Challenge Review: Darkest Powers Bonus Pack 1 by Kelley Armstrong

Title: Darkest Powers Bonus Pack 1
Titles Included: Dangerous, Divided, Disenchanted
Series: The Darkest Powers #0.5, #1.5, #2.5
Author: Kelley Armstrong

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Supernatural Fiction

Elements: Sorcerers, Werewolves, Necromancers, Witches
Setting Location: Buffalo, New York

Publisher: Traverse Press
Format: Kindle Edition
ISBN: 9780987703149
Release Date: November 15, 2011
Source: Amazon.com
Rating: 4/5

Purchase Here: Kindle

Tagline(s): ~NONE~ 

Summary: Contains three companion stories to the #1 NYT bestselling Darkest Powers trilogy.

Dangerous (prequel to The Summoning) The story of how Derek and Simon came to Lyle House, told from Derek's point of view.

Divided (set between The Summoning and The Awakening) Derek and Simon's adventures while separated from Chloe and Rae in the factory. Also told from Derek's point of view.

Disenchanted (overlaps part of The Awakening) Simon and Tori continue their journey after Chloe and Derek are left at the truck stop. Told from Tori's point of view.

Review:

What I love about some novellas is that they can be from the POV of a character that you're just dying to know what they are thinking while you're reading the main storyline. In the Darkest Powers, Derek is that character for me, and most of the novellas are from his POV.

Dangerous - Derek's POV

This novella is the prequel to the main series and it starts 10 years before, when Derek was 5 years old and living in the lab with the other werewolf pups. I really liked being able to read about what Derek's life was like before Simon's dad took him. And even at 5 years old, Derek felt better being around Simon and was just as protective of him.

We read about why Simon and Derek ended up at Lyle House, but it was just a vague explanation given to Chloe. But in Dangerous, we get to read about what really happened. We see how Derek protected Simon from a bully with a knife, which resulted in that bully being put into a coma. We see how people judged Derek by how he looked, assuming he was up to no good. Then we see what happened when they arrived home one day to their dad missing and what they went through to try to find him. Which then led to them being caught an sent to Lyle House. I felt this was a pretty good lead up to the main story when Chloe arrives at Lyle House and meets Simon and Derek.

Divided - Derek's POV

This novella takes place between The Summoning and The Awakening when Derek, Simon, Chloe, and Rae escaped Lyle House and were being pursued in the factory. This is Derek and Simon's side of the story when they end up separated.

Derek is really not happy with Chloe not following the plan and having stayed with him while his Change began. We learn why Derek used Chloe to escape Lyle House: Simon had withdrawn into himself and Chloe was bringing him back to himself. Chloe needed their help and Derek used that to get Simon to leave Lyle House. It wasn't until Chloe confronted Derek about using her and still staying with the plan that he started seeing her as a person and feeling responsible for her.

So when he realizes that Chloe and Rae are nowhere in the factory and that she called her aunt, he begins to feel anxious. Derek and Simon go from library to library trying to find information on where Chloe could be, while still trying to find their dad. It's during this that he notices a paper with the reward notice of $500,000 that her dad is offering for her return. You can imagine this doesn't make Derek very happy. You can also imagine Derek's relief and annoyance when they return to the factory and Chloe's there, but with Tori in tow.

I really liked reading this novella because while Chloe and Rae are hiding in the warehouse and eventually recaptured, we get to see what is happening with the other half of their group. Derek is almost desperate to get to Chloe and you can see small changes in the way he sees and feels about her. While I believe that the true changing point in his feeling for Chloe was when she stayed with him when he started Changing again at the truck stop, I think the beginning of those changes started here.

Disenchanted - Tori's POV, partially Simon's

Now Disenchanted takes place during the time that Chloe and Derek were left behind at the truck stop, but this is the story of Tori and Simon's continued journey to Andrew's.

Simon wants to go back for Derek and Chloe, while Tori wants to continue on to Andrew's place. Tori gets her way and they eventually make it to Andrew's. But along the way, Simon doesn't bother to hide his dislike for her and Tori knows that they don't want her there. When they get to Andrew's house, he's just gone, like Simon's dad was just gone. It's while they are hiding out in the pool house waiting for Derek and Chloe to arrive that Simon tells Tori why he doesn't like her. She's inconsiderate and selfish, only thinking of herself.

