Blog Tour (Review) of SPILL ZONE #2: THE BROKEN VOW Written by Scott Westerfeld and Illustrated by Alex Puvilland (YA)

*A finished-hardcover copies of  SPILL ZONE and THE BROKEN VOW (Spill Zone #2) were sent to me for free by the publisher, Macmillan, for an honest review. All thoughts here are my very own. Any problems, concerns, questions, etc. please contact me via email - thebumblegirl@rocketmail.com - Thank you!

SPILL ZONE: THE BROKEN VOW

Spill Zone #2

Written by Scott Westerfeld

Illustrated by Alex Puvilland

Release date: July 10th, 2018

Published by First Second (Macmillan) 

Genre: Young Adult Dystopian/Sci-Fi Mystery 

Format: Hardcover, eBook

Format read: Hardcover

SUMMARY

All hell breaks loose in the second volume of New York Times-bestselling author Scott Westerfeld's visionary graphic novel duology.

Three years ago an event destroyed the small city of Poughkeepsie, forever changing reality within its borders. Strange manifestations and lethal dangers now await anyone who enters the Spill Zone. Addison got close enough to the Spill Zone to touch it, literally. She survived the encounter but came back changed.

It turns out she's not alone. North Korea has its own Spill Zone, and a young man named Don Jae is the only one who made it out alive. Alive, but changed. Now Addison, Don Jae, and, curiously, a rag doll named Vespertine, share an unholy bond and uncanny powers.

From Scott Westerfeld, the inspired imagination behind the New York Times bestsellers UGLIES and LEVIATHAN, comes THE BROKEN VOW, the second volume of our highly anticipated new graphic novel series. 

MY REVIEW

*A finished-hardcover copies of  SPILL ZONE and THE BROKEN VOW (Spill Zone #2) were sent to me for free by the publisher, Macmillan, for an honest review. All thoughts here are my very own.

Another page-turner! So much action and the story continues to flow effortlessly!

THE BROKEN VOW picks up right where book one left off... 

Addison has sold off the last of her pictures from the zone and now has enough money to "retire" and take care of her sister, Lexi. But. It seems that Addison may have spent too much time in the zone and she is feeling a bit off... and she not only learns that her Lexi's crazed doll has a huge role in why the Spill happened; there is also another survivor from a different Spill that happened in North Korea who comes looking for Addison for help. Together, they try to understand and figure out why the Spill happened and how to either control the Zone or end it all... 

And guys - the creepy doll, named Vespertine, is still creepy as all heck!

But she's also sassy and kind of grows on you. Trust me - you'll be rooting for her halfway through the storyline! 

Again, the illustrations are so vividly bright and yet still so eerie! The colors make the "monsters" look animated enough to jump off the page. And the style is just right - realistic enough to make the story creepier than it is already, but hard to look away. You really don't want to miss a single detail.

My one and an only TINY little bit of gripe with this book - I want more! 

Although we do get some answers and things seem to end on a well enough note, there is still potential for more and I still have a few questions...

I definitely recommend this series to those who not only enjoy graphic novels and comic books but to someone who really loves to immerse themselves into a new world with an open mind and vivid imagination. There is just so much that these books have to offer!

Check out the first volume in the

SPILL ZONE series now!

SPILL ZONE

Written by Scott Westerfeld

Illustrated by Alex Puvilland

Release date: May 2nd, 2017

Published by First Second (Macmillan) 

Genre: Young Adult Dystopian/Sci-Fi Mystery 

Format: Hardcover, Paperback, eBook

Format read: Hardcover

Paperback edition

SUMMARY

Nobody's ever really explained the Spill. 

Was it an angelic visitation? A nanotech accident? A porthole opening from another world?

Whatever it was, no one's allowed in the Spill Zone these days except government scientists and hazmat teams. But a few intrepid explorers know how to sneak through the patrols and steer clear of the dangers inside the Zone. 

Addison Merrick is one such explorer, dedicated to finding out what happened that night and to unraveling the events that took her parents and left her little sister mute and disconnected from the world.

Here is my 5-star review of it!!!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Scott Westerfeld

Scott Westerfeld is a New York Times bestselling author of YA. He was born in Texas and now lives in Sydney and New York City. In 2001, Westerfeld married fellow author Justine Larbalestier.

He is best known for the Uglies and Leviathan series, and his next book, Afterworlds, comes out September 23, 2014.

