Angieville

I have been waiting for this day for what feels like forever. If you've followed this blog for basically any length of time, you have heard me singing the praises of  Ellen Emerson White . I am a devoted fan of her spectacular  President's Daughter  and Echo Company series. And you should read and own them and spread the good word immediately. But Life Without Friends . This book was the beginning for me. Beverly and Derek and Boston and the Public Gardens. From my review : This book kind of ate me alive at fourteen, and I have reread it pretty much every year since. It has become what you might call a Monster Comfort Read. I have been buying up used copies of this previously out-of-print book for years now and sending them to readers I knew needed them. I am so delighted to let you know it's now available on Kindle for just $2.99 or free with Kindle Unlimited. And I really love the new Kindle cover (above left), while I will always be inordinately attached to the

I have had a string of lovely successes with contemporaries lately. I wonder, sometimes, about the phases we go through, both in reading and in life in general and whether or not (or where) they align. I'm not always able to see the patterns amid the daily vicissitudes, but I wonder about them often. Several months ago, I saw the cover for Sarah J. Carlson 's debut novel All the Walls of Belfast  and thought I might have died and gone direct to heaven. The title alone is my favorite of the year, hands down. I don't even care if those are fighting words. It is the best title of the year, so there. And, happily, it has a cover to match that beauty, all orange and green and hints of the walls that make up its title. I could only hope that the content matched. Somehow I knew it had to. Fiona grew up in America. From the time she was two years old and her mother took her and fled Northern Ireland for the unknown wilds of Wisconsin, she has believed that her father was dead.

I can't resist with these three. I love a good illustrated cover so much, and these three are not only just beautiful but include a couple of delicious retellings, a debut novel, and at least three young women who sound as fierce and determined and real as I could hope for on this International Women's Day. Put them on your calendars. I'm feeling the good feelings. The Guinevere Deception   by  Kiersten White This cover, you guys.  This cover . . .  I love it so much. And I haven't read a good Arthurian retelling in far too long. In this version, Guinevere is not at all what she seems. Summoned by Merlin to keep Arthur safe, she is a changeling who gives everything up to protect Camelot. GOOD YES GOOD. Due out November 5th Wicked Fox   by  Kat Cho Set in modern day Seoul, this debut features a young woman who is actually an ancient being that must devour the souls of men in order to survive. Matters are significantly complicated when she saves a young man'