Everything Happening With Riveted by Simon Teen @ BookCon 2018

May 22, 2018

It’s that time of year again, friends–BookCon is almost here! Here’s a comprehensive schedule of all our Riveted by Simon Teen activity this year (you can find a graphic version to download here). Don’t forget to follow us @SimonTeen and the hashtag #getriveted on Twitter for up-to-the minute news and content from our authors at BookCon. See you soon!

Everything Happening With Riveted by Simon Teen @ BookCon 2018

Saturday, June 2

Show floor opens 10:00 a.m.

10:00 a.m. Shadowhunter Army recruitment event
Booth #1738/1739, Shadowhunter Army alcove
Attendees will receive a deluxe tote bag, enamel pin, and a Queen of Air and Darkness chapter sampler when they sign up for the Shadowhunter Army newsletter (while supplies last). The first 60 attendees will receive a Magnus Bane plush.

10:45 – 11:30 a.m. PANEL – Dangerous Characters and Dangerous Themes: Facing the True Danger in Novels
Room 1E14
Charlaine Harris, Neal Shusterman, and Holly Black

11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Riveted by Simon Teen Carnival
Meeting room behind Booth #1738/1739
Play carnival games to win ARCs, swag, and raffle tickets!

11:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Selfies & Iced Coffee Meet & Greet with Mary H.K. Choi (Emergency Contact) and Sandhya Menon (From Twinkle, With Love)
Booth #1738/1739, Riveted by Simon Teen alcove
Come meet Mary H.K. Choi and Sandhya Menon and get an iced coffee to perk you up!

11:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. SIGNING – Sandhya Menon (From Twinkle, With Love)
Booth #1738/1739, Riveted by Simon Teen alcove
From Twinkle, With Love and When Dimple Met Rishi will be available for purchase in booth.

12:00 p.m. Shadowhunter Army Tattoos
Booth #1738/1739, Shadowhunter Army alcove
Get a rune tattoo to show off your membership in the Shadowhunter Army (first come, first serve)! (Note: There will be no giveaway items available at tattoo events. Attend a Shadowhunter Army recruitment event to receive deluxe swag.)

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. SIGNING – Charlaine Harris (Easy Death)
Autographing Area, Table 10
Ticketed signing. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. SIGNING – Neal Shusterman & Jarrod Shusterman (Dry)
Autographing Area, Table 9
Ticketed signing, purchase of Scythe or Thunderhead required. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

12:30 p.m. – 1:15 p.m. PANEL – Love Them More: Taye Diggs and Shane Evans with Jason Reynolds (Long Way Down) moderating
Room 1E10

12:45 p.m. – 1:45 p.m. PANEL – Cassandra Clare: The Dark Artifices discussion
Main Stage
Moderated by Kelly Link.

1:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. SIGNING – Kiersten White (Slayer)
Booth #1738/1739, Riveted by Simon Teen alcove
Kiersten White will be signing samplers of Slayer (Spring 2019).

2:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Ice Cream Meet & Greet with Morgan Matson (Save the Date), Jenny Han (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before), and Siobhan Vivian (Stay Sweet)
Booth #1738/1739, Riveted by Simon Teen alcove
Come meet Morgan Matson, Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian and get a sweet treat!

2:15 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. PANEL – Magic and Power
Main Stage
Cassandra Clare, Veronica Roth, Brandon Sanderson, Tomi Adeyemi and Marissa Meyer.

3:00 p.m. Riveted by Simon Teen carnival raffle drawing
Booth #1738/1739, Riveted by Simon Teen alcove

3:00 p.m. Shadowhunter Army recruitment event
Booth #1738/1739, Shadowhunter Army alcove
Attendees will receive a deluxe tote bag, enamel pin, and a Queen of Air and Darkness chapter sampler when they sign up for the Shadowhunter Army newsletter (while supplies last). The first 60 attendees will receive a Magnus Bane plush.

3:00 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. PANEL – Social Justice Warriors: Redefining Youthful Rebellion
Room 1E10
Jason Reynolds, Jacqueline Woodson, Angie Thomas, and DeRay Mckesson.

4:00 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. PANEL – Heartthrobs Unite! Romance Writing Comes to Life
Room 1E10
Morgan Matson, Siobhan Vivian, Colleen Hoover, Mary H.K. Choi, and Kami Garcia.