His book Evolution's Darling was a New York Times Notable Book and won a Special Citation for the 2000 Philip K. Dick Award. So Yesterday won a Victorian Premier's Award and both Leviathan and Midnighters 1: The Secret Hour won Aurealis Awards. Peeps and Uglies were both named as Best Books for Young Adults 2006 by the American Library Association.

GOODREADS / WEBSITE / FACEBOOK / TWITTER / INSTAGRAM

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR - Alex Puvilland

GOODREADS

Review: SPILL ZONE (The Spill Zone #1) by Scott Westerfeld (YA)

SPILL ZONE

The Spill Zone #1

by Scott Westerfeld

Illustrated by Alex Puvilland

Color by Hilary Sycamore

Release date: May 2nd, 2017

Published by First Second (Macmillan)

Genre: Young Adult Sci-Fi/Apocalyptic Graphic Novel

Format: Hardcover, eBook

Format read: Hardcover from the publisher.

SUMMARY

Nobody's ever really explained the Spill.

Was it an angelic visitation? A nanotech accident? A porthole opening from another world?

Whatever it was, no one's allowed in the Spill Zone these days except government scientists and hazmat teams. But a few intrepid explorers know how to sneak through the patrols and steer clear of the dangers inside the Zone. 

Addison Merrick is one such explorer, dedicated to finding out what happened that night, and to unraveling the events that took her parents and left her little sister mute and disconnected from the world. 

Photo courtesy of First Second Books.

MY REVIEW

An unexplained 'spill', creepy zombie-like puppet people, odd creatures and a creepy rag doll who seems to know it all... SPILL ZONE is an epic start to an intriguing and story!

Addison wasn't home when the 'spill' happened and no one knows exactly how or why it happened; and no one goes back to try to figure it out. Going into the zone is illegal and forbidden. And no one goes in. Except for Addison. She has been going back to her hometown whenever she can to take photographs of  what happened and what is there now - eerie talking cats, a form of electricity that glows and can chase after you and zombies that whisper warnings. It's how she makes a living to support herself and her little sister. However, she has quickly made rules for herself in order to get in and out of the spill zone safely - remain anonymous and unseen, never get off her motorbike, to stay on the main roads and never touch anything! Are just a few of her strict rules. But, when a collector of her pictures tracks her down and gives her an offer she can't refuse - an offer that can possibly help her sister who hasn't spoken since the incident. Can she risk her life in the spill zone to get what this "collector" wants?

The illustrations are quite amazing! Every frame supports the fast paced story, the creepiness, the danger and consequences that can happen if things go wrong while poking around. SO much world-building, all so naturally put together - realistic and memorable!

I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys reading suspenseful mysterious with glowing rats, intuitive rag dolls, and post-apocalyptic worlds! Whether your a graphic novel reader or not, there isn't anything that should keep you from picking up this book!

*I received this book from the publisher for an honest review.

All thoughts here are my own.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Scott Westerfeld

Scott Westerfeld is a New York Times bestselling author of YA. He was born in Texas and now lives in Sydney and New York City. 

In 2001, he married fellow author Justine Larbalestier.

He is best known for the Uglies, Leviathan and Zeroes series, and his standaone book, Afterworlds.

His book Evolution's Darling was a New York Times Notable Book, and won a Special Citation for the 2000 Philip K. Dick Award. So Yesterday won a Victorian Premier's Award and both Leviathan and Midnighters 1: The Secret Hour won Aurealis Awards. Peeps and Uglies were both named as Best Books for Young Adults 2006 by the American Library Association.  

LINKS

Goodreads / Website / Twitter / Instagram / Facebook

5 Questions with Kids Comics Authors - THE GLORKIAN WARRIOR EATS ADVENTURE PIE by James Kochalka

http://www.macteenbooks.com/graphic-novels/five-questions-with-kids-comics-authors/

I am so happy to be a part of the FIVE QUESTIONS WITH KIDS COMICS AUTHORS BLOG TOUR with First Second Books (Macmillan).

Rafael Rosado and Jorge Aguirre, authors of DRAGONS BEWARE! are interviewing numerous talented graphic novel artists throughout the month! Be sure to check out the schedule daily right HERE on MacTeen Books blog!!!

5 Questions with JAMES KOCHALKA

RAFAEL/JORGE: James, thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. It's pretty cool for us to cyber-meet you after following your work for so long.

JAMES: Thanks! It's a pleasure.

*QUESTION: You jump between work for younger ages and work for adults. Is it easy to switch between audiences? Have you ever started writing something for kids then changed your mind and made it more for adults or vice versa or do you always know who the audience is going to be when you start a new work? 

