Read this book: THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH

Looking for a gripping, dark read? Look no further than THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH, the debut young adult novel by Carrie Ryan. Carrie, a fellow Debutante, is stopping by today to answer a couple of questions about her book, which recently got a starred review in Publishers Weekly--and is available now.

ABOUT THE BOOK:
The Forest of Hands and Teeth is about a young girl named Mary growing up generations after an apocalypse in a village surrounded by fences protecting them from the Unconsecrated, zombie-like creatures inhabiting the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Cut off from the rest of the world and told they are the last survivors of the Return, every part of her life is controlled by the religious order called the Sisterhood. As Mary starts to fall in love with someone she shouldn’t, she learns the extent of the Sisterhood’s power and starts to discover more of their darkest secrets. When the security of the fences is threatened and her world is thrown into chaos, Mary must decide what she’s willing to risk to find out if there’s life beyond the Forest.

Carrie Answered My Three Favorite Questions:

--I think teen books can, and should, be read by grown-ups. Tell my grandma Grace why she should read your book.
I totally agree that grown-ups should read teen books! My mom has totally been loving a ton of YA books. I think your grandma Grace would like my book because it's about the same thing as a lot of adult books: life, hope and love.

--What would your 16-year-old self say if she read your book?
Wow, you/I wrote that?

--I am fascinated by writers' inspirations. Tell me about a real-life setting that found its way into your book.
There isn't really a real life setting, but there is a real life moment. There's a scene in the book when the protag has totally broken down and is wondering what right she has to think that her dreams can come true. I pulled this from an email I sent to my fiance a while back when I wondered what right I had to think that my dreams of becoming an author could ever come true. I still have the email :)

ALL ABOUT CARRIE:

Born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina, Carrie Ryan is a graduate of Williams College and Duke University School of Law. A former litigator, she now writes full time. She lives with her writer/lawyer fiancé, two fat cats and one large puppy in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are not at all prepared for the zombie apocalypse.