I Read Indie: WEARILAND by Mary Shotwell {Playlist/Giveaway}

Weariland

by Mary Shotwell

Genre: YA

Release Date: May 10th 2016

Merge Publishing

For fifteen-year-old Lason Davies, it all started with a text.

“HIDING PLACE.”

The last words of her murdered grandmother haunt Lason as she travels to England with her sheltering mother for the funeral. The crime is a sensation, but the clamoring reporters and news photographers aren’t the only ones interested in their arrival.

As her mother’s behavior borders on erratic (on a good day), Lason encounters a stranger from Weariland, a dreary world once known as Wonderland. He petitions Lason’s help in finding a secret family heirloom, a key to saving his land—and to Lason’s past. Lason is swept in an adventure through Weariland’s unpredictable realm, encountering colorful, fantastical characters and discovering her family’s elusive history. But if she isn’t careful, she may never return…

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I’m never going to be happy with my answer here! I keep thinking of other songs I should put, but I’m sticking with my original answers. I am all over the place with my musical tastes, but here are some of my current songs, in no particular order:

1) “Heartbeats” – The Knife

2) “Hymn for the Weekend” – Coldplay

3) “Believer” – Imagine Dragons

4) “Kids” – MGMT

5) “The Greatest” – Sia

I’m a 90s alternative chick but also appreciate classical and good dance music, so my tastes range from Korn to Jim Brickman to Ke$ha. My favorite all-time bands are U2, Incubus, and Jump, Little Children (JLC). Anything Jack White touches is amazing. He could sing “Happy Birthday” and it would be perfection.

Mary grew up in northeast Ohio, so it was only natural for her to pursue a degree in marine biology. After studying dolphin behavior and estimating great white shark populations, she earned her Ph.D. in Biostatistics in Charleston, South Carolina. It was there, during the arduous dissertation process, where she had the idea to write a book.

With Alice and the crazy characters from Wonderland staring her down from her bedroom poster, Mary envisioned what that fantasy realm would look like in current day. Creative writing served as a natural escape from technical writing, wedding planning, pregnancy, and job hunting.

Mary is excited to debut Weariland (Merge Publishing, 2016), a novel introducing Lason Davies, a teenager who learns about her family's past in a world once called Wonderland. She currently resides in Tennessee with her husband and three children.