IVY’S EVER AFTER by Dawn Lairamore

• Publication Season/Year: Spring 2010
• Publisher: Holiday House
• Release Date: May 15, 2010
• ISBN (hardcover): 978-0-823422-61-6
• ISBN (paperback): TBD

The kingdom of Ardendale has always locked its princesses in a white tower guarded by a dragon. It’s the only way to lure gallant young princes to the tiny, out-of-the-way kingdom to marry them. But Ivy is a princess who doesn’t care to be rescued, and Elridge a dragon afraid of being slain. Neither wants anything to do with Romil, a scheming prince from the frozen North who has his own less than romantic reasons for wanting Ivy’s hand in marriage. Never mind that humans and dragons have loathed each other for centuries, it isn’t long before this feisty princess and rather undragonly dragon have fled the tower and set off on a perilous journey to find Ivy’s long-lost fairy godmother, the only one who might help them escape the not-so-fairy-tale fates that await them. Full of humor and high adventure, Ivy’s Ever After is a twist on the typical princess-needs-rescuing-from-a-dragon storyline so common in traditional tales, featuring a princess and a dragon who actually team up to thwart the handsome prince.  Read Chapter 1 at www.IvysEverAfter.com.

The Book Trailer

THE NEAR WITCH:

The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children.

If the wind calls at night, you must not listen. The wind is lonely, and always looking for company.

There are no strangers in the town of Near.

These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life. But when an actual stranger—a boy who seems to fade like smoke—appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true.

The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion. Still, he insists on helping Lexi search for them. Something tells her she can trust him.

As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi’s need to know—about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls at night, and about the history of this nameless boy.

Part fairy tale, part love story, Victoria Schwab’s debut novel is entirely original yet achingly familiar: a song you heard long ago, a whisper carried by the wind, and a dream you won’t soon forget.

PRINCESS FOR HIRE by Lindsey Leavitt

• Publication Season/Year: Winter 2010
• Publisher: Hyperion
• Release Date: March 16, 2010
• ISBN (hardcover): 978-1-4231-2192-3
• ISBN (paperback): TBD

When an flawlessly dressed woman steps out of an iridescent bubble and wants to know, like, now if you’d like to become a substitute princess, do you

a) run
b) faint
c) say Yes!

For Desi Bascomb, who’s been longing for a bit of glamour in her Idaho life, the choice is a definite C–that is, once she can stop pinching herself. As her new agent Meredith explains, Desi has a rare magical ability: when she applies the ancient Egyptian formula “Royal Rouge,” she can transform temporarily into the exact lookalike of any princess who needs her subbing services. Dream come true, right?

Well, Desi soon discovers that subbing involves a lot more than wearing a tiara and waving at cameras. Like, what do you do when a bullying older sister puts you on a heinous crash diet? Or when the tribal villagers gather to watch you perform a ceremonial dance you don’t know? Or when a princess’s conflicted sweetheart shows up to break things off–and you know she would want you to change his mind?

In this hilarious, winning debut, one girl’s dream of glamour transforms into something bigger: the desire to make a positive impact. And an impact Desi makes, one royal fiasco at a time.