As a writer, I've become an extremely picky reader. It takes a lot for me to make the full cover to cover journey these days. There are just too many books in my to-be-read stack to slog through a story that hasn't captured me.

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher captured me. I just realized there's neat bit of irony in there because Incarceron is about a prison. Not just any prison. Incarceron is a prison that's alive. And, oh, is it ever eerie.

Fisher's creation is stunning in its originality. Told in alternative points of view, this is the story of Finn who is a captive in Incarceron, and Claudia who lives outside, in a technologically advanced society that's forced to keep a 17th century lifestyle. Their journeys merge with the discovery of a key.

A living prison? An advanced society living in the past? I know. It's mind-bending. This is for readers who can handle a little meat on their sci-fi/fantasy but, man, is it worth it.

Fisher's writing is exquisite and her characters are fascinating. I particularly loved Finn, but even secondary characters are memorable and perfectly realized. And then there's Incarceron, a character in itself. A prison that taunts and stalks and watches its inmates... just brilliant. There are moments in Incarceron that take your breath away.

I've only ever thought this a few times: This is a book I wish I'd written.

Happy weekend to all!

Picture this:  Wicked sense of humor.  Unlimited energy.  Unfailing support of writers and all things writerly, of literacy and literary pursuits.  Blogger.  Conference coordinator.  Book reviewer with the Bookanistas.  Author.  Now double that.  And you've got Lisa and Laura Roecker, authors of LIAR SOCIETY, coming March 1, 2011.

I had the good fortune to read the first chapter of LIAR SOCIETY recently, and was awed by the sisters' attention to detail and intense sensory description.  Not to mention their creative set up of plot and intriguing characters.  So I'm thrilled to follow my agent sisters this Friday, and to encourage all of you to follow them, as well.

Find Lisa and Laura on the web at lisaandlauraroecker.com

Follow their blog at your peril.  It's addictive (and will make you desperate for a FunSize Snickers).

If nothing else, join in the conversation on Twitter.  They always have something intriguing to say.

And definitely check out WriteOnCon.  On Monday, November 15th, Agent Stephen Barbara and his client Leila Sales will discuss the agent-client relationship, so come armed with questions!

This month I'm reviewing a book I read much earlier in the year, but here it is November and this book is still with me.  Its vivid images are still swimming in my head, more so than the book I'm reading right now or any book I can recall in recent memory.

Meet BLEEDING VIOLET by Dia Reeves.  This is not your mother's paranormal.  It's a story about a crazy girl who moves in with her estranged mother in an even crazier town.  Meet Portero, a town where monsters roam free, and random doorways lead to horrors untold.  Yes, I did say meet the town.  Because the town is as much a character in BLEEDING VIOLET as the characters who populate it.  This is a great example of a book where the setting not only matters, but is so much a part story that it becomes a living, breathing thing.  And a scary, exciting, horrifying thing it is.

Hanna is dealing with her own mental illness and hallucinations, her feelings of abandonment and her struggles with self-identity (Hanna is bi-racial, bi-cultural and manic-depressive). After her father's death, she takes to only wearing violet and comes to live with her mother in Portero, Texas.  Everyone in Portero wears black and grey, because in a town where monsters roam free, it's not good to stand out.  Hanna does stand out with her violet clothes, mixed race and mental illness, but she isn't the type to hide in shadows and sees no need to hide from them.  Neither does her love interest Wyatt, who wears bright green, to lure the monsters out of hiding so he can hunt them.  I loved this wonderful use of color, and the scene where Wyatt enters this grey world decked from head to toe in green is one that continues to haunt me (in a really good way).
And are there monsters!  Gory, scary, creepy monsters abound.  But the most dangerous monsters in BLEEDING VIOLET are the ones that lurk in the human heart.  The scariest folks in Portero are the human inhabitants.  And in Hanna's case, the monster that she must find a way to defeat is much, much closer to home.  

