Middle Grade Ninja Episode 203: Author Lindsay Currie

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Lindsay Currie and I discuss all sorts of creepy, spooky, but middle-grade friendly things, such as her novels THE GIRL IN WHITE, SCRITCH SCRATCH, and IT FOUND US. We chat about her travels through various graveyards, the Alley of Death, and other horrific locations she loves to visit, as well as how to research the paranormal while setting safe personal boundaries. She relates how her religious upbringing primed her to be horror author (me too), how pantsing is a virtue in horror fiction, her struggle to write non-horror stories without being scary, her thoughts on the afterlife, and so much more.

 

Lindsay Currie is the author of spooky middle grade novels. While she's never experienced anything truly paranormal, Lindsay enjoys researching her city's forgotten history and learning about the events that shaped the many ghost legends in Chicago. When she's not reading or writing a mystery novel of her own, Lindsay can generally be found taking long walks with her family, chilling with one of her three dogs, or searching the graveyard for her next antagonist.

Lindsay has three middle-grade novels out currently - THE PECULIAR INCIDENT ON SHADY STREET, SCRITCH SCRATCH, WHAT LIVES IN THE WOODS, and THE GIRL IN WHITE. Coming soon, IT FOUND US!

For fans of Small Spaces and the Goosebumps series by R.L Stine comes a chilling story about a twelve-year old girl who must face down the most notorious ghost in her haunted East coast town to stop a centuries-old curse that threatens to destroy everything.

Mallory hasn't quite adapted to life in her new town of Eastport yet. Maybe it's because everyone is obsessed with keeping the town's reputation as the most cursed town in the US.

And thanks to the nightmares she's had since arriving, Mallory hardly sleeps. Combined with the unsettling sensation of being watched, she's quickly becoming convinced there's more to her town. Something darker.

When Mallory has a terrifying encounter with the same old woman from her dreams, she knows she has to do something—but what? With Eastport gearing up to celebrate the anniversary of their first recorded legend Mallory is forced to investigate the one legend she's always secretly been afraid of . . . Sweet Molly.

LindsayCurrie.com/

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 202: Author Heather McGhee

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Heather McGhee and I discuss adapting her monumental novel THE SUM OF US: HOW RACISM HURTS EVERYONE for younger readers (available February 21st). We talk about how everything we believe comes from a story we’re told, how she’s been able to find open-minded readers in a world of book banners, how she hopes young people will join with other people in their community who are different from them and take action to bring about meaningful change, how she once felt a ghost, and so much more.

Heather McGhee designs and advances policy solutions to inequality. The former president of the think tank Demos, McGhee drafted legislation, testified before Congress, and became a regular contributor on news shows including NBC’s Meet the Press. Now the chair of Color of Change, the nation's largest online racial justice organization, McGhee holds a BA in American Studies from Yale University and a JD from the University of California at Berkeley School of Law. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband, her twenty year-old cat and their chatty toddler.

The New York Times bestseller, now adapted for a new generation of young readers, leaders, thinkers, and activists. A groundbreaking call to action that examines how racism affects and harms all of us and how we need to face it head-on, together.

The future can be prosperous for everyone, but only if we address the problems of racial and economic inequality.

McGhee believes that all people, of all ages and all backgrounds, need to rethink their attitude toward race and strive together to create opportunities that benefit everyone. 

This book is a call to action. McGhee examines how damaging racism is, not only to people of color but also to white people. She offers hope and real solutions so we can all prosper. An expert in economic policy, McGhee draws lessons both from her work at a think tank and from her travels around the country talking to everyday Americans fighting for a more just and inclusive society.

The people she meets prove how the stories we tell ourselves about race and belonging influence the policies that determine our shared economic future.

The Sum of Us provides hope that with understanding and open-mindedness, the world can be more united and equitable than it is today.

HeatherMcGhee.com

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 201: Literary Agent Stephen Fraser

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Stephen Fraser and I discuss his lifelong love for middle grade fiction and why he rereads THE SECRET GARDEN every year. We talk about the current state of publishing, how he keeps abreast of the market, why he so frequently visits bookstores, why he moved from being an editor to being an agent, the importance of being authentic, how he can evaluate a writing sample in as little as one sentence, and so much more. This conversation was originally recorded May 5, 2022.