I think the moment that really got Tori thinking was when Simon protected her from a perceived threat, someone he doesn't even like. It's after this point that Tori slowly begins to change. Although she can still be a brat sometimes.

About this Author:

Kelley Armstrong has been telling stories since before she could write. Her earliest written efforts were disastrous. If asked for a story about girls and dolls, hers would invariably feature undead girls and evil dolls, much to her teachers' dismay. All efforts to make her produce "normal" stories failed.

Today, she continues to spin tales of ghosts and demons and werewolves, while safely locked away in her basement writing dungeon. She's the author of the NYT-bestselling "Women of the Otherworld" paranormal suspense series and "Darkest Powers" young adult urban fantasy trilogy, as well as the Nadia Stafford crime series. Armstrong lives in southwestern Ontario with her husband, kids and far too many pets.

 

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Tour Review: Chasing the Trickster by April Grey

Title: Chasing the Trickster

Series: Cernunnos #1

Author: April Grey
Genre: Supernatural Fiction

Elements:
Publisher: Eternal Press

Format: PDF, 234 Pages 
ASIN: B0063XNO1A

Release Date: November 5, 2011
Source: Tour Host {FMB Book Tours} 
Rating:

Tagline(s): One Man, Two Women, Two Gods…who will survive the Trickster’s snare?

Summary: Ghostly images materialize in Nina Weaver’s photos. Goons try to kidnap her. When her photographs are stolen and best friend is shot, she realizes that she has no one to turn to but her ex-lover, Pascal “Goofy” Guzman. Together they go on a desperate road trip in search of answers. The truth is darker and more terrifying than Nina could ever have imagined. After their love re-ignites, they fall into the Trickster God’s trap.

Short Review (full review to come):

Uniquely written, with characters you can't help but love. Chasing the Trickster melds Native American and European mythologies to create a story that's unforgettable.

Excerpt: 

She stared at the photo on the gallery wall and silently swore. All semester ghostly images had marred her work. And now not only a strange inclusion ruined her photo, but the pin light needed to be repositioned as well. She found a ladder in the hallway supply closet. Balancing precariously on the top step, she noticed that the imperfection had changed into the image of a vehicle, and it was on fire. She could see the superheated air wavering up off of the flames. The crackling and sudden heat of a blaze forced her to lift a hand to guard her face. It was going to explode. She was quite sure of it. And then she was falling backwards, falling down…

About this Author: 

April Grey's urban fantasy novel, Chasing The Trickster, is published by Eternal Press. Her short stories have been published in such print anthologies as Demonmind's Halloween 2010, The Best of Everyday Fiction 2, Northern Haunts, Ephemera and Terrible Beauty, Fearful Symmetry. Many of these stories can be found in her collection, The Fairy Cake Bake Shoppe available through Amazon and Smashwords.

She and her family live in Hell's Kitchen, NYC in a building next to a bedeviled garden. Gremlins, sprites or pixies, something mischievous, lurks therein. Someday she'll find out.

Blog |Facebook | Twitter | Smashwords | Website

Writing Class - Jan 28 - Feb 10

Writing for e-zines 13 SPOTS LEFT

April Grey. The best piece of advice I ever had as a budding novelist was to also write short pieces. The benefits of publishing short stories and/or non-fiction articles with e-zines (and other publications) are huge. You can make a name for yourself as a writer, create a platform, improve your craft and get paid by selling to e-zines. This course will teach the beginning writer how to research markets, evaluate their own work, write a cover letter/follow up query and track their stories. Students will sub... {more info} 

Duration: 13 days.  $20/$30 (Craft, Plotting, Characterization, Industry, Genre, Intermediate)

http://www.savvyauthors.com/vb/workshoplist.php

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Tour Review: Moonlight and Oranges by Elise Stephens (Giveaway)

Title: Moonlight and Oranges
Author: Elise Stephens
Genre: New Adult Fiction
Publisher: Booktrope

Format: PDF, 130 Pages 
ASIN: B0065U78MC

Release Date: November 1, 2011
Source: Publicist {Sophie Weeks} 
Rating:

Tagline(s): ~NONE~

Summary: Lorona Connelly is ready for a change from her carefully planned, bookish life. When sparks fly at a costume party, she embraces a chance for romance with the handsome Kestrin Feather. However, she quickly realizes that even love and destiny may not be enough to overcome the reality of an overprotective mother-in-law and Kestrin's long, tarnished history of relationships.

