FINALLY! The day has come! I am so happy to have AG Howard here to reveal the whole ENSNARED cover!! Ooh she's a tease too! You'll have to work to see it! Make sure you read the whole post and enter the
I've already made you wait long enough, so without further adieu, here's the cover:
Nice, right? Did you see what's above the title?
"A Splintered Novel"
How cool is that? Hehe
Okay, okay. You're right.
There's more to see.
Let's get to the real deal. Scroll down...
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WAIT! Let's peek inside the book.
Just teasing. Go on and skip ahead; just be sure to come back up later and read this for fun + extra rafflecopter points. :)
What I love most about this book? Alyssa definitely comes into her own, embracing both her strength and her madness. And she doesn’t take any time getting around to the business at hand.
In the very first chapter she’s standing inside the memory train, silently contemplating how her dad will be affected by being reunited with his disturbing past, and her strength and determination shines through in her thoughts:
It’s better Dad face that memory alone. Otherwise, he might try to protect me. And I don’t need it any more than he does. It took me losing my mind to gain my perspective. If that’s what it takes for him, too, so be it.
YEAH. Go go crazy Alyssa!
This book is my favorite of the series because all of the characters, not just Alyssa, come full circle and embrace who they’re meant to be and the roles they’re meant to play to keep Wonderland alive and thriving. Even when it means sacrificing or compromising dreams they once had or things they held dear. No one walks away unchanged or unscathed. And that’s exactly how a final book should be.
Also, here are some “Carrollian” elements you can expect to see warped and woven into book three:
• Red and White Knights
• Gryphon
• Rock lobsters from "The Lobster Quadrille"
• The lion and the unicorn
• The Caucus Race
• Bill the Lizard
• Twinkle Twinkle Little Bat poem
• The Queen of Hearts
Now, back to our regularly scheduled reveal . . .
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TA-DA!!!
*pauses to lick screen*
SO MUCH PRETTEH!
Awesome things that I ❤ or tie into the story:
the subtle glow in Jeb's eyes
jeweled elfin markings
painted heart patch
harlequin effect
vicious vines
heart cards
those LIPS
the colors
bugs
It was no small feat coming up with this final result, and it took lots of back and forth this time. Of all the covers of this series, Ensnared was the most difficult to perfect.
First, we struggled over finding the right model. The designer/artist team (Maria Middleton & Nathalia Suellen) use stock photos for the cover models. The guy we chose originally -- although he was cute -- wasn't quite Jeb, even after we did a lot of tweaking and inserted the image into a fancy vine and bug filled background.
First guy's eyes were too evil/werewolfish. He looked too old. His straight hair too boy-band, and his expression too dangerous. To sum it up, seductive as he was, he wasn't in keeping with Jeb's appearance and character type in the books. My Splintered skater boy has a genuineness and a gentleness of spirit that needed to be captured on his face. Also, the first model was so dark and intense, he looked out of place with the whimsical, subtle madness of the other two covers.
Continuity is crucial in the covers of a series, especially when it comes to getting bookseller support. That's why, when the original mock-up with this model was accidentally leaked a few weeks ago, I panicked. I'm so grateful to all of you for helping us smother that fire. (And sorry, I'm not allowed to show you the wrong cover for legal reasons).
SO, the model we finally decided on was this guy:
Like the other one, he's a stock photo (I bought this pic for myself so I could display it).
This model was spot on. Dark wavy hair, soulful green eyes, full lips. He already looked like Jebediah -- my young skater boy and an unassuming tortured artist -- without any tweaking at all.
The trick was making his cover magical.
Taking his image, the design team did their photo manipulation hocus-pocus and added some heart cards at my suggestion so we could weave in the Wonderland-ish element of the Queen of Hearts. Then came the elfin knight markings and the heart-shaped spatter of red paint across his eye (which both fit perfectly with other elements of the story).
All that was left were some last minute touches so Jeb would look less like a regular dude and more like a Splintered one. They lightened his skin to a glowing finish so his face wouldn't blend into the background, and would leap out from the vines. The resulting "watercolor" effect mirrored the artistic/eerie/magical feel of the other covers. It also gave Jeb a sexy harlequin vibe which is perfect for reasons I won't disclose. You'll have to read the story to find out why. *chuckles and wrings hands maniacally*
The final result = Stunning. ❤(◕‿-)❤
I adore how the three covers look together:
Not only do the vines and bugs bind them, but each character has something unique about their eyes ... Alyssa's is hidden under strands of hair, Morpheus has a netherling marking, and Jeb has a heart-shaped smudge. Also, their personalities are reflected in their faces and the colors of their covers.
- Alyssa, one eye wide-open and surrounded by writhing greenery: naive with an untapped wildness under the surface.
- Morpheus, debonair, magical with a dreamy glint in his mischievous gaze: controlled chaos.
