Ice by Sarah Beth Durst

Cassie doesn’t believe in fairy tales. Sure, Gram used to tell her that bedtime story about how Cassie’s mother was stolen away by the North Wind and imprisoned by trolls. But Cassie, who lives with her scientist father at a research station in the Arctic, has every intention of following in Dad’s logical, analytical footsteps. She has no time for fantasy. And besides, as she grew older, she realized that “stolen by the North Wind” was just a euphemism for “died.”

Or was it?

On her eighteenth birthday, Cassie tracks a polar bear into the icy wastes, intending to tag it for research. When it escapes by walking through a wall of ice, she realizes it’s no ordinary bear — and when she describes it to Dad, he panics. Turns out the story was true, and now Cassie is fated to become the polar bear’s bride.

She doesn’t go passively, instead striking a deal with the... Read More

Enchanted Ivy by Sara Beth Durst

One problem I often have with contemporary fantasy is its tendency to ignore the magic of the world around us in its longing for something Other. Enchanted Ivy avoids this problem by striking a nice balance. There’s certainly a great deal of otherworldly magic, as evidenced by the dragons and faeries and talking gargoyles and cute were-tiger boys. Yet I got a real sense that all this magic was inspired by the feelings the campus of Princeton genuinely evoked in Durst. I can actually picture the author looking at the great old buildings and the gargoyles and imagining they could come to life at any second. Otherworldly magic inspired by a place that is, to the author, already magical. So to speak.

Although Enchanted Ivy’s cast of characters don’t entirely jump off the page, they’re still strongly written and easy to like (o... Read More

Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst

Drink, Slay, Love is a good example of what young adult urban fantasy can be. It's funny, it's light, it doesn't take itself too seriously, and most importantly, there is actually more to the story than just how handsome everyone is. Sarah Beth Durst strikes a good balance between adventure and emotional angst.

Pearl is a young vampire. Sounds kind of funny to think that someone who is undead could be young, but in the world of Drink, Slay, Love the possibility to be born as a vampire exists. Pearl is living the young vampire life, hunting for humans to feed on, keeping up her combat skills to defend herself, flirting with the uber-hot male vampire and learning how to live within the rules of her race.

Then Pearl is almost killed by a unicorn. She survives, and begins to undergo traumatic changes. For example, ... Read More

Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst

Once every hundred years, the desert clans’ gods come to walk among them. One young man or woman from each clan is chosen to serve as the vessel for that clan’s deity. The human soul dies and returns to the Dreaming, while the god takes over the body. Now incarnate in the vessel’s body, the god works magic to help keep the clan alive in the harsh conditions of the desert.

Liyana has known for years that she is destined to be the vessel for the goddess Bayla. But Bayla never shows up. Believing the goddess has found Liyana unworthy, her clan abandons her to the elements, but soon she is found by the incarnate god Korbyn, who has shocking news for her. Five of the desert deities have been magically imprisoned, including Bayla, hence why she never appeared to claim Liyana’s body.

Now Liyana must help Korbyn find the other four vessels, traveling across the desert to the encampments o... Read More

Five of your favorite authors take some time to answer our questions:
Got any personal news to share?
Sarah Beth Durst: My next YA novel, Vessel, comes out from Simon & Schuster/McElderry today. It's about a girl who lives in a harsh desert land and is destined to sacrifice herself so her clan's goddess can inhabit her body... but her goddess never comes. It recently received a starred review in Kirkus. (Yay!) Also, I sold three new books! They're my first books for adults: The Lost, The Missing, and The Found, and I'm really excited about them. Also recently, a bunch people in California parked a car on Mars, took some photos, and send them back, which I'm claiming as personal news because I stayed up late to watch it. Actually, I think Curiosity on Mars counts a... Read More

Some of your favorite authors take some time to answer our questions:
Got any news to share?
Steven R. Boyett: I'm excited that I will be reading at the opening weekend of San Francisco's massive Litquake festival, Sunday, Oct. 7, 2-3 PM. I usually record these things, so it will be on the media page of my blog soon afterward. In my mortal guise I'm also a semi-famous DJ, and I'm also hugely stoked that I'll be DJing the Litquake/Litcrawl closing party at  Read More

Some of your favorite authors take some time to answer our questions:
Got any news to share?
Morgan Keyes (Mindy Klasky): Darkbeast hit stores on August 28 -- it's a traditional middle grade fantasy novel about a girl who has to choose between saving her best friend (a raven) and following the religious expectations of her people. I'll be making a number of personal appearances (check out my website -- and I am always happy to make school visits (in person, if close enough, or by Skype.)


Michael J. Sullivan: I'm pleased to announce that I'll have a new series coming out from Orbit called THE RIYRIA CHRONICLES. These will be prequels that explore how Royce and Hadrian first met an... Read More