When Lorona's curiosity leads her to Kestrin's journal, doubt plagues them both with insecurities and threatens the relationship. Can true love overcome the odds, or was their whirlwind romance just a frivolous crush? Author Elise Stephens shares a journey of young love, fate, and wounded trust in the story of Lorona and Kestrin, a couple who must learn to overcome their fears to share a life together.

Short Review: 

I loved Moonlight and Oranges! As I was reading I had a feeling that the story was based off of something, and I was right when I read the author's note in the back of the book. Moonlight and Oranges is based off of the story of Cupid and Psyche. I don't know the story of Cupid and Psyche that well, but I do know that the story does involve a meddling mother who tries to keep the lovers apart. And in Moonlight and Oranges, Kestrin's mother is scary in her efforts of keep Kestrin and Lorona apart. 


I'm a huge fan of mythology and folklore, so I was really happy that Moonlight and Oranges had Greek mythology and Mexican folklore.


About this Author: 

Elise Stephens received the Eugene Van Buren Prize for Fiction from the University of Washington in 2007, where she also received her degree in Creative Writing. Moonlight and Oranges is her first novel and was a quarter-finalist for the 2011 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award.

She lives in Seattle, Washington with her husband where they both enjoy swing dancing, eating tiramisu, and savoring the flavor of local live theater.

Author Links: Website // Twitter // Goodreads

GIVEAWAY: 

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Manga Review: The Awakening of Alma Karma by Katsura Hoshino

Title: The Awakening of Alma Karma 
Series: D.Gray-man #21 
Manga-ka: Katsura Hoshino
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Graphic Novels, Older Teen Ages 16+
Publisher: Viz Media, Shonen Jump Advanced, Shueisha Inc.
Format: Paperback, 189 Pages
ISBN-13: 978-1-4215-4077-1 
Release Date: November 1, 2011
Source: Borrowed from Wentworth Library
Rating: 4/5

Tagline(s): ~NONE~

Summary: Allen has been dropped into a flashback of his surly colleague Yu Kanda's past, where a parade of disturbing secrets reveal themselves--including one that could at long last explain what makes Yu tick!

Review:

The Millennium Earl and the Noah have attacked the North America branch of the Order, trying to awaken Yu's childhood friend, Alma Karma. While the battle rages around him, Allen sees Yu and Alma's past. But when Allen breaks through Waizurii's spell, he finds that Alma is awakening as an Akuma.

Allen feels things really deeply and it pains him when he can't protect those around him. This is one of the things that I admire about Allen. It also makes him a great exorcist.

Alma's hatred leads him into a vicious battle with Yu. The reason for Alma's hatred is never really clear--all I know is that it has something to do with the woman that Yu cared deeply for and the promise he made to her. There was a revelation about Alma and this woman that I totally wasn't expecting, though.

The Earl was really devious in this volume. He uses the pain being caused to Allen's friends because of Alma's hatred to goad him into leaving the Order. The Fourteenth, who is a part of Allen, was the Noah that tried to kill the Earl, and when Johnny asks the Earl why he wants Allen, the Earl said, "To be by his side. I want to be by the Fourteenth's side." This is an intriguing answer. I hope we find out more about the past between the Earl and the Fourteenth. The Earl's main goal in pitting Alma and Yu against each other, knowing that Allen would intervene, was to awaken the Fourteenth!

That is probably my favorite part of this volume. Each time Allen is attacked by an Innocence, the Noah memory inside him, that hatred of Innocence, is awakened, therefore awakening the Fourteenth. Seeing Allen slowly, and I mean SLOWLY, change into a Noah was exciting. Not that I want Allen to be a Noah.... It was so cool meeting Nea, who is the Fourteenth Noah who destroys everything. I was wondering what the Fourteenth would look like, and I wasn't disappointed. And the display of the Fourteenth's power when the barrier surrounding the North America branch was destroyed was so AWESOME!

Allen's great show of friendship at the end when he sent Yu and Alma through the Ark so no one could ever bother them again, was so awe-inspiring. I can't wait to see where the story will go next.

About this Manga-ka:

Katsura Hoshino ((星野 桂 Hoshino Katsura) was born on April 21, 1980, in Shiga Prefecture, Japan, as the younger of fraternal twin girls and the second of three children. She drew her first manga at twenty-one. In 1998, Hoshino moved to Tokyo. She dreamed of bringing her mother to the city and was able to in 2006.

