The planning committee (Jane Gov, Alyson Beecher, Alethea Allarey) would like to thank our wonderful authors, everyone from Pasadena Public Library including staff and volunteers, Bridge to Books volunteers, publishers, bloggers, and of course the readers who attended Pasadena Loves YA on Saturday, May 23, 2015.

We will continue to update this page with links, so if you wish to be included in the acknowledgements, please email frootjoos at gmail dot com.

Photos by Katie Ferguson

Authors

Mary McCoy - @MaryElMcCoy - Q&A on Kid Lit Frenzy
Katie Alender - @KatieAlender - Q&A on Movies, Shows & Books
Victoria Aveyard - @VictoriaAveyard - Spotlight on The Consummate Reader
Alexis Bass - @AlexisBassWrite - Q&A on Recently Acquired Obsessions
Julie Berry - @JulieBerryBooks - Q&A on FanGirlFeeels
Livia Blackburne - @LKBlackburne - Q&A on Nite Lite Book Reviews
Virginia Boecker - @VirgBoecker
Jessica Brody - @JessicaBrody - Spotlight on iFandomsCollide
Stephen Chbosky - @StephenChbosky - Spotlight on The Windy Pages
Brandy Colbert - @BrandyColbert - Spotlight on Nite Lite Book Reviews
Ava Dellaira - @AvaDellaira - Q&A Book You Very Much
Kody Keplinger - @Kody_Keplinger - Spotlight on A Bookish Escape
Liz Maccie - @lmaccie - Spotlight on The Reader's Antidote
Morgan Matson - @morgan_m - Q&A on What a Nerd Girl Says
Lauren Miller - @lmillerwrites
Alexandra Monir - @timelessalex
Jennifer Niven - @jenniferniven - Interview on Joy Sandwich Podcast - GermMagazine
Romina Russell - @rominarussell - Q&A with Fiktshun
Sarah Tomp - @swtomp - Q&A on Books Unbound
Kiersten White - @kierstenwhite - Q&A at Adventures of a Book Junkie

Publishers
Simon Teen
Harper Teen
Macmillan Teen Books
Penguin Random House
Little, Brown
Hyperion
Skyscape
Sourcebooks

Recaps
Reading over Sleeping
The Romance Bookie
The Book Belles

Mary McCoy is a writer and a librarian at the Los Angeles Public Library. She grew up in western Pennsylvania and studied at Rhodes College and the University of Wisconsin. Mary now lives in Los Angeles with her husband and son. Her debut novel, Dead To Me, is a YA mystery set in the glamorous, treacherous world of 1940s Hollywood.

LA Confidential for the YA audience. This alluring noir YA mystery with a Golden Age Hollywood backdrop will keep you guessing until the last page. 

"Don't believe anything they say." 

Those were the last words that Annie spoke to Alice before turning her back on their family and vanishing without a trace. Alice spent four years waiting and wondering when the impossibly glamorous sister she idolized would return to her--and what their Hollywood-insider parents had done to drive her away. 

When Annie does turn up, the blond, broken stranger lying in a coma has no answers for her. But Alice isn't a kid anymore, and this time she won't let anything stand between her and the truth, no matter how ugly. The search for those who beat Annie and left her for dead leads Alice into a treacherous world of tough-talking private eyes, psychopathic movie stars, and troubled starlets--and onto the trail of a young runaway who is the sole witness to an unspeakable crime. What this girl knows could shut down a criminal syndicate and put Annie's attacker behind bars--if Alice can find her first. And she isn't the only one looking. 

Evoking classic film noir, debut novelist Mary McCoy brings the dangerous glamour of Hollywood's Golden Age to life, where the most decadent parties can be the deadliest, and no drive into the sunset can erase the crimes of past.

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Katie Alender (rhymes with “calendar”!) moved from South Florida to Los Angeles to work in TV development and production. Her debut novel, Bad Girls Don't Die, was published by Disney-Hyperion in 2010 as the first of a trilogy. Her next book, The Dead Girls of Hysteria Hall, will be out August 25, 2015 from Scholastic. In her spare time, she enjoys writing, reading, sewing (especially quilts), practicing yoga, photography, visiting friends’ blogs, and hanging out with her family.

