The Twisted Lit Novels by Kim Askew & Amy Helmes
"Heartbreakingly lovely," raves USA Today's review of Anyone But You
"Tempestuous is a fun modern fairy tale, a bit a la Mean Girls, and completely YA voiced." --USA Today's "Happy Ever After" column
"Death, betrayal, ruthless plots to seize the 'crown' - all the seeds of stage tragedy take root and flourish in this clever modern-day homage to Macbeth. High school is rife with just enough passion and treachery to set a suitable stage for some Shakespearean-level drama." --Kirkus Reviews
“It’s the best new young adult series of the year!” —Jack and Jill Magazine
"Irresistible debut novel. We can assure you reading the surprising adventures of their richly drawn heroines, Miranda Prospero and Skye Kingston, in the Twisted Lit series is nothing short of thrilling.” —Children’s Book Review
Puck: A Modern-Day Spin on Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream is available wherever books are sold, including Amazon.
Life isn’t always fair, and no one knows that better than fifteen-year-old Puck. When she’s unceremoniously booted from yet another foster home, this city kid lands at DreamRoads, a rehabilitation wilderness camp. Her fellow juvenile delinquents include a famous pop star with a diva attitude, a geeky, “fish out of water” math whiz, and a surly gang-banger with a chip on his shoulder. The program’s steely director aims to break Puck, but she knows that every adult has a breaking point, too. Determined to defy this realm of agonizing nature hikes and soul-sucking psychobabble — even if that means manipulating four lovestruck camp counselors and the director’s dim-witted second-in-command — Puck ultimately gets much more than she bargains for in this “wondrous strange” outdoor odyssey inspired by The Bard’s most beguiling comedy.
Anyone But You: A Modern-Day Spin on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is available wherever books are sold, including Amazon.
Determined to broker peace between their feuding Italian families, star-crossed sweethearts Gigi and Roman must unravel a secret that dates back more than three generations to the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair. There, a pair of twelve-year-old boys have a memorable encounter that will eventually put their loyalty and friendship to the ultimate test. By resolving their great-grandfathers’ ill-fated history, can Gigi and Roman prevent their own love story from taking a tragic turn?
The second book in the Twisted Lit Series, Exposure, is available via Amazon and wherever books are sold.
Double, double, toil and trouble. Sometimes, the quest for high school royalty can be deadly! In this emotionally-charged twist on Shakespeare’s Macbeth, a self-conscious shutterbug named Skye Kingston navigates a treacherous school year in Alaska fraught with unspoken secrets and tragic twists of fate. Along the way she encounters three strangely prophetic BFFs; one social-climbing, sociopathic cheerleader; and a heart-stopping hottie named Craig MacKenzie: the man who would be Prom King. Can Skye save the boy she loves — and herself — before they get caught in the crosshairs?
Tempestuous is available wherever books are sold, and online via Amazon.
Recently banished, unfairly, by the school’s popular crowd, former “it girl,” Miranda Prospero, finds herself in a brave new world: holding dominion amongst a rag-tag crew of geeks and misfits where she works at the Hot-Dog Kabob in the food court of her local mall. When the worst winter storm of the season causes mall workers and last-minute shoppers to be snowed-in for the night, Miranda seizes the opportunity to get revenge against the catty clique behind her social exile. With help from her delightfully dweeby coworker, Ariel, and a sullen loner named Caleb who works at the mall’s nearby gaming and magic shop, Miranda uses charm and trickery to set things to right during this spirited take on Shakespeare’s The Tempest.