She made her debut with her comics in July 2003 with the publication of her first manga series Continue and is known for her work, D.Gray-man, which began serialization in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump in May 2004.

Tour Review: Chains of Silver by Louisa Bacio

Title: Chains of Silver
Series: The Vampire, The Witch, and The Werewolf #2
Author: Louisa Bacio
Genre: Supernatural Fictions, Paranormal Romance, Erotic Romance
Elements:
Publisher: Ravenous Romance
Format: PDF,
ISBN:
Release Date: November 18, 2011
Source: Tour Host {Bewitching Book Tours}
Rating:

Tagline(s): ~NONE~

Summary: Adopted at birth, Silver Ashe discovers her blood brother Trevor Pack is a werewolf, with a vampire and witch for lovers. All her teachings about the evils of the paranormal Others come into question. She runs to a family friend, Nick, for help.

Nick Stake takes his hobby as a vampire hunter personally. He strives to rid the world of evil bloodsuckers. When his best friend’s “kid” sister comes to him for advice, Nick discovers Silver’s more than grown up. He battles his growing desire for Silver and blindly holds true to his convictions.

Once Silver reaches her sexual maturity, she’ll inherit her full genetic heritage and turn into a werewolf. When death comes calling, Silver and Nick must face their darkest fears in order to break free from the chains that bind.

Review: 

REVIEW WILL BE POSTED LATER. SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE.

Book Trailer:

About this Author:

Louisa Bacio enjoys soaking up the sun in Southern California, and spending time with her family.

Bacio’s work includes the Sex University series, with her debut novel Physical Education and the follow-up All-Girls Academy. Her story “Two’s Company” can be found in I Kissed a Girl: A Virgin Lesbian Anthology. Other short stories can be found in the Seducing the Myth anthology, and Rekindled: An Anthology of Reunited Lovers.

In addition to writing and editing, Bacio teaches college courses in English, journalism, film studies and popular culture.

Drop in for a visit

http://www.louisabacio.com 

http://louisabacio.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/louisabacio

http://www.twitter.com/louisabacio 

 Tour Hosted by Bewitching Book Tours

Tour Review: Rae of Hope by W.J. May (Promo)

Title: Rae of Hope
Series: Chronicles of Kerrigan #1
Author: W.J. May
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Supernatural Fiction
Elements: Shapeshifters, Psychic Abilities
Publisher: Mitchell Morris Publishing
Format: PDF, 247 Pages
ISBN-13: 9780983129790
Release Date: November 14, 2011
Source: Tour Host {Bewitching Book Tours}
Rating: 5/5

Tagline(s): ~NONE~

Summary: How hard do you have to shake a family tree to find out the truth of the past?

Fifteen-year-old Rae Kerrigan has never questioned her family’s history. That is until she accepted a scholarship to Guilder Boarding School in England. Guilder is a very unique, gifted school.

Rae has no idea what she is getting herself into or that her family’s past is going to come back and taunt her. She learns she is part of an unparalleled group of individuals who become marked with a unique tattoo (tatù) on their sixteenth birthday. The tatù enables them to have supernatural powers particular to the shape of their marking.

Both her parents were marked though Rae never knew, as they passed away when she was young and never told her. Learning about her family’s past, her evil father and sacrificial mother, Rae needs to decide if there is a ray of hope for her own life.

Review: 

Rae Kerrigan is on the cusp of her sixteenth birthday. For many girls, their sixteenth birthday is a rite of passage, a coming of age. But for Rae, it's that and so much more.

When Rae receives a scholarship to Guilder Boarding School, which was originally an all-boys school, now enrolling girls, her uncle jumps at the chance for Rae to attend his alma mater. But there's more to Guilder and its students (and apparently Rae) than meets the eye.

When Rae meets her roommate, Molly, she's introduced to the world of the tatù (taa-toe; rhymes with shoe). Molly tells Rae that on their sixteenth birthdays they will receive an ink that will grant them special powers. The ink appears on the arm of boys and the lower back of girls. Devon is the first inked boy she meets at Guilder. He has also been assigned as her tutor and quickly becomes one of the few that Rae feels she can trust.

