​Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
(Creekwood #1)
by Becky Albertalli
Hardcover, 303 pages
Published April 7th 2015 by Balzer + Bray
​
Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.

With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.

I went into Simon vs the Homosapien agenda (From now on I will refer to the title as Sv.HA cause I am ) or as the movie retitled it Love, Simon with an open mind but also with some trepidation. I hated HATED contemporary romance in high school. I thought they were way to sappy, that the characters were to one dimensional and a lot of the time annoying. I was such a romantic in high school (honestly I was just didn't want to read it.) Since reading The Perks of being a Wallflower last summer two summers ago I was more interested in it. 
I knew I wanted to read Sv.HA before seeing the movie but I hadn't gotten around to it. Finally I ordered the audio book and I was hooked. It was sweet, and the problems that Simon faced as a gay student who was grappling with his sexuality and what that meant to him, and general school issues were  relatable.* I don't know what about it made me enjoy it so much after not liking contemporary as a kid, maybe it was time and space, being in my own happy relationship where I can see the same things that happened with my relationship, the friendships. Overall this was a really cute story, and I can't wait to see the movie. Which I still haven't done months after reading the book... 
What did you think of this book?
*I say relatable but some of it was not aka being a (mostly) closeted student. I am straight but I was able to relate to the crush flutters. 

See you soon!

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Hello, My Scripturients,
My readers and my writer friends. I haven't done a writing update in well over a year. And that is tragic because I used to honestly love to write these little updates for you. But I got busy, and it was easier to put a two min word vomit clip on youtube than it was to actually sit down and articulate my thoughts. I took a break from this. And a break from youtube. But I am back now and am ready to get back into attempting to put my thoughts down. If you have purchased a copy of Rebellion, you will have the key to knowing what the next book I will be writing is called. If you don't have it yet... I will be at a few book events in the next few weeks or sign up for my mailing list. I will be sharing a lot there and on Patreon. 
But I made a timeline for myself that is quite fast so you won't be waiting too long for a new book from me, don't you worry. I will have a lot more information for you come October 4th. There I said it. The deadline is out there. Anyway, this is just a little post to say that I am extremely happy to be where I am right now. That I am on to the next project but that it is a break from The Fritual Saga. I will be back to that shortly, I just want to take this little side jaunt and refresh my brain before jumping back in. 
With lots of love
Katelyn
​See you soon!

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I started to read books when I was in kindergarten. One of the first series of books I ever read was Redwall by Brian Jacques. The world of Redwall opened my eyes to lands where people weren’t always the nicest, but there were still good people who would fight for what was right. And even if they made mistakes on the way, it was okay. Not long after I learned to read on my own, I would stumble home with my family's canvas library bag (everyone's family has a specific bag for the library right?) that felt like it weighed more than I did. I would devour those books and then return to my little haven for more stories. 
When I was thirteen, I was struck with an idea, the first spark of a story that I painstakingly wrote out by hand and then had my best friend type up for me because I was a slow typer. I remember thinking at the time that the main character, Leona, had to be strong. She had to be fierce; she had to fight. Just like Matthias had. But it was important to me that my main character was a girl. Leona never left the pages of that story, but her essence has grown with me. And what was that exactly? Strong female characters. Women who could lead, who meant business, who didn't have to be pretty little pawns for men's pleasure. Now Young Adult fiction has come a long way since when I first started reading, but maybe I was also looking in the wrong places. Hermione was always in Harry’s shadow, outsmarting him, but never really taking the spotlight. However, I want people to read in the right places. I want young girls to look at a strong leading female character and say "I want to be like her," to be able to slide herself into those shoes and learn to be strong in her own life. I needed more Katniss, more Zélie, more Starr, and more Kady. More women, more people of color, more LBGTQ+, more people. And these people, need to get not just more representation but leading roles, shining for all to see and love. 

Now strength, as we know, doesn't always mean you can lift the heaviest object. Sometimes it is looking fear in the face and not letting it stop you. Sometimes it is being uncomfortable so others don't feel pain; it is leading where others fall. It is listening to what is hard. It is admitting that you need help.
This leads me to my own writing, this Amazon review encapsulates everything I am trying to do:
"Great for young readers!
This is an energizing read for a younger (maybe preteen or early teen) age group. 10-year-old me would have loved this because I think especially younger girl readers can put themselves in the main character’s shoes."
-Amazon Reviewer

Shauna and Taytra Flynn are sister's and are the protagonist's of my series The Frituals Saga (The Frituals #1, Rebellion #2 (available 8/10/2019 now available for preorder.)) These two young women are people I wish I could have read about when I was younger. So how did their story start? 
Each year men and elves are tested to see if the Fritual of their kingdom will be revealed, a powerful person able to control an elemental Magick. Shauna Flynn has always wanted to meet a Fritual, but these Magick users had all but disappeared in the war of men and elves nearly two hundred years before. Shauna has always wanted to meet a Fritual, she never thought she would be the Fritual. Forced from her home by a group of elves known as the Dark Ones who want to control the first human Fritual, Shauna has to find the other Frituals and stop the Dark Ones, to save herself, her family, and the home she has always known...


