#stole this joke from pop team epic <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[critter-wizard]

[beboots]

The power of relationships: initial Avengers: Endgame reaction

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So I just got back from Avengers: Engame, and wow, what a culmination to a series of movies spanning over a decade. Initial feels:

The biggest thing for me is that they actually did a good job at setting up relationships between the different characters, so the stakes felt all the higher, and the reunions were all the more powerful. 

First off, I actually felt the dad-ness of Clint at the start of the movie in a way that I didn’t really when the family was first introduced in Age of Ultron. There he was, hanging out with his wife and kids, and it felt natural and normal. The dusting of his family was all the more tragic because we had those moments of warmth and intimacy right beforehand - and Clint’s dawning realization that they were missing, they were all missing, and there was nothing he could have done between one moment and the next... that was all the more horrifying to watch. 

I adored the little scene soon after with Tony Stark teaching Nebula desk top football, being patient with her, but also letting her win. He knew that was important to her. Nebula was painfully awkward but I loved how in only a few clips, they set up their growing friendship. I like how even as Tony’s voiceover of what he believed were his final words to Pepper was making me cry, we also saw clips of Nebula and Tony working together, and Nebula in some small ways, taking care of Tony: letting him have the last crumbs of food, healing him with a practical and dispassionate expression, the two of them working side by side to repair the ship... Those are the kind of moments I live for, and really help also explain why Nebula was so trusted and integrated into the Avengers so quickly off-screen later on. 

And NEBULA. I loved the contrast between her and her past self, demonstrating how much she’s grown as a character and how much she’s come to value others, particularly Gamora. I still feel that Nebula was the one who should have killed Thanos - she’s been working on it the longest and had a lot of motivation - but I really liked how she was wholeheartedly on the side of the Avengers in this (except for, well, her pre-redemption arc self). She was fierce and clever and traumatized, but competent and practical.

Speaking of which, that’s one of the things I was a bit bummed about: we could have also had that awkward “villain joining forces with the powers of good and awkwardly working together to defeat a greater evil” kind of dynamic with Loki, and I was actually quite upset that we didn’t get more of him. What we did get of Loki was really cool - it was interesting to see a fresh take and bonus scenes from the beloved first Avengers movie. But we could have had so much more! (Side note: I really, really disliked the way they handled Thor in this movie. The one exception was the scene with his mum, and the dynamic he had with Rocket.) I mean, Loki stole the Tesseract again! I totally thought it would link in with that horrific scene at the beginning of the Avengers Infinity War movie, where he popped back up with the Tesseract again... but nope. Now I do want to read alternate timeline fics with him running around muzzled with the Tesseract though. 

SPEAKING OF WHICH I just love time travel. The movie didn’t really go where I expected. I absolutely adore time travel shenanigans as a genre, and I was kind of worried that the movie wouldn’t do the concept the same justice that so much awesome fanfic does. (See for instance Rise From Ash by Mikkeneko, Tea With the Hatter by Theorytale, or my absolute favourite Bargaining by proantagonist). But the scenes in the past were actually pretty darn good! They felt very fresh. I really liked seeing, for instance, Bruce who is now fully in control of his Hulk self half-heartedly smashing things in New York to blend in, and being totally embarrassed about his earlier self. Tony Stark undercover as a SHIELD agent was epic. (I really love seeing Tony being sneaky and being competent outside of his armor.) Tony Stark encountering his father (and not quite blending in with his “beatnik” beard) was really interesting. Giving his own father parental advice? Surreal but an interesting dynamic.

I really liked time travelling Cap in New York. Being mistaken for Loki. Telling his past self about Bucky being still alive so he can beat him. Tricking the SHIELD / HYDRA agents into giving up the scepter with a well-placed “Heil HYDRA” which HAD to be a reference to the controversial Hydra Cap comics of a few years back. SO well-done!

Can we have all of the fics with dealing with the fallout of that alternate timeline? Loki with the tesseract, a mystery Cap stealing the scepter from under the nose of HYRDA, Cap looking for Bucky, Tony paranoid about his arc reactor shorting out again... there’s a lot to play with in that alternate timeline. Things are not as they seem and it would be interesting to explore that.

