Yesterday was different. Yesterday, Jennifer Herman (Marketing Manager at Random House Canada and a proper take-no-prisoners kind of woman) organized a lunch gathering for me with a bunch of booksellers from Indigo (downtown) and Chapters (the ‘burbs). It was fun, and entirely the opposite of my usual sad vigil. I talked a bit about Spy, but mostly we all talked about: the indignities of buying “petite” trousers that still require hemming; handmade jewelry from Barriefield Village; the joys of the All-Day Breakfast; Paulo Coelho, yea or nay; the new Yann Martel book; self-help books; Portsmouth Villagers, arty or crazy; movie theatres of Kingston Past; people who walk cats as though they’re dogs; people who carry dogs as though they’re babies; whether bookselling is the most dangerous job in the world, on the grounds that your take-home pay might well be zero after you’ve spent the day caressing new books; the retired English teacher who’s taught half of Kingston; what, exactly, a Poker Run is (it involves boats); and dachsunds. These are just the highlights, mind you. And then Jennifer gave out copies of Spy, and I signed them, which still gives me the chills (and penmanship worries).

The booksellers got off light – I was actually pressing for an Ultimate Fighting Championship-style scrap between the two stores. It looked promising, to me: Indigo had more people (including the tallest), but the Chapters folk are ninjas. Ultimately, I forced everyone to pose for this photo:

And then I brainwashed them. (back row) Bonnie, Jenny, Ryan, Jennifer, Samantha; (front row) Christina, Leslie, Victoria, Ginny

Good times, booksellers of Kingston. Good times.

This week, I’m thrilled that Kirkus reviewed Spy a second time, this time in their spring supplement: “Debut author Y.S. Lee keeps the story wound tight, lacing it with gingery humor… Sparkling repartee fuels the story, but it’s not so snappy as to undercut Mary’s vulnerability—she’s a saucy, smart heroine it will be a pleasure to meet again.”

And the bloggers – they’ve been busy!

Yuan at GAL Novelty says it’s “an engrossing read, with a lead character you can root for with all your heart”.

The Book Whisperer doesn’t usually read historical mysteries, but concludes that “without a doubt that I am a new follower”. Hurray!

Christina at Reading Extensively calls it “a delightful mystery with a fantastic heroine”.

Mel at He Followed Me Home thinks it has “the perfect ingredients for a fun historical mystery”.

And Miss Kelley “can’t wait to find out what Mary Quinn does next”!

Finally, I did a couple of interviews:

I talked to novelist Cynthia Leitich Smith about research and roadblocks, and finding one’s historical voice.

And Book Lovers Inc interviewed me. Sample: Q. Tell us about your book. A. It contains not a single vampire.

I think that’s accurate.

The crowd thins out towards the end, when we finally remember the camera

The space was the beautifully restored Victorian building that now houses the Body Now 4 Mums studio. Oscar sold the books, Joanna provided wonderful nibbles (garlicky spanakopita! rhubarb compote! pita with za’atar, sumac and fab vegan toppings! chocolate-covered marmalade! carrot cake! homemade limeade for the kids, in tiny green bottles with straws! and many things I didn’t even get a look at because I was in my corner, signing). The Catastrophizer was in charge of music, but no one heard the CD end because it was so raucous.

I learned a few things about launch parties that I feel compelled to share:

1. Arrive much earlier than you think is necessary. People started trickling in at 7pm for a 7.30 start!

2. Don’t lose the camera in the diaper bag.

3. Invite kids. They made it so delightful.

cutest. rugrats. evah.

