Worlds Beyond Disaster

Well, it’s been a while, eh? I have a good excuse. Since I last posted here, I’ve sold my house, moved out of the Yukon and into Alberta! I bought a house and have been busy setting it up. I never thought I would leave the Yukon but a brand-new grandchild changed my mind. Although I’ve lived in many parts of Canada–and visited everywhere else–I’d never lived in Alberta. Turns out Alberta is absolutely beautiful and Albertans are a lot like Yukoners: warm, welcoming, and funny.

I’m going to like it here.

Now that I have my computer set up, I can tell you about a book bundle I’m in. Worlds Beyond Disaster features two short stories, one novelette and four novels by seven fine, fine writers (at the risk of being immodest). The bundle includes Backli’s Ford, which is the first in my A’lle Chronicles Mysteries series. All that for $4.99. It’s available everywhere ebooks are sold, but it’s super easy to get it directly from BundleRabbit.

Amazon | Kobo | Barnes and Noble | Apple

Here’s the write-up for Worlds Beyond Disaster:

Corrupt governments, secret societies, mutated creatures, and post-apocalypse Earth meet strong-willed characters, unexpected hope, and gripping action.

For fans of Suzanne Collins, James Dashner, and George Orwell, a new dystopian ebook bundle is here! Filled with seven action-packed stories that pose the questions: What would you do in the face of disaster? And how far would you go to save the world?

And here’s the table of contents:

1. “Platypus” by J. D. Brink

2. “Scavengers” by Russ Crossley

3. “Slow Walk” by Charley Marsh

4. “Backli’s Ford” by Marcelle Dubé

5. “Terra Incognita” by Karen L. Abrahamson

6. “Fear of Rain” by Robert Jeschonek

7. “The High Edge” by Dean Wesley Smith

The Realms of Faerie Bundle

I’m thrilled that Midwinter Fae (in which I have a story) is part of StoryBundle’s The Realm of Faerie bundle, curated by Jamie Ferguson. You can choose how much you want to pay for up to 13 novels, anthologies and collections! Hard to beat that deal.

The Realms of Faerie Bundle

Featured: Jamie FergusonDeAnna Knippling, Alethea Kontis, Tom Dietz, Jenna Elizabeth Johnson, Anthea Sharp, Sharon Kae Reamer, Amber Argyle, Leslie Claire Walker, Charlotte English, Kristine Kathryn RuschDayle Dermatis, Diana Benedict, Leah Cutter, Eric Kent Edstrom, Ron Collins, Rei Rosenquist, Karen L. AbrahamsonDeb Logan, Thorn Coyle, Rebecca Senese, Stefon Mears, Brigid Collins, and Alexandra Brandt!

Visit https://storybundle.com/fantasy for more information, and enjoy!

Beauty and Wickedness anthology

Beauty and Wickedness, the first volume in the Ever After Fairy Tales series, edited by Jamie Ferguson, is now available everywhere ebooks are sold: http://books2read.com/beauty-and-wickedness

Even in this modern world, the heart still recognizes the power and mystery to be found in a fairy tale.

In Beauty and Wickedness, sixteen authors retell and reimagine some of the most enchanting fairy tales ever told. Within these pages, you’ll find beauty and treachery, magic and courage, innocence and wickedness…and at least some happy endings. And I am stoked to be in a table of contents with so many fine writers:

Troll Country by MARCELLE DUBÉ
Ricardo del Penacho by DIANA BENEDICT
Doctor Rudolfo Knows All by DEANNA KNIPPLING
The Red Boots by LEAH CUTTER
A Froth of Starry Sea Foam by REI ROSENQUIST
The Nests of Old Women by KAREN L. ABRAHAMSON
Ilsa and the Dragon by JAMIE FERGUSON
Red in the Hood by REBECCA M. SENESE
Bye Bye, Daddy by LOUISA SWANN
The True Bride by LINDA JORDAN
Faery Beautiful by DEB LOGAN
On the Edge of Faerie by STEFON MEARS
The Strangeness of the Day by KRISTINE KATHRYN RUSCH
Oroflex (Patent Pending) by DAYLE A. DERMATIS
Marriage of Convenience by LEIGH SAUNDERS
Thorn and Thimble by BRIGID COLLINS

Specific buy links:

 

Midwinter Fae

I’m so very pleased to be part of this new anthology edited by Jamie Ferguson. It features 19 tales of faeries and magic at Midwinter.

On the day of the shortened sun
A battle between two kings has begun. 
The old year dies, and the Oak King rules
We celebrate with logs of Yule! 
But the Holly King is defeated, not dead 
To Caer Arianrhod he heads. 
Until Midsummer, when they battle again 
And the Holly King will once again reign…

It features “Midwinter Run,” my brand new short story, plus stories by Dalye A. Dermatis, Diana Benedict, Leah Cutter, Leslie Claire Walker, Eric Kent Edstrom, Ron Collins, Rei Rosenquist, Karen L. Abrahamson, Deanna Knippling, Anthea Sharp, Deb Logan, T. Thorn Coyle, Jamie Ferguson, Kristine Katherine Rusch, Rebecca Senese, Stefon Mears, Brigid Collins and Alexandra Brandt.