I really enjoyed Ant Man as a character in this movie, too? He contributed to the science, and that moment of excitement when he showed up at the Avengers compound really galvanized folks and me as an audience member. He added moments of encouragement (fanboying Cap!) and levity where needed but was also down to earth, emotionally sincere, and moved the plot along. I lived and breathed for his hug reunion with his daughter Cassie. 

Another epic moment: the few times we saw Captain Marvel. I <3 that she rescued Tony and just like... carried the ship to Earth? I really enjoyed that moment in the final battle where all of the ladies teamed up - she’s not alone. AND THE MUSIC SWELLS.

Another epic moment: Peter activating Instant Kill Mode. Treated as a joke in Homecoming, played straight to epic results here. 

Another moment of epic feels: I actually remembered why I enjoy about Natasha and Clint’s friendship. I like these moments of camaraderie, scattered through the movies. A long way from Budapest indeed! I adored how they fought each other for the right to sacrifice themselves to get the soul stone - fighting each other to protect each other. Classic spy buddies. I really didn’t know where that scene was going to play out, and that made how the scene ended all the more tragic for me. It had really emotional oomph. 

Speaking of emotional oomph: TONY!!!! I feel like he had a line that foreshadowed what happened to him at the moment he showed up at the compound to give them the time travel GPS. My god that ending. But even earlier: the recordings he made for Pepper when he thought he was going to die, his friendship with Nebula borne of desperation, how he had legitimate reasons to hesitate to try to change things (his relationship with his daughter was realistic and brought me new life), his blow up at Cap about how he’d been trying to stop this for years even as he was sitting there bony and fragile with an IV... MY FEELS. 

In this movie the stakes felt high, but it was purely because they really built on the strength of the relationships in this movie, and used the previous movies as touchstones for them too. That’s why I’m bummed Thor didn’t really get resolution with Loki. But the resolution or emotional tension we did get: with Tony and Pepper and Peter, with Nebula and Gamora, with Clint and his family and Natasha... that made the movie worth it for me. For a movie with a giant ensemble cast, there were so many wonderful emotionally satisfying moments and character growth for more characters than I expected would get them. 

It’s not a perfect film, but I was so pleased with how so many characters got their moment to shine, and all in relation to one another. 

[recentanimenews]

Crunchyroll Features' Most-Anticipated Anime of Summer 2019!

2018 is almost over so it's time to forget the past and look forward to the new year (once we're all finished with Anime Awards). Many of Winters biggest shows are doubtless to be the huge continuing titles from Fall, but there are plenty of new anime to be excited about. Our editors have looked forward to the fresh new titles and each picked the 3 they're most looking forward to.

  Peter Fobian

  Most of the biggest shows from Fall are continuing in Winter, and the ones that are finishing up are being replaced by even BIGGER titles, so 2019 is starting off pretty crazy. Winter in particular looks great since one of my favorite manga and favorite anime are seeing new releases!

  The Promised Neverland

    I’d read up to volume 3 of the manga before Shonen Jump made their entire back catalog available then caught up with the ~100 remaining chapters in a single sitting. The Promised Neverland is one of the best manga currently running in Weekly Shonen Jump that’s extremely hard to describe to people without spoilers. Smash Death Note and Coraline together and you start to get an idea of what this series is about. I’m really looking forward to seeing some of the most chilling moments from this series in motion.

  Mob Psycho 100 II

    Mob Psycho 100 was one of my favorite 2016 anime on multiple levels. One’s storytelling and characters are excellent, but BONES really elevated the source material by making the surreal psychic combat of the series an animators playground of sophisticated and obscure animation techniques. The anime is so fun to watch, and I really get the sense that’s because it was fun for the animators to make. Match that with maybe the BEST anime PV I’ve seen in my entire life

  Boogiepop Doesn’t Laugh

    I’ve been meaning to watch Boogiepop Phantom for as long as I can remember, and this series is finally going to make me do it. Supernatural mystery is totally my jam and Boogiepop has maybe one of the biggest reps in the genre, possibly even surpassing Hell Girl. The preview shows off some amazing visuals and has a seriously sinister aura I’m just in love with so… mess me up, Boogiepop.

  Ricky Soberano

After such a whirlwind of a fall season, I’m ready to become a blanket burrito and kick off my New Year’s resolution: Watch anime that will make me feel 100% happy to think about looking forward to it and step outside of my usual shonen safety zone.