JAMES: It's not too hard for me to switch back and forth between doing work for kids and doing work for adults. I think probably most parents know how to jump back and forth between both worlds in their real life. So, learning how to do it in your work is kinda the same deal. 

One of my books, famous for having a swear for the title, could have gone either way. I drew six pages as an all-ages comics, and six pages filled with cussing. I decided to go with the cussing. 

Lately, I've tried writing books that sort of straddle the two worlds. Things like FUNGUS: The Unbearable Rot of Being (or Elf Cat, still in progress) are definitely books for grown-ups but they're sort of written in the cadence and style of my kids books. I write them for adults, but with the intention that they might not be entirely inappropriate for children even though they may deal with more adult themes. I did this because they were originally serialized in my local newspaper and I knew kids would be drawn to it even though it wasn't meant for them. It makes the stories sort of weird, actually. My older son loves them.

*QUESTION: What was it like being the first Cartoonist laureate of Vermont? 

JAMES: It was incredible honor. I always say it was like being named the state flower. I feel like an honored special snowflake or something. 

Mostly it meant that I started being asked by libraries and schools to come and lecture or give cartooning classes. And I did a bunch of that, but I was limited by not having a driver's license. I had to rely on my wife to drive me places and she doesn't actually much enjoy driving either, so I had to decline as many offers as I accepted.

*QUESTION: You make graphic novels, for a while you had your daily comic strip you have a cartoon, video games, you teach, you perform music (have we left anything out?) - how do you switch gears? Is there such a thing as an average James Kochalka work day and if so, what does it look like? 

JAMES: Yeah, I also like to do painting, and dabble in prose writing and ceramics. When we go camping I dig clay out of the lake and make little sculptures and fire them in the campfire. I also like making jam and orange peel candy.

My work day... I walk my younger son to school, then do a quick run around the block, do some pushups, have breakfast, read the internet & answer emails for an hour or two, draw a few hours with a break in-between for lunch, pick my son up from school, work a bit more, play with them... video games, drawing games of my own inventions, toys, have dinner, read the boys bedtime stories, and then either read myself something, play a video game, or work some more before bed. But it also depends on where I am in a given project. 

After scripting a graphic novel I work very hard to finish it, but between projects I spend a lot of time just sort of puttering around in aimless confusion. It's good to have multiple projects going at once, so the in-between lulls are eliminated, but I always seem to lose steam a few times a year anyways and have to regroup. 

*QUESTION: Rafael always has to work with music or a podcast going in the background and Jorge mostly works in silence (except he usually listens to John Williams' score from "Raiders of the Lost Ark" when he's plotting a new story to get in the mood). Do you listen to music while you work? What's in heavy rotation from your music library these days?

JAMES: I never listen to music while scripting, but I do listen while working on the finished art. Lately I've been listening to the Super Smash Bros soundtracks for Nintendo Wii U and 3DS, the soundtrack to the Nickelodeon cartoon Over the Garden Wall, a rock opera called Shiprock and Anchordog that I traded another cartoonish for at the MICExpo, and also a lot of Ariel Pink and old albums by Renaldo & the Loaf and the new album Evermotion by Guster and The Next Instead by a local band called Swale. 

*QUESTION: What are you working on now?

JAMES: I'm working on a new animated cartoon for a major kids TV network. It's a new character I invented. I'm afraid they don't want me to talk about it yet. I invented a variation on Chess that I just started working with some guys to turn into an iPad game. I recently finished drawing the 3rd Glorkian Warrior graphic novel... but that won't come out until March 2016, and I just finished drawing Johnny Boo meets Dragon Puncher that should come out this June. I've written a bunch of songs that still need to be recorded. And I'm kind of puttering around drawing Elf Cat while I try to decide what my next major graphic novel project should be. Because I just finished work on two major books I feel like I'm in-between projects and have nothing to do... even though I probably have plenty to do.

Also, I have to do my taxes soon. I find it very hard to work on anything with that looming over me. Pretty much every winter and spring the approaching tax time throws a giant wrench into my creative process. I hate it, but I always do it all myself... no accountant. It's pretty much just simple math, but it's still emotionally draining. When you're self-employed there's all sorts of extra forms to fill out. I used to like to pencil and ink my taxes with a brush and india ink just like I do my comics... but that's rather insane so now I try to resist the urge. Turning my taxes into another art project seems like a gigantic waste of time, but there is some pleasure in it as well. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR - James Kochalka

James Kochalka is an American comic book artist and writer, and rock musician. 