Hollywood history, mystery, murder, mayhem, and delicious romance collide in this unputdownable thriller from master storyteller Katie Alender. 

Willa is freaking out. It seems like she's seeing things. Like a dead body in her swimming pool. Frantic messages on her walls. A reflection that is not her own. It's almost as if someone -- or something -- is trying to send her a message. 

Meanwhile, a killer is stalking Los Angeles -- a killer who reenacts famous movie murder scenes. Could Willa's strange visions have to do with these unsolved murders? Or is she going crazy? And who can she confide in? There's Marnie, her new friend who may not be totally trustworthy. And there's Reed, who's ridiculously handsome and seems to get Willa. There's also Wyatt, who's super smart but unhealthily obsessed with the Hollywood Killer. 

All Willa knows is, she has to confront the possible-ghost in her house, or she just might lose her mind... or her life.

Acclaimed author Katie Alender puts an unforgettable twist on this spine-chilling tale of murder, mystery, mayhem--and the movies.

Victoria Aveyard is a screenwriter/YA author who likes books and lists. She splits her time between my hometown East Longmeadow, Massachusetts and Los Angeles. After graduating with a BFA in Screenwriting from the University of Southern California, she decided to try her hand at writing a novel. Her debut, Red Queen, came out of the terrifying, unemployed year after college.

The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers. 

To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change. 

Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the centre of those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control. 

But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win?

Alexis Bass grew up in Washington, went to college in Arizona, and spent her early twenties in Seattle. She currently lives in Northern California with Dylan McKay, her gorgeous and rambunctious golden retriever. She loves good fashion and good TV as much as a good book, and is a huge advocate of the three C’s: coffee, chocolate, and cheese.

If you want more, you have to give less. 

That’s the secret to dating in high school. By giving as little as they expect to get in return, seventeen-year-old Aubrey Housing and her three best friends have made it to the second semester of their senior year heartbreak-free. And it’s all thanks to a few simple rules: don’t commit, don’t be needy, and don’t give away your heart. 

So when smoking-hot Nathan Diggs transfers to Lincoln High, it shouldn’t be a big deal. At least that’s what Aubrey tells herself. But Nathan’s new-boy charm, his kindness, and his disarming honesty throw Aubrey off her game and put her in danger of breaking the most important rule of all: Don’t fall in love.

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Julie Berry is the author of the award-winning young adult novel, All the Truth That’s in Me (Viking, 2013). She grew up in western New York and holds a BS from Rensselaer in communication and an MFA from Vermont College in writing for children and young adults. Before becoming an author, she worked in software sales and marketing. She now lives in southern California with her husband and four sons.

There's a murderer on the loose—but that doesn't stop the girls of St. Etheldreda's from attempting to hide the death of their headmistress in this rollicking farce.

The students of St. Etheldreda's School for Girls face a bothersome dilemma. Their irascible headmistress, Mrs. Plackett, and her surly brother, Mr. Godding, have been most inconveniently poisoned at Sunday dinner. Now the school will almost certainly be closed and the girls sent home—unless these seven very proper young ladies can hide the murders and convince their neighbors that nothing is wrong.

The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place is a smart, hilarious Victorian romp, full of outrageous plot twists, mistaken identities, and mysterious happenings.

Livia Blackburne writes fantasy. Born in Taiwan, raised in Albuqurque, she spent her twenties in Boston, where she earned an A.B. in Biochemical Sciences from Harvard and PhD in cognitive neuroscience from MIT. Daughter of Dusk, the sequel to her debut novel, will be released August 4, 2015 from Disney-Hyperion.

Growing up on Forge’s streets has taught Kyra how to stretch a coin. And when that’s not enough, her uncanny ability to scale walls and bypass guards helps her take what she needs.