Mob Psycho 100 II

    I am super psyched for this new season! Yes to see how Mob’s powers have progressed and how they can look even more aesthetically mind bending but I actually just really want to see his progression as a loveable awkward human. I want to see him challenged on both the psychic and behavioral fronts.  

  The Rising of the Shield Hero

    It appears we have a dark horse. Having seen so many isekai’s in which the hero is essentially awesome all of the time almost from the beginning gets boring pretty quickly for me. However Shield Hero has the odds and the world against him from the very beginning and I’m sadistically here for it. I’m ready to see how the ‘Get shit done by any means necessary’ survivor attitude comes out, how he grows through the underdog struggle, and what this journey will do to his moral compass. Catch me on the flipside watching the anti-hero isekai unfold.

  Saint Seiya: Saintia Sho

Truthfully, I haven’t watched any previous Saint Seiya anime so I’m coming in with the cleanest slate possible and I am hella hyped. This legendary piece of work is gloriously luminous with a gem color palette, follows the goddess, Athena’s personal maidens known as Saintia, and has a fight against one’s predetermined fate.

Nate Ming

One of my Fall favorites (Hinomaru Sumo) is still running this season, but what will fill the Honda-san and Sugimoto-shaped holes in my heart? Ahh, yes… horror never fails me--horror involving children, horror involving ghosts, and just plain ol' body horror. Winter 2019 ain't messin' around!

The Promised Neverland

    One of my favorite new manga is finally getting the anime treatment--I can't wait to see newcomers' reactions to the suspense, twists, and horror that The Promised Neverland never fails to deliver.

Boogiepop Doesn't Laugh

     Boogiepop Phantom was probably one of the best blind buys I made back during the VHS days, so I'm super hyped for more. The original was clever, thoughtful, and creepy--here's hoping for more of the same in the new series.

Dororo

     One of Tezuka's most violent and most badass stories is coming back in 2019, with the ronin Hyakkimaru hunting down 48 demons who stole his body parts (which he's replaced in the meantime with lots and lots of swords). Anybody ever play the PS2 game, Blood Will Tell?

Nicole Mejias

After this last season, I’m somewhat glad that for my tastes Winter seems a bit slim, but there are also so many shows continuing that I’m going to still need to find some time to catch up! That said, there are a few that are just must watch shows for me, including the return of my beloved Mob Psycho!

Mob Psycho 100 II

    This is my biggest anime for the upcoming season. I’m so excited to see more of Mob, Reigen, and the rest of the characters. While others might be looking forward to One Punch Man’s new season, I always preferred One’s more personable and down to earth writing for Mob and the gang. I can’t wait to see what they get up to in this season, and you bet I’m going to check out that special premiere in theaters next week!

The Promised Neverland

    I’ve been wanting to read the manga for this for some time now as I keep hearing from friends about how interesting and creepy it is. I love horror stories, but I just hadn’t had a chance to pick up the manga and see what all the fuss was about, so now I’m glad I can check it out this season! I don’t really know much about it, other than it supposedly gets very tense and creepy, so I’m on board for some good scary drama!

Dimension High School

I’m a big fan of Japanese live action comedy, animated comedy, and frankly just Japanese comedy, so this weird blend of live-action and CG anime featuring some huge voice talents, like Junichi Suwabe (Viktor Nikiforov, Abacchio), Shouta Aoi (Ai Mikaze, Himself in Pop Team Epic), and more, is right up my alley. The series follows 4 boys transported to an animated realm to… solve puzzles at the bidding of a giant Sphinx? The trailer won me over with a very self-aware “Where are my hands?!” joke, so I’m interested to see more of this one.

That's all for this list. Unsurprisingly, the latest Shonen Jump adaptation in The Promised Neverland and the continuation of anime's most beloved child, Mob, in Mob Psycho 100 are topping out everyone's lists! As always, we're looking forward to seeing our predictions pan out and getting pleasantly surprised by some of the new shows we weren't expecting to like.

What's your most anticipated anime of Winter 2019? Sticking with your continuing series or think a dark horse will surprise us all? Let us known in the comments below!

---

Peter Fobian is an Associate Features Editor for Crunchyroll, author of Monthly Mangaka Spotlight, writer for Anime Academy, and contributor at Anime Feminist. You can follow him on Twitter @PeterFobian.

