This Time I Won’t Forget The Title
[First time I posted this, I forgot to include the title for the post. Duh. Writer needs caffeine, badly.]
Lots of goodies!
First, SHADES OF GRAY will be hitting the shelves in the US in two weeks. Rah! Here’s what people are saying about it:
“The dynamic duo of Kessler and Kittredge join forces again to deliver a fresh take on the complex relationship between heroes and villains. Told in alternating chapters from the perspectives of various protagonists, the story also explores events from the past and present. Both authors each speak for a variety of characters, and this skillful blending of styles breathes life into each character by providing insight into their fears, dreams and true motives. Two storytellers at the top of their craft!”
4.5 stars — RT magazine
“An excellent hero story with wonderful characters and a story that will break your heart.”
4 bookies — Book Lovers Inc.
“Jackie Kessler and Caitlin Kittredge have hit it out of the ballpark with SHADES OF GRAY. Friendships, families and betrayal–the classic tropes of any superhero story–make up the core of a terrific original novel that delves into the history and hints at the future of the Icarus Project, a superhuman enterprise run by the subtly dangerous Corp-Co. A must-read for anybody who’s ever spent a few hours lost in a comic book world.”
— C.E. Murphy
On June 22, 2010, I’ll be reading and signing copies of SHADES OF GRAY at Flights of Fantasy, in Colonie, NY, starting at 7 pm. I’d love to see you there!
Next, I’ll be posting chapter 3 of HELL TO PAY tomorrow morning. Be sure to check it out. I’ll also have a post over at the Deadline Dames. (No idea what it will be about!) I also have a dentist appointment tomorrow, but you don’t really care about that.
I started writing LOSS, the third Horseman book, this weekend. Sort of experimental. But in a good way. (She typed confidently.) Got a sneak peek of a cover comp for RAGE. It’s fabulous. Fingers crossed it will be the final cover.
Also, fellow Reluctant Adult Mario Acevedo interviewed author Juliet Blackwell on his blog (shared with the fabulous Jeanne Stein). Go see!
Some of the books that are out now:
DEMON HUNTS by CE. Murphy – fifth book in The Walker Papers
MY SOUL TO KEEP by Rachel Vincent – third book in the Soul Screamers YA series by my fella Deadline Dame
RAISED BY WOLVES by Jennifer Lynn Barnes – first in a new werewolf series
BLOOD SONG by Cat Adams – first book in the Bloodsinger series by the dynamic duo of Cathy Clamp and Cie Adams
Coming this week: A Post Mortem interview and, hopefully, a Cat and Muse interview. (Promise! Sorta.)
And now it’s time to get the Precious Little Tax Deductions to bed.
All sorts of things
This is a catch-all post, because I’m in the middle of packing for Disney. (Woot!)
First: The first chapter of HELL TO PAY is up and running. Check it out if you haven’t yet.
Second: Lots of terrific new books now available, including…
MAGIC BLEEDS: Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews
MOON SWORN: A Riley Jenson Guardian Novel by Keri Arthur
GLIMMERGLASS by Jenna Black — debut YA novel!!!
WEB OF LIES: Elemental Assassin series by Jennifer Estep
EARLY TO DEATH, EARLY TO RISE: Madison Avery by Kim Harrison
UNHOLY GHOSTS: Downside series by Stacia Kane — new urban fantasy series!!!
DAEMON’S MARK: Nocturne City series by Caitlin Kittredge
CHEAT THE GRAVE: Sign of the Zodiac series by Vicki Pettersson
DEMON PRINCESS: REIGN CHECK by Michelle Rowen
Third: Speaking of the fabulous Michelle Rowen — who did the cover for HELL TO PAY — there’s an all-new Cat and Muse interview between Jezebel and Darrak, the demon star of Michelle’s newest par-rom, THE DEMON IN ME. (Don’t mind the sidebar, which still lists Rob Thurman’s photo and info; I’m having some technical difficulties. These things happen when you tend to write about demons.)
Outta here! Off to see the Mouse!
Life Post-LOST
So I stayed up insanely late watching the end of LOST. And I woke up insanely early because I had a dream about LOST. That happens to me — whenever I find a story that I love, whether it’s a book or, apparently, a television show, I dream new scenes about those stories. Dream fic, I guess. LOST definitely left its impression on me. It quickly went from Survivor Meets Cast Away to something unique…possibly even profound.
I’m still processing everything. And I’m sure that after I buy the series Blu-Ray set in August and I watch the entire series again, I’ll be even more enchanted with the show. I’m thrilled it ended the way it did — the major plots nicely tied up, with enough left open for interpretation that I’m sure people will be discussing it for a long, long time.
(Open Message To Television Producers: After Heroes and Desperate Housewives and Lost, I hope it’s become very clear that you cannot have a child as an ongoing member of an ensemble show — especially one that’s supposed to take place over three months but is filmed over more than three years. Remember: children GROW. Quickly. So you’ll have to either ship off the character to some relative or other, or fast-forward your series five years so that the child has aged appropriately.)
So…what are we supposed to do on Tuesdays now that LOST is done?
I know — read an online serial novel!
Last week, I officially launched HELL TO PAY, the fourth Hell on Earth book. It’s free, it’s online, and it’s serialized. Every Tuesday, until the last Tuesday in December 2010, I’ll post a new chapter. (The entire book is already written, so I know exactly how long it is.)
