Sacrifice (Serpentine #2)
Author: Cindy Pon
Publication Date: September 27, 2016
Publisher: Month9Books
Description:
Sacrifice, the sequel to Serpentine, plunges Skybright
into the terrifying underworld where demons are bred and whisks her up
to the magnificent Mountain of Heavenly Peace where the gods dwell.
Stone is stripped of his immortal status and told to close hell's breach, which mysteriously remains open, threatening mortals.
Zhen Ni, Skybright's former mistress and friend, has been wed to the strange and brutish Master Bei,
and finds herself trapped in an opulent but empty manor. When she
discovers half-eaten corpses beneath the estate, she realizes that
Master Bei is not all that he seems.
As Skybright
works to free Zhen Ni with the aid of Kai Sen and Stone, they begin to
understand that what is at risk is more far-reaching then they could
ever have fathomed.
Things You Didn't Know About the Serpentine Series
There are two major influences behind the Serpentine series.
One is that visually, much of it was inspired by the film Clash of the Titans. The old school one that came out decades ago. In the climactic scene, Perseus is trying to survive and slay Medusa, and she slithers about, hissing. The film made her so monstrous and grotesque, and yet, as a young viewer (I was probably 11 or 12), I somehow still found sympathy for her. I knew that even though she was the villain of the story, the monster, we didn't know everything about her. It made me curious over the monstrous girl's narrative.
Another source of inspiration is Dream of the Red Chamber, a Chinese literary classic by Cao Xueqin. It chronicles the rise and fall of a rich and illustrious family during the Qing Dynasty. I used that as inspiration for my heroine's handmaid status to her mistress and dear friend, as well as the wealth and rituals of a rich manor. However, in the actual book by Cao, their lives were much more opulent!
OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES:
SERPENTINE is a sweeping fantasy set in the ancient Kingdom of Xia and inspired by the rich history of Chinese mythology. Lush with details from Chinese folklore, SERPENTINE tells the coming of age story of Skybright, a young girl who worries about her growing otherness. As she turns sixteen, Skybright notices troubling changes. By day, she is a companion and handmaid to the youngest daughter of a very wealthy family. But nighttime brings with it a darkness that not even daybreak can quell. When her plight can no longer be denied, Skybright learns that despite a dark destiny, she must struggle to retain her sense of self – even as she falls in love for the first time.
Cindy Pon
is the author of Silver Phoenix (Greenwillow, 2009), which was named
one of the Top Ten Fantasy and Science Fiction Books for Youth by the
American Library Association’s Booklist, and one of 2009′s best Fantasy,
Science Fiction and Horror by VOYA. Her most recent novel, Serpentine
(Month9Books, 2015), is a Junior Library Guild Selection and received
starred reviews from School Library Journal and VOYA. The sequel,
Sacrifice, releases this September. WANT, a near-future thriller set in
Taipei, will be published by Simon Pulse in summer 2017. She is the
co-founder of Diversity in YA with Malinda Lo and on the advisory board
of We Need Diverse Books. Cindy is also a Chinese brush painting student
of over a decade. Learn more about her books and art at
http://cindypon.com.
One (1) winner will receive a scrabble tile book cover charm (US ONLY)
Five (5) winners will receive a digital copy of Serpentine and Sacrifice by Cindy Pon (INT)
Five (5) winners will receive a digital copy of Serpentine and Sacrifice by Cindy Pon (INT)
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