But when the leader of the Assassins Guild offers Kyra a lucrative job, she hesitates. She knows how to get by on her own, and she’s not sure she wants to play by his rules. But he’s persistent—and darkly attractive—and Kyra can’t quite resist his pull.

Tristam of Brancel is a young Palace knight on a mission. After his best friend is brutally murdered by Demon Riders, a clan of vicious warriors who ride bloodthirsty wildcats, Tristam vows to take them down. But as his investigation deepens, he finds his efforts thwarted by a talented thief, one who sneaks past Palace defenses with uncanny ease.

When a fateful raid throws Kyra and Tristam together, the two enemies realize that their best chance at survival—and vengeance—might be to join forces. And as their loyalties are tested to the breaking point, they learn a startling secret about Kyra’s past that threatens to reshape both their lives.

In her arresting debut novel, Livia Blackburne creates a captivating world where intrigue prowls around every corner—and danger is a way of life.

Virginia Boecker recently spent four years in London obsessing over English medieval history, which formed the basis of The Witch Hunter. She now lives in the Bay Area, California with her husband and spends her days writing, reading, running, and chasing around her two children and a dog named George.

In addition to English kings, nine-day queens, and Protestant princesses, her other obsessions include The Smiths, art museums, champagne, and Chapstick.

The magic and suspense of Graceling meet the political intrigue and unrest of Game of Thrones in this riveting fantasy debut. 

Your greatest enemy isn't what you fight, but what you fear. 

Elizabeth Grey is one of the king's best witch hunters, devoted to rooting out witchcraft and doling out justice. But when she's accused of being a witch herself, Elizabeth is arrested and sentenced to burn at the stake. 

Salvation comes from a man she thought was her enemy. Nicholas Perevil, the most powerful and dangerous wizard in the kingdom, offers her a deal: he will save her from execution if she can break the deadly curse that's been laid upon him. 

But Nicholas and his followers know nothing of Elizabeth's witch hunting past--if they find out, the stake will be the least of her worries. And as she's thrust into the magical world of witches, ghosts, pirates, and one all-too-handsome healer, Elizabeth is forced to redefine her ideas of right and wrong, of friends and enemies, and of love and hate. 

Virginia Boecker weaves a riveting tale of magic, betrayal, and sacrifice in this unforgettable fantasy debut.

Jessica Brody knew from a young age that she wanted to be a writer. She started self "publishing" her own books when she was seven years old, binding the pages together with cardboard, wallpaper samples and electrical tape.

After graduating from Smith College in 2001 where she double majored in Economics and French and minored in Japanese, Jessica later went on to work for MGM Studios as a Manager of Acquisitions and Business Development. In May of 2005, Jessica quit her job to follow her dream of becoming a published author.

So many secrets are buried within these compound walls. 

I used to be one of those secrets. 

After returning to the Diotech compound and undergoing an experimental new memory alteration, Seraphina is now a loyal, obedient servant to Dr. Alixter and the powerful company that created her. Happy and in love with Kaelen, another scientifically-enhanced human designed to be her perfect match, Sera’s history with a boy named Zen is just a distant memory from a rebellious past she longs to forget. 

But as Sera and Kaelen embark on a nationwide tour to promote Diotech’s new product line—a collection of controversial genetic modifications available to the public—Sera’s mind starts to rebel. She can’t stop the memories of Zen from creeping back in. 

As more secrets are revealed, more enemies are uncovered, and the reality of a Diotech-controlled world grows closer every day, Sera will have to choose where her true loyalties lie, but it’s a choice that may cost her everything she’s ever loved.

Stephen Chbosky grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and graduated from the University of Southern California's Filmic Writing Program.  He is the novelist, screenwriter, and film director best known for writing the New York Times bestselling coming-of-age novel The Perks of Being a Wallflower , as well as for screenwriting and directing the film version of the same book, starring Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, and Ezra Miller. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Liz Maccie, and their two children.

Charlie is a freshman. 

And while he's not the biggest geek in the school, he is by no means popular. Shy, introspective, intelligent beyond his years yet socially awkward, he is a wallflower, caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it. 