4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. SIGNING – Cassandra Clare (The Dark Artifices series)
Autographing Area, Table 4
Ticketed signing, purchase of Lady Midnight or Lord of Shadows, or a pre-order of Queen of Air and Darkness required. Queen of Air and Darkness chapter samplers available for giveaway at signing. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. SIGNING – Jason Reynolds (Long Way Down)
Autographing Area, Table 8
Ticketed signing, purchase of Long Way Down, Sunny, For Every One, or All American Boys required. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. SIGNING – Morgan Matson (Save the Date)
Autographing Area, Table 3
Ticketed signing, purchase of Save the Date required. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. SIGNING – Siobhan Vivian (Stay Sweet)
Autographing Area, Table 2
Ticketed signing, purchase of Stay Sweet required. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. SIGNING – Mary H.K. Choi (Emergency Contact)
Autographing Area, Table 9
Ticketed signing, purchase of Emergency Contact required. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

Show floor closes 6:00 p.m.

Sunday, June 3
Show floor opens 10:00 a.m.

10:15 a.m. – 11:00 p.m. PANEL – We Need Diverse Books
Room 1E10
Rebecca Roanhorse, Dhonielle Clayton, Tomi Adeyemi, Tracey Baptiste, Zoraida Cordova, and Anna- Marie McLemore

10:45 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. PANEL – Middle Grade Blowout!
Room 1E14
Rachel Renee Russell, John August, Zach King, Daniel Jose Older, and Soman Chainani (moderator).

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. SIGNING – Rebecca Roanhorse (Trail of Lightning)
Autographing Area, Table 11
Ticketed signing, finished copy giveaway of Trail of Lightning. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Riveted by Simon Teen Carnival
Meeting room behind Booth #1738/1739
Play carnival games to win ARCs, swag, and raffle tickets!

11:00 a.m. Fill Me In sampler drop
Booth #1738/1739

12:00 p.m. Shadowhunter Army Tattoos
Booth #1738/1739, Shadowhunter Army alcove
Get a rune tattoo to show off your membership in the Shadowhunter Army (first come, first serve)! (Note: No giveaway items available at tattoo events. Attend a Shadowhunter Army recruitment event to receive deluxe swag.)

12:15 p.m. – 1:15 p.m. SIGNING – Rachel Renee Russell (Dork Diaries series)
Autographing Area, Table 1
Ticketed signing. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. SIGNING – Jenny Han (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before)
Autographing Area, Table 3
Ticketed signing, purchase of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, P.S. I Still Love You, or Always and Forever, Lara Jean required. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

3:00 p.m. Riveted by Simon Teen carnival raffle drawing
Booth #1738/1739, Riveted by Simon Teen alcove

3:00 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. PANEL – Yet-to-Be: Bravery
Room 1E12/1E13/1E14
Jason Reynolds, Brendan Kiely, Kody Keplinger, and Stephanie Garber.

4:00 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. PANEL – Books-to-Film
Room 1E12/1E13/1E14
Jenny Han, Nicola Yoon, Alexandra Bracken, and David Levithan.

4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. SIGNING – Jason Reynolds (Long Way Down)
Autographing Area, Table 2
Ticketed signing, purchase of Long Way Down, Sunny, For Every One, or All American Boys required. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. SIGNING – Brendan Kiely (Tradition)
Autographing Area, Table 1
Ticketed signing, purchase of Tradition or All American Boys required. Visit the Book Con website to get tickets.

Show floor closes at 5:00 p.m.

So that’s what we’re up to @ BookCon this year! Will we see you there?

11 Things You Didn’t Know About From Twinkle With Love That We Learned from Sandhya Menon’s Twitter

March 19, 2018

Check out a list of Sandhya’s favorite female filmmakers here!

Here’s the thing about us book lovers: we love stories. And what’s better than a story? The story behind that story. So when Sandhya Menon posted a Twitter thread with 37 fun facts about her new book From Twinkle With Love (out May 22), we were here for it. These are our faves from the bunch, but check out all 37 on Sandhya’s Twitter channel.

