Sally Wiener Grotta Gives Sneak Peek of Her Upcoming Novel, 'The Winter Boy'

While Sally Wiener Grotta's new novel, "The Winter Boy," won't be published until November 6th, earlier this month, Ms. Grotta delighted attendees at the Readercon conference (Burlington, MA) with the first public reading of the book. As you can hear from the applause on the video, the audience response was very enthusiastic.

But her Readercon audience isn't alone in its approbation for "The Winter Boy." As Peter Damien Bellis (the author of "The Conjure Man") wrote when he read an early copy, "...with the kind of mysterious tone and a sense of a complete world apart that is the hallmark of the best... 'The Winter Boy'... exists in... a mythic, spiritual realm. Even ordinary lines resonate with this sense of the unseen."

About "The Winter Boy"

The Valley of the Alleshi is the center of all civilization, the core and foundation of centuries of peace. A cloistered society of widows, the Alleshi has forged this peace by mentoring young men who will one day become the leaders of the land. Each boy is paired with a single Allesha for a season of intimacy and learning, using time-honored methods that include storytelling, reason, and sex. However, unknown to all but a hidden few, the peace is fracturing from pressures within and beyond, hacking at the very essence of their civilization.

Amidst this gathering political maelstrom, Rishana, a young new idealistic Allesha, takes her First Boy, Ryl, for a winter season of training. But Ryl is a "problem boy" who fights Rishana every step of the way. At the same time, Rishana uncovers a conspiracy that could not only destroy Ryl, but threatens to tear their entire society apart. And a winter that should have been a gentle, quiet season becomes one of conflict, anger, and danger.

"The Winter Boy" will be published by Pixel Hall Press in hardbound, quality trade paperback and eBook editions on November 6, 2014.

Pre-publication copies of "The Winter Boy" available.

Book bloggers and reviewers may request an Advance Reader Copy (ARC) from NetGalley or directly from Pixel Hall Press [info(at)PixelHallPress(dot)com]. For interviews with Sally Wiener Grotta, contact Cynthia Dadson, Director of Communications at Pixel Hall Press [Cynthia(at)PixelHallPress(dot)com].

In addition, members of the public may apply to be a Beta Readers and possibly receive a free pre-publication copy of "The Winter Boy".

About Sally Wiener Grotta:

Sally Wiener Grotta is the consummate storyteller, reflecting her deep humanism and appreciation for the poignancy of life. As an award-winning journalist, she has authored literally many hundreds of articles, columns, and reviews for scores of glossy magazines, newspapers, and online publications. A popular speaker on creativity, writing, photography, and the publishing industry, she has authored numerous non-fiction books. Her fiction includes the critically acclaimed novel "Jo Joe." Readers may connect with Ms. Grotta on Facebook or Twitter.

About Pixel Hall Press:

Pixel Hall Press is a relatively new, old-fashioned small publishing house whose focus is on discovering literary gems and great stories that might otherwise be overlooked. Our mission is to publish books that energize the imagination and intrigue the mind, and to be a conduit between readers and provocative, stimulating, talented authors.

In this era of digital technology, Wall Street involvement and merger mania, many mainstream publishers seem to have lost sight of core principles and the purpose of publishing. At the other end of the spectrum is the veritable avalanche of self-published books that are notoriously uneven in quality. Small boutique imprints like Pixel Hall Press are reclaiming the heart and soul of publishing by reviving the idea that a publisher's "raison d'être" is finding and nurturing great writers, and to provide readers with beautiful, meaningful, truly enjoyable books.