Stephen Fraser joined The Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency as an Agent in January 2005. He worked most recently at HarperCollins Children’s Books, where he edited such creative talents as Mary Engelbreit, Gregory Maguire, Michael Hague, Ann Rinaldi, Kathryn Lasky, Brent Hartinger, Stephen Mitchell, and Dan Gutman. He began his career at Highlights for Children and later worked at Scholastic and Simon and Schuster. A graduate of Middlebury College in Vermont, he has a Master’s degree in Children’s Literature from Simmons College in Boston. He represents both children’s and adult books in a wide range of genres.

JDLit.com

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 200: Author James Ponti

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James Ponti and I discuss how he travels and researches to create his CITY SPIES adventures, and the newest edition, CITY OF THE DEAD. He shares his journey from reluctant reader to an author, which involves a play about Santa being attacked by terrorists and the desire to impress a future spouse. He also shares the very personal story about how he transitioned from television production to writing novels to take care of his son and why he continues to write to honor his memory. We talk about why it’s essential to choose optimism, the importance of focusing on verbs, not nouns, and so much more.

James Ponti is the New York Times Bestselling author of three Middle Grade book series: the all-new CITY SPIES, about an unlikely squad of five kids from around the world who form an elite MI6 Spy Team; The Edgar Award-winning FRAMED! series, about a pair of Sherlockian tweens who solve mysteries in Washington, D.C.; and the DEAD CITY trilogy, about a secret society that polices the undead living beneath Manhattan. He is also an Emmy-nominated television writer and producer who has worked for many networks including Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, PBS, History Channel, Spike TV, and the Golf Channel. He lives with his family in Orlando, Florida.

In this fourth installment in the New York Times bestselling series from Edgar Award winner James Ponti, the young group of spies go codebreaking in Cairo in another international adventure perfect for fans of Spy School and Mrs. Smith’s Spy School for Girls.

Codename Kathmandu, better known as Kat, loves logic and order, has a favorite eight-digit number, and can spot a pattern from a mile away. So when a series of cyberattacks hits key locations in London while the spies are testing security for the British Museum, it’s clear that Kat’s skill for finding reason in what seems like randomness makes her the perfect candidate to lead the job.

And while the team follows the deciphered messages to Egypt and the ancient City of the Dead to discover who is behind the attacks and why, Kat soon realizes that there’s another layer to the mystery.

With more players, more clues, and involving higher levels of British Intelligence than ever before, this mission is one of the most complex that the group has faced to date. And it’s also going to bring about a change to the City Spies…

JamesPonti.com

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 199: Literary Agent Nikki Terpilowski

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Nikki Terpilowski and I discuss how she founded Holloway Literary when she couldn’t find another agency to intern for and how she was able to make it profitable in two years because failure was not an option. We talk about her drive for success, the sorts of projects she’s looking for, why she represents what she loves rather than just what will sell, the importance of following submission directions and an appropriate word count, evaluating a business relationship with a potential agent, and so much more. This conversation was originally recorded April 26, 2022.

After achieving a B.A. in English and Marketing, with a minor in creative writing and a graduate degree in international relations, Nikki who has been a bookworm from way back decided she wanted to learn more about the publishing industry.

She interned in the industry while working in marketing communications and then established Holloway Literary in 2011. You can find her @AWomanReading on Twitter and Instagram discussing her favorite topics: books, wine, beer & whiskey, history, travel and southern living.

HollowayLiterary.com

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 198: Authors Sofía Lapuente and Jarrod Shusterman

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Sofia Lapuente and Jarrod Shusterman tell me about how they collaborate on a book like their newest, RETRO, while remaining a happy romantic couple as well as writing partners. We talk about how they break an idea, how they develop and choose it over other potential ideas, and how they utilize their different strengths to create art and a life they’re both happy with. We also talk about a the importance of communication, a possible ghost sighting, collaborating with author and previous guest Neal Shusterman, writing screenplays vs writing books, and so much more.

Sofía Lapuente is an author, screenwriter, and avid world traveler who immigrated from Spain to the United States to realize her dream of storytelling. Since then, she has received a master’s degree in fine arts at UCLA, worked as a producer and casting director on an Emmy nominated show, and received coauthor credits in Gleanings, the fourth installment of the bestselling Arc of a Scythe trilogy, with her partner, Jarrod. Together, the couple writes and produces film and television under their production company Dos Lobos Entertainment.

