Forever-Midwest Connections

Forever is the thrilling conclusion to Maggie Stiefvater’s #1 New York Times bestselling Shiver trilogy.

In Maggie Stiefvater’s Shiver, Grace and Sam found each other. In Linger, they fought to be together. Now, in Forever, the stakes are even higher than before. Wolves are being hunted. Lives are being threatened. And love is harder and harder to hold on to as death comes closing in.

Maggie Stiefvater is a writer, artist, musician, and the New York Times bestselling author of Shiver, hailed by Publishers Weekly in a starred review as, “a lyrical tale,” and by Bookpage as “beautifully written, even poetic at times, and a perfect indulgence for readers of all ages.” Since publication, rights to more than thirty-five foreign editions of Shiver have been licensed. Linger, the second book in the Shiver trilogy debuted at #1 on the New York Times Bestseller list. Maggie is also the author of Lament: The Faerie Queen’s Deception and Ballad: A Gathering of Faerie. She lives in Virginia with her husband and their two children.

Wolfsbane-Midwest Connections

How many trials can one love survive? This thrilling sequel to the much-talked-about Nightshade begins just where it ended. Calla Tor wakes up in the lair of the Searchers, her sworn enemy, and she’s certain her days are numbered. But then the Searchers make her an offer–one that gives her the chance to destroy her former masters and save the pack, and the man, she left behind. Is Ren worth the price of her freedom? And will Shay stand by her side no matter what? Now in control of her own destiny, Calla must decide which battles are worth fighting and how many trials true love can endure and still survive.

Andrea Cremer’s New York Times bestselling, debut young adult novelNightshade drew the attention of readers and critics alike last fall and quickly established her as a talented new voice in the world of teen literature. The Los Angeles Times raved, “A fantastical mash-up of religious warriors and witch hunts, of feminist will and societal oppression.” EntertainmentWeekly.com said, “This teen wolf tale… will keep you reading intently.”

Wolfsbane is the second book in the Nightshade trilogy, and will be followed by Bloodrose in spring 2012.

Andrea Cremer is a professor of history at Macalester College in St. Paul, MN, where she teaches courses on sexuality and power, and focused her Ph.D. studies on how sexuality and power intersect in history. Follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/andreacremer.

Killing Kate-Midwest Connections

The next page-turner in Julie Kramer’s bestselling series featuring TV reporter Riley Sparks, the most irresistible heroine since Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum.

As TV reporter Riley Spartz discovers a serial killer drawing angel-shaped chalk outlines around the bodies of his victims, she unearths an eerie legend dating back nearly a century. Tracking the story to an Iowa cemetery, Riley finds an infamous Black Angel monument that may be connected to the string of homicides throughout the Midwest. Now she is up against a delusional young man who believes the statue is urging him to kill.

Julie Kramer is a freelance network news producer. She formerly ran WCCO-TV’s nationally award-winning investigative unit in Minneapolis. Her debut thriller, Stalking Susan, won the Minnesota Book Award and the RT Reviewers’ Choice Award for Best First Mystery, was a finalist for the Mary Higgins Clark Award, and is also a finalist for the Anthony Award. She lives with her family in White Bear Lake, Minnesota.

Loon-Midwest Connections

The haunting call of a loon is quintessential summertime for many people, and it’s also the state bird of Minnesota. These majestically beautiful birds breed on northern lakes during the spring and

summer, and when fall arrives, they migrate to open coastal waters. This gorgeously illustrated prose poem follows two baby chicks through this cycle. We witness their birth, and how they learn to swim, find food, and avoid predators such as snapping turtles and big bass. In the fall, they imitate their parents as they learn to fly and are eventually large and strong enough to make their own migration to the coast.

An afterword supplies other interesting facts about the common loon, which some scientists believe has inhabited lakes and oceans for millions of years.

Susan Vande Griek is a teacher and writer. Her junior novel, A Gift for Ampato, received high praise from teachers and journalists alike and was shortlisted for the Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction. She divides her time between Halifax, Nova Scotia, and St. Andrews, New Brunswick.

Karen Reczuch has illustrated many children’s books, including The Auctionby Jan Andrews, Just Like New by Ainslie Manson, and The Story of Life on Earth, winner of the BC Book Prize for illustrated children’s literature. She lives in Acton, Ontario.

Love Lies Bleeding-Midwest Connections

Love Lies Bleeding

In the vein of Jennifer McMahon’s Promise Not to Tell and The Lovely Bonesby Alice Sebold comes a haunting story about the lengths to which people will go to keep their pasts buried. Love, Lies, Bleeding is a winning combination of family drama and gripping mystery.

To what lengths would you go to keep a past buried?

Samantha Moore is the golden girl—with a perfect job, a perfect man, a perfect life—until a random act of violence changes everything. Unconscious for two months, Sam awakens from her coma a different person—bitter, in constant pain, and forced to endure medications that leave her nauseous, paranoid, and struggling to keep a grip on reality.

Furious with her family for sending her away to a small, remote town to recuperate—placed completely under a physical therapist’s care and robbed of what little freedom she has left—Sam lashes out at the “nice people” all around her who claim to have only her best interests in mind. But are her violent outbursts the by-product of her condition . . . or something else entirely? Strange things are happening here—and either Samantha Moore is losing her mind or her friendly new neighbors are far more dangerous than they appear to be. . . .

To what lengths would you go to keep a past buried? Samantha Moore is the golden girl—with a perfect job, a perfect man, a perfect life—until a random act of violence changes everything. Unconscious for two months, Sam awakens from her coma a different person—bitter, in constant pain, and forced to endure medications that leave her nauseous, paranoid, and struggling to keep a grip on reality. Furious with her family for sending her away to a small, remote town to recuperate—placed completely under a physical therapist’s care and robbed of what little freedom she has left—Sam lashes out, with violent outbursts the by-product of her condition–or something else entirely? Strange things are happening—and either Samantha Moore is losing her mind or her friendly new neighbors are far more dangerous than they appear to be.

Jess McConkey (aka Shirley Damsgaard) is an award-winning writer of short fiction. She lives in a small Iowa town and is currently working on her next novel.

KIlling Kate Book Trailer