Welcome to the YA Scavenger Hunt! This tri-annual event was first organized by author Colleen Houck as a way to give readers a chance to gain access to exclusive bonus material from their favorite authors...and a chance to win some awesome prizes! At this hunt, you not only get access to exclusive content from each author, you also get a clue for the hunt. Add up the clues, and you can enter for our prize--one lucky winner will receive TWENTY signed books, one book from each author on the hunt in my team! But play fast: this contest (and all the exclusive bonus material) will only be online for 72 hours!
If you'd like to find out more about the hunt, see links to all the authors participating, and see the full list of prizes up for grabs, go to the YA Scavenger Hunt homepage.
Directions: Hidden within my post is a single letter that is blue. Make a note of that letter! It's a part of a scrambled phrase. When you go to all the author sites of the blue team, you'll have all the letters you need to enter the contest.
Entry Form: Once you piece together all the clues to the hunt, make sure you fill out the form here to officially qualify for the grand prize. Only entries that have the completed phrase will qualify.
Rules: Open internationally, anyone below the age of 18 should have a parent or guardian's permission to enter. To be eligible for the grand prize, you must submit the completed entry form by April 1st, at noon Pacific Time. Entries sent without the correct puzzle code or without contact information will not be considered.
I'm lucky enough to be hosting the AMAZING Cynthia Hand today. Here's a bit about her, if you've been living in a cave and haven't read the excellence that is UNEARTHLY.
Cynthia Hand is the New York Times bestselling author of the Unearthly series with HarperTeen. A native of southeastern Idaho, she currently lives with her husband and two small children in Southern California, where she teaches writing at Pepperdine University.
You can find out more about Cynthia by checking out her website, and learn more about HALLOWED here!
Here's a bit more about HALLOWED:
For months Clara Gardner trained to face the fire from her visions, but she wasn't prepared for the choice she had to make that day. And in the aftermath, she discovered that nothing about being part angel is as straightforward as she thought.
Now, torn between her love for Tucker and her complicated feelings about the roles she and Christian seem destined to play in a world that is both dangerous and beautiful, Clara struggles with a shocking revelation: Someone she loves will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning.
In this compelling sequel to "Unearthly," Cynthia Hand captures the joy of first love, the anguish of loss, and the confusion of becoming who you are.
When we were asked to provide awesome bonus content for the hunt, Cynthia took the job seriously. She's given us an exclusive preview of a scene from Book 3 of the Unearthly Series -- it's so new, it doesn't even have a title yet! Enjoy!
(And after you read Cynthia's swoon-worthy bonus content, keep reading for a chance to win an additional prize package!)
BOOK 3 PREVIEW
There’s a sharp knock on the door, and we both jump. I run to open it. Christian’s standing in the hall wearing khakis and a blue dress shirt, sleeves rolled to the elbows. He smells like Ivory soap and shaving cream.
He holds out a bouquet of white daisies. “For you.”
Date mode, Clara, I tell myself. Now is not the time to do research with Angela.
“Thank you. Come in for a sec, and I’ll put these in some water.”
He follows me in. I rummage around for something to use as a vase, but the best I can find is a Big Gulp cup. I fill it with water and set the flowers on my desk.
Christian glances over at Angela, who’s suddenly produced her black and white composition notebook and is scribbling as fast as she can go.
“Hello, Angela,” he says.
“Hi, Chris,” she says, but she doesn’t stop writing. “Flowers. Very smooth.”
“Yeah, I try,” he says with a smirk.
“You know, daisies are supposed to represent innocence,” she says, looking up and quirking an eyebrow at him.
He looks at me. “You ready?”
“Yes.” I fight the urge to tuck my hair behind my ears. “Bye,” I say to Angela. “We’ll talk later, okay?”
She waves her hand at me dismissively, and I can hear her pen’s furious scratching even after I close the door.
#
In the parking lot I have to stifle a smile when Christian crosses to open the passenger door for me. He gives me his hand to help me climb into his truck.
“Thanks,” I murmur, and I try not to think of Tucker, of the way he always opened doors for me.
He jogs around and gets in, put the key in the ignition, but doesn’t start it. He turns to me.
“This is a date,” he says.
“Oh, good,” I say, “because I was wondering, what with the flowers and all.”
“And as a date, there are certain ground rules we need to go over.”
Oh boy. “Okay,” I laugh nervously.
“I will be paying for all of our activities this evening,” he begins.
“But—”
He holds up his hand. “I know that you are a modern, liberated, independent woman. I respect that, and I understand that you are capable of paying for your own meal, but I will still be paying for dinner, and whatever else. Okay?”
“But—”
“And just because I’m paying for dinner doesn’t mean that I expect anything from you. I just want to treat you tonight, and that’s all.”
It’s cute that he’s blushing.
“All right,” I fake-grumble. “You’ll pay. Anything else?”
“Yes. I’d like us to steer clear of all angel-related topics tonight, if you don’t mind. I don’t want to hear the word angel, or purpose, or vision, or any of our other special terminology. Tonight I want us to simply be Christian and Clara, two college students on a date. How’s that sound?”
“Sounds good,” I say. More than good, even. Normal people on a normal date.
It sounds perfect.
#
Are you swooning, Hunters? You should be swooning!
Are you swooning, Hunters? You should be swooning!
Now, on to the prize package. In addition to entering for the Scavenger Hunt Grand Prize Packages, (you caught the big blue letter, right?) you can also enter for a prize from me, which will include:
- signed copies of TORN and TANGLED
- swag (bookmarks and trading cards)
- a set of Verity's postcards to Mo (Notes From A Dead Girl)
- a sweet olive scented candle, because it smells like New Orleans
A random winner gets the prize package. All other entrants will get an emailed link to the secret page on my website, which has even more bonus scenes (and which will be periodically updated, so it's worth your while to check back now and again).
What do you have to do to enter? Comment below (make sure you include a valid email address) AND like my Facebook Fan Page. That's it!
Ready for the next stop on the hunt? Go check out Gina Linko!
