When Is A Retelling Not A Retelling?
Filling the well with moorland, Arthuriana, and Hozier
Welcome back, valiant knights and witchy women! The atmosphere over here is celebratory: in the last week two special editions of my books have released, and I’ve put the finishing touches on SAVAGE BLOOMS! Read on for some exclusive details about this erotic gothic extravaganza which is also kiiiiind of a King Arthur story? And has six POVs? Surprise!
First, the news. Then, we’re gonna get mythical.
EVOCATION Paperback Drop
I was on a pleasure trip in Scotland with my fiance during the EVOCATION paperback release, but we made sure to stop into the Waterstones on Edinburgh’s Prince’s Street to say hello to David and sign stock!
It filled my heart with joy to see folks online posting their paperback unboxings, especially of the exclusive teal foiled, sprayed edge Barnes and Noble edition. There are still a limited number of the exclusive edition available, so grab yours before they’re gone!
The World’s Most Toxic Husband Is Back, Baby
The EVOCATION paperback appeared on store bookshelves the same day the DOWRY OF BLOOD Orbit Gold exclusive edition began arriving in mailboxes! This drop-dead gorgeous, hand-signed, cloth hardcover with pewter foiling and edges, an illustrated slipcase, ribbon bookmark, and more is out now! To celebrate, I hopped online to read aloud the first page of the Dracula POV bonus chapter, “A Battlefield of Broken Promises”. This chapter is not available anywhere except inside the Gold Edition hardcover, but I couldn’t resist giving you good folks a sneak peek.
SAVAGE BLOOMS and the Arthuriana of It All
After mildly terrorizing the entire Orbit team with last minute changes, SAVAGE BLOOMS is totally done. It’s wild to think arcs won’t even be available until early summer and final copies won’t publish until October, but that’s publishing for you!
Now that I’m done cramming this book full of sad horniness and breathless descriptions of stained glass, I guess it’s time to own up to the fact that while SAVAGE BLOOMS is not a retelling, it’s certainly influenced by Arthuriana.
Adam, Nicola, Eileen, and Finley may or may not be mapped onto archetypes of Arthur, Guinevere, Morgan le Fay, and Mordred, and I may or may not have done that in the beginning to entertain myself with background symbolism until the symbolism became…not so background. Don’t go into this book expecting a Camelot remix, but do, perhaps, be prepared to Make Some Inferences and Connect Some Dots. “Polyamory would have fixed Camelot” truthers and Morgan apologists get behind me.
I know the way I talk about SAVAGE BLOOMS is esoteric and unhinged, but so is this book! Right now my best elevator pitch is: what if Wuthering Heights and The Rocky Horror Picture Show were the same story, which was really the King Arthur Legend, but told in the style and with the heat level of The Thornchapel Series, if the Thornchapel series had 200% more forced marriage and generational trauma? It’s a dark romance I guess? It’s certainly a gothic! But as my good friend Elizabeth Kilcoyne told me “it feels like your most you book yet”, and I completely agree.
At any rate, I would love it if you would preorder, so that my publisher will continue to let me go freak mode with their distribution system, and I humbly implore you to add it to Goodreads! Goodreads really moves the publicity needle for authors and helps us get more marketing support, plus it helps new-to-us readers find our books!
Events
I’m not touring this spring, but I will be live and in person at the Smithfield Barnes and Noble in Rhode Island celebrating the paperback release of EVOCATION and chatting with readers and signing books! The event is free and unticketed, and if you’re in the area I would love to see you at 1PM on March 22nd for this intimate affair. Any additional events will be updated on my newly refurbished author website.
Everything I’ve Been Loving Lately
My beloved and I whisked each other away to Scotland for a spring getaway, along with a quick stopover in London to get dinner with my editor and walk Kensington Gardens and hit up Harrods. Every time I visit Scotland I fall more deeply in love, and I got to visit Inverness this time to meet some old friends and explore!
In addition to soaking in landscapes, architecture, and tasty food, I listened to not one but three no-skips albums: Alligator Bites Never Heal by Doechii, Off With Her Head by Banks, and Unreal Unearth by Hozier. Yes, I know it’s unconscionable I hadn’t listened to Unreal Unearth all the way through before; engaging with hyped media at its height gives me anxiety! I dissolved into breathless tears as soon as the Irish hit in De Selby 1, and that set the tone for the rest of the album.
Next up, I’m working on my March master-essay on resting as a artist, using play and leisure to spark creative excellence, and tricking your brain into taking breaks. Subscribe at the paid tier so you never miss an essay.
That’s all I’ve got for you this week, dear reader! Be safe and well until we meet again.
-S