**11 Things You Didn’t Know About From Twinkle With Love That We Learned from Sandhya Menon’s Twitter**

3. TWINKLE was originally named Kiran. But it never felt right to me. When I landed on Twinkle and ran it by my agent and editor, we all loved it and felt it was *her* name.

— Sandhya Menon (@smenonbooks) March 13, 2018

We’re so glad Sandhya changed her mind – we can’t imagine Twinkle by any other name!

8. I read a statistic about how women directors only made up 7% of the top 250 films made in 2016. And when you factor in race, that number goes even lower. Twinkle talks about this quite a bit in the book because that number is appalling.

— Sandhya Menon (@smenonbooks) March 13, 2018

9. One of my fave characters I’ve ever written is Dadi, Twinkle’s grandma. I want to be her when I turn 65.

— Sandhya Menon (@smenonbooks) March 13, 2018

Same same.

13. Another thing immigrant families struggle with: Losing family members back in the homeland and not being able to go to the funerals. I wrote about this in TWINKLE, too, and it was so hard to go there.

— Sandhya Menon (@smenonbooks) March 13, 2018

The hard emotional work was worth it – there are definitely moments when From Twinkle With Love gets you right in the gut.

16. There’s a lot of casual diversity in TWINKLE. I think it’s important to represent various marginalized identities because that represents reality.

— Sandhya Menon (@smenonbooks) March 13, 2018

Representation. Matters.

18. Twinkle herself goes through a phase where she makes very questionable choices. I knew readers might not like that, but again, she’s 16. When I was 16, I made a LOT of stupid mistakes.

— Sandhya Menon (@smenonbooks) March 13, 2018

Nobody’s perfect, and fictional characters shouldn’t be, either.

23. When I was working on the first draft, the title of this book was THE STORIES WE TOLD.

— Sandhya Menon (@smenonbooks) March 13, 2018

Awesome title, but we <3 From Twinkle With Love even more!

26. Something I wanted to do in Twinkle was address the course of a female friendship (the high and low points) in high school. It’s not always roses and sunshine, and I remember how painful it was for me when I got left behind.

— Sandhya Menon (@smenonbooks) March 13, 2018

Female friendship stories are where it’s at.

30. Twinkle talks a lot about wanting to be a voice for people just like her who don’t see themselves in the media. This came directly from all the emails/messages I’ve gotten from teens who’ve told me the same thing. ???

— Sandhya Menon (@smenonbooks) March 13, 2018

This is our favorite. Thank you, Sandhya Menon, for giving us Twinkle–her voice, her ambition, her heart. We can’t wait for everyone to read From Twinkle With Love in May!

There’s more where that came from! Read Sandhya’s entire 37-fact thread over on her Twitter channel.

Want more Twinkle-themed inspiration from Sandhya Menon? Check out her list of favorite fierce female filmmakers!

5 Must Read YA Books that Went On Sale February 2018

Book List

March 1, 2018

The shortest month of the year is over, but not to worry, you’ve still got great books to add to your TBR!

Here’s a list of the books that went on sale in February 2018:

1. American Panda by Gloria Chao

American Panda by Gloria Chao

At seventeen, Mei should be in high school, but skipping fourth grade was part of her parents’ master plan. Now a freshman at MIT, she is on track to fulfill the rest of this predetermined future: become a doctor, marry a preapproved Taiwanese Ivy Leaguer, produce a litter of babies.

2. The Apocalypse of Elena Mendoza by Shaun David Hutchinson

The Apocalypse of Elena Mendoza by Shaun David Hutchinson

Sixteen-year-old Elena Mendoza is the product of a virgin birth.

This can be scientifically explained (it’s called parthenogenesis), but what can’t be explained is how Elena is able to heal Freddie, the girl she’s had a crush on for years, from a gunshot wound in a Starbucks parking lot. Or why the boy who shot Freddie, David Combs, disappeared from the same parking lot minutes later after getting sucked up into the clouds. What also can’t be explained are the talking girl on the front of a tampon box, or the reasons that David Combs shot Freddie in the first place.

3. The Last to Let Go by Amber Smith

The Last to Let Go by Amber Smith

A twisted tragedy leaves Brooke and her siblings on their own in this provocative new novel from the New York Timesbestselling author of The Way I Used To Be.