- Jeb, tortured expression and intense eyes: a gentle artist at war with fiery passions and an unrelenting drive to be a better man than his father.
It's so amazing when it all comes together. I couldn't have asked for more beautiful and fitting covers for this series, and I'm so grateful to the incredibly talented team behind them!
Also, I'm grateful to all of you...
ThankyouforlovingmywarpedWonderland!
Without such faithful readers, I would never have had the opportunity to write three books in the twisted Carroll-esque world.
(Side note: I'm not closing the door on the possibility of more Splintered themed books in the future. I love the characters and world too much to leave forever. I'm just taking a short break to work on a couple of other stories whose characters are demanding my attention at the moment.)
Now, to thank you all properly, here's that huge INTL giveaway I promised, which includes an Ensnared ARC (FYI: the ARCs won't be printed until mid to late fall, so whoever wins the grand prize will have a few months to wait).
Also, one of my FAB writer pals, Lisa Ann O'Kane, threw in a gorgeous signed paperback. Her book, Essence, debuts with Strange Chemistry in June and is a riveting contemp young adult about a girl trapped between cult societies, set in beautiful Yosemite Park. More info can be found here on Amazon.
Other prizes are posted below, as is the rafflecopter.
Thanks so much for hanging with us the past week and being patient! I hope it was worth the wait, and I look forward to sharing more teasers and excerpts with you in the months leading up to the launch.
Other prizes are posted below, as is the rafflecopter.
Thanks so much for hanging with us the past week and being patient! I hope it was worth the wait, and I look forward to sharing more teasers and excerpts with you in the months leading up to the launch.
Good luck in the giveaways!
~ENSNARED COVER REVEAL FRABJOUS GIVEAWAY~
GRAND PRIZE:
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| Signed Ensnared ARC PLEASE NOTE: Will be mailed mid-late fall |
First Prize:
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| Signed Splintered/Unhinged limited edition flip ARC Contents: Full Splintered novel + Unhinged Sample chap |
Second Prize (2-bk pack):
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| 1 Signed Splintered Paperback |
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| 1 Signed Essence Paperback Find out more on Amazon.com |
Third Prize:
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| Death Head Moth Necklace |
Fourth Prize:
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| Splintered Series swag pack: 1 signed bookmark -- Splintered + Unhinged front, Ensnared back; 1 AiW gift tag; and 1 personalized/signed bookplate. |
Splintered
AG Howard
Release Date: January
1, 2013
Hardcover: 384
pages
Publisher: Amulet
Books (Abrams)
This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence. Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.
When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.
Title: UNHINGED (A Splintered Novel #2)
Author: A.G. Howard
Pub. Date: January 7, 2014
Publisher: Amulet Books
Pages: 400
Find it :Goodreads/Amazon/Barnes
& Noble
Alyssa Gardner has been down the rabbit hole and faced the bandersnatch. She saved the life of Jeb, the guy she loves, and escaped the machinations of the disturbingly seductive Morpheus and the vindictive Queen Red. Now all she has to do is graduate high school and make it through prom so she can attend the prestigious art school in London she's always dreamed of.
That would be easier without her mother, freshly released from an asylum, acting overly protective and suspicious. And it would be much simpler if the mysterious Morpheus didn’t show up for school one day to tempt her with another dangerous quest in the dark, challenging Wonderland—where she (partly) belongs.
As prom and graduation creep closer, Alyssa juggles Morpheus’s unsettling presence in her real world with trying to tell Jeb the truth about a past he’s forgotten. Glimpses of Wonderland start to bleed through her art and into her world in very disturbing ways, and Morpheus warns that Queen Red won’t be far behind.
If Alyssa stays in the human realm, she could endanger Jeb, her parents, and everyone she loves. But if she steps through the rabbit hole again, she'll face a deadly battle that could cost more than just her head.
About A.G. Howard
A.G. Howard was inspired to write SPLINTERED while working at a
school library. She always wondered what would've happened had the subtle
creepiness of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland taken center stage, and she
hopes her darker and funkier tribute to Carroll will inspire readers to seek
out the stories that won her heart as a child.
When she's not writing, A.G.'s pastimes are reading, rollerblading, gardening, and family vacations which often include impromptu side trips to 18th century graveyards or condemned schoolhouses to appease her overactive muse.
When she's not writing, A.G.'s pastimes are reading, rollerblading, gardening, and family vacations which often include impromptu side trips to 18th century graveyards or condemned schoolhouses to appease her overactive muse.
Website/Blog/Twitter/Facebook/Tumblr/Pinterest/Goodreads
Cover Reveal Schedule:
May 21st-Fiktshun
May 22nd- Adventures of a Book Junkie
May 23rd- Dark Faerie Tales
May 26th-AG Howard's site or Mundie Moms
May 27th- Tales of a Ravenous Reader
May 28th- Two Chicks on Books
