Update about The Red Fortress

You may be wondering why I haven’t mentioned the sequel to The Desert Wall lately. The truth is, I’m struggling. I’m not the fastest writer in normal times, and these are not normal times. But I am still working on it! Nes will get her adventure, and Malenie and Paza will be the sidekicks. I’ll keep you posted.

Secret projects

Meanwhile, when I get really stuck, I’ve been working on two secret projects! I can’t tell you too much about them yet, but I will soon. Right now I will say that one takes place in a world where everyone is a twin. (You might have noticed I love me some twins.) And it takes place in the tropics, which is pretty much the opposite of a desert. So stay tuned for more news.

While you’re waiting, here are some other books that feature twins. When I went looking I didn’t find that many YA fantasy books with twins mentioned and I know there are more out there. What are you favorite books about twins?

The Desert Wall—I have to mention my own book! The twins Thëollon and Larella appear near the end and they almost manage to steal the show. A few people have told me they love them best of all the adults in the book.

I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson (contemporary) — I LOVE LOVE LOVE this book. I love the way it handles so many difficult issues and relationships (while never becoming an issue book) and the writing is just fabulous. Description: At first, Jude and her twin brother Noah, are inseparable. Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude wears red-red lipstick, cliff-dives, and does all the talking for both of them. Years later, they are barely speaking. Something has happened to change the twins in different yet equally devastating ways . . .

Among Others by Jo Walton (adult literary fantasy?) — I have a complicated relationship with Jo Walton’s book. I find them difficult because they contain so much pain and make me think, sometimes when I don’t want to. Still, if you measure a book by how long it sticks with you, this is a book worth reading. Description: At once the compelling story of a young woman struggling to escape a troubled childhood, a brilliant diary of first encounters with the great novels of modern fantasy and science fiction, and a spellbinding tale of escape from ancient enchantment.

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy (literary fiction) — I read this when it first came out (more than two decades ago, oh my, and more than a decade before I visited Kerala myself) and it was one of the first books by an Indian author that I remember reading. The attention to social justice and the writing electrified me. Description: The year is 1969. In the state of Kerala, on the southernmost tip of India, a skyblue Plymouth with chrome tailfins is stranded on the highway amid a Marxist workers’ demonstration. Inside the car sit two-egg twins Rahel and Esthappen, and so begins their tale. . . .

The Third Twin by CJ Omololu (thriller) — This is the only book on this list I haven’t read. It sounds like it would keep me up at night with a desperate need to know what happens next! Description: When they were little, Lexi and her identical twin, Ava, made up a third sister, Alicia. They use Alicia as their cover to go out with boys who are hot but not exactly dating material. Boys they’d never, ever be with in real life. Now one of the guys Alicia went out with has turned up dead, and Lexi wants to stop the game for good.

Tangential twins and classic favorites: these are books where the twin relationship isn’t central to the story but is still important in some way.

Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce — I never read this until I was an adult! The classic trope of twins switching places.

Godstalk by PC Hodgell — I think this book was very unusual when it first came out and the series is still going and keeps getting weirder. One twin searching for the other.

Escape to Witch Mountain by Alexander Key — Did anyone else love this movie when they were a kid? So romantic! Telekinesis! Cats! I really only have a vague memory of it. The twins are in it together.

Sweet Valley High books by Francis Pascal — Gateway to adult romance! Twin frenemies!