Hillary Jordan
Author & Screenwriter
KUDOS FOR WHEN SHE WOKE
Jennie Teriault, Publisher's Weekly
"When She Woke is not only one of the best books of the year, but it's everything the dystopian genre was made for . . . an instant classic for the 21st Century."
Jan Stuart, The New York Times
"Jordan’s feverishly conceived dystopia holds its own alongside the dark inventions of Margaret Atwood and Ray Bradbury."
Liz Smith, New York Social Diary
“When She Woke is one of the most compelling and important novels I’ve ever read."
Booklist, starred review
"An overtly dystopian take on The Scarlet Letter, Jordan's second novel grabs readers from the moment Hannah Payne wakes up in the Chrome ward, having been injected with a virus to turn her skin red. Jordan blends hot-button issues such as the separation of church and state, abortion, and criminal justice with an utterly engrossing story, driven by a heroine as layered and magnetic as Hester Prynne herself . . . Absolutely a must-read."
Fatima F. Azam, Washington Independent Review of Books
"Hillary Jordan’s latest novel is nothing short of a revelation about the power of a government to brainwash its people . . . When She Woke may be well on its way to becoming a classic, taught alongside Orwell and Hawthorne."
Family Circle
"[A] provocative, politically charged novel . . . chilling and riveting."
Alan Scherstuhl, SF Weekly
"A galvanizing fit of a novel, a paranoid fever of Hawthorne, Atwood, and your favorite fundamentalist . . . pulled off with brio and power."
Robin Vidimos, Denver Post
"The Scarlet Letter could unfurl from no better a speculative pen than that held by Hillary Jordan. She takes the seeds of that story and roots them in a world where . . . abortion is a felony. The result, When She Woke, is as compulsively readable as it is thought-provoking."
AARP, The Magazine
“Hannah’s fight for freedom is both a sober warning and a gripping page-turner. Already it reads like a classic.”
Kathryn Savage, Minneapolis StarTribune
"An inventive tale about a new America that has lost its way . . . When She Woke is, at its heart, a tense, energetic and lively paced story about self-discovery and reclamation in the wake of enormous shame. It is a story about the price of love."
Chris Wiegard, Richmond Times Dispatch
"A disturbing story that makes clear from the first page that Jordan will not shy away from religious or political controversy . . . The only safe prediction about this writer is that she will never be boring."
Nina Shengold, The Chronogram
"Don’t expect to get anything else done while reading Hillary Jordan’s blistering new novel When She Woke."
Robert J. Wiersema, Edmonton Journal (CAN)
"Hannah is a brilliantly wrought, compelling character . . . [hers] is a powerful journey, both within and out in the brutal, dystopian world, and one which readers would do well to accompany her on."
BookReporter.com
"When She Woke undoubtedly will generate much discussion, not only for Jordan’s passionate and vivid writing, but even more so for her unflinching imagining of a bleak future. This is a thought-provoking novel of self-discovery in a terrifying world of extremes."
Joy Tipping, Dallas Morning News
"When She Woke serves as a cautionary tale both gripping and grim. It hits too close to home to lightly ignore as ‘just a story.’”
Melissa Solberg, Shelf Awareness
"Jordan's elegant prose and thrilling plot make for an engrossing read, while her well-structured examination of our Schadenfreude-hungry culture and the precarious position of women's rights within it make for a thought-provoking one."
Kirkus Reviews
"Jordan manages to open up powerful feminist and political themes without becoming overly preachy—and the parallels with Hawthorne are fun to trace."
BookPage
""It reads like a thriller, and one that makes you think hard, to boot. I’ve already placed this one on my favorite-books-for-book-clubs list."
S. Hope Mills, ForeWord
"When She Woke is fast-paced, yet poetic; political commentary, yet empathetic. Hillary
Jordan’s sharp eye for what’s at stake for her characters—the world in which they live, andthe world of her readers—is terribly compelling."
SheKnows.com, Fall's Five Best Fictions
"Even if you didn’t enjoy The Scarlet Letter in high school, you will be captivated by Jordan’s dystopian retelling. A must-read this fall."
Bill Cusumano, Nicola's Books
"When She Woke is a masterpiece . . . Powerful, compelling, sensitive and poignant."
Suzanna Hermans, Oblong Books & Music
"A gripping page-turner. With this book, Jordan has cemented herself as a new literary star."
Melinda Powers, Capitola Book Cafe
"Wow! What a read! When She Woke has everything good and delicious that one wants in a book, with great characters, steady plotting, and a thought-provoking, heart-wrenching, compelling, and unsettling story."
Beth Golay, Watermark Books
"Hillary Jordan continues to pen eye-opening novels that leave her readers slack-jawed in contemplation."
Linda Millemann, Tattered Cover Bookstore
"With echoes of Margaret Atwood's Handmaid's Tale and Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go, When She Woke is a completely compelling, knockout story. If ever there was a classic definition of a page-turner, this is it!"
HONORS
Longlisted for the 2013 IMPAC Dublin Literary Award
One of BookPage's Best Books of 2011
The #1 Indie Next pick for October
A Booklist Editor's Choice for Best Fiction of 2011
One of PW's Top 10 Literary Fiction picks for the fall
One of O Magazine's Fall Reading picks
One of the Top Ten titles on the ALA Amelia Bloomer List
On the Texas Library Association's 2012 Lariat Reading List
Finalist, LAMDA Literary Awards
A Waterstone's Book Club selection