Ever dreamed of a life that reads more like a book? Rowena did until she stumbled into a fairy tale that wasn't so friendly.
Fabled by Vanessa K. Eccles
Publisher: Bound and Brewed
Young adult fantasy/fairy tale
Rowena thinks the Grimmâs infamous podcasts are simply another teen fad until she finds herself trapped in a land of nightmarish storybook characters. She tries desperately to flee Mezzanine and return home, but Dresdem, Mezzanineâs wicked monarch, plans to use Rowenaâs access to her world to bring dark magic and absolute rule into Georgia and beyond.
But when Rowenaâs dear friend Madeline falls into Dresdemâs grasp, her battle with him becomes war, and all hopes of home are temporarily thwarted. With the help of an invisible hero, a beast, and an owl, she sets out to free Madeline from a deadening sleep. But Rowena must become her own hero when she finds herself bound by the kingdomâs darkest family. She must make the ultimate choice â align herself with her enemies or live on the run forever.
Excerpt:
âHeads or tails?â Lil asked as she opened the door and stood in front of me.
âTales.â
âWhen are you going to learn that heads always wins?â She snickered and rolled her eyes in amazement of my apparent naivety.
âNot always. Besides, tales are more interesting.â
Not understanding my word play, she shrugged and searched her pockets for a coin.
I leaned into the porch swing, coffee and book in hand, and watched as autumn's first leaves sunsetted the deadening grass. I rested the mug on my knee and let the cool breeze sway me back and forth while I waited.
Trying to ignore my little sister's attempts to aggravate me, I looked down at the fantastical book in my hands and realized how beloved, yet unrealistic it seemed. Most of us lead relatively dull lives and are content but never satisfied. The âhappily ever aftersâ they crammed in our minds as children were merely lies, but I couldnât help but dream of an adventure like the one I was holding. I wanted my life to be epic. Who was I kidding? Only characters in our favorite stories experienced magical lives. Mine had already been planned out for me â go to college, land a mediocre job, get married, and have 1.8 perfectly groomed, smiling children. That was it. The end.
Meet the Author: Vanessa K. Eccles graduated Troy University with a degree in English. She currently serves as executive editor of Belle Rêve Literary Journal and is founder of the book blog YA-NASisterhood. When sheâs not writing or devouring books, she enjoys the lake life with her Prince Charming and their four dogs.
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I'm so geeked to have my friend Krysten on the blog today talking about her new Middle Grade/Young Adult release, BEST FRIENDS... FOREVER? In fact, I'm so excited I have absolutely zero idea where to start or how to organize my thoughts because YES. KRYSTEN. BOOKS. AND WOULD YOU RATHER...? So I've met a ton of great people while figuring this whole publishing business out, and I'm so glad that my path crossed with Krysten. Not only did we grow up not too far from each other, but we also share a lot of the same childhood likes and dislikes. We are both super goofy, too, so I'm always a fan of anyone who can make me laugh. When I heard Krysten's new book was being released the same month as DANIEL THE CAMP-ER, it was pretty much a given that we do some kind of silly blog post together to celebrate. We decided it would be fun to play the game "Would You Rather...?" with our characters, Daniel and Landry, asking each other questions. And then, because we couldn't resist, we asked each other a few of our own. So, here goes... Would You Rather... ?From Daniel to Landry: Would you rather eat poison ivy or a handful of bees? Wow, okay…hmmmm. I’m going to go for poison ivy because that sounds slightly better than the bee one. Would you rather be covered in hair head to toe, or completely bald? Well, I have issues with my hair looking good anyway, but…yeah, I’ll go with covered. Would you rather shoot laser beams from your eyes or sneeze fireballs? Have you met my friend, Ericka? I swear that girl can shoot laser beams from her eyes when she’s mad at you. Swim in a bathtub full of seaweed or walk barefoot in a camp shower? Are we talking bathtub full of seaweed like a spa treatment? Because then I choose that one. From Landry to Daniel: Would you rather have everyone ignore you all day or have to play dodge ball in gym and you’re the only one left on your side? Playing dodgeball at all is my worst nightmare. Then being the last target for everyone on the other team? No thank you. At least I won’t get hit by fifty-kazillion dodgeballs if everyone ignores me all day. Be grounded from TV for a month or have no Internet access for a month? I’d rather be grounded from TV. Pretty much all of my favorite shows are on YouTube now, anyway. My mom doesn’t know that, though, so shhhh! Let’s keep that our little secret. Favorite model: Kate Moss or Cindy Crawford? Neither! Girls are gross. But, if I have to choose… Maybe Cindy Crawford. She has that freckle on her face and it kind of reminds me of a chocolate chip. Chocolate chips are not gross. Would you rather have to do a speech in front of the class or sing in front of them? The speech. I’m really good at speeches sometimes, except when the only thing I can think of to say is “armadillo.” When I sing, it sounds like I’m gargling goldfish. Which TV show would you rather live in: The Simpsons or Family Guy? Hmm. Homer Simpson eats tons of donuts, and Lisa reminds me of my best friend Annie. Family Guy has a talking dog, and talking dogs are pretty cool. Family Guy also has that crazy baby, Stewie, who would probably try to steal my magic pencil so he could take over the world. Well, not on my watch, punk! I pick The Simpsons. From S. J. to Krysten: Would you rather kiss Screech or Urkel? Urkel. Hands down. Pucker up. Would you rather live in the Fresh Prince house or the Full House house? Probably the Fresh Prince one because I wouldn’t have to share a room. Although DJ Tanner and I both had the same George Michael poster. Would you rather go to the first day of school looking like 80s Madonna or 90s Brittney Spears? Madonna. Madonna in any decade wins, but particularly the Desperately Seeking Susan time period. I want that whole outfit. If you were single again, would you rather date George Michael or Cristiano Ronaldo? Now that is a TOUGH question. I'm not comparing it to a Sophie's Choice decision by any means, but gracious, how does one choose? Does you mean George 2008 tour when he was at his hottest? Or the 1999 bad haircut time? I need to know which period George before I make my decision. But I really want to know how Ronaldo gets his eyebrows so perfect, Ronaldo seems to be the front runner in this competition....it's all so confusing. From Krysten to Jen: You get to go back in time and you can either be the girl from My Two Dads or Tiffani Amber Thiessen for the day. Is this even a question? Tiffani Amber Thiessen. I don’t remember My Two Dads very well, but I did have a mini-crush on Chad Allen and the cute dad. When I looked at pictures of the cast, I’m feeling ashamed of my ten-year-old self. Love’s Baby Soft perfume or Electric Youth perfume? Electric Youth all the way. I used to think the pink spiral thing in the bottle was sooooo cool. You can be a guest star on either Perfect Strangers or Full House. Which do you prefer? Oh man! I lovedlovedloved Balki on Perfect Strangers. Favorite show, this one right here. That said, I was a big fan of Uncle Joey and Uncle Jesse (Haaaave mercy!), and Stephanie had a horse. So I think the choice is clearly Full House. If anyone makes me babysit the kids, though, the deal’s off. Which Sweet Valley High twin: Elizabeth or Jessica Wakefield? Confession time: I wasn’t allowed to read Sweet Valley High because they were too racy. I may or may not have snuck some of them anyway (don’t tell my mom!), so I’m gonna go with Elizabeth. Jessica always irritated me. And last, but certainly not least... Dream date with a New Kid on the Block or chance to star on Saved by the Bell? Seriously. Do you even have to ask? Saved by the Bell, all day every day. We want to hear your "Would You Rather...?" answers! Comment below with your picks! Best Friends... Forever? (Landry's True Colors Book 2) |
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