Rick Riordan is launching his imprint, Rick Riordan Presents (dedicated to providing entertaining middle grade fiction based on various world mythologies) with Aru Shah and the End of Time, written by best-selling author Roshani Chokshi. It delves into Hindu mythology and is described as a mix of Riordan’s own Percy Jackson series and the Sailor Moon franchise. It’s an imaginative novel that puts girl power and diverse protagonists front and center.

That was part of the appeal for Riordan, who was involved in the selection and editing of the book. “Have you ever read a book and thought, Wow, I wish I’d written that!? For me, Aru Shah and the End of Time is one of those books,” he writes in the foreword. “It has everything I like: humor, action, great characters, and, of course, awesome mythology!.” 

Roshani Chokshi is the author of the New York Times bestselling novel, The Star-Touched Queen, and its companion, A Crown of Wishes. She studied fairy tales in college, and she has a pet luck dragon that looks suspiciously like a Great Pyrenees dog. Aru Shah and the End of Time was inspired by the stories her grandmother told her as well as Roshani's all-consuming love for Sailor Moon. 

Roshani will be chatting with Shannon Messenger, author of the bestselling Keeper of the Lost Cities series.