What's odd is that everyone Rae meets seems to know more about her and her past than she does. Turns out that her father was a very dangerous man and her mother may have sacrificed everything to save her. A common saying in the murmurs that follow Rae is, "the sins of the father are the sins of the son, in this case the daughter." Rae is living under the shadow of her fathers misdeeds and is trying to fight off the demons of the past. She can't change the past, but she's her mother's "rae of hope."

I really loved the whole tatù concept. It was fun learning about each new tatù and the powers they gift, and it was really exciting anticipating what Rae's tatù would be. With her mother's ink being the sun and her father's ink being a wizard or sorcerer, I couldn't wait to see what Rae's ink would look like and which of her parent's gifts she inherited. When it finally appeared on her birthday, I could picture it in my head perfectly, it just seemed so beautiful. I would love to see concept art for Rae's tatù.

SPOILER_DESCRIPTION_OF_RAE'S_INK_HERE

I know that Rae's past and the anticipation of her tatù gain her a lot of attention, but I thought that the male attention she gained was a little over the top. It just seemed that at times EVERY SINGLE GUY was falling over himself to get Rae's attention. Although it did provide some entertaining moment, and I even felt bad for the guys, because Rae is obviously infatuated with Devon. 

The dynamic between Rae and Devon was excruciating and tortuous (in a good way) at points. Rae is completely head-over-heels for Devon, but he has a girlfriend. There are moments so sweet between them and you totally think they're going to get together, but then something happens to put space between them again. But the push-and-pull was definitely worth it in the end. 

I haven't been this satisfied with a book's conclusion is quite a while. All loose ends are tied up real nice, there's promise for a great (and complicated) romance, and I was left with a smile on my face. I can't wait to for the next installment in the Chronicles of Kerrigan series.

Book Trailer:

BUY LINKS:

     Amazon Print       Amazon Kindle      Barnes and Noble 

About this Author:

Wanita May grew up in the fruit belt of Ontario - St.Catharines. Crazy-happy childhood, she always has had a vivid imagination and loads of energy.

The youngest of six -- four older brothers, and a sister -- taught her at a young age to be competitive in all aspects of life.

At sixteen, she began competing in athletics (track and field) and before she turned seventeen, she was representing Canada in high jump. She continued to compete, breaking Canada's JR High Jump record (1.92m - 6' 3 1/2" for those metric-ly challenged). She attented University of Toronto, and Kansas State University - winning CIAU's and becoming All-American 6x - NCAA Indoors Runner Up + more.

Life continued with her husband (a distance runner from Liverpool, UK, who she met at KSU) and then their first, then second and finally third child. Their house became full of more imagination and stories.

After her father passed away in 2009, from a six-year battle with cancer (which she still believes he won the fight against), she began to write again. A passion she'd loved for years, but realized life was too short to keep putting it off.

Her first book, Rae of Hope - from the Chronicles of Kerrigan - will be available October 2011 by kNight Romance Publishing.

She is currently represented by Dawn Dowdle of Blue Ridge Literary Agency. Wanita is a writer of Young Adult, Fantasy Fiction and where ever else her little muses take her.

CONTACT LINKS: 

 http://wanitajump.wordpress.com/

http://www.wanitamay.yolasite.com/

https://www.facebook.com/wanitajump

WHAT REVIEWERS ARE SAYING:

Night Owl Reviews

Ok, I really liked this book! Rae Kerrigan was orphaned at six years old and has been living with her aunt and uncle in New York since the fire that killed her parents. Now fifteen, she is returning to England to go to boarding school. Not sure how she got in, since she did not apply, and with an uncle pushing her to go, she’s a bit nervous about the coming school year. Things get more interesting for Rae when she finds out that the Guilder School is for kids with powers… special powers from a tatú they receive on their sixteenth birthday, and that she will have one too. There were a lot of really likeable characters in this book, from roommate Molly to cute boy Devon along with a cast of others. A twist towards the end of the book kept me guessing. I read this book in one afternoon and couldn’t put it down. I am really looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

~4.5/5 stars

Review from Amazon.co.uk

This was a fantastic read, it is very well written and grabs your attention from the very first chapter, the more I read the more engrossed I became, so much so that I couldnt wait until bed time to read the last two chapters(which is when I usually read, once my little boy has gone to bed!!) I actually snook upstairs to read them whilst my hubby & son where preparing the dinner!! There is only one dissapointment and that is that I will have to wait longer than 7 weeks to see what happens next term............Fans of Harry Potter will love this book!!well done W.J.May but hurry up with the next one!!!

