What’s New in New Adult?

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There’s a new trend in the publishing industry that I’m sure you’ve heard about by now and it’s called New Adult.  These books feature young adults that are over 18, just fresh out of high school or getting ready to graduate from college.

Both Holly and I have read some books in this new genre and we’re both pretty interested in reading more.  That’s saying something, coming from Holly.

Holly: I’m not a fan of YA because I don’t really care to read about high school students. New Adult appeals to me because the characters are technically adults who are – for the most part – out of high school. 

We got some New Adult news from our friends over at William Morrow and thought we’d pass the word along. There’s a lot to look forward to in the coming months.  For reals.

Check it out:

William Morrow Acquires Three New Adult Authors:

Newly Inked, Lucrative Deals announced with Molly McAdams, Cora Carmack and Shannon Stoker.  Major Publisher is Taking Chances on Emerging Genre; No Expectations of Losing It During the Surge of Reader Interest.
What’s on tap with young readers right now is what’s on top of national bestseller lists: everyone is talking about the emergence of the “New Adult” genre. The books are edgier – sexier – than young adult. Meant to appeal to millennials, the books give voice to late teen/early twenty-something protagonists in a state of complete and total life transition, with all of its related quandaries, quarrels, and catastrophes. “New Adult” reads are appealing across the board to readers wanting a fresh, young take on popular fiction. Many of the books catch fire by word-of-mouth and from support in online reading communities, propelling indie-published authors up the charts and generating mainstream interest.

Following this summer’s successful acquisition of Dark Heroine, an original novel by Oxford University student Abigail Gibbs, William Morrow proudly announces that they recently secured e-book and print rights for three stellar voices in this new genre. The publisher is releasing works from USA Today bestselling author Molly McAdams, including the reader-favorite Taking Chances and the upcoming From Ashes; Cora Carmack, New York Times bestselling author of the hugely popular Losing It; and Shannon Stoker, a rising talent who wrote the highly anticipated The Registry. These novels are being quickly turned around for the e-book market, with print editions following.

There are many who would say that “New Adult” had its beginnings in Austen (the same can be said of last decade’s ‘chick lit’); but it began gaining momentum with Bella Swan going off to Washington without her mother, only to end up falling in love with a much older (and very sexy) hero. More sophisticated (and often erotic) plotlines soon followed, with readers not only embracing the mature themes, but clamoring for more, not just in popular fiction, but with HBO’s “Girls,” CBS’s “2 Broke Girls,” and Fox’s “The Mindy Project” on their television screens as well.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Meg Cabot, is intimately acquainted with New Adult…she’s been writing into this genre for long before it was a trend. What’s her take on the sudden explosion in popularity? Cabot says, “New Adult fiction appeals to the same highly sought after demographic (readers ages 18-45) as the television shows my readers watch, and asks basically the same question: Will she or won’t she? (Will she sleep with him? Will she say she loves him?) We’ve all known (or been) someone just starting out in life. Who hasn’t longed to take the risk on that hot new guy, that great new job, that too-good-to-be-true apartment, that baby (or that spell promising immortality)? With New Adult fiction, the stakes are so much higher. Parents aren’t there to cushion the fall. And that can make all the difference.”

Book blogger Maryse, who runs the eponymous blog Maryse.net, believes that New Adult books give voice to a generation: “This is about a defining moment in our lives; embracing the point when we have to stop playing house and start living in it.” She continues, “The characters lead the story; like our lives, there is no set formula.” Maryse likens New Adult to coming-of-age tales: protagonists are living alone for the first time; experiencing the incandescent passion with that volatility of youth; a thread of uncertainty runs through the story as the hero/heroine must find their way in real life.

Author Cora Carmack defines “New Adult,” saying, “There could not be a better way to describe the turbulent years between adolescence and adulthood, that terrifying in-between. Whether you’re at college or moving out on your own or working your first full time job-your life seems to change radically overnight. And yet for most people in that age group (18-25ish), you’re still not completely on your own. Your parents are still a large part of your life. You’re not a child anymore, but you’re also not quite an adult. You may call yourself an adult (as will others), but deep down inside you are petrified because you don’t feel like one…

Young Adult books are about surviving adolescence and coming of age. New Adult is about how to live your life after that. New Adult is the ‘I’m officially an adult, now what?’ phase.”

Now what? Well, as the blogger Maryse notes, there are no rules to the genre: each book has its own edge and off-the-tap plot twists. Readers will never guess quite what’s coming next…art imitates life!