I hope my stories will inspire more young women to stand up for what they believe in. To not always worry about being the smartest in the room because no matter what their voice is valid. I hope they can find themselves in my stories. And if not, to pick up a pen, or open a word doc and stare down that blinking line and write it for themselves. That is what I am doing for myself. 

​The Frituals #1, and Rebellion #2 are available from katelyncostello.com or wherever you buy books online. This series is Young Adult fantasy and targeted to children in 7th-12th grade or for whoever loves young adult books in your life. 
Follow my writing and publishing journey or just look at cute photos of my cat at @authorkatelyncostello on Facebook and Instagram or @scripturienting on twitter. For business inquiries please email me at scripturient101@gmail.com

Children of Blood and Bone
(Legacy of Orïsha #1)
by Tomi Adeyemi 
Hardcover, 544 pages
Published March 6th 2018 by Henry Holt Books for Young Readers
Original Title
Children of Blood and Bone
ISBN
1250170974 

​

They killed my mother.
They took our magic.
They tried to bury us.

Now we rise.

Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.

But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope.

Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.

Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.

​THIS BOOK... I still think about it and I read it a while ago at this point, back in march. And I would always give it 5 stars without a thought. Tomi's writing is beautiful. There is no other way to describe it. She is a beautiful writer, the images and feelings that you are left with stay with you, for months. Tomi is the best debut author that I have read in years. The level she is at competes with many other long term authors. As a Nigerian- American woman, the story is laced with beautiful references to African and Nigerian culture: from the creation myths, the tribes, to the beautiful descriptions of the clothing, that made even rags on slaves clear in my mind. It is no wonder the rights were purchased to produce a movie before the book even came out! The episodic arcs of the storyline and constant changing refreshing pace make it in my mind a fantastic candidate for visual media.

Now, like a lot of books I read these days, I start with a print book, and then I read the audiobook. And I NEED to give a shout out to Bahni Turpin. She is an amazing narrator, and I think this is one of the stories you should read both the printed word and the audio version. Each is a different experience. 
What both create is a powerhouse story about children and people of color battling against discrimination and an unjust society in a fantasy setting. Sure you could say you could put any person white, black, or brown, and tell the same story BUT the fact that this story is about POC and that it is such a FANTASTIC book, with influential roles is. Powerful. Is Important. Is beautiful. Is needed. And it is part of the reason I love it so much. Because I don't need to have a white protagonist anymore. I can pick up almost any book on a shelf and feel like I am the character. But not everyone gets that. But while I am not a powerful black woman, Zelie still stuck with me, as a loud, arrogant, boisterous woman. She did what she wanted. She was rash. She didn't always listen. She messed up. She did the things a "good girl" wouldn't do. And that is another reason I loved her. She wasn't pretty pretty perfect. She was raw, and strong, and scared but fights the fear. She is a fighter. I wish more people would read about, and be more like Zeile. 
There is so much more I wish I could tell you, but I am afraid of saying more and spoiling you. So go, buy it, borrow it, use your audible credit, get it now. 
Book #2 Children of Venence and Virtue comes out in December and I am so excited
Also ​#vengeanceontheseheauxes

​​See you soon!

PRE ORDER REBELLION
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Hello, My Scripturients,
I kinda can't believe that in t-minus 10 days my second book comes out. I wrote the first half of this book for NaNoWriMo in 2016. I spent so many nights looking at my notes, staring into nothing, and drinking way too much apple cider. I felt so creative in that dorm room. It was where this blog started. It was the year I started building the foundation for my business. I put down the draft until well after and began to pick my way through it in October of 2018. Now nearly 9 months later and 40k more words later I await publication.  
I have changed in many ways since writing the first part of this draft, but in many ways, I am the same. I still want to tell stories, I still want to inspire others to read, and to write, and to tell their own stories.
I am so proud of this story in so many ways. The editing, the things that had to change to make sense from the pieces that were left by past me, the fact that it is my longest story to date, and I can't wait to jump into book #3. 
I want to say thank you again, I have said it a million times already and want to say it a million more. You will never know how thankful I am for you. You helped to create this business. It wouldn't be what it is now without you. 
You still have time to pre-order Rebellion from my website or wherever you buy your books online (this includes but is not limited to Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Nook, Kobo, Apple iBooks, Scribd, books a million, indigo, and more...)
Thank you so much for this. I can't wait for you to read it.
​Katelyn Costello