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UP POPS THE SUN

Debut Novel by Crystal McQueen
Coming Late Fall 2027!

What if there were a way to talk to those we’ve lost?

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In the wake of her mother’s death, Ellie Adams, a brilliant yet broken data scientist, pioneers Elysium – a groundbreaking mobile app that creates digital replicas of the departed – giving herself and others a chance for closure. Partnering with high-stakes investor Eric Spaulding, Ellie transforms her pain into a revolutionary “After Life” business. But the technology may not be as beneficial as she imagined, and Spaulding isn’t as supportive as he pretends to be.

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A mysterious suicide, a scheming colleague, and betrayal from those Ellie trusts the most threaten Elysium’s survival. When Ellie’s best friend steals her account, exposing flaws in the program, Ellie races to recover her mother’s replica before it’s too late. But Spaulding wants Ellie’s technology for himself. That’s when Ellie uncovers his true plan: dismantle Elysium and exploit her mother’s replica for his own personal gain.

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As Elysium's fate spirals beyond her control, Ellie must decide whether to protect her company or finally confront the grief her mother’s replica has kept buried.

by Crystal McQueen.png

Audiobook Narration

4EA02860-21BA-4373-A05D-A5887D703723.jpeg
Hearts Crazier Than Mine

written by Lee Doyle, 

narrated by Crystal McQueen

Seventeen-year old Sheila O'Connor falls for an unscrupulous drifter the day before her brother joins the Marines. It's 1975 in the Salinas Valley, the same year Sheila's long-widowed mother remarries and her best friend goes off the rails. Sheila is forced to confront both old and new losses as her life and relationships fall into disarray. She discovers that the only fate she can influence is her own.

Short Works

Fiction

Vanishing Pop-Tarts.The Writing Disorder, March 2022

Dandelions.The Lindenwood Review, Issue 13, February 2023

“The Begotten One.The Brussels Review, Summer 2025

NonFiction

Just Calm Down.borrowed solace, Issue 5.1, June 2022 

Snow Days.The Bluebird Word, 2022/2023 Winter Holiday Issue, December 2022

“Forget Me Nots.Discretionary Love, April 2025

Essays

The American Idyll.Twenty-two Twenty-eight, March 2025

Poetry

I Know You,” Giant Robot Poems, Middle West Press, July 2024

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© 2026 by Crystal McQueen

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