All that, and a gorgeous cover, too!

Read anything good lately?

 

I’ve been doing a lot of reading lately and I thought I’d share some of the gems I’ve come across:

Racing the Devil, an Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery by Charles Todd

No Shred of Evidence, an Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery by Charles Todd

An Unmarked Grave, a Bess Crawford Mystery by Charles Todd

Yes, I’m on a Charles Todd kick. Charles Todd is the nom de plume [well, sort of] of an American mother-and-son writing team, Caroline and Charles Todd. The two series are set during and just after World War One.

Bess Crawford is a nurse who works on the front lines in France during the war, and who stumbles across mysteries and murders. I love the layered background of her life, with a childhood in India, a mysterious father and his aide, and her willingness to get grubby to bring justice to bear.

After the war, Inspector Ian Rutledge returned to Scotland Yard a changed man. Suffering from PTSD, he now lives with a voice in his head of a soldier he executed for refusing a direct order. This damaged man clings to his work as his only salvation.

I’ve also been reading some excellent science fiction and fantasy, all with a mystery bent:

Company Town, by Madeline Ashby, was shortlisted for the most recent Canada Reads contest, in which five famous Canadians champion a different Canadian book. This is how the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), which org
anizes the contest every year, describes it:

Canada Reads is a “literary Survivor,” with celebrities championing books. Books are voted “off the bookshelf,” one each day, until one book is chosen as the title the whole country should read this year.

Set off the Canadian east coast, Company Town tells the story of the fearless Hwa, a young woman who works as a bodyguard on the city-sized oil rig they all call home. There are death threats, alternate timelines and a series of interconnected murders, and Hwa must choose between protecting herself and protecting those in her charge.

Loved, loved, loved the story. I gobbled it up.

And finally, I’ll finish off with a novella, Death by Effigy, by my friend, Karen L. Abrahamson.

I know I could be biased, but I’m not. This is a lovely, lovely story featuring a murder mystery set in exotic 19th century Burma. It features anold singer and a magical Burmese puppet, the impish, ancient Yamin, who so desperately wants to be taken seriously by the humans and the members of his puppet troupe. Fascinating culture and unusual, endearing characters.

The one thing all these books have in common are strong, engaging characters, characters that the reader wants to follow on their adventures. It’s something I strive to do in my own writing.

Okay, now it’s your turn. What stories have you read lately that you would recommend? Any non-fiction?

(Originally published on Not Your Usual Suspects, May 31, 2017)

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First Glimpse of Fantasy Secondary Worlds

One of my favourite novels, Jilimar, is part of a new bundle from Bundle Rabbit, curated by Barbara G. Tarn. While it will be released on May 26 over at Bundle Rabbit and all other e-booksellers, it’s available now for pre-order at Kobo, Barnes and Noble and Amazon.

Here’s the Table of Contents:
1. The Crystal Courtesan by Karen L. Abrahamson
2. The Mage’s Grave by Timothy L. Cerepaka
3. Firehearted by Sabrina Chase
4. Singer by Brigid Collins
5. Rider by Diane J Cornwell
6. Jilimar by Marcelle Dube
7. Al-Kabar by Lee French
8. The Path of Water (Quests Book 1) by Barbara G. Tarn
9. Elf Saga, Book 1: Doomsday by Joseph Robert Lewis
10. Twice Against the Dragon by Stefon Mears
11. The Last Giant by Mario Milosevic
12. Dragons’ Choice by Debbie Mumford

 

 

New bundle!

Backli’s Ford is being offered in another bundle: Out of this World, from Bundle Rabbit. For three weeks–Monday, August 15 to Monday, September 5–you can get six novels and anthologies for $3.99, or all 16 for $9.99 on Bundle Rabbit. Then the bundle will become available on all sales channels (Kobo, Amazon, B&N, iBooks, etc.) from September 5 to October 5 with a full bundle price of $9.99.

Out of This World Bundle

For the minimum price of $3.99, you get six fabulous titles:

Interlude Beyond by Rebecca M. Senese

The Science Officer (Science Officer Vol 1) by Blaze Ward

Of Myst and Folly by Leah Cutter

Grim Repo by Mark Fassett

The Cat’s Meow by Jamie Ferguson

Hydrogen Sleets by Michael Warren Lucas

But if you pay $9.99, you get all 16 titles, including:

Alien Influences by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Tales of Tomorrow by Debbie Mumford

Invasion by J.D. Brink

Scream Angel by Douglas Smith

Magician’s Choice by Stefon Mears

Backli’s Ford by Marcelle Dubé

The Dark Zone by Rita Schulz

The Crystal Courtesan by Karen L. Abrahamson

Mary Celeste Adrift by J.A. Marlow

Morning Song by Dean Wesley Smith