Charlie is attempting to navigate his way through uncharted territory: the world of first dates and mix tapes, family dramas and new friends; the world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite. But he can't stay on the sideline forever. Standing on the fringes of life offers a unique perspective. But there comes a time to see what it looks like from the dance floor. 

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a deeply affecting coming-of-age story that will spirit you back to those wild and poignant roller-coaster days known as growing up.

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Brandy Colbert was born and raised in the Missouri Ozarks, has a bachelor's degree in Journalism, and has worked as an editor for several national magazines. She lives and writes in Los Angeles. Her first novel, POINTE, was published by Penguin on April 10, 2014.

Theo is better now. 

She's eating again, dating guys who are almost appropriate, and well on her way to becoming an elite ballet dancer. But when her oldest friend, Donovan, returns home after spending four long years with his kidnapper, Theo starts reliving memories about his abduction—and his abductor. 

Donovan isn't talking about what happened, and even though Theo knows she didn't do anything wrong, telling the truth would put everything she's been living for at risk. But keeping quiet might be worse.

Ava Dellaira is a Los Angeles native, moved to New Mexico with her family when she was a child, attended University of Chicago, and received an MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where she lived on the bottom floor of a farm house once occupied by Kurt Vonnegut (how cool is that?!) and studied poetry. As an aspiring screenwriter, she moved back to Los Angeles and had the good fortune to get a job working for Stephen Chbosky, the author of The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

"When I gave him some of my writing, he said, 'I think you should write a novel.' The idea had actually never occurred to me before. But that night, on my drive home, I was staring absently at the half-full moon while waiting for a red light to change, and the title popped into my head: Love Letters to the Dead. I started writing the book that night." (avadellaira.com)

Kody Keplinger was born and raised in small town western Kentucky, where she began her writing career after penning the New York Timesand USA Today bestseller, The DUFF, at age seventeen. Now a major motion picture, The DUFF was chosen as an YALSA Top Ten Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Readers and a Romantic Times Top Pick. Kody has since written other books for both young adult and middle grade readers. When she isn't writing, Kody is posting about fashion and body positivity on her Instagram, chatting about her favorite TV shows on Twitter, or making videos for her YouTube account. Kody is also the co-founder of Disability in KidLit and a teacher at the Gotham Writers Workshops in NYC.

Sonny Ardmore is an excellent liar. She lies about her dad being in prison. She lies about her mom kicking her out. And she lies about sneaking into her best friend's house every night because she has nowhere else to go. 

Amy Rush might be the only person Sonny shares everything with— secrets, clothes, even a nemesis named Ryder Cross. 

Ryder's the new kid at Hamilton High and everything Sonny and Amy can't stand—a prep-school snob. But Ryder has a weakness: Amy. So when Ryder emails Amy asking her out, the friends see it as a prank opportunity not to be missed. 

But without meaning to, Sonny ends up talking to Ryder all night online. And to her horror, she realizes that she might actually like him. Only there's one small catch: he thinks he's been talking to Amy. So Sonny comes up with an elaborate scheme to help Ryder realize that she's the girl he's really wanted all along. Can Sonny lie her way to the truth, or will all her lies end up costing her both Ryder and Amy?

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Liz Maccie grew up in West Orange, New Jersey. A troubled childhood resulted in her being sent to a school to straighten her out, which she thought would ruin her life, but actually led to her finding good friends and sparking her imagination. She now writes for TV and lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Stephen Chbosky, and their two children.

Morgan Matson grew up in New York City and Greenwich, Connecticut. She attended Occidental College in Los Angeles but halfway though a theater degree, she started working in the children's department of Vroman's Bookstore and fell in love with YA literature. She has an MFA in Writing for Children from the New School as well as an MFA in Screenwriting from the University of Southern California. She now lives in Los Angeles, though she loves to travel and does it whenever she can. She is currently writing another book, to be published in 2016.

The Pre-Sloane Emily didn't go to parties, she barely talked to guys, she didn't do anything crazy. Enter Sloane, social tornado and the best kind of best friend—the one who yanks you out of your shell. 

