“Rin thought of the crossbow bolt. Of the whoosh and sting of wind and fire heat and the man who would have killed her. Of pushing in front of Enna. Of almost dying. Of home and Ma and being farther away than the lands in tales, and maybe never going home. Of standing by a strange tree in a faraway wood with girls who spoke the language of fire. Of a queen of Kel who wanted them dead.”

American author of young adult fantasy

Shannon Hale is an American author of young adult fantasy. She is known for books such as Princess Academy, which received a Newbery Honor, and The Goose Girl. Her first novel for adults was Austenland, later adapted into a film in 2013. She is a graduate of the University of Utah and the University of Montana, and has also co-written with her husband, Dean.