YABC is super excited to host the exclusive sneak peek of C.J. Redwine’s upcoming THE SHADOW QUEEN (Balzer + Bray 2/23/16), and epic fantasy retelling of the Snow White fairy tale. The cover was first revealed on EPIC READS, along with 4 other EPIC covers. (Check those out HERE)
First, let’s hear from C.J. about the inspiration behind writing this book.
Hi YABCers! I’m so excited about this book (about the series, really). I was raised on fairy tales. Every week I checked out another volume of Grimm’s fairy tales from the library. (Anyone remember the white book, yellow book, red book etc?) I get excited every time another live action or animated fairy tale hits the big screen because there’s nothing I love more than a good retelling. However … not all retellings are created equal. 🙂 The inspiration for THE SHADOW QUEEN actually came from the incredible disappointment I felt after seeing Snow White and the Huntsman. I ranted for the 45 minute drive home, and finally my husband looked at me and said, “Why don’t you write the story how you want it to be told?”
And so I did.
I wanted Snow White to be an epic battle between two equally powerful females. I wanted the huntsman to have compelling reasons for obeying the queen and to be deeply conflicted. I wanted the prince to fall in love with the princess because of her courage, her intelligence, and her heart, not because he stumbled upon a random corpse in the woods and decided to kiss it. (I mean really.)
So that’s what I wrote. And I’m so very grateful to Sarah Kaufman, my cover designer at Balzer + Bray, for giving me such a captivating cover! I hope you love the cover and the story as much as I do.
CJ
Are you ready to meet THE SHADOW QUEEN? Scroll to see the cover and read an exclusive excerpt, and be sure the enter the giveaway for the first advanced review copy!
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About the book:
Lorelai Diederich, crown princess and fugitive at large, has one mission: kill the wicked queen who took both the Ravenspire throne and the life of her father. To do that, Lorelai needs to use the one weapon she and Queen Irina have in common—magic. She’ll have to be stronger, faster, and more powerful than Irina, the most dangerous sorceress Ravenspire has ever seen.
In the neighboring kingdom of Eldr, when Prince Kol’s father and older brother are killed by an invading army of magic-wielding ogres, the second-born prince is suddenly given the responsibility of saving his kingdom. To do that, Kol needs magic—and the only way to get it is to make a deal with the queen of Ravenspire, promise to become her personal huntsman…and bring her Lorelai’s heart.
But Lorelai is nothing like Kol expected—beautiful, fierce, and unstoppable—and despite dark magic, Lorelai is drawn in by the passionate and troubled king. Fighting to stay one step ahead of the dragon huntsman—who she likes far more than she should—Lorelai does everything in her power to ruin the wicked queen. But Irina isn’t going down without a fight, and her final move may cost the princess the one thing she still has left to lose.
EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT:
“You cannot outrun me.” Irina’s voice echoed down the street. “You cannot hide from me. You can either surrender or die.”
“Your Highness, the dragon needs a scent to follow,” a man said.
“I don’t need a hunter to follow a scent when my prey is so close. I can find them myself.”
“Ready?” Leo whispered as he nodded toward a narrow iron catwalk that bridged the distance between the alley-side corner of the smithy and the brewery next door.
“Ready.” Taking a deep breath, she found her balance and ran lightly down the sloping roof, onto the iron catwalk, and across to the brewery’s roof in seconds.
Irina’s voice rose. “You have chosen death.”
The catwalk creaked behind her, and then Leo was behind her. Moving quickly across the brewery’s roof, staying low and hugging the chimneys for cover. Lorelai followed, her stomach churning as Irina’s voice echoed across the alley below them.
“Nakhgor. Kaz`prin.”
A light as brilliant as fire shot into the air, arced, and then plunged deep beneath the alley’s cobblestones.
Lorelai’s palms blazed with heat in response. She grabbed Leo’s hand and yanked him forward, their boots sliding dangerously against the brewery’s shingles as they fought to get to the next catwalk.
“Nakhgor,” Irina shouted as the cobblestones shook violently. “Find the ones I seek.”
Lorelai and her brother reached the catwalk that led to the harness maker’s workshop as long jagged cracks split the cobblestones beneath them.
Sprinting across the catwalk, Lorelai scrambled up the harness maker’s roof and half-slid down to the other side, Leo right at her heels.
“Kaz`prin.” Irina’s voice filled the air. The cobblestones cracked and crumbled as her spell gained strength. “Bring them to me to face their punishment.”
Lorelai was halfway across the catwalk that led from the harness maker’s to the weaponsmith’s when a score of thick black vines exploded out of the ground.
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Giveaway Details
One winner will receive an ARC of THE SHADOW QUEEN (when available).
During each giveaway, we ask entrants a question pertaining to the book. Here is the question they’ll be answering in the comments below for extra entries:
What do you think about the cover and synopsis?
Click the Rafflecopter link below to enter the giveaway:
I really love the twist on the apple being black instead of red. It also stands out against the snowy backdrop. I’m excited for this twisty love story!
WOW! This cover is incredible!
Thank you for this giveaway. I’m so excited to read this book!
I [b]love[/b] the cover! It’s so beautiful!
NEED THIS NOW!
I enjoyed Redwine’s DEFIANCE trilogy so much, so when she started talking about her fairytale WIP, I knew I’d be hooked. B+B design once again came up with something very clever and eye-catching with this black apple, peeled words, and water droplets.