Jarrod Shusterman is the New York Times bestselling coauthor of novel Dry, which he is adapting for a major Hollywood film studio with Neal Shusterman. He is also the coauthor of the accoladed novel Roxy. His books have all received critical acclaim and multiple starred reviews. Sofi Lapuente and Jarrod are partners in every sense of the word, with love and multiculturalism as an ethos—living between Madrid, Spain, and Los Angeles, California. If they are not working, it means they’re eating. For behind-the-scenes author content and stupidly funny videos, follow them on Instagram and TikTok @SofiandJarrod.

What starts off as a light-hearted competition to live without modern technology for a year turns into a fight for survival in this unputdownable young adult thriller by New York Times bestselling author Jarrod Shusterman and debut author Sofía Lapuente.

It was never meant to happen this way.

Things were never supposed to get this out of hand.

After a cyberbullying incident at her school goes viral, Luna Iglesias finds herself at the heart of a brewing controversy. When the social media company Limbo—who are also implicated in the scandal—sweeps in with an offer that sounds like an opportunity to turn over a new leaf and receive a scholarship to the college of her dreams, she’s happy to jump on the new trend. It’s called the Retro Challenge, where contestants live without modern technology, wear vintage clothes, party as if the future weren’t already written, and fall in love as if they were living in a movie.

At first, the challenge is fun. But then things get dangerous. Kids start disappearing, including Luna’s friends. There are voices in the woods. Bloodred markings on the trees. And Luna increasingly begins to wonder if all these strange happenings are connected with the Retro Challenge.

Secrets. Lies. Betrayal. The weight of her family on her shoulders. There’s so much on the line for Luna, not to mention she’s falling in love with the last guy she expected. Unless she can figure out the truth behind who’s sabotaging the challenge, the next person to disappear may be Luna herself.

Instagram.com/SofiandJarrod

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 197: Author Roseanne A. Brown

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Roseanne A. Brown and I talk about her newest book, SERWA BOATENG’S GUIDE TO VAMPIRE HUNTING, and her career thus far from being the youngest resident at the Jimenez-Porter Writers’ House program to becoming an editorial intern at Entangled Publishing to her current role as a bestselling author. We also have a frank discussion about race and publishing and what traditional publishing can do to improve its diversity, and an even franker discussion about Marvel vs DC and why Warner Brothers must release BATGIRL.

Roseanne A. Brown is an immigrant from the West African nation of Ghana and a graduate of the University of Maryland, where she completed the Jimenez-Porter Writers’ House program. Her debut novel A Song of Wraiths and Ruin was an instant New York Times Bestseller, an Indie Bestseller, and received six starred reviews. She has worked with Marvel, Star Wars, and Disney among other publishers. You can visit her online at roseanneabrown.com or on Instagram or Twitter at @rosiesrambles. On the publishing side of things, she has worked as an editorial intern at Entangled Publishing. Rosie was a 2017 Pitch Wars mentee and 2018 Pitch Wars mentor. Rosie currently lives outside Washington D.C., where in her free time she can usually be found wandering the woods, making memes, or thinking about Star Wars. Rosie is represented by Quressa Robinson of Folio Literary Agency.

Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents best-selling YA author Roseanne A. Brown's middle grade debut about a pre-teen vampire slayer with a strong helping of Ghanaian folklore.

For most kids, catching fireflies is a fun summer activity. For twelve-year-old Serwa Boateng, it's a matter of life and death.

That's because Serwa knows that some fireflies are really adze, shapeshifting vampires from the forests of Southeastern Ghana. Adze prey on the blood of innocents, possessing their minds and turning them into hulking monsters, and for generations, slayers like Serwa and her parents have protected an unknowing public from their threats.

Serwa is the best adze slayer her age, and she knew how to use a crossbow before she could even ride a bike. But when an obayifo (witch) destroys her childhood home while searching for a drum, do Serwa's parents take her with them on their quest to defeat her? No. Instead, they dump Serwa with her hippie aunt and cryptic-obsessed cousin in the middle of Nowheresville, Maryland "for her own safety." Now, instead of crossbows and battle armor, she's dealing with mean girls and algebra, and for the first time in her life she doesn't have to carry a staff everywhere she goes, which is . . . kind of nice, actually.

