Happy Birthday, Billycan!!! The White Assassin Book Giveaway

It was such a thrill last year when Nightshade City came out, but an even bigger thrill this year to officially be a series! You never know what's going to happen in life and if you'd have told me years ago I'd be writing a middle-grade series about super intelligent rats, well, let's just say I'd think you were spiking your Captain Crunch with something not exactly legal. ;) 

THE WHITE ASSASSIN, Book II of the Nightshade Chronicles is officially out! My blog tour just started last week, so be on the look out, because many of these fantastic bloggers are giving away a signed ARC. Speaking of signed things...I'm giving out a signed hardcover of The White Assassin! To enter, simply follow Project Mayhem and leave a comment! I'll be announcing the winner Tuesday, October 18th.

For those of you who know the series, this book is all about the rat we love to hate, Billycan! You know I love bad guys, so having a book dedicated to one was an honor to write. Maybe by the end you'll understand why he's so darn bad!

Here's the blurb:

Book II of the Nightshade Chronicles begins three years after Juniper and his rebel band liberated the Catacombs from Billycan's vicious control and established the democratic Nightshade City. A sense of peace has settled over Nightshade, but it is a false one. Billycan, the White Assassin, has been found deep in the southern swamps, where he now rules a horde of savage swamp rats eager to overrun Nightshade City. With the help of an ancient colony of bats and an uneasy alliance with the swamp snakes, Juniper and his council set out to thwart Billycan's plans. When a shocking secret is revealed everything changes. The fate of Nightshade City and the life of Juniper's only son depend on Juniper's decision: should he help his mortal enemy? The past resurfaces with devastating impact in this sequel to Nightshade City, a dark tale of intrigue, deception, and betrayal. 

Thanks to everyone who has been so supportive to me and my writing! Writers are such a kind and encouraging group of folks and I'm lucky to have gained so many friends because of it. 

xoxo -- Hilary

My book's birthday wish

It's the birthday of my middle grade book!

(Its first birthday, as a matter of fact, so technically there should be only one candle on that cake. Hopefully, when it reaches that many candles, it will still be in print!)

Something near and dear to me is now making its way in the world, and I'm reflecting on the many wonderful influences that got it there.

When I was a middle grade kid, I spent countless happy hours in my parents' bedroom closet, hiding from the daily drama, sprawled on my stomach, reading middle grade books. I visited Oz more times than I can remember, and Narnia, and Middle Earth. I made friends with Martha, Jane, Mark, and Katharine in Half Magic, and Eliza, Jack, Roger, and Ann in The Time Garden. I foiled a Hanoverian plot with Dido Twite and Simon the painter. I learned that a tesseract was a fold in space used by time travelers.

What made me happy yesterday was reading Danny the Champion of the World. I enjoyed it as much as I would have when I was ten years old. Am I eternally juvenile? Maybe so, but there's a better explanation: I'm just as much of a person as I was then, and middle grade books are about people.

Not children.

Not adults.

Just people.

Sometimes when I tell people about The Boy Who Howled, I get the feeling they think it's a lesser accomplishment to have written a children's book than an adult thriller or even a young adult romance. These people have forgotten that they've always been people, even when they were little. So it's time I made a blanket statement. Every great writer, without exception, was turned on to reading and writing by a book he or she loved as a middle grade kid. That would include all the authors on the New York Times bestseller lists.

Which makes middle grade the most important genre. (With every blanket statement comes a blanket conclusion!)

This is my birthday wish, before I blow out the candle. I want everyone who's starting a family to remember this:

Read to your kids. Take them to the library. Let them pick out their own books. And be glad that they're people, like you!

—Timothy Power