Summer Scares 2020: YA Author Zoraida Córdova on Brooklyn Brujas
As part of 2020 Summer Scares, YA author Zoraida Córdova talks about Labyrinth Lost (Sourcebooks Fire). 2020 Summer Scares is presented by the Horror Writers Association, Book Riot, Library Journal/School Library Journal, and United for Libraries.
Born in Ecuador and raised in Queens, New York, Córdova is the award-winning author of the Brooklyn Brujas series, The Vicious Deep trilogy, and Star Wars: A Crash of Fate. Her short fiction has appeared in the New York Times bestselling anthology Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View, and Toil & Trouble: 15 Tales of Women and Witchcraft.
Labyrinth Lost is the first book in the Brooklyn Brujas series:
The only way to get her family back is to travel to a land in between, as dark as Limbo and as strange as Wonderland...
Alex is a bruja, the most powerful witch in a generation...and she hates magic.
At her Deathday celebration, Alex performs a spell to rid herself of her power. But it backfires. Her whole family vanishes into thin air, leaving her alone with Nova, a brujo boy she's not sure she can trust, but who may be Alex’s only chance at saving her family.
In this video, Córdova introduces the book, and explains why she loves horror stories:
“One of the things that I love about horror is being able to control how much you’re afraid of, and being able to face some things that you’re afraid of. Like Alex in Labyrinth Lost, she has to confront some of the things that she did, the mistakes that she made, the things that are gonna go wrong—and she has to do all of that in order to see her family again. For her to do that, she has to embrace her magic. And embracing your magic is one of the hardest things that a young bruja witch can do.”
The author also wonders aloud why she writes horror:
“I’m a big scaredy cat, so I don’t know why I love writing about the supernatural I love writing about vampires and ghosts and witches and zombies. The sequel to Labyrinth Lost is Bruja Born, and it definitely has some undead creatures.”
In the video, she also shares some some other titles you may enjoy.
In celebration of National Library Lover’s Day, the second annual Summer Scares Reading List includes titles selected by a panel of authors and librarians and is designed to promote horror as a great reading option for all ages, during any time of the year.
Each year, three titles will be chosen in the Adult, Young Adult, and Middle Grade categories. For 2020 they are:
ADULT
In the Valley of the Sun by Andy Davidson (Skyhorse, 2017)
The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle (Tor.Com, 2016)
She Said Destroy: Stories by Nadia Bulkin (Word Horde, 2017)
YOUNG ADULT
The Agony House by Cherie Priest, Illustrated by Tara O’Connor (Scholastic 2018)
Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova (Sourcebooks Fire, 2017)
Daughters Unto Devils by Amy Lukavics (Harlequin Teen, 2015)
MIDDLE GRADE
Spirit Hunters by Ellen Oh (HaperCollins, 2017)
Case Files 13: Zombie Kid by J. Scott Savage (HarperCollins, 2012)
Hoodoo by Ronald L. Smith (Clarion Books, 2015)
The goal of the Summer Scares program is to introduce horror titles to school and public library workers in order to help them start conversations with readers that will extend beyond the books from each list and promote reading for years to come. Along with the annual list of recommended titles for readers of all ages, the Summer Scares committee will also release themed lists of even more “read-alike” titles for libraries to use when suggesting books to readers this summer and all year long.
To help libraries forge stronger connections between books and readers, the Summer Scares committee will be working with both the recommended list authors and horror authors from all over the country, to provide free programming to libraries. From author visits (both in person and virtual) to book discussions to horror themed events, Summer Scares is focused on connecting horror creators with libraries and readers all year long.
The Horror Writers Association (HWA) will also host a Library Day special stand alone program November 12, 2020 at the Naperville, IL Public Library. Authors from the Summer Scares reading list, as well as the committee members, will be in attendance.
Authors and committee members will also be available throughout the year for on-site and/or remote appearances to libraries and schools to promote the Summer Scares program and discuss the use of horror fiction as a tool to increase readership and nurture a love of reading.
The Summer Scares program committee consists of award-winning author Stephen Graham Jones (Mongrels, The Only Good Indians, Night of the Mannequins), Becky Spratford (library consultant, author of The Readers Advisory Guide to Horror, 2nd Ed.), Carolyn Ciesla (library director, academic dean, book reviewer), Kiera Parrott (reviews director for Library Journal and School Library Journal), Kelly Jensen (editor, Book Riot, author of [Don’t] Call Me Crazy: 33 Voices Start the Conversation about Mental Health), and JG Faherty (HWA Library Program director, author of Sins of the Father, The Cure, and Ghosts of Coronado Bay).
The HWA is a non-profit organization of writers and publishing professionals, and the oldest organization dedicated to the horror/dark fiction genre. One of the HWA’s missions is to foster an appreciation of reading through extensive programming and partnerships with libraries, schools, and literacy-based organizations.