Back in the early days of our blog, we posted about the importance of the first lines of a book. They serve a pretty major purpose, after all: to intrigue, draw you into the world, and (hopefully) hook you with their brilliance and lyricism.

But what about those famous -- or just really awesome -- last words? The ones that stay with you for hours, or even weeks following the end of the story. The ones that give you the flutters in your belly. Like Henry David Thoreau's from Walden: "The sun is but a morning star." Or the way Dickens ended A Tale of Two Cities: "It is a far, far better thing that I do than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known."

In the spirit of honoring all authors and all the wonderful last lines out there, I've put together a fun little quiz. I'll provide the last line and you provide the name of the book/author. (Hint: Most of these are YA books, but not all!)

List as many answers as you know (without googling them) in the comments section and you'll be entered to win your choice of one of the following two books: 

HOUSE OF IVY AND SORROW by Natalie Whipple 
 
THE WAY WE BARED OUR SOULS by Willa Strayhorn 




As Jeff Probst would say, "Worth playing for?" Okay, let's get to it...

1. "Don't ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody."

2. "All was well." 

3. "I squared my shoulders and walked forward to meet my fate, with my destiny solidly at my side."

4. "I wasn't sure what I could give, not just yet. But I knew when I told her about the comet, years from now, I would know. And I would lean close to her ear, saying the words no one else could hear, explaining it all. The language of solace, and comets, and the girls we all become, in the end."

5. "Isn't it pretty to think so?"

6. "Because love, it never dies, it never goes away, it never fades, so long as you hang onto it. Love can make you immortal." 

7. A last note from your narrator: "I am haunted by humans"

That's it ~ have fun!

We Heart YA has never done a reveal before, but when I saw this cover, I immediately wanted to be the one to share it with the world. More than that, I wanted to introduce my friend Jasmine Warga, who was like an instant soulmate for me. She and I have had so many heartfelt & thought-provoking conversations -- about everything from pets to relationships, and from diversity in publishing, to writing your own truths.

Every time we hang out, I leave feeling refreshed and inspired. I am quite certain that anyone who spends time with Jasmine -- by reading her book -- will feel the same way.


ABOUT THE BOOK

Sixteen-year-old physics nerd Aysel is obsessed with plotting her own death. With a mother who seems scared of her, classmates who whisper behind her back, and a father who has made her the town pariah, Aysel’s ready to turn her potential energy into nothingness.

There’s only one problem: she’s not sure she has the courage to do it alone. But once she discovers the website Smooth Passages and its section called Suicide Partners, Aysel’s convinced she’s found her solution. Better yet, a boy with the username FrozenRobot (aka Roman), who’s haunted by a family tragedy, is looking for a partner.

But as their suicide pact starts to become more concrete, Aysel begins to question whether she really wants to go through with it. Ultimately, Aysel must choose between wanting to die or trying to convince Roman to live so they can discover the potential of their energy together. Except that Roman may not be so easy to convince.

This is a gorgeously written and compulsively readable debut novel about the transformative power of love and acceptance.


ABOUT JASMINE

Jasmine Warga lives in a small town that is a few miles outside of Cincinnati, Ohio. She finds it exceedingly difficult to write about herself in the third person so she will keep this short. Her first novel, MY HEART AND OTHER BLACK HOLES, will be published by Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins in Winter 2015. She is currently at work on her second book. Before becoming an author, she briefly worked as a science teacher. You can find visit her online at: http://jasminewarga.com/

ABOUT AYSEL

••• She’s not big on favorites, but if pressed to pick a favorite song, she’d probably choose Mozart’s "Requiem Mass in D Minor."
••• Both of her parents are originally from Turkey, but she sadly doesn’t speak a word of Turkish.
••• She thinks John Berryman’s poems are lame, but she totally gets them. More than she would ever admit.
••• She’s convinced her potential energy is poisoned.
••• Her best childhood memory is one involving her father and this terrifies her.
••• She would probably like the cover of MY HEART AND OTHER BLACK HOLES, but she might be suspicious of the bursts of color. (Though as her spokesperson, Jasmine is going to step up and say: WE LOVE IT!)