His comics are noted for their blending of the real and the surreal. Largely autobiographical, Kochalka's cartoon expression of the world around him includes such real-life characters as his wife, children, cat, friends and colleagues, but always filtered through his own observations and flights of whimsy. 

In March 2011 he was declared the cartoonist laureate of Vermont, serving a term of two years.

Goodreads / Website  

THE GLORKIAN WARRIOR EATS ADVENTURE PIE

by James Kochalka

Release date: March 17th, 2015

Published by First Second Books (Macmillan)

Genre: Middle Grade Graphic Novel

Format: Paperback, eBook

SUMMARY

Oh, Glorkian Warrior. You were doing so well! You almost had that rampaging space snake under control - when Buster Glark, your villainous rival in the Glorkian Corps, showed up to make fun of you! He laughed so hard at your misfortune that he gave himself the hiccups. 

And that was just on the first page of this book.

Things are only going to get worse from here, Glorkian Warrior. 

But we promise there will be plenty of pie at the end.

5 Questions with Kids Comics Authors Blog Tour is sponsored by: 

Children’s Book Week, (May 4-10, 2015) – 96^th annual celebration!

Children's Book Week is the annual celebration of books for young people and the joy of reading. It is the longest-running national literacy initiative in the country.

In 2015, official Children’s Book Week events – including appearances by beloved children’s book authors & illustrators, children’s open mic nights, read-alouds, book-themed costume parties, and much more – will be held in all 50 states. Photos from last year here. Event attendees receive complimentary Children’s Book Week posters and tote bags. You can see how the celebrations for 2015 are shaping up here.

Children’s Book Week is administered by Every Child a Reader (ECAR) and the Children’s Book Council (CBC) is the anchor sponsor.

Blog Tour (Review, Recipe and Giveaway): PRINCESS DECOMPOSIA AND COUNT SPATULA by Andi Watson (YA)

I am so giddy to be a part of today's tour!

Who can resist a royal vampire chef who knows exactly what everyone's treat is? 

A chef with a sweet tooth of his own! One so severe, that he has lost his incisors due to cavity problems! lol

In COUNT SPATULA'S GUIDE TO BAKING Blog Tour, the author, Andi Watson, via Count Spatula, will be sharing some advice on how to run your own magical kitchen with never-before-seen comics, recipes and other kitchen perils!!! 

PRINCESS DECOMPOSIA AND COUNT SPATULA Blog Tour

PRINCESS DECOMPOSIA AND COUNT SPATULA

by Andi Watson

Release date: February 24th, 2015

Published by: First Second (Macmillan)

Genre: Young Adult Paranormal/Romance Graphic Novel

Format: Hardcover, Paperback and eBook 

Format read: Paperback from the publisher.

SUMMARY

Princess Decomposia is overworked and underappreciated.

This princess of the underworld has plenty of her own work to do but always seems to find herself doing her layabout father's job, as well. The king doesn't feel quite well, you see. Ever. So the princess is left scurrying through the halls, dodging her mummy, werewolf, and ghost subjects, always running behind and always buried under a ton of paperwork. Oh, and her father just fired the chef, so now she has to hire a new cook as well.

Luckily for Princess Decomposia, she makes a good hire in Count Spatula, the vampire chef with a sweet tooth. He's a charming go-getter of a blood-sucker, and pretty soon the two young ghouls become friends. And then... more than friends? Maybe eventually, but first Princess Decomposia has to sort out her life. And with Count Spatula at her side, you can be sure she'll succeed.

GUEST POST

Today, we have the sublime pleasure of having Count Spatula stop by with one of his most delicious recipes!!! UNDERWORLD DIRT PIE is full of chocolatey goodness!!! It is really easy to make, AND, there is NO baking involved!!! 

YUMMM... 

 

*Note: My kids and I did attempt to "bake" this recipe. However, halfway through one child became ill by his own accord and we were not able to complete part two of the recipe. 

We plan to start over and finish the recipe later this week :) 

MY REVIEW

Fun, imaginative and adorable - this graphic novel had me smiling the whole entire time! This amusing little story not only brought on some much needed laughter, it also gives insight to family matters, being brave and how a friendship can possibly blossom into more.

