Announcement from Simon & Schuster!

#1 BESTSELLING AUTHOR KRESLEY COLE
TO PUBLISH NEW YOUNG ADULT SERIES WITH 
SIMON & SCHUSTER BOOKS FOR YOUNG READERS


NEW YORK, Thursday, February 2nd, 2012– Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers announced today that it will publish The Arcana Chronicles, a new young adult series by Kresley Cole, the #1 New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestselling author of the Immortals After Dark (IAD) paranormal series published by sister imprints Gallery/Pocket Books.

Cole’s IAD books have been translated into seventeen foreign languages, have garnered two RITA awards, and consistently appear on bestseller lists in the US and abroad. Lothaire, her first hardcover novel in the series, was published on January 10 and was an immediate New York Times bestseller.

The first book in The Arcana Chronicles is titled Poison Princess and will be published on October 12, 2012. This is the author’s first young adult novel.   

Poison Princess centers on sixteen-year-old Evangeline “Evie” Greene, a privileged teenager from Louisiana. When an apocalyptic event decimates her hometown, killing everyone she loves, Evie realizes the hallucinations she’d been having for the past year were actually visions of the future—and they’re still happening. Fighting for her life and desperate for answers, she must turn to her wrong-side-of-the-bayou classmate: Jack Deveaux. As Jack and Evie race to find the source of her visions, they meet others who have gotten the same call. An ancient prophesy is being played out, and Evie is not the only one with special powers. A group of teens have been chosen to reenact the ultimate battle between good and evil. But it’s not always clear who is on which side . . . 

“I couldn’t get this idea out of my head, kept imagining what would happen if the twenty-two Major Arcana cards of a Tarot deck—like the Magician, Death, or the Empress—were real kids. I envisioned them with special abilities based on the characteristics of their Tarot card and plotted out how they would use those powers to battle other cards. I’m delighted to have the chance to develop a new mythology around the Arcana,” said Kresley Cole.
“We’re thrilled to have Kresley Cole on our list,” said Justin Chanda. “Kresley’s an expert on books filled with romance, intrigue, passion, adventure, suspense and deceit—all the ingredients for the perfect teen novel!”


Robin Rue at Writers House negotiated the deal with Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. The deal includes world rights. The Arcana Chronicles will be supported by a major marketing campaign and national author tour.  


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ABOUT SIMON & SCHUSTER CHILDREN’S PUBLISHING
Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, one of the leading children’s book publishers in the world, is comprised of the following imprints: Aladdin, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, Beach Lane Books, Libros para niños, Little Simon®, Little Simon Inspirations™, Margaret K. McElderry Books, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, Simon Pulse, and Simon Spotlight®. While maintaining an extensive award-winning backlist, the division continues to publish acclaimed and bestselling books for children of all ages. In addition to numerous Caldecott, Newbery, and National Book Award winners, Simon & Schuster publishes such high-profile properties and series as Eloise, Olivia, Raggedy Ann & Andy™, Henry & Mudge®, The Hardy Boys®, Nancy Drew®, The Spiderwick Chronicles, Nickelodeon’s® Dora the Explorer®, and SpongeBob SquarePants. For more information about Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, visit our website at http://kids.simonandschuster.com.

Simon & Schuster, a part of the CBS Corporation, is a global leader in the field of general interest publishing, dedicated to providing the best in fiction and nonfiction for consumers of all ages, across all printed, electronic, and audio formats. Its divisions include Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing, Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, Simon & Schuster Audio, Simon & Schuster Digital, and international companies in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit our website at www.simonandschuster.com