Week in Review--BTAF, NEIBA, and a book release

In short: Best. Week. Ever.

Let's rewind to Saturday, the 3rd annual Boston Teen Author Festival, of which I was (3 adjectives):

• Thrilled
• Honored
• Humbled

to take part! Let me just say that it's so much easier to come up with three adjectives on your blog than on the spot from the moderator! I don't think I can say enough about how fantastic BTAF was. Renee and all the BTAFers did an amazing job AND they do it as volunteers, for love of YA and Boston. Thanks also go to the Cambridge Public Library and Porter Square Books for rounding out the event with a place to be and books to buy. I wanted to hug them ALL. (But I didn't, because I was raging sick and handing them my cold as parting gift would not have been nice or a good way to ever get myself invited back.) Unforgettable things:

• Meeting SO MANY readers enthusiastic about teen lit

The early crowd at @BosTeenAuthFest -- auditorium full by the end! #BTAF2014 pic.twitter.com/nY2gqVZnlO
— Cara Bertrand (@carabertrand) September 27, 2014

• Signing books for many of them
• Meeting so many fantastic authors and at least one of their moms
• Being allowed to sit on panel with MT Anderson (National Book Award winner, NBD), Amelia Atwater-Rhodes, Claire Legrand, Gregg Rosenblum, & Heather Swain
• Did I mention enthusiastic readers?
• Listening to smart ladies talk about character empowerment in the Choose Your Own Adventure panel

The insightful, funny, inspiring women discussing character agency in "Choose Your Own Adventure" at #BTAF2014 pic.twitter.com/QQz05JJpvH
— Cara Bertrand (@carabertrand) September 27, 2014

• How just incredibly NICE everyone was. I mean EVERYONE. You've never met a friendlier, more genuine group of people.

It was such a privilege to be surrounded by people who love books, love YA lit, and are not afraid to show it. I'm giddy still thinking about it. Any future events I do will have a lot to live up to! I may even have had stop halfway home and rest after the sugar from the approximately 42 cough drops I ingested and my adrenaline ran out. THAT, friends, is the sign of a good day.

Photo: Today’s haul #BTAF14 http://t.co/yQfsa4WdvV
— Cara Bertrand (@carabertrand) September 28, 2014

Next up, this past Wednesday, I was so lucky to be included at the New England Independent Booksellers Association conference as a signing author! It was basically book heaven.

I am in book heaven! #neiba14 pic.twitter.com/pulV6Mbtv5
— Cara Bertrand (@carabertrand) October 1, 2014

The delightful Bill & Ted (really!) of Chesapeake & Hudson hosted me at their table and though I was only scheduled for an hour, they let me stay for almost four!

Signing & smiling at the Chesapeake & Hudson table #neiba14 #sententiaseries pic.twitter.com/vUY9N572mY
— Cara Bertrand (@carabertrand) October 1, 2014

I met so many great book people--booksellers, librarians, publishing reps--and signed and gave away _so_many_ books! The piles, which I thought were huge when I started, were so small by the end. And though I gave away a ton of books, I came home with an amazing selection as well. Thank you, generous publishers! Some for me, and some for YOU. Many of these will be given away to readers at my upcoming events and on Twitter!

The books may or may not look like this. Which are you excited for? pic.twitter.com/ZysGQrhpII
— Cara Bertrand (@carabertrand) October 2, 2014

And last, but certainly NOT least, October 1 was the official release day for Second Thoughts. Get it while it's hot! Though some venues were already carrying them, hardcovers and paperbacks should now available EVERYWHERE! (or if your favorite store doesn't have it, ask them to order it!). And yes, like winter, the eBook is coming!

Next up for me: write thank you notes and finish Sententia 3. :)

School Library Journal and Booklist review Second Thoughts!

So pleased with reviews for Second Thoughts from both School Library Journal and Booklist!