Let's start with Princess Decomposia! The Princess is unbelievably understanding, thoughtful, helpful and caring. Her father, King Wulfrun, has been "ill" for quite some time now and heavily depends on his daughter to take on his responsibilities as he would. Princess Decomposia does not like to upset her father, nor does she want to disappoint anyone, so she overwhelms herself daily with countless meaningless tasks that could easily be handled by their loyal subjects, if only, her father were not so controlling.
King Wulfrun, he is quite a handful. Rather quick to judge and a picky eater. He opts to stay in bed than get up and handle things himself. It has become quite easy and habitual for him to delegate from afar and with high expectations.
When King Wulfrun fires another royal chef, he gives Princess Decomposia another task - find a new royal chef that will abide to his dietary needs. Overworked and very tired, she puts her needs aside and starts interviewing different chefs for the position...
Count Spatula is full of life! He is eager to please everyone with his special recipes. Recipes that make everyone feel warm and happy again. Princess Decomposia feels that he is exactly what they need and hires him immediately... and this is where the fun really begins!!!

With Count Spatula's help (and recipes!!!), Princess Decomposia learns that she is worthy - that her time, work and happiness should be appreciated. That it was time to overcome her father's overbearing needs, put him in his place and speak up for herself. It is not easy for a child, no matter what their age may be, to stand up to a parent and tell them what needs to be done. We all deserve to be happy.
Also, the need to feel a connection to someone is something that no one can ever just shrug off. No one should ever be lonely, nor should they have to chose their family and/or work over friendships and more. Yes, things can be complicated, but, with determination, one can overcome obstacles for the impossible. And it was so wonderful to see Princess Decomposia come into her own and get what she deserves.

The illustrations are are quirky and simple. I really enjoyed the black and white blocks and scratchy tone to them, and couldn't imagine it any better! Each frame help build the story and move the dialogue along effortlessly. 

A much loved graphic novel that I will thoroughly enjoy over and over again! I really recommend this to all graphic novel and comic book lovers! Also to those looking to branch out and have a quick, fun read!!!

*A paperback was sent to me from the publisher for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

GIVEAWAY

- Paperback copy of PRINCESS DECOMPOSIA AND COUNT SPATULA by Andi Watson

- Must be 14yo+

- US/Canada Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Andi Watson

Andrew "Andi" Watson (born 1969) is a British cartoonist and illustrator best known for the graphic novels Breakfast After Noon, Slow News Day and his series Love Fights, published by Oni Press and Slave Labor Graphics.

Watson has also worked for more mainstream American comic publishers with some work at DC Comics, a twelve-issue limited series at Marvel Comics, with the majority at Dark Horse Comics, moving recently to Image Comics.

Goodreads

Waiting On Wednesday #114: NIMONA by Noelle Stevenson (YA)

"Waiting On Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine.

This is where we get to 'spotlight' books that we are anxiously waiting to be released!!!

The ones that we are dying to get our hands on and read into the wee hours of the night!!!

And, quite possibly, to make our shelves look pretty too :) 

What I'm currently waiting for... 

NIMONA

by Noelle Stevenson

Expected release date: May 19th, 2015

Published by: Harper Collins

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy Graphic Novel  

Format: Paperback, eBook

SUMMARY

Lord Ballister Blackheart has a point to make, and his point is that the good guys aren't as good as they seem. He makes a comfortable living as a supervillain, but never really seems to accomplish much - until he takes on a new sidekick, Nimona, a shapeshifter with her own ideas of how things should be done. 

Unfortunately, most of those ideas involve blowing things up. 

Now Ballister must teach his young protégé some restraint and try to keep her from destroying everything, while simultaneously attempting to expose the dark dealings of those who claim to be the protectors of the kingdom - including his former best friend turned nemesis, Ambrosius Goldenloin.

Originally published online, Nimona has been nominated for a Harvey award for Best Online Comics Work, was named one of io9's top ten Best New and Short Webcomics of 2012, and has been awarded the Cartoonist Studio Prize for Best Webcomic of 2012 by Slate Magazine and the Center for Cartoon Studies.

Why I'm waiting for NIMONA...

First... because it's Noelle Stevenson!!!

She is the author/illustrator to my most favorite comic book right now, LUMBERJANES!!!

(She's also done some work on Rainbow Rowell's books and the Adventure Time comic books!!!)

Second... because I luuuuurve all things graphic novel/comic books!!!
And I need more in my life!!!

Lastly... because there's a supervillain and a shapeshifter!!!

P.S... did you see that cool cover?!?!?

SO, what are you waiting for this week???

