"Avalon"

Mindee Arnett lives on a horse farm in Ohio with her husband, two kids, a couple of dogs, and an inappropriate number of cats. She’s addicted to jumping horses and telling tales of magic, the macabre, and outer space. She has far more dreams than nightmares.

Arnett applied the Page 69 Test to her YA sci-fi thriller Avalon and reported the following:

From page 69:

“She’s right,” said Flynn. “That place is a dead zone: unreliable comms, poor nav. And there’s supposedly antimatter pits too. They even say parts of it are haunted.”

Lizzie laughed. “Now you’re being dumb. That stuff don’t exist.”

“Doesn’t exist,” Jeth said.

“Whatever.”

Jeth clenched his jaw. Lizzie hadn’t seen the inside of a classroom since Hammer had recruited her for the gang, and it bothered him when she spoke improperly. Someone so smart shouldn’t sound so ignorant.

During this scene in my YA sci-fi novel Avalon, my cast of teenage characters—a ragtag gang of thieves—have just learned that their crime lord boss is sending them out to recover a spaceship that has gotten lost in an area of space known as the Belgrave Qaudrant. The Belgrave has a sinister reputation, like the Bermuda Triangle on steroids. So many ships have gotten lost inside it that the interstellar police have shut down all the routes through it. Needless to say, most of the crew isn’t very happy about the new assignment.

This scene definitely reflects a lot of the book. Avalon is a sci-fi thriller, but in between all the action and suspense are moments like this—dialogue with a lot of sarcastic humor and lighthearted sniping. These teenagers have formed their own family, one with plenty of dysfunction to keep things interesting. As far as whether or not someone skimming it would be compelled to read more—all I can say, is I hope so!

Visit Mindee Arnett's website.

--Marshal Zeringue