But right before what should have been an epic summer, Sloane just… disappears. No note. No calls. No texts. No Sloane. There’s just a random to-do list. On it, thirteen Sloane-selected-definitely-bizarre-tasks that Emily would never try… unless they could lead back to her best friend. 

Apple Picking at Night? Okay, easy enough. 

Dance until Dawn? Sure. Why not? 

Kiss a Stranger? Um... 

Getting through Sloane’s list would mean a lot of firsts. But Emily has this whole unexpected summer ahead of her, and the help of Frank Porter (totally unexpected) to check things off. Who knows what she’ll find? 

Go Skinny Dipping? Wait ... what?

Lauren Miller grew up in Atlanta, went to college at Yale and law school at Berkeley, then got married and moved to Southern California to practice law. While she liked her work, she began to crave something more creative and started writing. Soon, she was ducking out of work to go to pitch meetings at studios and networks. She now writes books and screenplays in Los Angeles with her husband and daughter.

Fast-forward to a time when Apple and Google have been replaced by Gnosis, a monolith corporation that has developed the most life-changing technology to ever hit the market: Lux, an app that flawlessly optimizes decision making for the best personal results.

Just like everyone else, sixteen-year-old Rory Vaughn knows the key to a happy, healthy life is following what Lux recommends. When she’s accepted to the elite boarding school Theden Academy, her future happiness seems all the more assured. But once on campus, something feels wrong beneath the polished surface of her prestigious dream school.

Then she meets North, a handsome townie who doesn’t use Lux, and begins to fall for him and his outsider way of life. Soon, Rory is going against Lux’s recommendations, listening instead to the inner voice that everyone has been taught to ignore — a choice that leads her to uncover a truth neither she nor the world ever saw coming.

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Author and recording artist Alexandra Monir broke onto the scene in her early twenties with the release of her popular debut YA novel, the paranormal romance Timeless. The book caught on quickly, landing on the Barnes & Noble Bestsellers chart and being named one of Amazon's "Best Books of the Month." The sequel, Timekeeper, was published in 2013. Suspicion marks Alexandra's first novel outside of the Timeless series, as well as her first foray into the mystery genre.

Seventeen-year-old Imogen Rockford has never forgotten the last words her father said to her, before the blazing fire that consumed him, her mother, and the gardens of her family’s English country manor. 

For seven years, images of her parents’ death have haunted Imogen’s dreams. In an effort to escape the past, she leaves Rockford Manor and moves to New York City with her new guardians. But some attachments prove impossible to shake—including her love for her handsome neighbor Sebastian Stanhope. 

Then a life-altering letter arrives that forces Imogen to return to the manor in England, where she quickly learns that dark secrets lurk behind Rockford’s aristocratic exterior. At their center is Imogen herself—and Sebastian, the boy she never stopped loving. 

Combining spine-tingling mystery, romance, and unforgettable characters, Suspicion is an action-packed thrill ride.

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New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Niven has always wanted to be a Charlie's Angel, but her true passion is writing. Her most recent book, All the Bright Places, is her first novel for young adult readers and tells the story of a girl who learns to live from a boy who intends to die. The foreign rights have already sold to thirty-two territories, and the movie rights have been optioned with Elle Fanning attached to star. As a companion to the book, Jennifer has created Germ, a web magazine for and run by girls (and boys)—high school and beyond—that celebrates beginnings, futures, and all the amazing and agonizing moments in between.


Theodore Finch is fascinated by death, and he constantly thinks of ways he might kill himself. But each time, something good, no matter how small, stops him.

Violet Markey lives for the future, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister’s recent death.

When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it’s unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the “natural wonders” of their state, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries: It’s only with Violet that Finch can be himself—a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who’s not such a freak after all. And it’s only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet’s world grows, Finch’s begins to shrink.

This is an intense, gripping novel perfect for fans of Jay Asher, Rainbow Rowell, John Green, Gayle Forman, and Jenny Downham from a talented new voice in YA, Jennifer Niven.