Just as Serwa starts to get the hang of this whole normal girl who doesn't punch vampires every daything, an adze infiltrates her school. It's up to her to whip some of her classmates into monster-fighting shape before all of them become firefly food. And when she uncovers a secret that upends everything she thought she knew about her family's role in the slayer vs. adze war, Serwa will have to decide which side of herself—normal girl or slayer—is the right one.

After all, seventh grade is hard enough without adding vampires to the mix.

RoseanneABrown.com

Cover Reveal: ROB WORM'S BIRD ADVENTURE by Rob Kent

 

With nonstop action, adventure, and humor, this thrilling tale will have 7- to 11-year-old readers wriggling on the edge of their tails!

After an early spring rain, Rob Worm’s bunch burrows to the surface to enjoy the mud. At 9-and-a-half months old (10 years in human time), Rob has been deep underground over half his life. He yearns for adventure and can’t wait to see the surface! Unfortunately, a robin can’t wait to see him.

When Rob pushes his best friend to safety, the robin scoops him up instead and carries him off to feed to her hatchling. Rob wriggles free but is dropped on the roof of a human house.

To get home to his bunch, Rob Worm is going to have to first get down, and then contend with a nest of nasty yellowjackets, fierce colonies of warring ants, a crafty spider, sizzling hot cement, and a pond filled with hungry koi, all while being pursued by a revenge-seeking robin.

Available 3/23/23

It's going to be a great year, Esteemed Reader. I can't wait to share this book with you and to tell you more about it the closer we get to launch. I could never choose an absolute favorite story I've told, but this one will have to duke it out with the Banneker Bones trilogy for the top spot, and it would be a close fight. And really, I love them both so, so much (and all the rest of my books, of course).

For today, I just want to bask in the beauty of Steven Novak's incredible cover. Steven has designed all my covers and I wear his designs on my shirts and plaster them on mugs and light switch covers because I love them with my whole heart. He's an amazing artist and I'm humbled his breathtaking work has so frequently had my name on it.

This cover in particular is something really special. It makes me smile the biggest, happiest smile every time I look at it. It's just so bright and colorful and good natured and it makes me hope the story that is to follow lives up to it. It's certainly an improvement over the first version of the cover I drew in the fifth grade when I was 11 and thought naming the main character after myself was an inspired idea.

Middle Grade Ninja Clip Show 2022

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It’s the fifth mega-sized Middle Grade Ninja clips show, featuring snippets from episodes 147 through 196 that aired in 2022.

New episodes are scheduled to return January 14th.

Until then, enjoy this compilation of clips from conversations with Adama Bah, Salvador Gómez-Colón, Freshta Tori Jan, Tina Wells, Lane Heymont, Meera Trehan, Leslie Connor, Elana K. Arnold, Erika Lewis, Libby McNamee, Don Handfield, Joshua Malkin, Elly Swartz, Gregory Maguire, Ellen Whitfield, James Riley, Jodi Lynn Anderson, Mark Gottlieb, Maurice Broaddus, Jenna Yoon, Xiran Jay Zhao, Lindsay Eager, Kristin Ostby, Hilde Kate Lysiak, Aisha Saeed, Zetta Elliott, Linda Epstein, Lakita Wilson, Mat Heagerty, Sam Own, Lucienne Diver, Andrew Nehring, Rachel Orr, Ally Malinenko, J. Elle, Greg van Eekhout, Patricia Nelson, Diane Magras, Meaghan Tosi, Stephanie Fretwell-Hill, Amy Christine Parker, Max Brallier, Fleur Bradley, Rose Brock, Dan Poblocki, Neal Shusterman, Jessica Craig, Kelly McWilliams, Linda Sasour, Kereen Getten, Anthony McGowen, and Susan Hawk.

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 196: Literary Agent Susan Hawk

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Susan Hawk and I talk about her career in publishing from her job at a children’s bookstore at age 13 to being an editor, a librarian, a marketer, a library marketer, up to her current position with UPSTART CROW LITERARY AGENCY. We talk about the sorts of projects she’s interested in, how she evaluates authors and helps them to plan their careers, how she prepares manuscripts for editorial teams at publishing houses, BARRY, THE HANDMAID’S TALE, flying saucers, and so much more.