How do you let go of something you’ve never had?

Junior year for Brooke Winters is supposed to be about change. She’s transferring schools, starting fresh, and making plans for college so she can finally leave her hometown, her family, and her past behind.

4. The Precious Dreadful by Steven Parlato

The Precious Dreadful by Steven Parlato

Combining romance and humor with elements of the paranormal, this is a profound novel about one teenage girl’s decision to redefine her life in the wake of supernatural events.

Teddi Alder is just trying to figure out her life.

5. Nexus by Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan, and Deborah Biancotti

Nexus by Scott Westerfeld

X-Men meets Heroes when New York Times bestselling author Scott Westerfeld teams up with award-winning authors Margo Lanagan and Deborah Biancotti in the final book of an explosive trilogy about a group of teens with amazing abilities.

Pick Your Favorite Part of Spring and Get a Book Recommendation

Quizzes

We know Spring isn’t here quite yet, but we look forward to all the wonderful things spring has in store.

So, whether you prefer bike riding, the first blooms of spring, or staying indoors, tell us your favorite part of spring, and we’ll recommend a book for you.

And don’t forget to check out all the great books coming your way this spring after you take our quiz!

What Are the Swoonworthiest Shadowhunter Scenes?

February 14, 2018

Art by hauntedduckprincess

We asked and you delivered, Shadowhunter fans! We wanted to know how you ranked the swoonworthiest Shadowhunter scenes, and overwhelmingly you picked the ones below. Don’t see your favorite moment? Not to worry, there were so many on your list, we couldn’t include them all!

Art by books-are-my-life17

Art by Loweana

Art by Kassaundra Kiernan

Art by Loweana

Did your favorite moment make the list? Want to see even more swoony moments? Check out our post and add your own!

Looking for something specific? Take a look at our favorite Infernal Devices fan art, or our favorite Mortal Instruments fan art.

Congratulations to Our 2018 Award Winners!

February 12, 2018

Jason is the third author in ALA history to receive both a Newberry and Printz honor for the same book!

Congratulations to our 2018 ALA winners!

Every year, the American Library Association honors outstanding media, including books and videos for children and young adults. We’re so thrilled to congratulate these authors for the recognition of their incredible work.

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

Coretta Scott King Author Honor
Newberry Honor
Printz Honor
Odyssey Honor

Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman

Morris Award Finalist

Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali

Morris Award Finalist

Angela Johnson, Margaret A. Edwards Award Lifetime Achievement Award

Heaven by Angela Johnson

Author of Heaven, Looking for Red, The First Part Last, and Sweet, Hereafter

Roughneck by Jeff LeMire

Alex Award

An Unkindness of Magicians by Kat Howard

Alex Award

To find out more about the ALA awards, visit their website.

Everything We Know About Queen of Air and Darkness So Far

February 9, 2018

The final book in Cassandra Clare’s Dark Artifices trilogy is headed your way this December. We know you probably have a lot of questions about the newest Shadowhunters book–we certainly do!–so we scoured the Internet for all the information there is to know so far. We will keep this post updated as more updates are released, so check back to make sure you’ve got the most up-to-date scoop on what there is to know about Queen of Air and Darkness!

Before this book hits shelves on December 4th, we recommend catching up with the first two books in the series:

Then preorder your copy of Queen of Air and Darkness and submit your receipt to get a deluxe fairytale booklet!

Here’s what we know about this upcoming Shadowhunters book so far:

1. Queen of Air and Darkness will be available December 4, 2018

Queen of Air and Darkness Release Day

From what we hear, this book will change everything. If that doesn’t give you shivers of excitement (and maybe a little dread, too–we love a lot of people in the Shadowhunter world, and we are nervous for them!), we don’t know what will.

2. We know what the gorgeous cover looks like

Queen of Air and Darkness, a Shadowhunters Novel

First of all, how incredible is that photo? And second of all, where did Annabel get that dress? Is it available on Rent the Runway? Because we want it in our closet, like, NOW.

3. It’s very significant that, unlike other Shadowhunters, Annabel doesn’t have any runes…

Cassie Clare, Queen of Air and Darkness News

Okay, who’s got a theory? The crazier, the better!