Have you read it yet?  Do!  It's a fast paced, fun read on the dark side of fantasy.  Then you can wait with me for Dia's follow up, SLICE OF CHERRY, another Portero novel featuring a pair of sisters who are serial killers. 

Check out the first chapter of SLICE OF CHERRY here

The YAMuses are oh so proud to announce this latest piece of WONDERFUL news posted today on Publisher's Marketplace:

"Katy Longshore's GILT, the story of teenage Queen, Catherine Howard, told in a vibrant and contemporary voice, the first in a series of novels set in the court of Henry V111, to Kendra Levin at Viking Children's, at auction, in a three-book deal, for publication in Fall 2012, by Catherine Drayton at Inkwell Management (NA)."

Please join us in congratulating Katy-the newest, soon-to-be published author in our group! We are so proud of her.

“Every generation needs a new revolution.”

So said Thomas Jefferson.  Having just finished Jennifer Donnelly’s Revolution, I can’t help but wonder when he said this.  Because the power of Donnelly’s words and the detail in her historical research makes one hope that no generation echoes the violent political revolutions of the past.  But she also demonstrates the need for subtler and more beautiful revolutions – those of creative thought, social responsibility and personal growth.

Donnelly is best known as the author of historical novels, and winner of the Printz Honor for A Northern Light.  So her latest book is a bit of a departure and came as a surprise.  Set primarily in present-day New York and Paris, narrated by brilliant, troubled Andi Alpers, Revolution is completely different in voice and attitude.

What is not surprising to me, however, is the fact that Donnelly made me cry by Chapter 4.  She creates a vivid, completely identifiable character within the first few lines.  Despite Andi’s bitterness and casual near-cruelty in the first chapter, you sense her vulnerability and desperation.  In a few neat lines and entrancing phrases, Donnelly makes you feel for this character, a skill which leaves me slack-jawed with awe.

Not only this, but Jennifer Donnelly has done her homework and brings the French Revolution to light and to life.  She quickly and handily dispenses the basic history – Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, creation of the republic, the Terror, Danton, Robespierre, Bonaparte – while intertwining it with Andi’s story in the present and her thesis work on fictional 18^th century guitarist Amade Malherbeau.  Then she delves more deeply into the emotional impact of the events leading up to the revolution, of the public guillotining, the destruction of the monarchy.  She indicates the ripples (or waves in this case) on the pond, the impact that the French Revolution had on the country, the world and the future.  And on Andi’s life.

This book is complex, studious, beautiful and brilliant.  I was completely immersed in Donnelly’s pitch-perfect character portrayal, her vivid setting description, attention to detail and rich, easy use of language.  Not only that, but any writer who references The Decemberists, The Ramones and The Smiths in a novel full of fastidiously researched history is definitely high on the scale of cool in my estimation.

The first week of each month is a time for us to share some of our favorite books and recent best reads. If you would like to send an ARC of a book for us to review, please contact us. We're always on the lookout for new authors and great new books.

This month I'm featuring Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver. Here's a short summary of the plot borrowed from Amazon:

Samantha Kingston has it all—looks, popularity, the perfect boyfriend. Friday, February 12th should be just another day in her charmed life. Instead, it’s her last. The catch: Samantha still wakes up the next morning. In fact, she re-lives the last day of her life seven times, until she realizes that by making even the slightest changes, she may hold more power than she had ever imagined.

I've heard the expression before "change the character, change the story." In this case, that is certainly true. Described as Mean Girls meets Groundhog Day, this book is a wonderful study in character development. The reader actually experiences the main character's growth in a totally unique way--by re-living the day of her death multiple times and having the opportunity each time to make changes. Wrapped around the plot design of a major "do-over" are some insights into the high school popular crowd, some heartbreakingly beautiful language, and some realistic, snappy dialogue.

Before I Fall, Lauren Oliver's first novel, is already a bestseller. Fox 2000 has optioned the rights and it will be fascinating to see how it plays out on the big screen.