Here’s the cover, designed by the amazing Michelle Rowen:
The Prologue is already up; chapter one will be online tomorrow.
(Okay, no, it’s not Josh Holloway without a shirt. But hey, if Hell were ever to be a movie, I’d see what I could do about getting him to play Paul.)
RT 2010 photos, part 3
After a FIREFLY- and SERENITY-filled weekend (happy Mother’s Day, indeed!) for me, it’s back to blogging…with more RT photos! We were up to Thursday, methinks.
(But first…Loving Husband saw Tax Deduction the Elder’s new library book: SNAKES. So Loving Husband immediately makes a paper airplane, which he places on the kitchen counter…and then drops SNAKES on the plane. I’m jealous I didn’t think of it first.)
My fella Deadline Dame, the amazing Keri Arthur, all the way from Australia.
Stacey Kade and me, setting up for the ginormous YA panel, where we talked about “YA that goes bump in the night.” Now, please appreciate the fact that in between panels, I was writing a paranormal romance short story, which included much sexual tension that led to a big ol’ nookie scene. So I arrived at the panel with “bump in the night” meaning something very different than we actually talked about. Anyway. Don’t you love my Vlad Tod tee? I have the **best** critique partner!
Stacey and me again. See my spiffy HUNGER ARC there in the corner? I gave that copy to Holly Black, who was on the panel with us, and who shares a fantabulous cover artist with me.
More YA panelists: Carrie Ryan, Jennifer Lynn Barnes, and Heather Brewer. It really was a terrific panel.
Okay, then there was much feverish writing, and room service for lunch. (Hey, when you’re on deadline, you pull all stops.) After that was the RT Awards. A few of my friends (Michelle Rowen and Dakota Cassidy, to name two) won this year (yeah!!!), and I was there to see it all. Michelle was gracious, and Dakota totally rocked when her award suffered a wardrobe malfunction. And the lovely Shannon K. Butcher made me all weepy when she gave her acceptance speech. I tried to take a picture of the awards, but my camera decided to go the ghost-story route:
I know — spooky, right?
After the awards, Heather and I dropped off our book-filled tote bags in our room and then waited for an elevator. While waiting, we bumped into MaryJanice Davidson and Michelle Rowen (fresh from her award win).
Notice how MJ has a cup of caffeine in her hand. Caffeine is a must at RT.
Yes, that’s me, dressed in my finery for that night’s Faery Ball. (What? My blouse had flowers on it. That counts.) And Heather was already dressed for it. Her outfit rocked! I love the wings, and my God, her waist is TINY.
So then there was the Bookseller Event, co-hosted by me and 15 other YA paranormal authors (Kelley Armstrong, Jennifer Lynn Barnes, Holly Black, Heather Brewer, Ally Carter, Shannon Delany, Caitlin Kittredge, Stacey Kade, Melissa Marr, Richelle Mead, Michelle Rowen, Carrie Ryan, Jeri Smith-Ready, and Rachel Vincent). The wonderful Mari Mancusi had started organizing everything, but then she went and got married or something, so she wasn’t able to make it to RT. (Where are her priorities, I ask you?) The 97 booksellers and librarians who attended got a tote bag stuffed with books and ARCs (and a Vlad Tod tee), and they went from table to table, having us sign them (the books and ARCs, not body parts). I got to talk about HUNGER, which was a lot of fun. And then there was chocolate. 
Faery Ball time!
Blake, decked out in red.
Richelle Mead, on the Faery Court. I tried getting a better shot of her that showed her amazing outfit, but them fae don’t seem to like my camera so much.
See?
The lovely Fire Fae, Cheyenne McCray. (Hey, that rhymes!)
Two more terrific Fire Fae, Cathy Clamp and Stacia Kane.
The lovely Jeanne Stein. Check out the wings!
Caitlin Kittredge, rocking that fabulous green dress. Her hair was in an updo, which you can’t really see in this picture.
Diana Rowland, Heather Brewer, and Kat Richardson, doing the corset thing.
There was a vendor on site, an artist, who was TOTALLY into Diana. He asked her to pose for him. Diana, being an accommodating sort, agreed.
Backspace reunion! Alexandra Sokoloff and Heather Brewer, outside of the Faery Ball.
Diana and the multi-talented F. Paul Wilson. (What do you mean, you didn’t see Paul starring as Edward Cullens?)
Deadline Dames Do RT! From left to right: Keri Arthur, me, Miriam Kriss, Rachel Vincent, Devon Monk, Jenna Black. Other Dames, who couldn’t make it to RT: Toni Andrews, Rinda Elliott, Karen Mahoney and Lili Saintcrow.
Another Backspace reunion! Me and Joe Konrath, drinking after the Faery Ball. Note Joe’s butterfly wings.
Later, I’ll tackle Friday and Saturday photos.
Achtung, baby!
And now…my German covers! (Many thanks to Lyx for publishing the Hell books and Black and White!)
Hell’s Belles, German-style. I believe the literal translation is “Succubus In Trouble.” And that defines Jezebel to a T. Love the cover! (August 2010)
The Road to Hell, German-style. “A One-Way Ticket To Hell.” Yep, that about covers it. Love this one too. (December 2010)
Black and White, German-style. Words cannot convey how much I adore this cover. It’s fabulous. (July 2010)
