Monday, April 15, 2019

Wickedly Unraveled Book Release Day


If you’ve been waiting for the next book in the Baba Yaga series, the wait is over! Yes, today is release day for WICKEDLY UNRAVELED. I hope you’re as excited as I am.


 This book is based on an idea I submitted a couple of years ago, when the Baba Yaga series was still being published by Berkley. But when they decided not to continue with the series, I figured it would never get written. Then I self-published the final Broken Riders book, DANGEROUSLY FIERCE, followed by a novella (Dangerously Driven) and it turned out that my readers wanted more. Yay for my readers! My readers rock.

I loved writing this book because I got to return not just to the world of the Baba Yagas, but specifically to Barbara Yager, who I confess was my favorite of them all (shhhh, don’t tell the others). When I told my agent that I wanted to write about Barbara again, she said, “You can’t do another book about a character who has already gotten her happily ever after…a married one to boot. That just won’t work in romance.” Then she saw what I had figured out, and basically called me an evil genius. Snicker.

Here’s the back cover copy:

The Baba Yagas have incredible power, but even that may not be enough to save their world when magic goes horribly wrong and all their happily ever afters are gone in an instant.
Barbara Yager is used to traveling alone as she tends to her duties as a Baba Yaga. She sometimes brings Babs, the adopted daughter she is training, but her sheriff husband stays behind. This trip, though, she has made an exception. After all, the task seems so simple, and shouldn’t take long to accomplish. When it is done, the three of them can indulge in a long-overdue family vacation. What could it hurt?
Quite a lot, as it turns out. What Barbara thought was a minor problem ends in a violent magical confrontation she never expected. The resulting backlash sends them all into a warped timeline where Barbara and Liam never got together, and only Barbara and nine-year-old Babs remember the truth. Liam is still trapped in his grief and all the good they’ve done together in the past few years has come undone.
Even worse, her Baba Yaga sisters, Beka and Bella, don’t believe her, and the wicked Brenna is still out there, planning who knows what kind of mischief. The children stolen by the rusalka Maya are trapped in the Otherworld and she is loose in this one and up to no good. It is up to Barbara, Babs, and their faithful dragon-dog companion Chudo-Yudo to knit together the unraveled timeline and make things right again, before it is too late and Barbara loses her one true love forever.

Will Barbara get her happily ever after back again? You’ll have to read the book to find out! It’s available in both print (Amazon only) and eBook from all the usual online retailers, and you can also request that your library or local Indy bookstore get a copy.


BUY LINKS:

Of course, because I’m me, I’m doing a huge giveaway to celebrate!


There are THREE prizes: a cool notebook with the cover from the last Broken Rider's novella plus an adorable dragon, a pen, magnets, and bookmarks OR a $10 Amazon gift card OR the grand prize, a Fire 7 tablet! Just fill out the Rafflecopter form to be entered. Open internationally, no purchase necessary to win. (Although of course, I'd love it if you'd buy the book.)

As always, if you buy the book and love it, I’d really appreciate it if you could take a minute to put up a quick review on Amazon, Goodreads, or B&N. Not to mention spreading the word to all your friends. If this book does well enough, I have an idea for the next one…

Welcome back to the world of the Baba Yagas—I hope you have as much fun reading WICKEDLY UNRAVELED as I had writing it.

 a Rafflecopter giveaway


Monday, April 8, 2019

Little Book of Cat Magic Review and Giveaway



As most of you know, THE LITTLE BOOK OF CAT MAGIC came out from Llewellyn (and me!) last October. Because there were some issues with the way the cover came back from the printer, there were problems with people getting the copies they'd preordered or getting the book when it first came out, and because of that, the book--which has a special place in my heart for obvious reasons (it was the last book that featured Magic the Cat)--hasn't gotten either the sales or the reviews or the recognition we would normally have expected.

This makes me kinda sad.

On the other hand, my Llewellyn publicist just forwarded me this fabulous review, by Anna Jedrziewski, which is going to be in the May/June issue of Retailing Insights.

The Little Book of Cat Magic: Spells, Charms & Tales
Deborah Blake
$15.99  P, 978-0-7387-5323-2
Llewellyn Publications, llewellyn.com
Many people interested in the occult sciences have cats. (Blake points out that no one ever really owns a cat.) Those who prefer dogs might not get this book. Those who already have an established admiration for felines should be bowled over by Blake’s humor and knowledge of cat history and trivia. (Evidence of cats living among people dates back 100,000 years. Egypt is where cats “first rose to power in their attempt to take over the world”. The prophet Muhammed loved cats. In early Japan, only the nobility could afford cats. The first association between cats and witches comes from Greek mythology. In the 1200’s, the Catholic Church officially declared cats evil and in league with the devil, resulting in a global massacre. It was Queen Victoria who rose in their defense, restoring them to their former glory.) Moving on to more serious considerations, this book records cat myths, folklore and tales, and cat deities. It includes volumes of serious information about connecting with and caring for felines. Of course, Blake delivers on the magic component with an indepth chapter on cats as familiars and another chapter on cat divination. There are even cat crafts and recipes. The book contains lots of quotes about cats. I’ll leave you with this one:
Thousands of years ago, cats were worshipped as gods.
Cats have never forgotten this. —Terry Pratchett

Isn't that great?! Of course, a professional review is a wonderful thing, but folks who go to places like Amazon and Goodreads like to read reviews by fellow readers like you. So I'd really love it if you read the book (and liked it), if you could take a minute to leave a review saying so. You have no idea  how much this helps. And there are only 13 reviews on Amazon. Sniffle.
You can leave a review using these links for Amazon or Goodreads or B & N (It doesn't have to be long or complicated.)

Of course, if you haven't read the book yet, you can't write a review. So you could go out and buy a copy (you know I'd love that) or you could, I don't know, enter this contest to win a signed copy, along with a cute stuffed black cat and a black cat bookmark.


Either way, I appreciate you giving this book some love. I'm sure that wherever she is, Magic the Cat does too.

All you have to do is fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Yes, you can take credit for things you've already done, like following me on Twitter or signing up for my newsletter. No, there is no purchase necessary, and you don't have to review the book to enter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


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