Dear writers: Please be aware of ongoing scams by agent impersonators. Use extra caution with any unsolicited offers from agents. Reputable agents will not ask for upfront fees of any kind. For more information, look at sites such as Writer Beware (https://writerbeware.blog/). Please always check email addresses/spellings. All official emails from Donald Maass Literary Agency will come from an address that ends in @maassagency.com (2 A's, 2 S's in MAASS).

Review: Always Never Yours by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley

Jun 182018
 

Cover of Always Never Yours by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley.Entertainment Weekly: The book is a love letter to high school drama classes, Shakespeare (Romeo and Juliet most especially), the power of friendship, first love, and the empowering act of recognizing one’s own self-worth. Every page bursts with humor, squee-inducing romance, and an abiding sense of the deep love and joy of its two writers.

Designed to induce both heart-warming bursts of happiness and a sense of recognition and pangs of empathy for Megan’s struggles, Always Never Yours is a necessary, feel-good addition to the YA canon.

The Widow’s Watcher by Eliza Maxwell

May 292018
 

Cover of The Widow's Watcher by Eliza Maxwell.From Eliza Maxwell, the bestselling author of The Unremembered Girl, comes a gripping novel about the mysteries that haunt us and the twists of fate that can unravel them…

Living in the shadow of a decades-old crime that stole his children from him, reclusive Lars Jorgensen is an unlikely savior. But when a stranger walks onto the ice of a frozen Minnesota lake, her intentions are brutally clear, and the old man isn’t about to let her follow through.

Jenna Shaw didn’t ask for Lars’s help, nor does she want it. After he pulls her from the brink, however, Jenna finds her desire to give up challenged by their unlikely friendship. In Jenna, Lars recognizes his last chance for redemption. And in her quest to solve the mysteries of Lars’s past and bring him closure, Jenna may find the way out of her own darkness.

But the truth that waits threatens to shatter it all. When secrets are surrendered and lies are laid bare, Jenna and Lars may find that accepting the past isn’t their greatest challenge. Can they afford the heartbreaking price of forgiveness?

Always Never Yours by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley

May 222018
 

Cover of Always Never Yours by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley.Megan Harper is the girl before.

All her exes find their one true love right after dating her. It’s not a curse or anything, it’s just the way things are. and Megan refuses to waste time feeling sorry for herself. Instead, she focuses on pursuing her next fling, directing theater, and fulfilling her dream school’s acting requirement in the smallest role possible. But her plans quickly crumble when she’s cast as none other than Juliet–yes, that Juliet–in her high school’s production.

It’s a nightmare. No–a disaster. Megan’s not an actress and she’s certainly not a Juliet. Then she meets Owen Okita, an aspiring playwright who agrees to help Megan catch the eye of a sexy stagehand in exchange for help writing his new script. Between rehearsals and contending with her divided family, Megan begins to notice Owen–thoughtful, unconventional, and utterly unlike her exes, and wonders: shouldn’t a girl get to play the lead in her own love story?

Deal: Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley

May 212018
 
Author photo of Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley.

Photo credit: Sue Grubman

Dana Leydig at Puffin has acquired two novels by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley. The first, As We Go Forth, is a contemporary romance told in alternating perspectives; it features Juniper and Fitz, two high school seniors with vastly different views about the future, who meet unexpectedly on their respective college tours. Publication is planned for spring 2020; Katie Shea Boutillier negotiated the deal for world English rights.

Review: Always Never Yours by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley

May 172018
 

Cover of Always Never Yours by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley.School Library Journal: Megan Harper has always played a supporting character in her own life. Every boyfriend she has had has found a better match right after breaking up with her.

Megan has one true passion in life: directing theater productions. She is excited to hopefully attend a local theater program for college, but first she must get an acting credit. She hopes for a small role, but is surprised when she is cast as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, opposite her best friend’s boyfriend who also happens to be Megan’s most recent ex. When she falls for a stagehand named Will, she enlists the help of her new friend Owen Okita to land the new guy. It’s Owen, however, who truly sees Megan for who she is.

Megan is no wallflower and she doesn’t subscribe to any conventions when it comes to romance and sex. She is a direct young woman who doesn’t play games but also doesn’t yet know what she really wants. The diverse cast includes a Japanese American love interest and a black, gay friend who struggles in a relationship with a boy who is still in the closet, in addition to the white female lead.

A delightful, light romance readers won’t be able to put down.

Deal: Eliza Maxwell

May 012018
 

Photo of author Eliza Maxwell.Amazon Charts bestselling author of THE UNREMEMBERED GIRL and the forthcoming THE WIDOW’S WATCHER Eliza Maxwell’s THE SHADOW WRITER, in which an aspiring author and assistant to a burnt-out novelist develops a close relationship with his wife in hopes of bringing closure to her dark past by slipping her anonymous manuscript in the to-be-read pile, but as secrets are revealed, an obsession is clear, turning this into a deadly game, to Chris Werner at Lake Union Publishing, in a two-book deal, for publication in March 2019 and January 2020, by Katie Shea Boutillier.

Missing at 17 by Christine Conradt

May 012018
 

Cover of Missing at 17 by Christine Conradt.In this suspenseful and romantic teen thriller based on the “can’t pull your eyes away” series on Lifetime, one girl discovers that no matter how far you run from your problems, they will always find you.

For most of Candace’s life she never felt like she completely belonged. But nothing could prepare her for the shocking discovery that her parents have been concealing the truth about who she is and where she came from her entire life.

Feeling like her world has been turned upside down, and unable to trust the people she’s closest to, Candace runs away…right into the arms of an alluring stranger.

But while Candace and Toby have an undeniable connection, it’s less certain what the future holds for them as Candace’s family and Toby’s less-than-legal lifestyle threaten to rip them apart.

As things start to spiral out of control, Candace must fight to understand her own identity…and who she can truly rely on.

Review: Always Never Yours by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley

Apr 242018
 

Cover of Always Never Yours by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley.RT Book Reviews: Shakespeare fans, this book was written for you! The witty, seductive characters, the incredible plot — there is no doubt that all types of YA readers will find something to swoon over in this high school love story.

Deal: Shaun David Hutchinson

Apr 172018
 

photo of author Shaun David HutchinsonWE ARE THE ANTS author Shaun David Hutshinson’s BRAVE FACE, known for his fiction relating to mental health issues, he will explore his personal struggles with depression and suicide in this memoir for teens, to Liesa Abrams at Simon Pulse, for publication Summer 2019, by Katie Shea Boutillier.

Here are Shaun’s own words on his memoir BRAVE FACE.

Review: Always Never Yours by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley

Apr 092018
 

Cover of Always Never Yours by Austin Siegemund-Broka and Emily Wibberley.Publishers Weekly: Megan, who aspires to be a theater director, is focused on finishing her senior year and fulfilling the acting requirement she needs to get into the Southern Oregon Theater Institute. But then she’s cast as Juliet, opposite Tyler’s Romeo. Owen, a new boy with theater aspirations of his own, enters Megan’s life, and as their friendship grows she misses all the signals that Owen might be the love she didn’t know she wanted.

Real-life romantic partners Wibberly (the Last Oracle series) and Siegemund-Broka (making his YA debut) collaborated in this theater-centered novel, with a predictable will-they/won’t-they romance at its core. As Megan spends the bulk of her time with yet another guy who’s wrong for her (Will), Owen is there in the wings. The coauthors wisely balance out the romance with family drama, and Megan’s commitment to a future life in the theater will please readers who share a similar love of Shakespeare and want a little romance to go with their drama.

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