Fablehaven — Grip of the Shadow Plague Sells Out Before Release at Amazon
By Kjirstin Youngberg

Editor's note:   Fablehaven — Grip of the Shadow Plague debuted this week at #3 on the New York Times Best Seller's List for Children's Literature. Brandon Mull's third book in the Fablehaven series has just knocked Harry Potter #7 off the list after 180 straight weeks. Nadine Wimmer of the Salt Lake City NBC affiliate KSL News announced on Wednesday night that Fablehaven is the "solid candidate to be the next big fantasy series" for children looking for something to replace the need to read inspired by J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter.

Since Brandon Mull's first book in the Fablehaven series did so well, and his second debuted at number eight on the New York Times Best Seller List for Children's Literature, you'd think the book seller's would brace for the onslaught as book three, Grip of the Shadow Plague, hit shelves last Monday.

Unfortunately, advance sales seem to have emptied those shelves, and an online search last week revealed that it was completely sold out on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble.com, Overstock.com and Borders. Powell's online had one copy left, selling for more than $40 with shipping. Online sources were completely sold out of the book, but had a few copies of the CD on hand.

Smaller bookstores in the larger metropolitan cities still have copies, but they are, in the words of one frantic Wal-Mart employee who declined to be named, "selling as fast as Harry Potter; people are really lining up!" 

By Monday afternoon on the release day, April 21, every copy in Wal-Mart and Sam's Club was gone.

This is good news for Shadow Mountain Press, and great news for Mull, who is currently busy on a multi-state promotional book-signing tour. The official launch, featuring the author and lots of prizes, happened in Salt Lake City on Friday, April 25 at 6:30 p.m. Many fans lined up early, and an estimated 2,500 people attended the event.

Fablehaven author Brandon Mull

Mull and his illustrator, Brandon Dorman (the two Brandons) were seated onstage for signings after the floor show. Shadow Mountain assigned places in line according to the fans' arrival times, so nobody had to stand too long.

After getting Mull's signature, fans were able to receive posters of the book's cover that were signed by Brandon Dorman. Dorman has illustrated all four of Mull's books, as well as the #1 New York Times bestseller The Wizard, written by Jack Prelutsky. He received a degree in fine arts from BYU-Idaho and has been in demand for his fantasy artwork ever since.

Like Harry Potter, characters from Fablehaven spring from its pages directly into your heart, and there take up permanent residence. It starts with the tale of two siblings — the good Kendra, age thirteen, and her mischievous brother, Seth, eleven — very with-it kids of today, squabbling in the car like some you may know personally. When they are unexpectedly palmed off on little-known grandparents for the summer holiday, the two soon discover they aren't quite in Connecticut anymore. 

Book two aged the children a year, and in the third installment, Kendra is 15 and her pesky little brother, 13. Seth has still not learned his lessons about minding his grandparents very well, much to the delight of readers everywhere. To get a sneak peak of the first chapter in book three, Grip of the Shadow Plague, go here:  http://www.fablehaven.com/chapter1/chapter1.html. Chances are it's the kind of book you'll want to read aloud to your own family, or simply enjoy yourself.

If you start reading the first book without an introduction, you, like Seth and Kendra, can discover the magic for yourself. Hint: buy these in hardbound editions. You'll want to keep them in your personal library for generations to come.

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