Click here to see Susan Hawk face the 7 Questions.

Susan Hawk has worked in children’s books for over twenty-five years. Her clients include Rachael Allen, author of multiple YA novels, including A Taxonomy of Love and the forthcoming DC Icons title, Harley Quinn: Reckoning; J.M.M. Nuanez, author of the MG novel Birdie and Me; Paul Acampora, whose newest MG novel is the forthcoming In Honor of Broken Things; Sarah Lariviere, author of the YA novel Time Travel for Love and Profit; graphic novelist Rachel Elliott, author of the forthcoming The Real Riley Mayes; author-illustrator Denis Angelov, illustrator of The Big Scream; and Ruth Spiro, author of the Baby Loves Science board book series and the Made by Maxine series of picture books. Before agenting, Susan worked in the Children’s Marketing departments of Penguin Books for Young Readers, Henry Holt Books for Young Readers and North-South Books, where she managed campaigns for many books and authors including Eric Carle, Mary E Pearson, Richard Peck and Joan Bauer. She’s also been a children’s librarian and bookseller, and spent some time in Dutton Editorial, acquiring select picture book and YA projects for that list.

UpstartCrowLiterary.com

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 195: Author Anthony McGowen

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Anthony McGowan and I discuss his writing process and how it was specifically employed in his newest, DOGS OF THE DEADLANDS, which he says is the hardest book he’s ever written. We also talk about his winding path from a once reluctant reader to a prolific writer, how he learned to write for younger readers, his time as a bouncer, a period when his spouse was a more successful author than he was, tips for characterization, the joy of writing as a hobby as opposed to a career, an author’s cricket club, and so much more.

Anthony McGowan is one of the most widely acclaimed young-adult authors in the UK. His books have won several major awards, and been shortlisted for many more. He has also written highly regarded adult fiction, as well as books for younger readers. He has a PhD on the history of beauty, and has taught philosophy and creative writing. He lives in London with his wife and two children.

‘This book! It broke my heart and then splinted it back together again. Full of hope and love and wildness... Imagine Watership Down meets The Animals of Farthing Wood but fiercer.’
Hannah Gold, author of The Last Bear

Chernobyl, 1986. Without humans, how will dogs survive?

As humans fled the nuclear disaster, they were forced to leave their pets behind. Without people, nature began to return to the woods surrounding the power plant—lynx, bear, and wolves. But the overgrown forest is no place for dogs. Can Zoya, and her pups Misha and Luka, learn to survive in the deadlands? And will Zoya ever find her way home to her beloved owner?

AnthonyMcGowan.com

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 194: Author Kereen Getten

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Kereen Getten and I discuss her career in publishing and her new novel, IF YOU READ THIS. We talk about how she persevered despite the general discouragement of a lack of diversity in publishing as well as direct discouragement from a career counselor, how she met her agent online and then in person, how she deals with rejection and imposter syndrome, what it’s like to debut during a pandemic, how she plans and schedules her writing, why it’s important to sometimes take a day off, a disembodied voice that called to her, and so much more.

Kereen Getten grew up in Jamaica but now lives in Birmingham with her family. She has previously written short stories for multiple publications including Notts Review and Adhoc Fiction. She was nominated for Best Short Fiction 2018 and highly commended for the FAB prize. When not writing you can find her out in nature, planning her next travel adventure, or watching Netflix.

When Brie was younger, her mama used to surprise her with treasure hunts around their island town. After she died three years ago, these became Brie’s favourite memories.

Now, on her twelfth birthday, her mama has another surprise: a series of letters leading Brie on one last treasure hunt.

The first letter guides Brie to a special place.

The next urges her to unlock a secret.

And the last letter will change life as she knows it.

This is a coming-of-age story capturing the edge of adolescence, when everything is thrilling, amazing, and terrifying in a way it will never be again.

KereenGetten.com

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 193: Professional Troublemaker Linda Sarsour

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One of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people of 2017, Linda Sarsour, shares details about her life as featured in the middle grade edition of her autobiography, WE’RE IN THIS TOGETHER. We talk about her work organizing the Woman’s March in 2017, the radicalizing moment that happened to her after the 911 attacks, why it’s crucial to get to know the people in your life even when you don’t agree with them, what gives her hope, and what fuels her to get up and fight, and fight, and fight. And I try to convince her to organize for UFO disclosure, so look forward to that.