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[scifrey]

Get To Know The Writer

 Get to Know the Writer Tag

Rules (always post the rules): answer the questions given to you, write ten questions of your own, tag ten people.

@rosecorcoranwritessaid anyone who wants to do it can, and it looked interesting.

1.) Where did the title(s) of your latest project(s) come from?

 The titles for The Accidental Turn Series were sort of decided by a committee of my agent, my editor, my publisher and me. I’m rubbish at naming books, so through a series of emails a list of about a hundred throw-them-out-there titles were whittled down (mostly by Googling them and seeing if any other book had that title already) to a few themes. From there we narrowed down and named the first book (The Untold Tale, where I had been calling it That Feminist Meta Thingy), and then the other two books dominoed into place after that (The Forgotten Tale, and The Silenced Tale.)

These titles are because in book #1, the fantasy is being told from a side character who in fantasy-novel tropes is often overlooked. In book #2, other fantasy stories start vanishing, forgotten by the readers, and in book #3,someone is trying to silence the writer of these fantasy books forever.

 City By Night, one of my novellas, is also being reissued next month. Its original title was The Dark Side f the Glass, which was both an allusion to Alice Through The Looking Glass, as it’s about a woman who falls into a TV instead of through a mirror, and a tip of the head to the song of the same title from the soundtrack of one of the television shows the novella satirizes, Forever Knight. However, my agent thought the reference was too obscure, and after another big round of back-and-forth, it was decided to name the novella after the fake-TV show I made up for the story.

 The titles of the to books in The Skylark’s Saga (#1 The Skylark’s Song, and #2, The Skylark’s Sacrifice) are because I do love alliteration when I can get away with it! These are the only titles of the recent projects that I decided on my own and the rest of my team liked! Score!

2.) Do you have any rhyme or reason behind your character names?

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. For the Accidental Turn Series fantasy books, I stole a lot of street names or snipped letters out of traditionally “European” names, like Kintyre, Forsyth, and Bevel to make them look suitably fantasy-esque on the page. But when the characters come to the “real world” I made a point of surrounding them with characters who had distinctly non-white, no-European names like Ahbni, Ichiro, and Juan just to really emphasize how much more diverse the “real world” is over traditional fantasy. 

In Triptych, every friend who helped me with edits got a character named after them. And in The Skylark’s Saga I got a bit silly - the Sealies all have surnames inspired by pagan gods, the Saskwayins are colors, and the Klonn are plants.

3.) What is your writing routine, if any?

When possible, I like to write at night, in silence, and with only my desk lamp on.  I try to keep my desk area very tidy, too, with only notes about the project I’m immediately working on written on my whiteboard wall. I need the only mess to be what’s in my head.

I’m more of a pantser who has, by virtue of writing series, been forced to learn how to plan. But even then, my planning is pretty rudimentary. I often do this in a notebook on transit (I tend to come up with ideas when I’m in liminal spaces), and run that by my editor. If she approves the vague outline, then I often write whatever scene is foremost in my mind - whichever has really grabbed my imagination, and allows me to figure out who my characters are, what the voice is, who the narrators are.

From there I often write chapter one, and then usually skip straight to the climax of the book and write that. This way I know where I’m aiming before I properly knock the arrow. Even if the target eventually shifts, I still have a sense of its shape and location.

From there I tend to skip all over the narrative and write whatever arrests me or I have in the front of my mind. Once that’s done, I go back to the start and begin the process of filling in the gaps. If I get another idea, I’m always happy to jump ahead and do that.

Using Scrivener has made this process a thousand times easier than when I had to scroll-scroll-scroll through Word.

When I don’t have to go to my dayjob, I try to write about 4000 words per day. When I do, I am for 500-1669, which keeps me limber for NaNoWriMo.

4.) Where is the weirdest place you’ve ever written?

I actually wracked my brains on this one, and I was going t say something like “a 400 year old house on the top of a mountain in Japan” or “in the shadow of the Great Pyramids in Giza”, but honestly, the real answer is on my BlackBerry while high off my face on morphine in the emergency room. Apparently I wrote a GREAT short story, which I emailed to all my friends, and emailed them. Without telling anyone that I was in hospital with Organ Death ™. And without remembering at all that I’d done it.

5.) Do you prefer to write by hand or type?

