEMORY OF AFTER ….

I love it! Don’t you? I'm especially in love with the type and the sleek, almost high-fashion design. Fun fact: This photo is from the same photo shoot as the LEVEL 2 cover.

Now I know you’re probably asking yourself – why the title change?

Sometimes, you just don’t get the title right the first time. I still love the title LEVEL 2, but once it was on the shelves, we started getting a lot of the same feedback - customers thought it was a sequel because of the numeral 2 in the title.

I get it. If I only glanced at a book in the store and saw a 2, I might think “Oh, I haven’t read the first one … what else is there?”

So - the amazing team at Simon & Schuster went back to the drawing board and put together this exciting redesign. I can’t stress enough how supportive everyone has been there and I’m thrilled that they believe so much in this book.

THE MEMORY OF AFTER will be available in paperback on September 3, 2013 and will include an excerpt of the sequel, CHASING BEFORE as well as the cross section illustration of a Level Two hive.

And yes, this means that LEVEL 2 hardcovers and swag are going to be collectors items :D  You can get both on my April US tour (coming to Atlanta, Houston, NYC, Beloit, Wisconsin, St Louis, Kansas City and Chicago) - all tour details here.

Also, starting next week (April 15th) THE MEMORY OF AFTER is a complimentary full read for Pulseit members, so if you haven’t joined yet, and want to read the novel for free, get on over there and sign up for the site!

Tell me what you think! And thanks for spreading the word.

If you have any questions, I'll be answering them in the comments all day.

Add THE MEMORY OF AFTER to Goodreads

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