The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre

Robin Talley

$10.99

Publication Date: December 7th, 2021

Publisher:

HarperTeen

ISBN:

9780062409270

Pages:

480

Any theater nerd, especially those who enjoyed the epic highs and lows of high school theater, will gobble up this book and enjoy every second. Everything rang so true and felt incredibly real! I adored every character — and found myself listening to the Les Mis soundtrack while reading!

Abby Bennsky, Old Town Books, Alexandria, VA

Winter 2020 Kids Indie Next List

Description

Perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Nina LaCour, this romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Robin Talley has something for everyone: backstage rendezvous, deadly props, and a seemingly insurmountable obstacle to True Love.

Melody McIntyre, stage manager extraordinaire, has a plan for everything.

What she doesn’t have? Success with love. Every time she falls for someone during a school performance, both the romance and the show end in catastrophe. So, Mel swears off any entanglements until their upcoming production of Les Mis is over.

Of course, Mel didn’t count on Odile Rose, rising star in the acting world, auditioning for the spring performance. And she definitely didn’t expect Odile to be sweet and funny, and care as much about the play’s success as Mel.

Which means that Melody McIntyre’s only plan now is trying desperately not to fall in love.

About the Author

Robin Talley is a queer author who grew up in southwest Virginia and now lives in Washington, DC, with her wife and their kids. She is the New York Times bestselling author of seven novels for teen readers: Music from Another World, Pulp, Our Own Private Universe, As I Descended, The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre, What We Left Behind, and Lies We Tell Ourselves. You can find her on the web at www.robintalley.com.

Praise for The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre

“Melody McIntyre's love of theater is entirely infectious…Tally's latest will instantly hook theater kids as well as readers who've never even heard a track from Les Mis glancing at their drama club sign-up sheet.” — Booklist

"A love letter to high school theater." — Kirkus Reviews

“Talley (Music from Another World) has fun portraying the details of running tech, the divide between techies and actors, and the teamwork that theater requires… A story that will entertain both true theater geeks and readers who’ve never considered life onstage or backstage.” — Publishers Weekly

Praise for AS I DESCENDED: &#8220... A devastating marriage of the stunningly unexpected with the maddeningly inevitable. This adaptation’s bewitching intrigues and enthralling deceptions will whet the daggers of any reader’s mind.&#8221
— Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

&#8220Talley creates a dark and twisted gothic boarding school setting replete with vengeful spirits, drugs, and suicide in this Shakespeare-inspired tragedy… that lulls readers into a false sense of security while setting them up for the next chilling event.&#8221 — Publishers Weekly

&#8220An intriguing, appropriately atmospheric take on one of Shakespeare’s most spine-tingling plays.&#8221
— Booklist

&#8220Those familiar with the source material will not be surprised at how the story plays out, but knowing the eventual outcomes does not diminish Talley’s dark tale about fate and ambition… Highly recommended.&#8221 — School Library Journal

&#8220Fans of horror will find that Talley comes up with some genuinely creepy scares, and her Shakespeare-inspired story is solid and compelling.&#8221 — Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

Praise for PULP: Talley, already accomplished at weaving historical detail into engaging narratives, pulls off an expansive story encompassing a host of characters ... A sweeping, engrossing drama full of important moments. Recommended for all library collections. — School Library Journal (starred review)

Not many YA novels contain one lesbian romance, let alone four, but Talley’s newest pulls it off, while creatively — Booklist

The superlative pacing will hook readers. ... Suspenseful parallel lesbian love stories deftly illuminate important events in LGBTQ history. — Kirkus Reviews

This ambitious novel is startlingly original. — The Guardian

Praise for OUR OWN PRIVATE UNIVERSE: < A diverse story of first times and finding oneself. ... An important and heartfelt contribution to contemporary teen lit about queer women: hopeful, realistic, and romantic, Talley’s newest is sure to satisfy. — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

This pitch-perfect romance is all heart, touching on serious issues but never becoming too heavy, and will be a strong addition to any teen collection. — School Library Journal

Reminiscent of Sara Ryan’s Empress of the World (2001), Talley’s latest is a sweet love story about discovering who you want to be with and, more important, who you want to be. — Booklist