ABOUT ROMAN (AKA "FROZENROBOT")

Redacted for spoilers. You’re just going to have to read the book!


ABOUT THE COVER

From Alison Donalty, Executive Art Director, HarperCollins Children's Books:

It is not often that an art director gets to work on a book with a title as visually rich as MY HEART AND OTHER BLACK HOLES. When that happens, I feel like I've hit the cover-design-possibilities jackpot!

After reading Jasmine’s manuscript, I knew I needed to find an artist who would bring all the texture and emotion of this story to life on the cover. That perfect artist was Jessica Musumeci. Jessica is the Creative Director at Seventeen, as well as a fine artist. She has a special flair for creating hand-drawn type that is expressive and gorgeous to look at.

Collaborating with Jess on the art was a blast! She zeroed in on all the illustrative possibilities inherent in the title and sent us many options for consideration. On creating the art for this book Jess said, "I really enjoyed working on this cover. I love mixing rich black ink with bright watercolor. The contrast creates this pretty kind of tension which encapsulates the story beautifully."

The final cover does just that. It is bold, fresh, and evocative -- the perfect complement to Jasmine’s story.

WITHOUT FURTHER ADO...


Isn't it gorgeous? You know you want it...

BOOKMARK, PRE-ORDER, WIN




BONUS: EXCERPT

“I just figured the whole world feels sorry for you.” I say. “You obviously aren’t looking for someone to do what everyone else already does.”

I’m getting higher and higher and I feel the swing set creak.

“Be careful,” he says.

“Why?” I’m not thinking about being careful. I’m thinking about one last push, of letting go, of flying, and of falling.

“You aren’t allowed to die without me,” he whispers.

In case you didn't know, yesterday March 6 was that special day when all people literary come together to celebrate all things books! Okay, we kinda do that everyday online... but this is different. And super cool. World Book Day was designated by UNESCO 17 years ago as a worldwide celebration of books, authors and reading, and is now celebrated in over 100 countries.

(Note: We had planned to post this on March 6, but Blogger did not cooperate.)

In the UK and Ireland, especially, WBD is a really big deal. More than 14 million children will receive book tokens that they can trade in for specific books or for a discount at bookstores. Schoolkids are encouraged to dress up as their favorite book characters. Folks will gather for all kinds of WBD festivals and fun. The whole idea is to encourage reading and instill a love of literature in today's young'uns.

There's been a whole lot of good stuff going on in the blogoshphere, too. If you're on twitter, check out #worldbookday and you might just disappear down the rabbit hole. So much to read and share!

We WHYA gals are joining in the festivities by giving away two books of our own:

NOT A DROP TO DRINK by Mindy McGinnis

THE DEMON'S LEXICON by Sarah Rees Brennan

To be eligible for our WHYA World Book Day Giveaway, you must leave a comment on this post answering the following three questions:

1) What was your favorite book when you were a child?

2) If you could be a fairytale character for a day, who would it be?

3) What is your all-time favorite book line OR all-time favorite book?

Bonus: If you include a photo of yourself dressed up like a book character, we'll enter your name twice!

Please leave your comment by next Tuesday, March 11. Be sure to mention which book you'd like to win, if you have a preference. Winners will be announced on Thursday, March 13th.

(US mailing addresses only-- sorry, international friends!)

Happy WBD reading!

We’re grateful for good books, the authors who write them, and for readers like you!

Congratulations to our giveaway winners!

The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson — Faith McLaughlin
The Brokenhearted by Amelia Kahaney — Emily Elizabeth
Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis — Bookworm1858

Send us an email to weheartya[at]gmail[dot]com with your mailing information,
and we’ll send your prize your way.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ah summer. School is out, the sun is bright, and everyone is hanging poolside. Can't you just smell those hot dogs and burgers on the grill? And feel the sunscreen sticky on your skin?

Okay, summertime can be wonderful and idyllic, but if you're like us, then there's probably a healthy dose of chaos mixed in there too. Road trips, friends and family in town for a visit, selling your house and moving to a new country...