School Library Journal says:

Gr 9 Up–In this sequel to Lost in Thought (Luminis, 2014), nearly 18-year-old Lainey Young has a lot on her mind as she starts her senior year at Northbrook: when should she and boyfriend Carter have sex, which college should she attend, and why is a lowerclassman and Sententia siren bent on breaking up Lainey’s normally unflappable roommate Amy and her boyfriend Caleb. Minor worries compared to the vague premonition implicating Carter in Lainey’s impending death and a new vision involving his father’s demise are stewing with concern over the Perceptum’s desire to make Lainey their executioner. Meeting Carter’s “uncle,” Perceptum bigwig—Daniel Astor—leads to a shocking discovery and initially assuages the protagonist’s fear of Hangman conscription. However, readers and Lainey’s gut know better. Secrets aggravatingly pile up (especially on the heroine’s end), but add plenty of tension in a book that might otherwise suffer from “Second Book Slump.” Characters occasionally succumb to archetypal behaviors, but they’re realistically impacted by anxieties, familiar and unfamiliar. Sex (which happens off page), swearing, and teen drinking are realistically present but not gratuitous. Give to fans of the previous volume. Readers familiar with the story will better understand the stakes and relationships and await the next installment.–Danielle Serra, Cliffside Park Public Library, NJ

Booklist says:

Issue: August 1, 2014
Like many a romance novel, the question of will they or won’t they have sex is at the heart of Bertrand’s sequel to Lost in Thought (2012), a finalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. But since this is a paranormal-romance novel, there is an equally important question: Will the heroine and her boyfriend kill each other first? Lainey is the only living Sententia with the Hangman gift, and she is charged with eliminating rogue Sententia who use their gifts for harm. Lainey’s diviner-sense vision shows her own death at the hands of her handsome boyfriend. Will she in turn have to use her rare second gift to execute her own boyfriend? Bertrand stirs family secrets, a scheming senator, and young rivalries into the otherworldly mix. Many of the questions remain unanswered, and as Lainey drives off into the sunrise, the door is wide open for the next installment. Bertrand writes smoothly, and her characters, if improbably perfect, are engaging enough to keep the pages turning quickly and the demand for the next in the series high. 
— Lynn Rutan

10,000!

In honor of round numbers and small achievements, let's celebrate! Because today this little ole blog hit 10,000 page views! And the good news is, probably only half of them came from my mom. :)

So thank you to all of you who've stopped by, even those who were searching for something random, and especially those who were actually looking for me! If we keep up this pace, here's to something like only 200 more years until 1,000,000!

As a little treat to you, here's a snippet of a scene from Second Thoughts (caution: swoony):

The grin never wavered as he moved forward, putting one arm on each side to trap me against the car. It was cool out, but it didn’t feel that way when he was so close to me. When he kissed me, it got even warmer. Blazing. After a few moments, he paused just long enough to repeat softly, “I’m sorry.”

“Me too,” I breathed, though at that moment, as his lips traveled down my neck, I was honestly having trouble remembering what we were apologizing for. Above me, in the slice of sky between the trees and the towering bookstore, I counted a thousand glittering stars. Wisps of smoke drifted high overhead, the smell of wood fire mingling with the constant scent of pine trees. Against the car, my back felt icy compared to the heat of Carter’s body pressed to mine.

“You want to come up?” he said, voice low and rough in my ear.

...to be continued in October!

Second Thoughts ARC Giveaway!

Giveaway, yay! 10 signed ARCs of Second Thoughts up for grabs on Goodreads! You can be reading it by Fourth of July!

Details here:

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Second Thoughts

by Cara Bertrand

Giveaway ends June 30, 2014.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to win

In the meantime, don't forget to pick up Afterthought to tide you over!

COVER REVEAL--Second Thoughts: Book 2 of the Sententia

The cover for Second Thoughts is alive in the world! So, without further ado but with much fanfare {cue trumpets}, I will share it with you:

 

 

AWESOME right? I know! {trumpets crescendo}

It's a little darker, a little more ominous, and super atmospheric--exactly like the book!