4. Enlist someone to bring you food & drink at the midway point.

5. Don’t expect to have meaningful conversations with your lovely friends. Just sign!

6. Bring more pens than you think you’ll need.

me in my corner

7. Breathe. It’s really happening.

8. Smile so hard your face hurts.

In the lead-up to the Big Day, I am doing my best to be omnipresent. (There is no hope of omniscience or omnipotence, but I do what I can.) What this means is, starting on February 28, I will be blogging. Every. Day. Specifically, I will be guest-posting or giving interviews here (don’t worry, I’ll come back each day and link to the correct post):

Sunday, Feb 28 – interview at Bookworming in the 21st Century
Monday, March 1 – guest post at GreenBeanTeenQueen
Tuesday, March 2 – interview at Steph Su Reads
Wednesday, March 3 – interview at Books are Life
Thursday, March 4 – guest post at Books by their Cover
Friday, March 5 – interview at That Chick That Reads & a guest post at Teenreads.com
Saturday, March 6 – guest post at Reading in Color
Monday, March 8 – guest post at the Epic Rat
Tuesday, March 9 – guest post at Chick Lit Teens & at Book Chick City, & an interview at In To Views
Wednesday, March 10 – interview with the Catastrophizer
Thursday, March 11 – guest post at the Story Siren & an interview at Shades of Romance
Friday, March 12 – guest post at Rebecca’s Book Blog
Saturday, March 13 – guest post at Ticket to Anywhere

That’s a lot of me. But wait – you’re not off the hook yet. New reviews of Spy are cropping up everywhere!

BookPage says it’s “entirely true to the genre, full of thrills and danger and wonderfully sharp writing”.

Publisher’s Weekly calls it “richly described… Mary’s lively escapades… will hold readers’ attention and whet their interest for the next installment”.

Bookphilia got the metanarrative jokes (YAY!) and confesses, “I did absolutely no work on Friday because I was reading it and couldn’t put it down”.

Its sensibilities are a bit too modern for the BookWitch at first, but eventually she reckons, “if you want a female Alex Rider in Victorian London, then this is for you.”

Persephone Reads calls it “transporting”.

BookLoons loves the “rich setting in Victorian London”.

Heck, even Kirkus Reviews liked it, but I can’t link to the review without a subscription. Take my word for it?

Phew. I’ll see you on Sunday.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

7.30 pm

61 Yonge St

Portsmouth Village

Kingston, Ontario

.

hosted by

Candlewick Press

Novel Idea Bookstore

Body Now 4 Mums & Kids

and me!

Please RSVP if you can. For a map to the venue, click here.

The first-prize winner will receive a Candlewick Press ARC of A Spy in the House (featuring the cover at left) and one of these custom-made, not-for-sale-anywhere Agency t-shirts.

Don't worry; it doesn't say "Trainee Spy" on the back.

Second- and third-prize winners will each get a copy of the UK edition of Spy

It looks like this.

To enter, email me the answer to this question: What’s your favourite first line? Give me the sentence, author’s name, and the book title.

But that’s not all. You may enter a second time by announcing this contest on your blog, Twitter, or Facebook account and emailing me a link to your announcement. Please use some form of the following wording: Win an ARC of Y S Lee’s A SPY IN THE HOUSE, the first novel in the Agency series! Enter at http://yslee.com/2010/01/the-first-lines-contest/.

I’ll announce the randomly selected winners on Thursday 18 February. Good luck, everyone. I can’t wait to read your entries.

Things turned fantastic once I arrived at the Random House offices (Candlewick books are distributed by RHC in Canada), and not because of me. The Candlewick team of Elise Supovitz, Jeanne Emanuel and John Mendelson were utterly charming, and seemed to specialize in putting nervous outsiders at ease. We had lunch (pizza and profiteroles – an alliterative menu!) with the Random House sales team, headed by Linda Chisholm and Duncan Shields. I met a lot of people, many of whom I didn’t get a chance to really talk to (but some of whom I did – hello Jennifer, and Lahring, and Tan, and Robin!). I also met “my” publicist, Nicola Makoway, and bombarded her with questions. Ahem.

