'Supernatural' book tour comes to Dayton

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By Vick Mickunas, Contributing Writer 4:51 PM Friday, May 29, 2009

“The Awakening,” by Kelley Armstrong (HarperTeen, 360 pages, $17.99)

“Fragile Eternity,” by Melissa Marr (HarperTeen, 389 pages, $16.99)

“Once Dead, Twice Shy,” by Kim Harrison (Harper Collins Children’s Books, 232 pages, $16.99)

The Supernatural Summer Tour — three authors writing books on supernatural themes for young adult readers — is coming to Dayton. The authors are:

Kelley Armstrong

Her second book of a planned trilogy is “The Awakening.” Her Web site  (www.kelleyarmstrong.com) advises readers to be careful not to spoil things for others by revealing very much about her original book.

She tantalizes her audience with a teaser: “If you had met me a few weeks ago, you probably would have described me as an average teenage girl — someone normal. Now my life has changed forever and I’m as far away from normal as it gets. I’m a living science experiment — not only can I see ghosts, but I can raise the dead without even trying. Trust me, that is not a power you want to have. Ever. I’m running for my life with three of my supernatural friends and we have to find someone who can help us gain our freedom back before the Edison Group finds us first. Or die trying.”

Melissa Marr

Marr created “The Wicked Lovely” series. “Fragile Eternity,” the third book in this series, is new. The author has constructed a fantasy world peopled by mortals and otherworldly creatures.

Marr’s audience of young adult readers is intrigued by a struggle between good and evil. A press release alludes to one more attraction — romance: “Seth never expected he would want to settle down with anyone — but that was before Aislinn. She is everything he’d ever dreamed of, and he wants to be with her forever. Forever takes on new meaning, though, when your girlfriend is an immortal faerie queen.”

Kim Harrison

Probably the best-known writer among this trio of authors, Harrison first burst on the scene using the pen name of Dawn Cook in 2002 with “First Truth,” a novel of high fantasy for adult readers. Cook continued that series with “Hidden Truth,” “Forgotten Truth” and “Lost Truth.” She also penned the fantasy novels “The Decoy Princess” and “Princess at Sea” under the name of Dawn Cook.

Five years ago she published “Dead Witch Walking,” her first book in “The Hollows” urban fantasy series, under the name Kim Harrison. This series featuring a witch named Rachel Morgan has been a breakout success putting Harrison on the best-seller lists and elevating her to the heights of the fantasy genre.

Her other books in this series so far are “The Good, the Bad, and the Undead,” Every Which Way But Dead,” “A Fistful of Charms,” “For a Few Demons More,” “The Outlaw Demon Wails,” and “White Witch, Black Witch.”

Harrison recently acknowledged writing under the name of Dawn Cook as well. She has just published “Once Dead, Twice Shy,” her first novel for young adult readers.

HarperTeen, the publisher, has created a Web site; www.supernatural summer.com.

Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, and Kim Harrison bring the Supernatural Summer Tour to Books & Co. at The Greene, 4453 Walnut St. in Beavercreek at 7 p.m. Wednesday, June 3.

Contact book reviewer Vick Mickunas at vick@vickmickunas.com.

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