Young Adult 2023
Secrets of the Sea
August Box
Those We Drown by Amy Goldsmith"As I moved the chair out of the way of the desk, in order to unplug my phone charger, I frowned."
- a custom designed, wireless charger.
"Bending down, I grabbed at the flash of brilliant fuchsia under the bed. A delicate silk scarf adorned with white skulls."
- a custom designed fuchsia scarf with white skulls.
"In front of us, Bingo Bob started rattling off numbers. The numbers on the card swam in front my eyes."
- a custom designed book bingo card.
"It was a well-thumbed copy of the "Iliad". Flicking through it looked as if several passages had been highlighted."
- a custom designed desk fan in the shape of a book, printed with the cover of the "Iliad".
Written in the Stars
July Box
Kismat Connection by Ananya Devarajan"Arjun lifted an eyebrow at her and picked up the earring. He cleaned it with the edge of his kurta before handing it over."
- a pair of enamel dangle earrings.
"Arjun let go over her hand. He sat down on the picnic blanket and his head fell into his open palms."
- a custom designed, roll-up picnic blanket.
"'Madhuri, you're holding our astrological charts in your hand right now and you know that's forbidden."
- poster showing the astrological signs and their movements.
"Her fingertips trembled as she filled the transparent dropper with the rich oil."
- a bottle of hyaluronic acid facial serum.
Ursula Awakens
June Box
Our Vengeful Souls by Kristi McManus"I run my fingers over the scales of my tail, feeling each ridge, watching the iridescent colors merge from blue to green to purple."
- a mint green woven mermaid tail blanket.
"My eyes fall on a small painting at the corner of the desk. I expect it to be of my mother, but as I draw closer, I see it is of a woman with long, flowing red hair, and dull, pale skin."
- a custom designed set of four post cards featuring an eerie painting of a red-haired woman.
"With trembling hands, I cup the leaf, bringing it to my lips."
- a custom designed leaf shaped soap dish with the words "I am powerful. I am strong. I will overcome." written on the bottom.
"The moment I turn, preparing to flee, the men at my sides leap forward. A net I had not seen hiding in the waves is launched into the air, falling over me."
- an exfoliating bath net.
Finding Her Voice
May Box
Where You See Yourself by Claire Forrest"'Wilder, this would look so good on you!' She takes the pink baseball cap she's wearing off her head and gets up on her tiptoes to place it playfully on Wilder's head."
- a custom designed, screenprinted 'Empowered Women Empower Women' trucker hat.
"It's the awkward few days between Christmas and New Year's, and I'm sitting at the kitchen table, watching the red raspberry of my tea flood into the water, ignoring the blinking cursor of my Word document."
- a box of raspberry tea.
"I lift the lid of the box. Inside sits a bracelet on a thin, dainty gold chain. Connecting the chain in the middle is a charm in the shape of a key. I squint and see that in the middle of the key the word BRAVE is engraved."
- a custom gold chain bracelet featuring a charm holder. Inside is a tiny key charm with the word BRAVE engraved on it.
Mysterious Creatures
April Box
In Nightfall by Suzanne Young"The object continues to flash in the moonlight. It takes me a moment to realize what I'm looking at. It's circular, metal - it's a watch. But...wait. My eyes widen and a scream starts in my throat. Because the watch is still attached to an arm."
- a custom designed 'Nightfall' brand watch with faux leather strap packaged onto a cardboard cutout of an arm.
"She reaches into her jacket pocket and takes out a brightly colored hacky sack. She hands it to me and I look it over, perplexed."
- a rainbow colored hacky sack.
"I notice my grandmother's purse looped around the top of the kitchen chair. I don't have time to think, don't have time to check on Nonna. I grab one of the stakes out of it and rush forward..."
- a custom designed Dracula book purse containing a wooden stake.
A Kiss of Magic
March Box
Nightbirds by Kate J. Armstrong"Matilde slips on her Goldfinch mask. It's like a second skin: her truest face and best lie."
- a black feather bird mask.
"He puts his hand over hers on the pestle, tilting its angle. His calluses rub against her skin."
- a grey stone mortar and pestle.
"Jacinta narrows her eyes, rearranging the cards for no reason Aesa can discern. 'I painted these cards myself.'"
- a set of three fortune cards, with a scratch off fortune on the back.
"As two Wardens drag her away, down hallways and through a series of dark tunnels, Aesa reaches up into her hair. A piece of sea glass is still there, buried deep within a braid she plaited days ago. She rubs it hard, making a wish."
- a seaglass bar of soap.
Daughters of Expectation
February Box
The Davenports by Krystal Marquis"Music drifted from the box on her dresser as she lifted the lid. Carefully, she pried the bottom of the box up. The light glinted off the sharp edge of the ruby hidden beneath, teardrop-shaped and lovely."
- a small travel jewelry box containing a teardrop-shaped pendant.
"In her hand was a slim book covered in pale blue cloth. 'The Art of Being Agreeable by Margaret E. Sanster.'"
- a custom, stretchy fabric book cover.
"Only so much could fit in her mother's suitcase. She wished for a full-length mirrors the girls had in their rooms. She did her beset with the small round one on her nightstand."
- a small, round, gold framed mirror with an Oscar Wilde quote printed along the bottom.
High Seas Heist
January Box
A Million to One by Adiba Jaigirdar"Her eyes landed on the rolled-up paper than Hinnah was clasping in her hands. 'What's that?' 'Floor plans of the ship.'"
- a 12x18 poster print of the Titanic floor plans to frame.
"The Rubaiyat was so close. Josefa could make out the beautiful peacock-feathered cover, green and gold and unlike anything she had seen before."
- a custom, moleskin journal with elastic closure.
"Josefa ran her hands over the book, feeling some of the jewels give way. When the book was hit with the knife, something must have loosened in the cover. She grabbed as many of the jewels from the cover as she could, holding them tight in her fist."
- a set of fun costume face jewels.
"The ticking of it was like a heartbeat against her hands. It looked almost completely like the pocket watch that Violet had carried around with her."
- a jeweled pocket watch.
