Texas Sweethearts
Children's Authors
P. J. Hoover first fell in love with Greek mythology in sixth grade thanks to the book Mythology by Edith Hamilton.
After a fifteen year bout as an electrical engineer designing computer chips for a living, P. J. decided to take her own stab
at mythology and started writing books for kids and teens.
When not writing, P. J. spends time with her husband and two
kids and enjoys practicing kung fu, solving Rubik's cubes, and watching Star Trek.
Her first novel for teens, Solstice (Tor Teen, June 2013), takes place in a global warming future and explores the parallel world of mythology beside our own.
Her middle grade novel, Tut (Tor Children's, 2014), tells the story of a young immortal King Tut, who's been stuck in middle school for over 3,000 years
and must defeat an ancient enemy with the help of a dorky kid from school, a mysterious Egyptian princess, and a one-eyed cat.
P. J. is also a member of THE TEXAS SWEETHEARTS & SCOUNDRELS and
THE ENCHANTED INKPOT.
Check out PJ Hoover's Website for more information.
*****A note from P. J.:
I'd love to come visit your school! I present to kids of all ages, and my favorite presentation is "My Quest for the Golden Fleece: 12 Things I've Learned on my Hero's Journey." I incorporate mythology along with a healthy dose of Star Wars, Star Trek, and kung fu. I have books for both kids and teens, and love interacting with readers and writers. If you'd like more information, please visit my "Author Visits" page or contact me.
*****
SOLSTICE (Tor Teen/Macmillan, June 2013)
Young Adult Dystopian/Mythology
Piper's world is dying. Each day brings hotter temperatures and heat bubbles that threaten to destroy the earth. Amid this global heating crisis, Piper lives under the oppressive rule of her mother, who suffocates her even more than the weather does. Everything changes on her eighteenth birthday, when her mother is called away on a mysterious errand and Piper seizes her first opportunity for freedom.
Piper discovers a universe she never knew existed—a sphere of gods and monsters—and realizes that her world is not the only one in crisis. While gods battle for control of the Underworld, Piper’s life spirals out of control as she struggles to find the answer to the secret that has been kept from her since birth.
TUT (Tor Kids/Macmillan, 2014)
Middle Grade Egyptian Mythology/Fantasy
If King Tut has to sit through eighth grade one more time, he'll probably mummify himself. But, seeing as how he's stuck at fourteen and hasn't found a way into the afterworld yet, his future looks about as bright as a solar eclipse. To complicate matters, the evil uncle he locked in his tomb 3300 years ago has escaped, and Uncle Horemheb wants revenge.
While trying to decide between killing his uncle and staying away from him like a plague of scarab beetles, Tut runs straight into the Cult of Set. They don't want to kill Tut—in fact, they want him to repopulate the race of immortals, which might not seem so bad except they plan to mummify Tut afterwards.
With the help of his guardian, Gil, his new best friend, Henry, his one-eyed cat, Horus, and a mysterious Egyptian princess, Tut needs to get to the afterworld before he runs out of time.
The Forgotten Worlds Book 1: THE EMERALD TABLET (CBay Books, October 2008)
Middle Grade Science-Fiction/Fantasy
Benjamin and his best friend Andy are different from normal. They love being able to read each other's minds and use telekinesis to play tricks on other kids. In fact, they are getting all set to spend their entire summer doing just that when Benjamin's mirror starts talking. Suddenly, Benjamin's looking at eight weeks of summer school someplace which can only be reached by a teleporter inside the ugly picture in his hallway.
And that's the most normal thing he does all summer.
The Forgotten Worlds Book 2: THE NAVEL OF THE WORLD (CBay Books, October 2009)
Middle Grade Science-Fiction/Fantasy
At the end of summer school, Benjamin was given one task—find his missing brothers. Should be easy right? But Benjamin can't locate a trace of them anywhere. Then he finds a mysterious file written in ancient Lemurian with his name on it, which wouldn't be so weird except the file happens to be several thousand years old. Who would have known about Benjamin that long ago? And then Benjamin and his friends begin to wonder, have they been looking not in the wrong place, but in the wrong time?
The Forgotten Worlds Book 3: THE NECROPOLIS (CBay Books, October 2010)
Middle Grade Science-Fiction/Fantasy
The situation in Lemuria is rapidly deteriorating. In fact teleportation between the hidden continent and the outside world has become so dangerous, all agents and their families have been recalled. Although Benjamin is psyched to be living in Lemuria full time, he knows he needs to find his last brother soon. However, between classes, a murderous half-brother, and complications with his friend Heidi, Benjamin can barely focus. Besides, there’s only one place left they haven’t searched—the hidden continent of Atlantis.