4. But of course, Cassie reminds us why Annabel is the perfect fit for the cover.

5. The first edition will contain exclusive Shadowhunters content

Queen of Air and Darkness Exclusives in First Print

A Long Conversation was a short story about Jace and Clary available in special editions of the Lady Midnight hardcover. If you can’t get your hands on one of those, you can get the story by itself in e-book. And if you’ve already read it, we know you’re pumped for the sequel.

6. And here’s what we already know about the sequel to A Long Conversation.

Make sure to pre-order your copy of Queen of Air and Darkness now, so you can get your hands on this extra short story and find out what this means! (Two epilogues? What?)

7. The poem for Queen of Art and Darkness is by Edgar Allan Poe!

You can read the full poem here.

8. There’s no time jump between Lord of Shadows and Queen of Air and Darkness.

That means it could be time to re-read Lord of Shadows to refresh yourself of where it left off.

9. And with Queen of Air and Darkness being the last book of The Dark Artifices series, we can’t help but think about the closers to Cassie’s other series. But that doesn’t mean the ending won’t be any less surprising.

Cassie still has some unexpected things up her sleeve!

10. However, we are promised that the series will wrap up nicely and won’t end on a cliffhanger.

But laughter?? What could that possibly mean?

11. And we also know that the ending won’t be completely devastating.

We’ll see that grief works in interesting ways in this upcoming book and there are light moments among the dark.

12. With this final book of this series, we also know that there are some big questions that will finally be answered. Warlocks losing magic?

Check!

13. The deal with the parabatai curse?

Check!

14. Answers about Clace’s secret mission and Clary’s mysterious dream?

Check! (Though this just seems suuuper ominous.)

15. And we can’t forget about Robert’s death and what it means for Julian and Emma.

The suspense of not knowing is painful!

16. If you’re wondering whether your favorite character will make an appearance, we got you covered.

Souce

The gang is all back, for better or for worse.

17. We also get deeper into their heads and learn unexpected things and tidbits about different characters.

18. But we have some questions about some of these hints, Cassie…

In fairy folklore, having someone’s “true name” means they control him! We’re slightly concerned (and curious) that we’re going to find out Kieren’s!

Eleven? What does that mean!

We just want our favorites to be happy.

19. And we can’t forget about all the ships.

20. But it’s not just about relationships—there are moments of friendship and family love as well!

21. But Cassie isn’t telling us the death count this time around, which means NO ONE IS SAFE.

Get the tissues ready.

She’s REALLY keeping us on the edge of our seats.

22. We’ve already been to so many mysterious and cool places in Shadowhunters universe, but we haven’t seen it all yet.

How much stranger can it get?

23. Now that there have been so many sneak peeks, we’re just itching to know the rest! Unfortunately, there are no ARCs of Queen of Air and Darkness but don’t worry, there’s plenty of things to hold you over.

Ghosts of the Shadow Market is a collection of ten short stories set in the universe, published monthly and in e-book format. The fifth one, A Deeper Love, is set to come out on August 14! And The Red Scrolls of Magic is the first book in the upcoming series, The Eldest Curses, which comes out on April 2! You can also read a QuAD sampler now!

24. There is no shortage of snippets (including unidentified ones) to give us a taste of what the book will be like.

25. And the artwork for different scenes from the book has been leaving us speechless.

26. Here are some more gorgeous artworks that show off the characters together:

27. And if that wasn’t enough, the newsletter dropped another image and an exclusive excerpt:

28. To help you keep up with all the cover reveals and special quests at the book tour, here is the schedule!

So that’s everything we know right now! When we get new information, we’ll be sure to update you, so keep this page bookmarked and check-in often!

While you’re waiting, might we suggest checking out some of our other fun Shadowhunters content? Find out what are the 10 Most Useful Runes (In Our Opinion), or uncover your true nature by taking our Which Mortal Instruments Character Are You? quiz.

Pick Your Favorite Valentine’s Day Candy and We’ll Give You a Book Rec

Quizzes

February 8, 2018

What’s better than your favorite book? How about your favorite candy to go along with it? Take our quiz below and discover a great romance to read with all your holiday goodies!

And don’t forget to check out even more swoonworthy romances!

5 Reasons You Need to Pick Up Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi

February 6, 2018