What People Have Been Saying So Far About Promises Stronger Than Darkness!
It's been a few weeks since Promises Stronger Than Darkness came out, and I have been so chuffed about the response to this one so far. I've never written a sequel before, much less a whole trilogy, and I'm so stoked that folks seem to feel like I've landed the plane here.
I'm v. sorry I skipped doing a newsletter last week, and I haven't gotten around to doing one this week either. It's for a good reason: I'm in the home stretch on finishing my next adult novel! I need to get it to my editor in May or June at the latest, so the pressure is kinda on here.
So I hope you'll forgive me if this week, I just tell you about how lovely everyone has been about Promises, plus a chance to come see me this Saturday if you're in Portland, OR.
And... yeah. People have been totally lovely about this trilogy-capper. I even saw a rave review earlier today on Instagram from someone who hadn't read the first two books, which blows my mind.
First and foremost, the folks at the American Library Association are including Victories Greater Than Death in their Imagining Tomorrow: Building Inclusive Futures program, where groups of teens from underserved communities read "science fiction books that explore questions of equity, identity, and alternate futures." This is such an incredible honor and I'm so thrilled. If you or someone you know is a librarian, please let them know — the deadline to apply for a grant is May 10, a week from now.
Speaking of which, Promises Stronger Than Darkness is a staff pick at the Hoboken Library, where Aimee Harris says it'll appear to anyone who likes "Science Fiction with a bit of humor and a lot of heart... the action packed pace of the novel kept me reading to the satisfying end."
The wondrously heroic folks at Main Street Books in Monroe, WA wrote a while back that "I didn't fully appreciate what the trilogy would be when I started it. I knew it would be a good YA sci-fi... But now I fully believe it's going to be a genre-defining series that we are talking about for a long time to come!"
Paste Magazine just included the Unstoppable trilogy on their list of "11 Exciting Fantasy Series Concluding in 2023", and wrote, "Hold on to your spacesuits, because this is a bumpy (and joyful) ride." (And I love the way they sum up the plot so far.)
S. Bear Bergman is always a total inspiration, so I was so grateful that he singled out Promises Stronger Than Darkness as one of the best new queer things, over in Xtra Magazine. Bear calls the trilogy "a queer space opera of love and loss that defies anything you thought you knew about sci-fi, YA fiction or gender. With Promises Stronger Than Darkness, the last (sob) book in the trilogy, Anders reaches ever greater heights of imagination and wonder." He also refers to it as a "queerer-Firefly-meets-Douglas Adams trilogy," which is... GOALS. I had to take a dance break after I saw this.
Nerds and Beyond also had some real nice things to say about Promises: "What started as a new romp through the universe has culminated in a tense, action-packed, and thrilling conclusion... Like its predecessors, Anders brings a strong story to the table with Promises. It’s just as rich and imaginative, with a magnetic universe filled with wonder."
Also! Book Riot just included Victories Greater Than Death in their "Alphabet of Queer Book Recs From A-Z," saying that it "reads very much like Star Trek and The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet had a beautiful YA baby."
So yeah, I'm really stoked that people seem to be finding these books — especially now that the whole story is complete, and you know that when you're done reading Victories Greater Than Death, the rest of the trilogy will be available. And I'm especially glad that people who stuck with me through all three books generally seem to think I didn't blow the ending. (Endings are hard! Even for just one book!)
Meanwhile, as I mentioned at the start of this email, I'm going to be in Portland OR this weekend and I'd love to see you. The brilliant comics store Books With Pictures is having a Free Comic Book Day event, featuring Becky Cloonan and me. I'll be around most of the day, but please stop by from 4 PM to 5 PM to hear me talking about New Mutants: Lethal Legion and the hero I helped to create, Escapade. Please come say hi! I miss Portland folks!