Review: THROUGH THE WOODS by Emily Carroll (YA Graphic Novel)

THROUGH THE WOODS

by Emily Carroll

Release date: July 15th, 2014

Published by: Margaret K. McElderry Books (Simon & Schuster)

Genre: Young Adult Graphic Novel - Fairytale

Format: Hardback, Paperback, eBook

Format read: Paperback I purchased.

SUMMARY

A fantastically dark and timeless graphic debut, for fans of Grimm Tales, The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy and the works of Neil Gaiman 

'It came from the woods. Most strange things do.'

Five mysterious, spine-tingling stories follow journeys into (and out of?) the eerie abyss.

These chilling tales spring from the macabre imagination of acclaimed and award-winning comic creator Emily Carroll.

Come take a walk in the woods and see what awaits you there.

MY REVIEW

The most hauntingly beautiful book I have ever seen! The illustrations alone will creep into your brain and burrow in for nightmares to come. The writing and dialogue has a way of whispering right into your ear, giving chills and everlasting goosebumps. I don't think I will ever be able to convey into appropriate words how brilliant this graphic novel is. Emily Carroll has upped my fairytale expectations to a point that I will probably never be able to find another novel that will captivate like this.

First, I must gush over the book's cover and its illustrations; the cover effectively sets the tone to the stories and will draw you in whether or not you want to be. The woods are enchanting and inviting, just look at those dead white trees on the cover - they are raised and textured, and if you look closer, you can see claws branching out to grab at you. You will be captivated by each story; and you will probably skim through the whole book needing to see the stories before you can actually bring yourself to actually read them. That's the beauty of this graphic novel, you don't have to read it in order to feel the eeriness. The words, the dialogue, adds to the horror, suspense and thrill.

There are five short stories. But the one that spoke to me the most and will forever give me chills is the second one called A Lady's Hands are Cold... it reminded me of Edgar Allen Poe's short story, The Tell-Tale Heart.  A girl's father marries her off and is sent to go live in her groom's ornate home. Her handmaids dress her richly and she only sees her husband at dinner. Every night she goes to her room and hears an eerie voice, a woman's voice singing the saddest tune, throughout the house - the walls, the floors. After a few nights she is overcome by the woman's grief and goes to investigate where it is coming from... now, let your imagination run. It will not compare to what unfolds for this girl.

And then the ending, the 'conclusion' of the entire book, is a story on its own too. It is by far my favorite part of the book since it seems to be an obvious nod to Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf. Yes, the entire book does have an influence from this fairytale as well, but here, here is where it all starts and ends, and it is truly brilliant!

All who love graphic novels, fairytales and/or horror chilling stories will truly appreciate everything about Through the Woods - the quality, the details, the storytelling - these stories will linger on your mind for years to come...  a picture book like no other.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Emily Carroll

"My name is Emily Carroll, and I was born in June of 1983. I grew up in London (Ontario) but moved to Vancouver for work after graduating Sheridan College's Classical Animation program. 

I have since moved back to Ontario, and now live in Stratford with my wife, Kate Craig. We have a very large cat.

My comics have appeared in several anthologies, such as The Anthology Project V2, Explorer: The Mystery Boxes, kus! #9, Little Heart, Creepy #9 (Dark Horse), Fairy Tale Comics (First Second), The Witching Hour (Vertigo), and others. 

My first book, Through the Woods, a collection of short horror stories, is being published by Margaret K. McElderry Book in July 2014, and be Faber and Faber in the UK. "

Goodreads / Website / Blog / Twitter

Books 'n' Bloggers Swap Unboxing

I had so much fun joining in the Books 'n' Blogger swap this time around!!!

It's such a fun way to meet new people - bloggers/booknerd :)

You can see my original post about it here! for more details... 

I was partnered with Becky of Queen B, and was so happy to "meet" her!

She's a fabulous, vibrant new blogger that I instantly clicked with :)

Definitely need to check her and her new book blog out!!!

The sweet goodies Becky sent me :) 

- A book Becky loves: SAILOR MOON, PRETTY GUARDIAN VOLUME #2 by Naoko Takeuchi

- A book Becky hasn't read, but wants to and she's sharing it with me first: PRETTY DEAD (PB) by Francesca Lia Block (YA)
- A book from my wishlist: TIDAL (Watersong #3) (PB) by Amanda Hocking (YA)

Watch my unboxing here... 

Thank you SO SO SO very much for everything, Becky! You have totally spoiled me :) 

And thank you to Chaotic Goddess Swaps for hosting!!!