Category: Young Adult (Page 2 of 27)

Happy Book Birthday ONLY DARK EDGES by Katie L. Carroll

July 25, 2023 / Katie L. Carroll

Today is release day for my YA psychological thriller ONLY DARK EDGES! It’s hard to believe I have now published eight books. Thanks to all of you for sticking with me through all these many genres and age categories. And please consider leaving a review for my books on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you talk about books (reviews really do help readers find my books).

Only Dark Edges a modern-day, gender-swapped Hamlet retelling that’s about trying to find a way out of grief to what I’ve always called a “new normal.” But things are certainly conspiring against our main character Delta, so she’s having a hard time doing that.

I’ve written about grief before in my books, particularly in WITCH TEST, but Only Dark Edges was a particular challenge for me because it’s about the death of Delta’s sister. Those of you who have followed me for awhile know that it was the death of my own sister, Kylene, that inspired me to begin writing books (see “The Story of How I Became a Writer”). Having Hamlet as something of a framework gave me enough emotional distance from the book to be able to write something so emotionally charged.

I took a bit of an unusual approach to the book trailer with the voice over being a quote from Hamlet. I think it perfectly encapsulates Delta’s state of mind at the beginning of the book.

Hamlet meets You’ve Reached Sam in this YA psychological thriller that is both heart-pounding and heart-wrenching.

Delta’s spent the summer navigating the treacherous waters of losing her older sister, Gemma. Determined to brave junior year of high school without her sister, Delta finds solace in the arms of a new girlfriend. But grief takes a twisted turn when Gemma’s tortured ghost appears with a dire warning.

Beware the storm.

Plagued by the haunting suspicion that Gemma’s death involved foul play, Delta is plunged into a downward spiral of grief and paranoia. No one can be trusted—not her girlfriend, their friends, or her sister’s once-loyal boyfriend. Not even Delta’s own mind.

With a hurricane bearing down, two tempests collide at the abandoned Sea Glass Lodge. Accusations fly. Secrets unravel. And everyone is a target of the storm.

Find it on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, Kobo, Google Play, Apple Books, and Smashwords.

ONLY DARK EDGES Pre-Order and Summer Author Updates

July 7, 2023 / Katie L. Carroll

The mom side of me is deep in summer mode here. The family has taken a day trip to a heavenly-scented lavender farm, we have a small vacation coming up, and we’ve been engaging in all the usual summer activities like swimming and sprinklers.

But that doesn’t mean things are quiet on the author side. Quite the opposite with my next book ONLY DARK EDGES coming out on July 25! The cover has an interesting story that I talked about on TikTok, and the main image was created by darksouls1 on Pixabay.

You can pre-order ONLY DARK EDGES on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, Kobo, Google Play, Apple Books, and Smashwords.

Next month, I’m teaching the breakout session “What to Expect When You’re Self-Publishing” at the SCBWI Summer Virtual Conference 2023. This is a blockbuster event in the children’s publishing world, and every attendee will have access to all 50 sessions for a month after the conference.

Keep an eye out on my Events page or subscribe to my newsletter to stay up to date on all my author events. I have some great fall events I’ll be adding in soon!

I’ve become very passionate about sharing my knowledge about self-publishing children’s books with writers. My conference sessions and workshops are packed full of good information, but if the self-publishing bug has hit you and you find yourself wanting more personalized guidance, I’m now offering one-on-one Self-Publishing Consultations. You get me for a whole hour to ask all things self-publishing and to come up with a plan for the next steps in your indie author career.

How is your summer (or winter if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere) shaping up?

Celebrating the Release of COURT OF THE UNDYING SEASONS by A.M. Strickland

May 16, 2023 / Katie L. Carroll

Happy release day to A.M. Strickland and Court of the Undying Seasons. I feel very lucky to have received an early copy of this. You can check out my full 5-star review on Goodreads, but the short version is that I loved it and couldn’t put the book down. If you like vampires, dark romance, and immersive fantasy, it’s definitely worth checking out. You can see the book’s content warnings on the author’s website.

Court of Undying Seasons blurb:

In becoming a vampire, I’m less than a girl. And more.
Or maybe I’m becoming what I always have been, deep inside.
A blade.

When nineteen-year-old Fin volunteers to take her secret love’s place in their village’s Finding, she is terrified. Those who are chosen at the Finding are whisked away to Castle Courtsheart, a vampire school where human students either succeed and become vampires, fail and spend the rest of their lives as human thralls…or they don’t survive long enough to become either.

Fin is determined to forge a different path: learn how to kill the undead and get revenge for her mother, who was taken by the vampires years ago. But Courtsheart is as captivating as it is deadly, and Fin is quickly swept up in her new world and its inhabitants – particularly Gavron, her handsome and hostile vampire maker, whose blood is nothing short of intoxicating. As Fin begins to discover new aspects of her own identity and test her newfound powers, she stumbles across a string of murders that may be connected to a larger ritual – one with potentially lethal consequences for vampires and humans alike. Fin must uncover the truth and find the killer before she loses her life…or betrays her own heart.

