About the Author
Danielle L. Jensen is the USA Today bestselling author of The Malediction Trilogy (Angry Robot), the Dark Shores series (Tor Teen), and The Bridge Kingdom series (Audible Originals). She lives in Calgary, Alberta with her family.
Danielle L. Jensen is the USA Today bestselling author of The Malediction Trilogy (Angry Robot), the Dark Shores series (Tor Teen), and The Bridge Kingdom series (Audible Originals). She lives in Calgary, Alberta with her family.
Les Misérables meets The Lunar Chronicles in the out-of-this-world sequel to Sky Without Stars that’s an “explosion of emotion, intrigue, romance, and revolution” (Stephanie Garber, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Caraval series).
Jessica Brody knew from a young age that she wanted to be a writer. She started self “publishing” her own books when she was seven years old, binding the pages together with cardboard, wallpaper samples, and electrical tape.
After graduating from Smith College in 2001 where she double majored in Economics and French and minored in Japanese, Jessica later went on to work for MGM Studios as a Manager of Acquisitions and Business Development. In May of 2005, Jessica quit her job to follow her dream of becoming a published author.
Since then, Jessica has sold over twelve novels for teens, tweens, and adults including 52 Reasons to Hate My Father, The Karma Club, My Life Undecided, and the three books in the Unremembered trilogy, the first of which is currently in development as a major motion picture by the producers of The Vampire Academy, Zero Dark Thirty, Life of Pi, and Slumdog Millionaire. In 2016, she will release two new contemporary novels, A Week of Mondays (August) and Boys of Summer (April), and in 2017, her debut middle grade novel entitled, Addie Bell’s Shortcut to Growing Up, will hit bookstore shelves.
Jessica also writes books for the Descendants: “School of Secrets” series, based on the hit Disney Channel Original movie, Descendants!
Jessica’s books are published and translated in over twenty foreign countries. She currently splits her time between California and Colorado.
Joanne Rendell
Carol B. Allen is an author and international, award-winning creative professional. She has held leadership positions in firms that believe in strengthening community across the New York Tri- State Area. She plays an active role in supporting opportunities to enhance young women’s interest in the STEM fields as well as advancing causes that protect the environment.
She serves on the Advisory Board for Advancing Women in Science and Medicine (AWSM), part of Northwell Health’s Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. Additionally, she has participated on the Advisory Committee for the Girl Scouts STEM program.
A University of Michigan graduate, Carol received high honors and the prestigious Student of Distinction recognition.
Carol resides in Westchester County and is an active member of the Pound Ridge Authors Society. When she isn’t writing, Carol enjoys the city life and the country life, balancing her time with her family, exploring the cultural offerings of Manhattan as well as the great outdoors of the bucolic Northeast woodlands.
My imagination was running wild. I sat at my keyboard, my fingertips racing to paint a picture of worlds destroyed by climate change for my YA Fantasy, One If. I was obsessed with the exciting story spinning in my brain and calling attention to my passions—the impact of climate change and encouraging young women in STEM.
Can you picture an apoplectic planet in an alternate universe where technology and development destroy all natural resources? The result could potentially be a planet with two remaining worlds: an Upperworld where an avian species lives in the clouds and an Underworld where a piscine species lives beneath the sea. As the storyline for One If unwinds, three teen STEM students trapped on the planet, work together to solve the crisis while battling to stay alive. Could any of this really happen? To a degree, there is certainty it can.
The media hurls the repercussions of climate change at us daily with resounding reminders about—the of loss of our shorelines, our coastal cities at risk, the melting ice in the Arctic poles, the extinction of countless species, raging forest fires, and extreme weather traumas around the world. While there are those who deny the empirical evidence, activists like Greta Thunberg and the Sunrise Movement are making sure our voices are heard.
