Young readers will find action, suspense, and a perilous battle between good and evil in The Hadley Academy for the Improbably Gifted from New York Times bestselling author Conor Grennan.
Jack Carlson is dreading a class presentation when he suddenly finds himself transported to the Hadley Academy, a secret institution that tracks teens with unlikely gifts and trains them to protect the world from an unseen squad of killers. But Jack isn't the only one who doesn't know what he's doing at Hadley. Despite indications that he is the one prophesied to end the ancient Reaper War, Jack appears to have no extraordinary abilities.
So when dark, mysterious forces grow, Hadley is in a confused panic. Much to everyone's dismay, humanity seems to depend on Jack and his new teammates. Can Hadley's rawest recruits push past personal struggles and enormous doubts, develop their dormant powers, and stop the spreading evil? And are they willing to commit to Hadley's motto, "One Life for Many," and make the ultimate sacrifice? The Hadley Academy for the Improbably Gifted might be just the place for Jack after all.
This action-packed novel will captivate readers with its riveting plot, relatable characters, humorous dialogue, and dynamic illustrations. Fans of the Hunger Games, the Chronicles of Narnia, Divergent, Maze Runner, and Rick Riordan's books will find themselves at home in the battle for good at the Hadley Academy.
Original Artwork
“By the final cliffhanger, readers will be primed for a sequel.” – Kirkus Reviews
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“I am confident in saying that your book might've been the best book I've read since I read the Harry Potter series. My dad told me to give you an email because I read your book in two days! I would love to see a sequel (although I know the book isn't even out yet). Thanks for writing this awesome book!”
– Young reader: Joseph Matysik
“For my son’s English class, he had to pick a book and make a book cover. I wanted to show you his illustration and his book recommendation for Hadley Academy. Please feel free to share and keep me in mind for advanced reader copies of other books in this fabulous series!"
-Anderson McKean, Owner of Page & Palette Books in Fairhope, AL
Conor Grennan is an author and a crime fighter. He used to live in Kathmandu, Nepal, where he rescued trafficked children and reunited them with their families in remote mountain villages. He wrote a book about those adventures called Little Princes: One Man’s Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal, which was a New York Times bestseller.
Conor spent his middle school and high school years in Jersey City, New Jersey, just like Jack Carlson. As a thirteen-year-old, Conor survived his rough neighborhood by dreaming of summer getaways on Monhegan Island, an island off the Maine coast and the model for Elk Island, home of the Hadley Academy. Today, Conor serves as the Dean of Students at the NYU Stern School of Business. He lives in New Canaan, Connecticut, with his wife, Liz, his children, Finn and Lucy, and their dog Beasley in a very ordinary and not-at-all-secret suburban neighborhood. Team Grennan still visits Monhegan Island every summer, hiking through the tall pine forests and helping each other discover gifts they never knew they had.
UPCOMING EVENTS
- October 7th at 6 p.m. at the NYU Bookstore: 726 Broadway, New York, NY 10003. Tickets are free. RSVP here.
- October 20th from 1 - 4 p.m. at the Middle-Grade Author Extravaganza at the New Canaan Library: 151 Main Street New Canaan, CT 06840. Tickets are free. Event registration here.
- TBD Date at Elm Street Books: 35 Elm St. New Canaan, CT 06840
- May 7th at 6 p.m. at the Somerset County Library System of New Jersey: 1 Vogt Dr, Bridgewater Township, NJ 08807
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OVERVIEW
Conor loves speaking at schools, libraries, organizations, and conferences about his passion for literacy, books and the craft of writing. He loves sharing his passion and motivating others. His school visit presentations and conference keynotes do cost, and we understand that sometimes the fees are too much for organizations with struggling budgets. For more information or to book Conor, please contact the HARPERCOLLINS SPEAKERS BUREAU.
SPEAKING TOPICS
- The Hadley Academy
- Little Princes: One Man's Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal
- Finding a Vocation After College: How International Travel and Global Volunteerism Give You An Edge in the Job Hunt
- Just Show Up: Volunteering to Change Your Life and the Lives of Others-One Person at a Time
- Rediscovering Christianity and Your Calling
- Child Trafficking and International Adoption
TRAVELS FROM
Connecticut
PRAISE AND FEEDBACK FOR CONOR
“We had a great visit. Conor was funny, generous, and charming. The students found him to be very relatable and his story is accessible and inspiring. He is skilled in small and large group settings as well as structured and unstructured contexts. He can speak across age groups with ease. He is a solid presenter and a delight to work with and we are so pleased to have hosted him as part of our common reader experience.”
-Melinda Messineo, Ball State University
“Working with Conor has been one of the best experiences I've had working with a booked speaker. He is INCREDIBLY easy to work with. He was a tremendous author to have our campus! Our students absolutely loved Little Princes (even with their summer reading assignment and essays). They really related well to the book and were very excited to have Conor on campus. From the moment Conor took the stage the students were engaged and laughing. Conor was phenomenal to work with. He is extremely laid back and easy-going and he was very genuinely interested in our students. He took time to talk to every student who wanted to talk to him. Although I'm sure he was tired, he gave each student, faculty, staff and community member his full attention. It was truly an honor to have him on our campus—he is already missed by many!”
-Jennifer Bechtold, Otterbein University