Ogres! Haven’t seen very many of them in YA lately. This sounds just as epic and great as her last trilogy 🙂
I love this cover. Can’t wait to read it.
I am such a huge fan CJ and I have to say this cover is stunning and I love the details even though it is simple.
I am so excited for this book!
THAT COVER!! Everything about the cover is so fabulous, and I love how “The Shadow Queen” gives off the same vibe as “Snow White and the Huntsman” with an even darker twist. I’m so excited for this book, and I wish February would come faster!
This cover is absolutely stunning and perfect I feel. The cover perfectly illustrates what the synopsis conveys. The story sounds intriguing and different in just the right ways, but not so different that the concept of the original is lost. I can’t wait to read this book because I think it’s going to be action packed and wonderfully magical.
I LOVE THIS COVER SO MUCH.
And this synopsis… Can’t wait for this one!
I don’t know just what I think of the cover because I don’t like the background all that much…
Really loving the synopsis, though! Very excited for this book because Snow White is my favorite.
I love the cover of this book and I’m very excited for it’s release!
I seriously cannot wait for this book! It’s beautiful and I already know I’m going to love the writing!
I JUST CAN’T HANDLE ALL THE AWESOME COVERS FOR WINTER 2016!!!!! I’m so glad there wasn’t a girl in a pretty dress on this cover… not that there is anything wrong with those, but there are so many of those O_O I love this cover and I will read anything C.J. writes so GIMMEE! 😀
Thank you for the giveaway!
I really love how much it relates to the original fairy tale with the cover. It reminds me so much of the scene in Disney’s Snow White when the queen is doing some chemistry with her magic to poison the apple. And I like the twist Redwine put on the story: why not make the prince and the huntsman the same person? 😀
I have one thing to say about this. MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OMG – the cover is AMAZING!! Can’t wait!!!!
I think this cove is fantastic! I didn’t realize until I read the synopsis that this was a Snow White retelling. It sounds great!
The cover is gorgeous. I cannot wait to read it!!!
AHh The cover is amazing!!
Love the carved black apple dripping blood. I’m a lover of fairy tales, too, and have always been intrigued by this one. The synopsis pulls me in.
The cover is GORGEOUS. I’d definitely buy this book because of its cover even if I don’t know what it’s about yet. The plot is amazing too. I feel like even though the story was adapted from Snow White, it’s still going to be original and make the story its own because of the different factors contained in it.
This looks amazing! I’m dying to read this one, and the cover is just stunning!
It’s breathtaking! Goes right to the top of the TBR pile.
To say that I am excited about this book would be an understatement, and I’m so excited to see such an awesome cover that is a wink to the original story but hints at how it’ll be something different!!
I have heard CJ talk so much about this book that I just CANNOT wait to hold it in my hands!! GAH 2016 IS TOO FAR AWAY!!!
I need this book ASAP! The cover is so creepy and the synopsis is intriguing! I can’t wait to read it!
Oh. My. Werd. I need to read this right now. The cover is gorgeous and the synopsis had me squealing. I love fairy tale retellings!
Ooo! A new Snow White. Love it! Sounds like this could be everything “Snow White and the Huntsman” should have been.
Also, can’t believe I wasn’t already following C.J. Redwine on Twitter! One error corrected!
Been looking forward to this book for EVER! The synopsis is awesome and I love this cover!! So perfect for a dark Snow White retelling.
Oh, I love it! It fits the summer so well and is different from other ones out there. I can’t wait to read it!
I seriously love the cover! And the synopsis is to die for! I love fairy tale retellings sooo much!
Great cover! And I love retellings, so this sounds awesome.
Eeeek! I think this cover is all kinds of gorgeous. NG. I adore C. J. And I simply cannot wait to read this book 🙂 Thank you so much for the chance to win an ARC.
the cover is just perfect. i love it sosososo much! i can’t wait to read this retelling!
The cover art is what made me click on someone else’s post to read about this book. It drew me in. That and the book sounds “magical” lol and I love that!
Interesting!
I’ve never read anything by this author but I’ve had her books on my list for a long time. This cover just looks amazing. I love fairy-tale retellings!
Can I enter this giveaway even if I don’t have a US mailing adress? In this post it says that the giveaway is international but when I click on the rafflecopter link it says that I have to have a US mailing adress.
Sorry about the confusion! Yes, you can enter internationally. Just give your complete address.
The cover is both beautiful and creepy and it’s a fairy tale re-telling so this book is definately on the top of my TBR pile!
Yes! An amazing cover with the Snow White them! Thank you for the giveaway!
The cover looks freakin awsome! And i love fairytale retellings if i won this i would be so happy its unbelievable!
I seriously love the cover! This book looks like just my type of book. Thank you for the giveaway.
OH MY GOODNESS! This cover is giving me life right now! It is just ridiculously beautiful. I love how the apple is black instead of red. It’s just so awesome! The synopsis sounds intriguing! Can’t wait to read it!
this cover is so cool, and it almost seems real! The synopsis is pretty interesting, I really need this book in my TBR!
I love the black apple instead of a red/green one
The cover is gorgeous. I cannot wait to read it!!!
So excited for this! I added this to my goodreads list when I saw it advertised on FB! Love the cover and synopsis…
The cover is just FANTASTIC. Black apples are my new official favorite apples (I solemnly vow only to eat black apples henceforth) and although Snow White isn’t my favorite fairy tale, I can’t wait to read The Shadow Queen!