Typing, hands down. I type way faster than I handwrite, and I get frustrated that my pen can’t keep up with my brain. If I get an idea when I’m away from the computer, I usually only jot down enough to remember the scene/idea/mood/exchange without writing it out. I despise having to do the work twice, and that’s what transcribing from paper to computer feels like.

6.) Ideally, where would you like to see your writing take you in five years?

I’d like to break this barrier there seems between me and the Big 5. My agent and I have been working at it, but there seems to be some strange gap. Lots of editors at the Big 5 like my work, but no one seems to want to sign it. I get compliments on my voice, on my word crafting, but no contracts. It’s so frustrating to be so close to the possibility of working with a team with more resources than I have so far. 

7.) Which character is most fun to write and why?

Now that Triptych is complete and being serialized on Wattpad, any opportunity to revisit Kalp is a delight. I love looking at the world through his eyes. Olly, from The Maddening Science was a lot of fun too, again because of the way I have to shove aside my own assumptions about how and why the world works and see it through the lens of his own intelligence and lived experience. And Bevel will never not be a hoot, because there’s something just so great about getting to be that crass, and to come up with dirty jokes that fit in a fantasy world.

8.) What advice would you give writers just starting out?

Read widely outside of the genre you want to write in. If you want to write fiction, read non-fic, pop sci, and academic papers. Read the news. Read blogs. Read things that are in your wheelhouse, but then randomly grab something from the library that looks cool. You never know where the next idea will come from. Let your imagination wander.

9.) Do you have any “writing heros”? (This could be published writers or non.)

Anyone giving it a go! It’ hard, and it’s disheartening when people don’t love something you’ve put so much work and heart into. It’’s easy to give up on. Don’t.

Otherwise, I love Dianne Wynne Jones’ blatant subversion of stereotypes and tropes, which has really informed my writing, an Jane Austen’s ability to create such diverse, thoughtful, and complex characters.

I also super appreciate fanfic writers, cause they do it out of sheer love, and work for years to hone their craft. Among my faves are @bendingsignpost @sheafrotherdon, and @madlori.

10.) Tell me about your work-in-progress.

 Oh lord, is this a can of worms you really want to open?

 The Silenced Tale & The Accidental Collection  - books #3 and #4 of The Accidental Turn Series  are done. They just need to be line-edited and then the editor can lock the manuscript and it’s out of my hands and into the typesetter/designer’s. (And then of course I need to ramp up to marketing machine.)

 Book #3 is the conclusion of a trilogy of books about a secondary character in  fantasy epic who becomes self-aware and slips the pages of his book.

 The Skylark’s Saga - The two books are written, but one of the relationships is changing dramatically and I need to go in and shift that. I have no idea how much writing/rewriting this is going to entail. However, I do know that I want to get it done by the end of the year. As soon as the manuscript for The Silenced Tale is locked, I’ll be moving onto this.

 This duology is a steampunk-adventure-romance book about a girl vigilante and her ornery rocketpack who gets trapped behind enemy lines after being shot down in a dogfight.

 The Austen Hollywood AU  - I’ve written the first book of the series, and my agent is shopping it now. It’s possible that it may only get signed as a one-book deal, but ideally I’ve developed it as a six-book series (one for each of Austen’s). At some point I’d like to write the first three chapters of the remaining five books, to demonstrate what the voice and tone of each is gong to be like. (Possibly for NaNoWriMo this year??)

 These books are modern adaptations of Austen’s work, but they will all intertwine as characters from different aspects of the entertainment industry cross paths, work together,  and as they do in the originals, find love and contentment.

 The Maddening Science  - at some point I’d like to develop my short story of the same name into a full-length novel, but it would take a lot of research on my part, and a lot of buy-in on a publisher’s. I’m not quite ready to tackle this one yet, though I have pitches and synopsizes and the like written.

Henrietta - This idea is relatively new idea, born from watching a documentary and then reading the non-fic biography that inspired it (see, reading outside your genre helps!), but I think I’d really like to take a swing a writing a historical romance based on the life of a certain historical mistress, something like The Other Boleyn Girl. It would take a massive amount of research as well, but I think would be really interesting and engaging. The woman’s life was fascinating.

The Neridis - I wrote this book about four years ago and it’s been trunked. I’d like to pull it back out and give it a spit-polish and a steam-up, then self publish it sometime next year under my erotica pseudonym. It’s a time-travel lesbian romance story that can easily be punched up into erotica.

