Featured Finalist: The Stolen Kingdom

Category: Young Adult Fiction

Description: How can she protect her kingdom, if she can’t protect herself? Princess Arie never expected to manifest a Jinni’s Gift. When she begins to hear the thoughts of those around her, she hides it to the best of her ability. But to her dismay, the forbidden Gift is growing out of control. When a neighboring king tries to force her hand in marriage and steal her kingdom, discovery becomes imminent. Just one slip could cost her throne. And her life. A lamp, a heist, and a Jinni hunter’s crew of thieves are her only hope for removing this Gift–and she must remove it before she’s exposed. Or die trying. The Stolen Kingdom is a loose “Aladdin” retelling. Set in a world that humans share with Mermaids, Dragons, and the elusive Jinni, this isn’t the fairytale you remember…

Author: Bethany Atazadeh is a Minnesota-based author of YA sci-fi and fantasy novels, a children’s book, and non-fiction. She graduated college in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English with a Writing Emphasis. But after graduation, she pursued songwriting, recording, and performing with her band, and writing went on the back-burner. In 2016, her entire department at work was laid off, and she was inspired by the NaNoWriMo challenge to return to writing. The challenge was to draft a novel in 30 days, and since then she hasn’t stopped. Bethany’s other passion is to help other writers, especially those who wish to self-publish. She has a business as a writing coach over on Patreon, dedicated to helping other authors write and publish their novels, as well as a YouTube channel with free writing and publishing advice. Outside of writing, Bethany is obsessed with her corgi puppy, Penny, a wife, a musician, an amateur painter, and a follower of Jesus.

Bethany’s Local Library: Hennepin County Library

Winners will be announced at the 2020 Minnesota Library Association Annual Conference.