New Adult Now On Tap at William Morrow:

THE DARK HEROINE
By Abigail Gibbs
e-ISBN 9780062248749 (on-sale 9/18/12)
ISBN 9780062248732 (on-sale 3/5/2013)
For lovers of Twilight and A Discovery of Witches, comes a brand new story of the blurred lines between family, love, and loyalty from an 18-year Oxford student. A chance encounter on a deserted street plunges Violet Lee into a world beyond her wildest imaginings – a world of elegance and beauty where aristocratic vampires live for decadent pleasures…a place from which there is no escape. But beneath the splendor lies darkness, embodied in the charismatic but dangerous heir to the throne, Kaspar Varn. As Violet and Kaspar surrender to a passion that transcends their separate worlds, they soon discover that it’s a passion that comes at a price…
About the Author: Abigail Gibbs is an eighteen year-old student who lives with her family in a ridiculously picturesque coastal village in Devon, in the southwest of England, where fancy Londoners like to summer. She calls herself a “writer, teenager, vegetarian and self-confessed caffeine addict.” She also says she gets many of her best ideas while jumping on her trampoline.

TAKING CHANCES
By Molly McAdams
e-ISBN 9780062267672 (on-sale: 10/16/12 )
ISBN 9780062267689 (on-sale 4/16/12)
Eighteen year old Harper has grown up under her Marine father’s thumb. Now, she’s ready to live life her own way and experience things she’s only ever heard of from the jarheads in her father’s unit. Newly enrolled at San Diego State University, she finds herself being torn in two as she quickly falls for two guys: Brandon, her boyfriend, and her roommate’s brother Chase. One weekend of giving in to heated passion will change everything for this love triangle.
Note: Molly McAdams will be publishing a much-anticipated e-original story, which poignantly retells the story from Chase’s perspective. Warning: there may be tears.

FROM ASHES
By Molly McAdams
e-ISBN 9780062267719 (on-sale: 12/11/12)
ISBN 9780062267726 (on-sale 4/16/12)
When Cassidy Jameson’s best friend Tyler took her to Texas, she never expected to be so drawn to his cousin, Gage. The three find themselves in a heated roommate arrangement: for a year and a half, Gage and Cassidy dance around their feelings for each other as Tyler continues to keep them apart; until one day Tyler unknowingly pushes her right into Gage’s arms. But when an accident and disaster sends Cassidy back to California – and back into Tyler’s arms – will she be able to confront the demons from her past and live the life she yearns for, or will she have to face personal tragedy once again?

About the Author: Molly McAdams grew up in California but now lives in the oh-so-amazing state of Texas with her husband and furry daughter. Her hobbies include hiking, snowboarding, traveling and long walks on the beach…which roughly translates to being a homebody with her hubby and dishing out movie quotes. When she’s not at work, she can be found hiding out in her bedroom surrounded by her laptop, cell, Kindle and fighting over the TV remote. She has a weakness for crude-humored movies, fried pickles and loves curling up in a fluffy comforter during a thunderstorm…or under one in a bathtub if there are tornados. That way she can pretend they aren’t really happening.

LOSING IT
By Cora Carmack
e-ISBN 9780062273253 (on-sale: 12/5/12)
ISBN 9780062273246 (on-sale: 5/14/13)
Virginity. Bliss Edwards is about to graduate from college and she still hasn’t cured herself of the big V. She decides the best way to deal with the problem is to lose it as quickly and simply as possible—a one-night stand. But her plan turns out to be anything but simple when she leaves a gorgeous guy alone and naked in her bed…and it gets even more complex when she arrives for her first class of her last college semester, she recognizes her new theatre professor.

The guy she’d bolted from only eight hours earlier.

About the Author: Cora Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She’s done a multitude of things in her life-retail, theatre, teaching, and writing. She loves theatre, travel, and anything that makes her laugh. She enjoys placing her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too.

(Note: Cora is currently working on a new novel to be released by William Morrow later in 2013)

THE REGISTRY
By Shannon Stoker
e-ISBN 9780062271730 (on-sale: 5/21/13)
ISBN 9780062271723 (on-sale 5/21/13)
The Registry saved America from collapse. But there’s a price for living in the new regime: girls are raised to be auctioned as brides to the highest bidders; if they aren’t married within a year, they become slaves to the government. Turning 18 is a pivotal moment in life – and one Mia has been dreading for as long as she can remember. She will not go up on the block. She envisions a dramatic escape from the Registry – one that includes her best friend Whitney, who is nearing the end of her auction year and is still untethered. With the unwilling assistance of a worker from Mia’s family farm, they flee for Mexico, with government agents, bounty hunters and Mia’s intended hot on their heels. Live free or die: which will be their fate? This dystopian New Adult original novel is suitable for readers of Divergent and Beautiful Disaster.

About the Author: Shannon Stoker is a licensed attorney who works for Northern Illinois University, training more than 30,000 students and staff in the finer points of ethical research. As a volunteer for the award-winning Gail Borden Public Library, the third largest library in Illinois, Shannon works with readers of all ages and helps run the Kids Fun Fair. A happy newlywed, Shannon was a featured bride on the reality TV show Four Weddings. The Registry is her first novel. Shannon lives in DeKalb, Illinois, with her husband and small dog.

Holly and I both enjoyed Losing It by Cora Carmack so we definitely recommend those and we look forward to delving deeper into the new New Adult titles.  Who’s going to be reading these lovelies too?

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