And of course, there are three other books that are sort of hovering in the back of my mind, but I’m not ready to write them, or even really a pitch for them yet. The vampire one might be a screenplay instead, I’m not sure.

 Oh, and I am looking to place a script, too - I wrote it under spec for a company that later decided not to shift from distribution into development any more, so I’m not sure what do with 228 pages of cute lesbian comic-book creators falling love over lattes and superheroes. I keep thinking that it would make a great webcomic/graphic novel, but I have no idea how to find an artist willing to commit to like a 500-page graphic novel, and more importantly, find the money to pay them.

I tag whomever wants to jump in. No pressure.

[cornerofthebookstore]

Day 2 of Entangled Teens Urban vs. Epic Fantasy Week Team Urban: Why the authors love Urban Fantasy!

Brenda Drake - Guardian of Secrets (Library Jumpers, #2):

I’m such a fan of Urban Fantasy for many reasons, but mostly because writers can take our normal world and, either secret or not, add a dash of the fantastical to it. With mystical creatures hiding from humans or living side by side with them, deliciously nefarious things can happen. There’s just something extraordinary about urban fantasy. It’s the ability of the writer to look at something normal in the human world and mix it up. Changing a simple book into something that can transport someone from library to library or hiding a zoo of magical beasts in a common suitcase.

Book Description:

Being a Sentinel isn’t all fairytales and secret gardens. Sure, jumping through books into the world’s most beautiful libraries to protect humans from mystical creatures is awesome. No one knows that better than Gia Kearns, but she could do without the part where people are always trying to kill her. Oh, and the fact that Pop and her had to move away from her friends and life as she knew it.

 And if that isn’t enough, her boyfriend, Arik, is acting strangely. Like, maybe she should be calling him “ex,” since he’s so into another girl. But she doesn’t have time to be mad or even jealous, because someone has to save the world from the upcoming apocalypse, and it looks like that’s going to be Gia.

 Buy Guardian of Secrets

Chris Cannon - Fanning the Flames (Going Down in Flames, #4):

1.     There are no maidens that need to be rescued in urban fantasy. More than likely the females are the ones kicking ass.

2.     I love the snarky banter that occurs when you throw modern day characters into strange/magical/supernatural circumstances.

3.     Anything is possible in urban fantasy. There are no rules about what types of paranormal creatures you can have. If you want to create dragons that breathe fire, ice, wind, sonic waves, and lightning, you can, just like I did in Going Down In Flames *cough cough shameless self-promotion

 Book Description:

She isn't afraid of anything...except losing the knight she loves. Bryn McKenna has it all, including her smoking-hot knight turned live-in boyfriend, Valmont. Even though she’s a hybrid dragon, she’s finally fitting into the new shape-shifting dragon world that’s become her own. But her grandparents want to ruin everything by making Bryn’s nightmare of an arranged marriage to Jaxon Westgate a reality. It doesn’t help that Jaxon’s father is on a witch hunt for Rebel sympathizers and Bryn finds herself in his line of fire.

 If she doesn’t say, “I do,” she’ll lose everything. Good-bye flying. Good-bye best friends. Good-bye magic. But if she bends to her grandparents’ will and agrees to marry Jaxon, she’ll lose the love of her life—her knight.

 Buy Fanning the Flames

Shonna Slayton - Spindle:

Urban fantasy reminds me that our own world is magical. We are so used to the way our world works that we take for granted how incredible it is that our heart beats, our brain imagines, that our eyes see color.

As a writer, urban fantasy allows me to open up my imagination on multiple planes. I still work with the real world, but I get to add layers onto that. It’s like going from black and white TV to color. Like Dorothy in dusty old Kansas stepping into the colorful land of Oz.

 Book Description:

In a world where fairies lurk and curses linger, love can bleed like the prick of a finger…

 Briar Rose knows her life will never be a fairy tale. She’s raising her siblings on her own, her wages at the spinning mill have been cut, and the boy she thought she had a future with has eyes for someone else. Most days it feels like her best friend, Henry Prince, is the only one in her corner…though with his endless flirty jokes, how can she ever take him seriously?

 When a mysterious peddler offers her a “magic” spindle that could make her more money, sneaking it into the mill seems worth the risk. But then one by one, her fellow spinner girls come down with the mysterious sleeping sickness…and Briar’s not immune.

