Closed for the Holidays

Free Book Friday will be closed for three weeks and will reopen on January 8, 2011.

Happy New Year!

Love, Inc. - Winners!

4 lucky winners will be receiving free autographed copies of Love, Inc.!

1) Autumn Hill
2) Jessica Badeaux
3) Sarah Monroe
4) Maddie Bowman



If you didn't win, but still want to read Love, Inc., you can order your own copies on Amazon by clicking here!

Or find it in our Free Book Friday Amazon Store!

Love, Inc. by Yvonne Collins and Sandy Rideout

LOVE, INC.

by Yvonne Collins and Sandy Rideout

Young Adult

Hyperion
www.LoveIncBook.com
www.CollinsRideout.com


4 autographed copies will be given away on Friday, December 17, 2010!




About the Book:

Zahra, Kali, and Syd would never have met if their parents' marriages hadn't fallen apart. But when the three girls collide in group counseling, they discover they have something else in common: they've each been triple-timed by the same nefarious charmer, Eric, aka Rico, aka Rick. Talk about eye-opening therapy.

Cheerful, diplomatic Zahra is devastated. Rico had been her rock and sole confidant. How could she have missed the signs? Free-spirited, flirtatious Kali feels almost as bad. She and Rick hadn’t been together long, but they'd felt so promising. Hardened vintage-vixen Syd is beyond tears. She and Eric had real history... Or so she'd thought. Now all three girls have one mission: to show that cheater the folly of his ways.

Project Payback is such a success, the girls soon have clients lining up for their consulting services. Is your boyfriend acting shady? Are you dying to know if your crush is into you? If you need a little help to make-up, break-up or meet someone new, look no further than Love, Inc.

Read our Exclusive Interview with the Authors Here!

1) When you start a new book, do you like to outline the entire story or fly by the seat of your pants? What about your characters? Do you figure them out entirely before you start writing or do they reveal themselves to you along the way?

Because there are two of us writing, we don’t clock a lot of frequent flyer miles in the “seat of our pants” department. Instead, we always meet at a café to map out the book and decide on the major plot points for the story. Before we start writing, we know how our characters will grow, and how the story will end. That said, there’s always room for creative diversions along the way and as the story develops, we often take characters in new directions, or add events to keep it fun and fresh. Even after writing ten books together, we surprise each other now and then!

2) If you could choose one dessert or snack food that you could eat as much as you want of (and never gain an ounce!) what would it be?

Yvonne: Why limit it to one? I choose almonds, peanuts and cheese, and for a sweeter snack, Sandy’s brownies!

Sandy: Since it’s the holiday season, I’d drink eggnog for breakfast every day, followed by ginger snaps from the bakery Yvonne introduced me to (thanks a ton, Y).

3) Be honest, how many drafts did you have to write for this book? Any horrific scenes that were cut from the original that you want to share?

We had to write about four drafts—two more than usual. That was pretty horrific, we won’t lie. With two heads involved, we don’t usually face major revisions, but this one threw us a few curves. We’re (probably? hopefully?) stronger for it.

Quite a few scenes hit the dumper along the way. We’ve posted a big one on our new website: www.LoveIncBook.com.

4) If your main character, Zahra Ahmed-MacDuff could give one piece of advice to teenage girls/boys, what would it be?

It takes two people to have a successful relationship. It’s always work, and one of the toughest things is keeping the lines of communication open. When your boyfriend does something to upset you, don’t just decide he’s an idiot and write him off. Try to find out what’s really going on. You can’t climb into someone else’s head, so you have to ask what he was thinking and try to understand what happened from his perspective. Speak up before you break up!

5) If there was one thing about Zahra’s life that you’d like to have in your own life, what would it be? What about the one thing about his/her life that you’d NEVER want to have?

We’d both love to have Zahra’s talent in the kitchen. She is a whiz at baking and lord knows, we love to eat! The one thing we could do without is a triple-timing boyfriend!

About the Authors:

Longtime friends Yvonne Collins and Sandy Rideout met as teens, while working in a public library. Their books include Girl v. Boy, The Black Sheep, the "Vivien Leigh Reid" series, and Totally Me: The Teenage Girl's Survival Guide. Both authors live in Toronto, Canada. Visit them online at www.LoveIncBook.com. Or visit the authors at: www.CollinsRideout.com.

**Please enter to win using the form on the left side bar. Comments left on the post, while appreciated, are not used as entry. Thanks!

My Invented Life - Winners!

5 lucky winners will be receiving free autographed copies of My Invented Life!

1) Jessica Kim
2) Allison Cole
3) Shelley Nash
4) Marissa Mohi
5) Lena Vogt



If you didn't win, but still want to read My Invented Life, you can order your own copies on Amazon by clicking here!

Or find it in our Free Book Friday Amazon Store!

My Invented Life by Lauren Bjorkman

MY INVENTED LIFE

by Lauren Bjorkman

Young Adult

Henry Holt Books
www.LaurenBjorkman.com


5 autographed copies will be given away on Friday, December 10, 2010!





About the Book:

Roz and Eva are sisters, friends, and rivals. Roz fantasizes about snagging the lead in the school play and landing sexy skate god Bryan as her boyfriend. Sadly, a few obstacles stand between her and her dream. For one, Eva is the more talented actress. And Bryan happens to be Eva's boyfriend. But does Eva have a secret life with her cheerleading partner? Inquiring minds need to know.

Roz prides herself on random acts on insanity and invents a girlfriend to encourage Eva to open up. The plan backfires. Eva is furious. Roz finds herself neck-deep in her invented life. When Roz meets a mercurial boy with a big problem, she begins to understand the complex feelings beneath the labels. And she gets a second chance to earn Eva's trust.

Read our Exclusive Interview with the Author Here!

1) What kind of research did you have to do to bring this story to life on the page?

People-watching always gives me ideas for details. For My Invented Life, I visited a high school rehearsing A Midsummer Night’s Rave. I read Shakespeare’s As You Like It at least six times. I checked out teen blogs to get into a teen mood. I played a round of miniature golf for my opening scene. One of my characters is a pyro maniac, so I looked up interesting facts, like the flammability of non-dairy creamer.

2) If your main character, Roz, could give one piece of advice to teenage girls/boys, what would it be?

Never cut your own hair. Especially when you’re upset. But if you do a self-hack job, be sure to dye it green afterwards.

3) What genre have you not yet written but really want to try?

I’ve kept to contemporary YA until now. But I’d like to write speculative fiction. In fact, while between revisions of my current project, Miss Fortune Cookie, I’m working on a humorous and uplifting YA dystopian with a dash of paranormalcy. It’s so fun!

4) If you could have one super power what would it be?

Invisibility. It would make spying on others so much easier.

5) What’s your strangest writing quirk or habit? Something that would make all of us go, “huh?”

I can’t stand writing while wearing shoes. I prefer to be barefoot, but will submit to warm socks in the winter.

About the Author:

Lauren Bjorkman grew up on a sailboat, sharing the tiny forecastle with her sister and the sail bags. They are still friends. For fun, she likes to laugh, eat chocolate, and make up words. Visit the author online at: www.LaurenBjorkman.com.

**Please enter to win using the form on the left side bar. Comments left on the post, while appreciated, are not used as entry. Thanks!

When The Stars Go Blue - Winners!

3 lucky winners will be receiving free autographed copies of When The Stars Go Blue!

1) Jessica Bader
2) Amanda Villagomez
3) Jasmin Torre



If you didn't win, but still want to read When The Stars Go Blue, you can order your own copies on Amazon by clicking here!

Or find it in our Free Book Friday Amazon Store!