Jennifer Alvarez et al - Royally Fun Reads (Corte Madera)

In The Tiara on the Terrace, Sophie Young and Grace Yang have been taking it easy ever since they solved the biggest crime Luna Vista had ever seen. But things might get interesting again now that everyone is gearing up for the 125th annual Winter Sun Festival a town tradition that involves floats, a parade, and a Royal Court made up of local high school girls. When Festival president Jim Steptoe turns up dead on the first day of parade preparations, the police blame a malfunctioning giant s'more feature on the campfire-themed float. But the two sleuths are convinced the mysterious death wasn't an accident. Young and Yang must trade their high tops for high heels and infiltrate the Royal Court to solve the case. But if they fail, they might just be the next victims.

In The Guardian Herd: Stormbound, after Star received his powers on his first birthday, he became the most powerful pegasus in Anok. However, many were afraid to follow him, and felt safer staying with their over-stallions. The rest unified with Star and formed River Herd. But now, not only does a horrible plague threaten the five herds, but Mountain Herd's over-stallion, Rockwing, has plans to kidnap Morningleaf, Star's closest companion, and take back Sky Meadow. Star begins to question his ability to keep his herd safe, especially with the threat of Nightwing the Destroyer's return. As much as Star wants to rely on his friends again for support, he's afraid of the starfire he's inherited. Star can heal, but he can also destroy. And the question is, will his dark powers overcome him?

In The Wrinkled Crown, in the enchanted hills of the village of Lourka, almost-twelve-year-old Linny breaks an ancient law. In Lourka, girls are forbidden to so much as touch the town’s namesake musical instrument before their twelfth birthday, or they risk being spirited away. But Linny can’t resist the call, so she builds a lourka herself. When the curse meant for her strikes her best friend instead, Linny must leave her home behind to try to set things right. With her father’s young apprentice, Elias, Linny travels from the magical wrinkled country to the scientific land of the Plain, where she finds herself at the center of a battle between the logical and the magical.

Kristen Kittscher is a writing tutor in Pasadena, California, where she lives with her husband. The 2014 James Thurber House Children's Writer-in-Residence and a graduate of Brown University, she taught middle-school English for many years.

Jennifer Lynn Alvarez received a degree in English literature from UC Berkeley. She blogs about her books and the publishing business and speaks regularly at schools about creative writing. She lives on a small ranch in Northern California with her husband, three children, and more than her fair share of pets.

Anne Nesbet teaches classes on silent films and Russian novels at UC Berkeley. The author of The Cabinet of Earths and A Box of Gargoyles, she lives near San Francisco with her husband, three daughters, and one irrepressible dog.