 If Briar wants to save the girls—and herself—she’ll have to start believing in fairy tales…and in the power of a prince’s kiss.

 Buy Spindle

Tara Fuller - Inbetween (Kissed by Death, #1):

Book Description:

Death doesn’t fall in love. Usually. Since the car crash that took her father’s life three years ago, Emma’s life has been a freaky—and unending—lesson in caution. Surviving “accidents” has taken priority over being a normal seventeen-year-old, so Emma spends her days taking pictures of life instead of living it. Falling in love with a boy was never part of the plan. Falling for a reaper who makes her chest ache and her head spin? Not an option.

It’s not easy being dead, especially for a reaper in love with a girl fate has put on his list not once, but twice. Finn’s fellow reapers give him hell about spending time with Emma, but Finn couldn’t let her die before, and he’s not about to let her die now. He will protect the girl he loves from the evil he accidentally unleashed, even if it means sacrificing the only thing he has left…his soul.

Buy Inbetween

Danielle Ellison - Salt (Salt, #1):

Whether it's witches, demons, ghosts or other types monsters, there's nothing like escaping the sometimes mundane reality of our world, or giving what we know every day a spice of fantasy.  Filled with kick-ass heroines who aren't afraid to fight for what they believe in (and hot, just-as-fierce love interests) Urban Fantasy inspires you look beyond what you see and be more than you think you can be. Plus, life is more with some magic: more dangerous, more unpredictable, more chaotic, more fun.

 Book Description:

Penelope is a witch, part of a secret society protecting humans from demon attacks. But when she was a child, a demon killed her parents—and stole her magic. Since then, she’s been pretending to be something she’s not, using her sister’s magic to hide her own loss, to prevent being sent away.

 When she’s finally given the chance to join the elite demon-hunting force, Penelope thinks that will finally change. With her sister’s help, she can squeeze through the tests and get access to the information she needs to find “her” demon. To take back what was stolen.

 Then she meets Carter. He’s cute, smart, and she can borrow his magic, too. He knows her secret—but he also has one of his own.

 Suddenly, Penelope’s impossible quest becomes far more complicated. Because Carter’s not telling her everything, and it’s starting to seem like the demons have their own agenda…and they’re far too interested in her.

 Buy Salt

Rachel Harris - My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century (My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century, #1):

 Book Description:

On the precipice of her sixteenth birthday, the last thing lone wolf Cat Crawford wants is an extravagant gala thrown by her bubbly stepmother and well-meaning father. So even though Cat knows the family’s trip to Florence, Italy, is a peace offering, she embraces the magical city and all it offers. But when her curiosity leads her to an unusual gypsy tent, she exits…right into Renaissance Firenze.

Thrust into the sixteenth century armed with only a backpack full of contraband future items, Cat joins up with her ancestors, the sweet Alessandra and protective Cipriano, and soon falls for the gorgeous aspiring artist Lorenzo. But when the much-older Niccolo starts sniffing around, Cat realizes that an unwanted birthday party is nothing compared to an unwanted suitor full of creeptastic amore. Can she find her way back to modern times before her Italian adventure turns into an Italian forever?

Buy My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century

Gloria Craw - Atlantis Rising (Atlantis Rising, #1):

I love Urban Fantasy because it infuses normal life with myth and magic. It’s so exciting to have something in common with a character who finds a magic object, special ability or a secret origin. The possible ways her courage and passion might be tested are endless. When she does triumph against fantastic odds, I’m left feeling inspired and reassured that I can overcome great obstacles in my everyday life too. Urban Fantasy reminds me that the ordinary in us can sometimes be…extraordinary.

 Book Description:

We’ve stayed hidden too long… I am different. I have always been different, but no one can know or my life will be in danger. So I hide in plain sight, wearing drab clothes and thick glasses and trying to be invisible. I’m so good at hiding, no one has ever noticed me. Until Ian…the mysterious and oh-so-cute boy I know I need to avoid.

 Now I have been seen. And more terrifying still, I am wanted—by those who would protect me and those who would destroy everything and everyone I love. But if they’re all terrified about who I am, wait until they see what I can do…

 Buy Atlantis Rising

I hope you guys enjoyed this insight from the authors who are #TeamUrban! I’m honestly so excited about all these books! It’s going to be so hard to choose a side.