Linda Sarsour is an author, award-winning racial justice and civil rights activist, seasoned community organizer and mother of three. Ambitious, outspoken and independent, Linda shatters stereotypes of Muslim women while also treasuring her religious and ethnic heritage. She is a Palestinian Muslim American and a self-proclaimed “pure New Yorker, born and raised in Brooklyn!” She is the former Executive Director of the Arab American Association of New York and co-founder of the first Muslim online organizing platform, MPOWER Change. Linda has been at the forefront of major civil rights campaigns including calling for an end to unwarranted surveillance of New York’s Muslim communities and ending police policies like stop and frisk. In wake of the police murder of Mike Brown, she co-founded Muslims for Ferguson to build solidarity amongst American Muslim communities and encourage work against police brutality. She is a member of the Justice League NYC, a leading NYC force of activists, formerly incarcerated individuals, and artists working to reform the New York Police Department and the criminal justice system. Linda was the National Co-Chair of the 2017 Women’s March on Washington, dubbed the largest single day protest in US history. She serves on the executive board of Women’s March, Inc. where she focuses on fundraising and direct action planning.

An inspiring and empowering young readers edition of We Are Not Here to Be Bystanders, the memoir by Women’s March coorganizer and activist Linda Sarsour.

You can count on me, your Palestinian Muslim sister, to keep her voice loud, keep her feet on the streets, and keep my head held high because I am not afraid.

On January 21, 2017, Linda Sarsour stood in the National Mall to deliver a speech that would go down in history. A crowd of over 470,000 people gathered in Washington, DC, to advocate for legislation, policy, and the protection of women’s rights—with Linda, a Muslim American activist from Brooklyn, leading the charge, unapologetic and unafraid.

In this middle grade edition of We Are Not Here to be Bystanders, Linda shares the memories that shaped her into the activist she is today, and how these pivotal moments in her life led her to being an organizer in one of the largest single-day protests in US history. From the Brooklyn bodega her father owned to the streets of Washington, DC, Linda’s story as a daughter of Palestinian immigrants is a moving portrayal of what it means to find your voice in your youth and use it for the good of others as an adult.

LindaSarsour.com

Middle Grade Ninja Episode 192: Author Kelly McWilliams

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I tell Kelly McWilliams about a book I started to write before I discovered how very similar it is to her superior novel, AGNES AT THE END OF THE WORLD. We bond over our mutual fear of cults, including the cult of racism, and our love for Stephen King. We discuss her novel, MIRROR GIRLS, and our experiences in mixed-race families. We also talk about working with her mother, the novelist Jewell Parker Rhodes, publishing a debut novel at the age of 15, tips for structuring stories from dual perspectives, crafting empathetic villains, the dangers of religious thinking, how stories can be emotional mirrors, and so much more.

Kelly is a mixed-race writer. AGNES AT THE END OF THE WORLD (2022) was a finalist for the Golden Kite Award, and MIRROR GIRLS (2022) is a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection. She’s written for TIME, Romper, and Bustle, among other outlets. Kelly lives in Seattle with her family.

The Handmaid's Tale meets Wilder Girls in this genre-defying novel about a girl who escapes a terrifying cult only to discover that the world Outside has succumbed to a viral apocalypse.

Agnes loves her home of Red Creek—its quiet, sunny mornings, its dusty roads, and its God. There, she cares tirelessly for her younger siblings and follows the town's strict laws. What she doesn't know is that Red Creek is a cult, controlled by a madman who calls himself a prophet.

Then Agnes meets Danny, an Outsider boy, and begins to question what is and isn't a sin. Her younger brother, Ezekiel, will die without the insulin she barters for once a month, even though medicine is considered outlawed. Is she a sinner for saving him? Is her sister, Beth, a sinner for dreaming of the world beyond Red Creek?

As the Prophet grows more dangerous, Agnes realizes she must escape with Ezekiel and leave everyone else, including Beth, behind. But it isn't safe Outside, either: A viral pandemic is burning through the population at a terrifying rate. As Agnes ventures forth, a mysterious connection grows between her and the Virus. But in a world where faith, miracles, and cruelty have long been indistinguishable, will Agnes be able to choose between saving her family and saving the world?

KellyMcWilliamsAuthor.com