Court of the Undying Seasons is a deliciously dark romantic novel and a pitch perfect modern take on classic vampire tropes.

Signed Books, SELFIES FROM MARS Pre-order, & Self-Publishing Workshop

December 5, 2022 / Katie L. Carroll

Since it’s that gift-giving time of year, a reminder that signed copies of my books are available to be shipped right to you on my Purchase Books page. If you want those goodies to arrive by Christmas, you should get your orders in now. And a reminder that you can also purchase them on all the usual online book retailers or order them from your local indie bookstore.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with my books, my award-winning YA fantasies, Elixir Bound and Elixir Saved, are great for teens or adults who love epic fantasy with cozy vibes. Pirate Island and Witch Test are contemporary middle grade with a hint of the supernatural, great for the 8 and up crowd but particularly perfect for 10-14 year-olds.

The Bedtime Knight is an imaginative, interactive picture book that’s a fun read aloud. And finally, Mommy’s Night Before Christmas is a modern take on the classic Christmas poem that is just as much for the adults as it is for the kids. This one is a great stocking stuffer for all the moms in your life.

Speaking of books (as if I talk about so many other things here!), I have a new one coming your way February 13, 2023, and it’s up for pre-order now. Meet Selfies From Mars: The True Story of Mars Rover Opportunity! It’s STEM with heart. This has been a passion project of mine that I’m so excited to bring to readers. It’s my first nonfiction children’s book, and I have loved working on it, particularly using all the amazing NASA images from Opportunity’s mission. I also navigated the tricky world of music licensing for this book.

At Indie Author Day at the Norwalk Public Library, there was a lot of interest from other authors to learn more about self-publishing children’s books. So I’ve been convinced to offer up my self-publishing workshop “What to Expect When Self-Publishing” in January. This is digital workshop, so you can attend from anywhere (details and sign up here)!

Yes, I’ve been very busy! I wouldn’t want it any other way. What have you all been up to this fall?

YA Author KE Strand on “Why a New Pen Name?”

June 6, 2022 / Katie L. Carroll

KE Strand may be writing under a different name, but she is no stranger to guest posting here on the blog. Let’s give a big welcome to YA author KE Strand (and find out if you recognize her other pen name)!

Thanks for having me today, Katie. I love visiting your readers!

Today I want to talk about my brand new book, Bad Boys Don’t Date Clumsy Girls, which I’ve published under a brand new pen name, KE Strand. Why a new pen name you might ask? Let’s start there.

Having multiple pen names isn’t the easiest way to go about authoring. Each time you publish under a new name you must find a new audience, but the same is true when you publish multiple genres under the same name, which I’ve also done (rolls eyes at self.) Let’s take my list of books published under Kai Strand, for example. I’ve published both middle grade and young adult under this name. While many readers are happy to buy both, not all young adult readers will step backward into a middle grade story, nor do most parents want their middle grade reader to read the more mature stories available in young adult. Within those targeted audiences, I’ve published both contemporary and fantasy. Within the fantasy, I’ve published fairy tales and superheroes. So, you see each time I publish a new book, I’m often targeting a new group of readers. I chose to publish my new Oak Grove High series under a new pen name, KE Strand, because I want to separate these books from the rest for a very crucial reason. All the books I publish under this pen name will be clean, wholesome young adult romance. That means, no swearing and nothing more than kissing. I want young adult romance readers to know what to expect when they pick up a book by KE Strand. Do you like a clean teen romance? Then you can count on KE Strand.

BAD BOYS DON’T DATE CLUMSY GIRLS blurb:

When the school’s bad boy infiltrates her shelter, will she lose her sanctuary or her heart?

Hopelessly clumsy Ava, is too focused on graduation and keeping both feet on the ground to have a boyfriend. She has enough to worry about with a less than ideal home life.

Bad boy Dylan can’t help but find Ava’s klutziness entertaining. That doesn’t mean he wants to date her.

When court-ordered community service forces them together at the animal shelter, Ava fears she’s lost her refuge. Dylan’s arrogance gets under her skin. And she finds it unforgivable the dogs prefer him after everything she’s done for them. A spontaneous water fight heats things up and suddenly she anticipates each meeting. But his reputation might be too much for her to overlook.

Will Ava be forced to find a new escape? Or will she stumble her way into his heart?

Bad Boys Don’t Date Clumsy Girls is a light-hearted, clean young adult romantic comedy. The first book in the Oak Grove High series by KE Strand. It will make you cringe, cry, and cackle.

Buy Bad Boys Don’t Date Clumsy Girls for your latest binge read today.

Available in ebook, print and from Kindle Unlimited.

About the Author:

KE Strand escapes within the pages of a book when real life thwarts her own outdoorsy adventures. But her favorite escape is into a story about young love. KE Strand writes clean teen romance because she loves those heart pounding moments of having a crush. The excitement, fear, and confusion of falling in love for the first time. And the relief and thrill of the first kiss. Each time you pick up a KE Strand book you’ll fall in love for the first time. You can find her on the following social media:

Email: kestrand@kestrand.com

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