Understanding the dynamics of the “genderscape” in STEM is more subtle. I remember my own reaction at my first committee meeting for AWSM, an anacronym for Advancing Women in Science and Medicine, an organization tied to Northwell Health’s Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. I had a seat at the table with uber-smart women with creds akin to rocket science. I thought how is it possible these women are organizing to bring awareness to leveling the STEM playing field? The truth may be difficult to grasp, but advanced degrees don’t carry their weight in STEM. Women in STEM struggle much like the women in many male-dominated fields. But STEM is an area where gender balance is sorely needed.
Our world is changing in milliseconds. We are inextricably tied to our electronics and those who develop them are hot commodities in the marketplace. Yet men succeeding in STEM outpace the women by leaps. Whether clutched in our hand or strapped to our wrists, this rectangular tangle of technology is now an additional appendage, extensions of our hand and our brain, we can’t live without.
We would be remiss underestimating the evolutionary job market awaiting those with expertise in STEM. Look around. Unless you are wearing blindfolds, it is clear women are underrepresented in every STEM field. There are more career slots in STEM now than men can possibly fill. And more on the way each day. The stats tell us otherwise, depicting only one quarter of STEM workers are female. This is in contrast to the number of women in the labor force, which stands at approximately 50%. Only 28% of women are in STEM fields (ncgproect.org) as opposed to 72% of men.
STEM skills are going to be the bedrock of future jobs. We need to attract young women and provide them with the opportunities. We must give them role models they can relate to—role models who will leave them inspired and enthused. Young girls will then learn they can fulfill STEM careers in real life and how they can help make a difference in the world.
In my novel, One If, that’s where my two teen female protagonists, Parker and Henley, serve to make a difference. Multi-cultural brilliant achievers, they are proud of their scientific accomplishments. Parker and Henley are modeled after many of the young women I met on my path at AWSM. I hope my characters inspire girls to achieve at their highest potential in the STEM fields. And, at the same time, they will learn to collaborate with their male counterparts, just like Henley and Parker team up with Edison, my teen male protagonist.
My hope is fantasies, like One If, are not just fantasies, especially as they relate to the gender issue in STEM. I hope my message will set an example for young women, reshape our culture, and intrigue young girls to pursue careers in STEM. We need them!
Lifestyles of Gods & Monsters Review
By: Rae
“My parents make me do it because the gods told them to…”
“Haven’t you noticed that the gods mostly tell people to do stuff they already want to do?”
– Emily Roberson, Lifestyles of Gods & Monsters
When Greek mythology meets reality TV things are bound to get interesting… and let me tell you, Roberson’s world was petty, hopeful, crushing, amusing, and risky.
The idea that royalty sells really is the ultimate summary of this book where sixteen year old Ariadne’s world gets flipped upside down when the gorgeous and mysterious Theseus arrives to compete in The Labyrinth Contest. The Minotaur remains undefeated – much to Ariadne’s relief – but the show’s ratings are dropping and “Daddy” is demanding something more to make Athens continue to pay for their crime. When the attraction between Athen’s prince Theseus and Ariadne is unable to remain hidden, Ariadne’s world falls to lies and heartbreak. Her mother takes over her makeup, she is onscreen more than off, and she is told she has this important part to play to appease the gods. No pressure…
Will she help Theseus?
What will Ariadne sacrifice to get her desire – freedom?
Who is the villain?
The hero?
I adored the fact that this entire book was full of reality angst and played on the nitty gritty of sex, drugs, and money. There were strong hints of prostitution, drugs, alcoholism, animalistic… well you get the point. Either way I think Roberson did a great job of bringing these myths into a contemporary world. However, if you aren’t familiar with Ariadne, Theseus, and the minotaur, you may have some struggle with connecting to their reworked storylines. I love the side-eyes and nods to their antique parts and grinned at the crazy that is Greek mythology on the big screen.
It was fast, it played dirty, I had a love-hate relationship with 99% of the characters, and I was left wondering at what I really wanted for Ariadne, but overall, I give Lifestyles of Gods & Monsters a 4/5.
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