Cover Reveal and a Review!

My new novel Cinnamon Moon hits the shelves October 18th. It is a really tender post Chicago Fire story (set in 1871) for readers ages 9-12.

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I keep singing The Pointer Sisters I'm So Excited song and shimmying around my house - but I'm a lousy singer and my dancing isn't exactly on point...so...mostly I've just been embarrassing my teens.

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But they'll have to live with it because just look at this beautiful cover by Scott McKowen:

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I've been a huge fan of Scott's work with many revised classics and Neil Gaiman's 1602 series so having him illustrate this cover is kind of surreal for me. The texture technique he uses is super cool. Click here to see more of Scott's stunning covers.
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and School Library Journal gave us a great review!

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Gr 4-7–On October 8, 1871, two great fires roared through Peshtigo, WI, and Chicago, destroying families, homes, and lives. Ailis, 12, and Quinn, 11, lost their parents and their baby sister in Peshtigo. When Mr. Olsen, the powerful former president of the Union Pacific Railroad Company, offers to bring them to his boardinghouse in Chicago, they accept. At the boardinghouse, they meet Nettie, a precocious, hen-loving six-year-old orphan who shares a small closet with Ailis. While Nettie goes to school, Ailis and Quinn are forced to clean the boardinghouse each day by Miss Franny, the caretaker. Miss Franny hates the Irish and takes her anger out on Ailis and Quinn. Determined to escape, Ailis creates a way for her and Quinn to leave during the day and work to save money. Just as they are settling in, though, Nettie suddenly disappears. Desperate to find her, Ailis and Quinn search all over Chicago, but it is only with the support and aid of their friends that they can save her. As in Hilmo’s previous works (With a Name Like Love and Skies Like These), the relationships between characters subtly highlight themes such as overcoming discrimination, handling grief, and being true to oneself. Hilmo’s setting abounds with historically rich details that give depth to the characters and keep the plot moving quickly. VERDICT A compelling read about two lesser-known historical events and their aftermath; a strong addition to middle grade collections in need of historical fiction.–Rebecca Quinones, Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County
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Isn't that awesome?

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I'm not typically one to ask for many things when it comes to my work - but I'm going to try to have a little more courage and put myself out there with this novel. If you think you might be interested in purchasing a copy, please consider putting a pre-order in now. Did you know that pre-orders (through your local bookstore, online sites like Barnes and Noble or Amazon, etc) really help authors? It conveys a message of interest to the publisher and, sometimes, that message translates into more things the publisher may do to support the novel. Who knew, eh? 
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Also, I really hope you'll check back often because I'll be hosting lots of give aways and fun bloger-ly activities as we keep getting closer to the release date (squee!)
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