My novel, PREY, has been chosen as part of the International Reading Association’s Young Adults’ Choices 2010 booklist!

Here’s the official letter from the IRA, as well as a link to all the book titles on the list.

The fully annotated list will be published in the November issue of the Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy.

A review of HEART TO HEART from the August 1, 2010, edition of Booklist:

Heart to Heart.
McDaniel, Lurlene (Author)
Jun 2010. 224 p. Delacorte, hardcover, $11.99. (9780385734608). Delacorte, library edition, $14.99. (9780385904599).

Best friends forever, Kassey and Elowyn met in seventh grade, and not even high-school boyfriend relationships can shake their bond. When Elowyn is killed in a senseless car accident, her loved ones are left with their grief. But Elowyn’s transplanted heart renews the life of Arabeth, whose newfound health also brings some sudden and uncanny parallels in behavior and expressions with her donor. Is part of Elowyn’s personality now embedded in Arabeth? The prospect of the “cellular memory” phenomenon crops up, and the eerie connections between Elowyn and Arabeth tantalize Elowyn’s parents, Kassey, and others. As Arabeth struggles with identity and healing, the role she now plays in the lives of the bereaved—especially Elowyn’s mother—threatens to overwhelm her. Reason eventually triumphs, and life takes a hopeful turn in McDaniel’s wrenching page-turner that is sure to please fans.
— Anne O’Malley

I recently chatted with Mechele Dillard of the Atlanta Young Adult Literature Examiner — we talked about HEART TO HEART, the Dawn Rochelle series, the ending of BREATHLESS, and more! You can check out the interview here.

Thanks for the great questions, Mechele!

Lurlene

Hey — check out this review of my newest novel, HEART TO HEART, in the Atlanta Young Adult Literature Examiner….

Young Adult Book Review: “Heart to Heart” by best-selling author Lurlene McDaniel.

Thanks, Mechele, for a great review!

Lurlene

My new book, HEART TO HEART, is in stores today!

Tomorrow’s the big day — June 8, my newest novel, HEART TO HEART, will be available in bookstores nationwide, as well as at online retailers.

Here’s a link to HEART TO HEART’s page on Amazon.com, where you can buy it in either hardcover or for the Kindle. You can also find HEART TO HEART on BarnesandNoble.com and on Powells.com, in both hardcover and ebook formats.

Once you read it, I’d love to know what you think…drop me a comment, either here or on my Facebook page!

Thanks, and happy reading!

A review of HEART TO HEART, from the May 15, 2010, issue of Kirkus Reviews:

McDaniel, Lurlene
HEART TO HEART

Those familiar with McDaniel’s tearjerker style won’t be surprised or disappointed by this latest iteration, in which teenager Elowyn Eden’s untimely death enables another teen, Arabeth St. Clair, to live through the gift of heart transplantation. Readers are briefly directly introduced to the charismatic teen, but fiery-tempered Elowyn lives on after her deadly car accident through the stories and memories of her best friend, Kassey, and, eerily, through Arabeth, who immediately after transplantation finds herself changed. Changes range from craving Elowyn’s favorite ice-cream flavor to the transformation of her timid personality into an outgoing style she has never known. At first, Arabeth is confused, but as she befriends Elowyn’s family, boyfriend and, especially, Kassey, she realizes that her transplant included more than just a heart. The author plays this as a positive sharing rather than a more sinister takeover, and woven into this emotional text are threads related to parent/child relationships, first loves and death and dying,
which add depth and a sadness that is expertly tempered with hope and a love of life.
(Fiction. YA)

Heart to Heart

My newest novel, HEART TO HEART, is set to release in hardcover (and on Kindle) June 8, 2010!!

It will be available at major bookstores nationwide, as well as at online retailers, including Amazon.com and BN.com.

About HEART TO HEART…

Elowyn Eden and Kassey Messechek are best friends. They share every aspect of their lives. But one thing Elowyn has not yet shared with Kassey is that she checked the organ donor box on her newly acquired driver’s license. Kassey only learns of this in a startling and devastating way—when Elowyn’s life-giving donor wishes are about to be honored.

Arabeth St. Clair has not had the luck to have a best friend. Due to her diseased heart, she’s led a sheltered life. When Arabeth is sixteen, she and her mother receive the call that will change their lives—but they don’t know to whom they should be forever grateful.

When the worlds of these three girls and their families intersect, lives are changed in ways never imagined. Most especially, it is Kassey who sees things differently, for she can keep alive the memory of her dear friend by sharing the renewed life of another teenage girl, while helping to ease the pain of the two families involved and coming to terms with her own.

For more info about HEART TO HEART, visit my page on my publisher’s site, Teens@Random.

Lurlene

Welcome to LurleneMcDaniel.net, the official website of author Lurlene McDaniel! The site is currently undergoing some changes, but will be fully functional again shortly.