(Oh, maybe that last one only applies to Sarah. :P)

Since things are a bit hectic here at We Heart YA headquarters, we're going to skip the discussion post this week and have a little fun. A little book party, to be specific, and you guys are all invited!

To win one of these great prize packs, just leave a comment and let us know how your summer is going. (Also let us know if you are interested in winning A, B, or either one.) It's that simple! Winner will be announced at the beginning of August.

Prize Pack A:


MILA 2.0 by Debra Driza
SEVERED HEADS, BROKEN HEARTS by Robyn Schneider
THE KISSING BOOTH by Beth Reekles

Prize Pack B:


THE DARKEST MINDS by Alexandra Bracken
THE BEGINNING OF EVERYTHING by Robyn Schneider
NEVER LET YOU GO by Emma Carlson Berne

(The only catch is that you must have a US mailing address. Sorry to all our lovely international friends!)

All right, now let's all get back to driving packing reading on the beach. ;D

Happy Independence Day to our fellow yanks, and happy Thursday to everyone else in the world.

The winner of our Sarah Dessen giveaway is Morgan from deservedly.wordpress.com. Please email us at weheartya (at) gmail (dot) com with your postal address. We'll send you a signed copy of The Moon and More.

Something there is...that loves a good zombie book.

Not because zombies are pretty and smell great. Not because they flip their hair or smolder (although Warm Bodies may have changed our minds on the romantic potential). But because zombies are a hive of human fear. A collective of horrors that you simply can't outrun. They are compelling, their danger only made worse by underestimating them.  Make no mistake, they're going to consume your brain.

A few of our YA favorites:

THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH by Carrie Ryan. This book started it all for us. Even started off an incredible series of fauxtographs. This book is not just about zombies, but about the forces that keep you isolated, that make you aware of your vulnerability. And how inconvenient zombies can be when you're in the middle of a good love story.

THIS IS NOT A TEST by Courtney Summers. A lot of people like to say this book isn't about zombies, but instead about a group of teens trapped inside a high school. And we must admit there's very much a "Breakfast Club" feel to it in the best of ways. But the zombies in this book serve as a force that each of the characters must reckon with. It's not easy living in the aftermath of carnage, and being confronted with the consequences of your true self. Sometimes that's where the horror lies.

THE END GAMES by T. Michael Martin. SO GLAD we snagged an ARC of this book. In this world, two brothers must immediately figure out a way to adapt to the changing world around them. There is no going back to before. We can't say too much so we don't spoil the story for you, but the characters each go through their own journey, and there are so many twists and moments where you have no clue how things will turn out. But the whole time you're rooting for these very human characters and daring to hope there's a way to survive a creature that adapts more quickly than you.


In a good zombie book, there's a guaranteed fight. A survival story--often the least likely human you'd think would ever make it or deserve it. There's guts, and the skin of your teeth, and anger at how some creature so stupid and shuffling could outsmart you. Because the thing is...in survival, not often the strongest or the smartest survive. But the most adaptable.

Jingle bells, Batman smells, and we are giving away 9 YA books (in 3 sets of 3). All you have to do to enter is (1) comment on this post and let us know which set/s you're interested in, and then (2) comment on any other post this month. Winners will be announced the first week of January. (Must have US postal address. Sorry, international friends!)

Set A
SHARDS & ASHES edited by Melissa Marr and Kelley Armstrong, ft. Veronica Roth, Beth Revis, Carrie Ryan and more
THE MAGNOLIA LEAGUE by Katie Crouch

Bridget Howard, you won THE SNOWBALL EFFECT.  Thanks for commenting last week.  Make sure you email us so we can post it out to you!  This is the last week of our summer giveaways because, y'know, summer's winding down.  Some of you are crying right now, but come on!  Who's looking forward to some autumn weather and pumpkin spice lattes?!?  Okay, to win an ARC of REUNITED by Hilary Weisman Graham all you have to do is comment.  Thank you.  You are loved.

Lots of good discussions happened last week on twitter:  #NALitChat, #MGLitChat,#YAWritersAAT, and #askae:

Definitely favorite tweet EVER