~5 out of 5 stars by Emilymoo

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Review: Snow in Summer by Jane Yolen

Title: Snow in Summer: The Tale of an American Snow White
Author: Jane Yolen
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Fairy Tale Retellings
Elements: Magic
Publisher: Philomel Books, Penguin Group
Format: Hardcover, 243 Pages
ISBN: 978-0-399-25663-9
Release Date: November 10, 2011
Source: Borrowed from Wentworth Library
Rating: 3.5/5

Tagline(s): Fairest of Them All

Summary: With her black hair, red lips, and lily-white skin, Summer is as beautiful as her father's garden. And her life in the mountains of West Virginia seems like a fairy tale; her parents sing and dance with her, Cousin Nancy dotes on her, and she is about to get a new baby brother.

But when the baby dies soon after he's born, taking Summer's mama with him, Summer's fairy-tale life turns grim. Things get even worse when her father marries a woman who brings poison and a magical mirror into Summer's world. Stepmama puts up a pretty face, but Summer suspects she's up to no good. Is Summer powerless to stop her?

Master storyteller Jane Yolen crafts a brand-new Snow White tale filled with magic and intrigue, set during the early twentieth century in Appalachia, that will be hard to forget.

Review:

Snow in Summer takes place in West Virginia's Appalachian Mountains during the 1940's. Jane Yolen re-tells the fairy tale of Snow White in a more modern time that we're familiar with.

Summer's life was like a fairy tale until the day her mother and baby brother died and her father retreated into himself from heartache. Then Summer's father starts visiting her mother's grave every night after dinner and she hopes it's a sign that her father is coming back to her. What she didn't expect was for her father to walk down the mountain one day from visiting her mother with a woman on his arm. Summer and Cousin Nancy quickly realize that Summer's father is besotted and under the woman's spell. With no defense against the woman's magic, Summer is easily beguiled by her. Unable to please the woman who becomes her stepmother, Summer is hunted by the man her stepmother hired to kill her. She is able to escape and finds safety in the mountains with six German jewel mining brothers. But she can't escape her stepmother that easily.

Snow in Summer is an innocent girl who has a big name to live up to. She loves fairy tales and believes in True Love. And she knows evil when she sees it. She's called Summer by her family and friends, but Snow by her stepmother. With her mother gone and her father lost in heartache, Summer quickly grows really close to Cousin Nancy. But when she's beguiled by the woman who would become her stepmother, she desperately wants a mother's love and tries her hardest to get her stepmother to love her. But when she realizes that her stepmother can't love her and she sees how evil her stepmother really is, she tries to escape. When she is being hunted by the man that her stepmother hired to kill her, she finds a safe haven with six German miners in the mountains. She finds happiness there, but she knows she must always be careful in case her stepmother finds her.

I like how Jane Yolen stays with the main elements of the Snow White tale, but adds a few unique touches all her own. I also like the heroines name. It shows the two sides of the story. Snow (which she's called by her stepmother) shows the cold and oppressive side of the story. When the heroine is trapped by her stepmother. And Summer is the warm and hopeful side of the story. Where True Love is found and good always wins.

Quote: After all, it was True Love from the very first moment we met. the best kind, born out of adversity and hard work and destined to last happily ever after. Of that we are both absolutely certain. - Page 243

About this Author:

Yolen was born at Beth Israel Hospital, the first child of Isabel Berlin and Will Hyatt Yolen. She and her family moved to California when she was young but returned to New York a few years later. After her younger brother was born, her father joined the army and served on the European front during WWII. Yolen spent her childhood taking piano lessons, ballet dancing and writing a neighborhood newspaper with her brother. Yolen spent her teen years in Westport, Connecticut, and became involved in choir, basketball, debate, language clubs and the school paper. She graduated from Smith College with several publications in literary magazines already to her name.

In 1962, Yolen married David Stemple. They had three children together and six grandchildren. Stemple passed away in 2006 from cancer. Yolen now divides her time between her homes in Western Massachusetts and Scotland.

Yolen has written over 280 books, including picture books, books of poetry, science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction and more. Her books are part of the core curriculum for schools across the country and have been translated into several languages.