return to the beginning
also, an auction (not the A03 kind) and community care
and so the snake devours its own tail
On April 28, go back to the start in Between the Rival Courts, the prequel to the Fatebound Duology. In this dark medieval fantasy, you’ll find heartbreak, conquest, resistance, magic, yearning, and of course, plenty of my typical SadHorny vibes. And what better way to celebrate than showing off this STUNNING artwork by Jax Hnat / @gildedruin???
The pre-order for the ebook and signed hardcover is officially open! Pre-order now, and in a few weeks, you’ll receive a digital goodies pack of an annotated reading playlist, a special reader letter, plus the first three chapters.
In an attempt to further commit to the shit I say I care about, I’m only offering pre-orders directly through my bookshop. A few weeks after publication, you’ll be able to find Between the Rival Courts on retailer platforms, including Kindle Unlimited.
But Beyond the Aching Door and Beneath the Buried Sea will be leaving KU in late March, and as soon as I’m able to, I would like to see my other books follow. I want to de-prioritize Amazon and continue fostering relationships with independent bookstores. Fuck all these billionaires.
make a bid, piss off a nazi!
It’s been my absolute pleasure to help organize FaRo Society’s The Books They Can’t Burn Charity Auction to benefit PEN America. There are so many amazing auction items—click here to check them out!
I’m offering a signed, personalized hardcover copy of Holy Wrath (or whichever of my books you’d prefer!) + character art sticker + a 30 minute Zoom session with me to ask about my books, publishing, my opinions on looseleaf tea, whatever you’d like! Click here to bid.
keep going for migrant families
Though the news has turned away, Minnesota is still very much under siege by ICE. Here’s two vital orgs that are helping people get what they need: Northfield Supporting Neighbors and the Community Action Center.
If you can’t support with funds, consider making an effort to seek out updates from Minnesota and share them on socials so it’s harder to to turn a blind eye. I recommend Minnesota Public News!
And we’ve had plenty of our own ICE cruelty out here in the greater Philadelphia area, too. Here’s a few GoFundMe links for the families that are impacted:
Support the family of Parady La, who was murdered in ICE detention.
Support an Eagleville family who was brutally and traumatically raided by ICE.
Support the legal fund of Quakertown high school students, who were brutalized by the off-duty police chief in plainclothes for walking out in protest of ICE.
***all three of these are local to me, so these funds have been vetted by folks I know and trust.
things i’ve enjoyed lately
Behind the Iron Gate, Allison Carr Waechter’s follow-up to her much beloved Immortal Orders trilogy. I am SO lucky to get to read most of Allison’s work first, and this book is spectacular. The stormy seaside setting, the political intrigue, the ROMANCE!!!, the delicious feeling that there’s old folklore afoot, an ancient story wound into the bones of this newer tale. I’m so excited for all of you to meet Cas and Vivi, both of whom I would die for.
I journal frequently for a number of reasons—my creativity, record-keeping, pattern-recognition, and joy. On the joy end of things, I recently grabbed these stickers from Hobonichi’s spring release. I’m specifically using them for ephemera that I keep in one section of my journal, and dang, they look so pretty with my pressed flowers, ticket stubs, notes, etc.
We got even more snow here. The horse girl part of me is absolutely sick of it (and we’re supposed to get more later this week) but the weird little writer part of me that just wanders my home and Thinks A Lot very much enjoys how it’s the kind of snow that clings to all the tree limbs and makes everything look like a fairytale.
I closed out last year’s reading with Humboldt Cut by Allison Mick, which is an absolutely fucked up and deeply amazing ecological horror novel. It’s batshit insane in the best way possible. I love people with minds like Mick. I would never be cool enough to dream up half of this shit. This one really appeals to anyone who was like, “but Poison Ivy is kinda right, though?!”
We are getting a new Mitski album, which is one of the few good things happening to me (yes, Mitski’s album is happening TO me, ok?) The merch is also top-tier.
Snuggles from my sweet kitty baby Calliope never get old, particularly on these cold nights.
I recently receiving my much-awaited Modern Faerie Tales special editions from Illumicrate, and they are everything I dreamed of and more. Someone at Illumicrate is as obsessed with these books as I am; you can tell in the all the details they included. I don’t buy very many special edition books, but I’m so glad I got these.
that’s all for now
It’s really been a balm to my perpetually broken heart to see people coming together in the ways that they have. Communities are strengthening, people are going the fight for the first time, and the support I’ve felt from my friends all the way across the globe is incredible. Thank you. Together, we will see it through.