Everybody was so energetic and enthusiastic and clearly passionate about books. I learned a bit about different sales territories (there’s one dedicated to Toronto indie bookstores alone; by contrast, another person handles national accounts for Wal-Mart and Shoppers Drug Mart) and a bit of terminology (“inside sales” – someone who works within the office, instead of on the road) – lots of things I hadn’t really thought about until that lunch meeting. I also learned about a very cool-sounding social-networking site for Canadian teen readers, Bookurious; I’m not allowed in, as an adult, but it looks great. And I shook hands with a man who’s shaken Anne Perry’s hand. What does that MEAN, oh cosmos?

After lunch, I talked to the assembled group (including some on conference call) about the story behind The Agency and how I came to be a writer. It was a strange, surreal, yet hyper-real ten minutes in time. It was so peculiar to do something deeply familiar – address a group of people – but in a completely new context (conference room of a publishing house). I wish I could play it back accurately in my head, but it was all a blur of politely nodding heads and me wondering, after the fact, did I talk way too fast? I mean, there’s a reason one of my undergrad classes nicknamed me “the Auctioneer”…

And then, suddenly, it was over. I was the privileged outsider who went downtown to meet up with a dear friend, while everyone else was still hard at work. I walked along Queen St, thinking, “I’m an author. All those people think I’m an author.”

And I’m not sure I believe it myself.

Have you recovered yet? I haven’t. Remember, you have just under 3 weeks left to enter to win a copy of SPY.

I’m thrilled to announce that the Candlewick Press edition of A SPY IN THE HOUSE will go on sale in North America on March 9, 2010. The fabulous team at Candlewick designed a gorgeous, atmospheric new cover – and they even commissioned a photo shoot! I have some behind-the-scenes shots from the shoot and will share those with you in the coming weeks. Oh, and it’s hard not to shout this last part: the American edition is a hardcover – oh, yes it is. You can pre-order now from Amazon (US; Canada).

THE BODY AT THE TOWER, the second book in The Agency trilogy, will be published by Walker Books in April 2010. This time, Mary’s investigating a suspicious death at the Houses of Parliament. She’s disguised as a 12-year-old boy. And James is back from India… I had such a tough time writing and re-writing and re-bloody-writing this book, but my earliest readers (spouse, editors, agent) have been really enthusiastic. I hope you are, too.

Finally, to celebrate my lovely new website and upcoming North American book launch, I’m holding a CONTEST! It’s open to anyone in the world with a blog, Twitter, or Facebook account. First prize is a crisp, lovely, new-book-smelling copy of the British edition of A Spy in the House (its dramatic cover is there on the left); there are also 2 B&W stickers featuring the terrific Agency logo for 2nd and 3rd place winners.

Ready to enter? Here’s what you do:

1. Announce the following via your blog, Twitter or Facebook account:
Countdown to The Agency! There are almost 6 months ’til the US launch of A SPY IN THE HOUSE. Win a copy now at www.yslee.com.

2. Email me (ying@yslee.com) on or before November 1 with the link to your announcement AND the answer to this question:
What was the last book that really lingered in your mind – haunted you, if you will? Give author name, title, and description of the haunting element, please.

Once again, there are 2 steps to enter the contest:
-    Spread the word about this contest at your blog, on Twitter, or on Facebook (or all three). Remember to link to this website.
-    Email me by November 1 with the answer to the “haunted” question AND a link to your contest announcement (friend me on Fb if you do it there).

On November 5 (Guy Fawkes Day – ha!), I’ll announce the randomly selected winner and post everyone’s answers. (For privacy reasons, I’ll post answers with first names only, unless you request otherwise. If you’d rather I didn’t post your answer at all, tell me in your email.)

If you win and already own a copy of Spy, you can name a friend and I’ll send out the book as a gift from you. Or you can choose the very sexy Spanish edition from Ediciones Versatil, instead – it’s a stunner, and not for sale outside Spain.

Good luck! (I tried that without the exclamation point; it can’t be done.)