Happy Book Birthday, FIRSTBORN!

My first young adult fantasy is launching today! Thanks for celebrating with me!

"A fantasy that reads like a lost history tome and deftly examines issues of gender...An engrossing story with welcome depths." Kirkus Starred Review

Girls Life magazine calls it, "a dystopian read packed with a fierce punch."

Where does a firstborn girl fit in a world dominated by men? When Tiadone was born, her parents had two choices: leave their daughter outside the community to die, or raise her as a male. Now grown, Tiadone must prove her father didn't make a mistake by letting her live. As her male initiation approaches, feminine gifts and traits emerge, and the bird she's been twined with is seen as a sign of evil. Drawn to her male best friend, Tiadone tries to become what she must be while dealing with what she indeed has become.

 

For more information, visit Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Christian Books, or Indiebound.

 

Around the web, folks are partying. Readers are playing for a box of 11 books. Read about it here. Author friends are posting photos of their last release, sharing its birth order, and wishing FIRSTBORN well. All Girls Allowed is focusing on the impetus for the novel, gendercide.

 

It's a great day! Thanks again. May all female infants be allowed to live! xox Lorie Ann

11 Book Giveaway, February 11th, for Firstborn!

In preparation for the release of Firstborn, I'm delighted to list the 11 books I'll be giving away on the 11th! All you need to do to play is:

On February 11th:
1. Share the Firstborn trailer.
2. Stop by my Facebook Author Page and tell me your birth order. I'm a firstborn!
3. Visit a gendercide site such as It's a Girl Movie, All Girls Allowed, or the Global Gendercide Advocacy Alliance Group.

I'll choose a winner at the end of the day. Here's what you could receive:

 

Amazing, yes? This is going to be a long post...

 

 

Of course, Firstborn is in the box as that's what we are celebrating! Blink

 

 

Oooo, I reviewed this work at rgz. Here's Donna Jo Napoli's foray into contemporary. Skyscape

 

 

I got to hear Lucy Christopher speak at ALA Midwinter. So engaging. Chicken House

 

 

All the way from London, Dyan Sheldon talks of love and how that is different for each person. Candlewick Press

 

 

L.A. Weatherly's climactic series finale! Candlewick Press

 

Yay for a verse novel in three viewpoints from Australian author Emma Cameron! Candlewick

 

 

Book II of the Amber House Trilogy by three authors: Kelly Moore, Tucker Reed, and Larkin Reed.

Arthur A. Levine Books

 

 

Colleen Gleason brings you the sister of Bram and the niece of Sherlock. Prepare for mystery and vampire hunting. Chronicle Books

 

 

Inspired by Wuthering Heights, Alison Croggon offers romance, betrayal, and vengeance. Candlewick

 

 

Nicky Singer's work of a glass flask of hope, possibly with the power to save her family.

Chronicle Books

 

 

And finally, Susann Cokal's work set in Scandinavia, where a prick of a needle alters history.

Candlewick

 

That's a wrap! All of these works will go to a winner on February 11th! Best to you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





Signing at ALA Midwinter!

And here are a few photos of my signing at ALA Midwinter. What a blast! The Blink, Zondervan team were rock stars. Seriously. I have no pics of me actually signing because I was too busy signing! Ha! 300 ARCS flew out of the booth. Plus there was an interview with the ALA Videographer and a snapshot taken for Librarian Wardrobe.

It was fabulous seeing all the YALSA Teens, librarians, and bloggers and their enthusiasm for Firstborn. I'm so thankful for the opportunity, and that I was blessed with health!

Chriscynethia Floyd, VP of Marketing, me, and Liane Worthington, Publicist

 

My beloved first editor and friend, Emma Dryden

New friend, author Joanna Marple

The hopping HarperCollins, Zondervan, Blink Booth!



Gorgeous, yes? Take flight, Firstborn!

Living with Lupus: Traveling to ALA Midwinter!

So I haven't run a lupus update for a bit. After the 8 month flare of 2013, I seem to only be having 3 day experiences now. They still take me by surprise when they hit. When they do, I try to gather words to describe the sensation, but it's hard to convey. Yet, when it's here, there's no doubt. Here goes: it feels like the flu, with a migraine, as if I weigh 500 lbs, and I'm moving through quicksand. The light hurts, and basically I want to get to the dark. Like a bat. Or a mole. Or a naked mole rat. :~)

Those are the facts as I prepare to hit ALA Midwinter tomorrow through Sunday. For non-librarian types, this is the winter gathering of librarians from around the country to network, inspire, and celebrate books. My signing is in the Blink booth, #737, on Saturday morning at 9:30. Please stop in and say hey! There will be ARCs of Firstborn and rgz frippery, while they last. I hope to see you, and that lupus doesn't make an appearance. Look for my hat!

Delight on My Doorstep!

Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! I just found this on my doorstep. Shaking my groove all around the kitchen!

FIRSTBORN Trailer

I LOVE THIS TRAILER! Thank you, Blink!

FIRSTBORN Trailer, released by Hypable

The trailer for FIRSTBORN was just released at Hypable!!! On the front page. And it's looking awesome! Blink did an amazing job, don't you think? I'm so happy!

FIRSTBORN E-book: Special PRE-SALE!

Following the fab star review from Kirkus Reviews, Blink is offering a pre-sale of FIRSTBORN right now. Which is pretty cool. Check the different sites if you like. I saw $3.79 at Amazon.

And here's the full review! Yay! Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

KIRKUS REVIEW

A fantasy that reads like a lost history tome and deftly examines issues of gender.

Tiadone is the first declared male in his R’tan village, though he was born female: Tiadone’s father declared him male to save him from abandonment and certain death on the Scree, as is the fate for all firstborn R’tan females, as dictated by the oppressive rule of the Madronians. Soon, Tiadone, along with his best friend, Ratho, and their “twined” rapions (birds of prey bonded to R’tan companions), travels to the Perimeter. During their mandatory year of service in Perimeter Defense, they will protect their people from invaders, desert cats and sandstorms. Once there, Tiadone chronicles the ways he must cope with the scorn of the other boys, the cruelty of the Madronians in power and his own changing body and blossoming sexuality—all as he struggles with his feelings surrounding being a declared male. Over the course of the year, Tiadone comes to recognize and deconstruct the carefully crafted lies that his life has been founded on and eventually finds a strength, peace and freedom he never dared hope for. Through the beautifully drawn Tiadone—whom readers will come to care for and relate to—Grover questions both gender norms and gender conformity in an honest, light-handed manner.

An engrossing story with welcome depths. (Fantasy. 12 & up)

Poetry Friday: Blink

 

 

Within the orb of

my eye, pulse living stories,

caught between each blink.

 

 

Lorie Ann Grover, 2013

 

Many congratulations to Zondervan for the launch of their new imprint, Blink! I'm thrilled to be onboard!