Fall River teen who won book deal in contest to release first full-length novel

A Fall River teen who won a contest that included a book deal is set to release her first book.

Anya Costello, currently a Bishop Connolly High School student from Fall River, won a book deal in 2019 for “The Shadow Hour” by entering and winning the international writing contest “For Teens, Written by Teens” sponsored by Stone Soup magazine and MacKenzie Press while a 13-year-old student at The Montessori School of the Angels.

Costello stated that the idea of the book “was sparked by a conversation with friends about how shadows shift shapes and how fascinating it would be if shadows could split from their owners and become separate beings.”

“I decided to turn that idea into the story of a girl facing the crisis of the Shadow Hour—the time each day when shadows split from their humans—who must retrieve her shadow from a strange dimension.”

According to an interview with MacKenzie Press, Anya’s book has evolved since the first round of her full-length novel.

“The Shadow Hour has changed significantly from when I wrote the first draft almost five years ago. The characters themselves have developed the most over the many rounds of edits. These characters practically grew up with me, as I spent many afternoons following them through their adventure between realms.”

Costello described the premise of the book.

“The protagonist, Amber, is a thirteen-year-old girl just trying to keep up her grades and survive the relentless Shadow Hour that has taken over her world. Amber has lived with her aunt after a strange incident led to her parents’ disappearance and the loss of her memories. Left alone with her aunt, trying to move on from the mystery of her parents, and wary of the threat that the Shadow Hour poses to everyone around her, Amber becomes fiercely independent and motivated. She also becomes reluctant to reach out to others or accept help. Only when Amber is swept into another dimension and forced to work with an unlikely group of friends does she begin to open up and accept that she doesn’t need to face the world alone.”

While Anya’s future is bright, she isn’t quite sure what her plans are for college and career. She said she enjoys graphic design, music and math, as well as writing.

The Shadow Hour is currently available by pre-order on Amazon and will be released on February 15th. You can also place an order through Itasca Books.