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Carina Press

Books, Carina Press

Latest book roundup post

I’ve been reading a lot from the library lately, partly because Dara and I are having to sink a lot of money into rental property renovation, but also partly because it’s super-easy to check out library books on my newer Nook with the Overdrive app. But that said, I’ve made a few recent purchases regardless. Like I do. Here they are!

From Kobo:

  • The Gods of Gotham, Seven for a Secret, and Dust and Shadow, by Lyndsay Faye. These are mysteries, and I grabbed these because of Faye writing an excellent response on CriminalElement.com to the Slate article not long ago about why adults shouldn’t read YA. Faye’s response was pure gold and I resolved that I clearly had to read her books. Doesn’t suck either that Dust and Shadow is a Sherlock Holmes story. I’ve already read The Gods of Gotham as a library checkout, which confirmed that I needed to add Faye to my Buy list.
  • Ancillary Justice, by Ann Leckie. SF. This one’s been getting a lot of buzz for being on the Hugo ballot, and it was at $1.99, so I thought I’d better grab it while that price was good.
  • A Rogue by Any Other Name, One Good Earl Deservers a Lover, and No Good Duke Goes Unpunished, by Sarah MacLean. These are all historical romances, the first three of MacLean’s four-book series about the owners of a gaming hell in London. The series has been getting some nice buzz since MacLean was interviewed last November on the Dear Bitches Smart Author podcast. And Book 3 of her series is up for a RITA this year. I find the titles kind of twee, but the series itself is fun. Read the first two as library checkouts, and then put MacLean on the Buy list.

Meanwhile, from B&N in ebook form:

  • The Day the Dead Came to Show and Tell, by Mira Grant. Because MIRA GRANT, and also because woo, new Newsflesh story! If you haven’t seen Grant/McGuire’s own warning about this, do NOT read the summaries you may see of this novella on Goodreads or on any pages giving the book publicity. There’s a spoiler in ’em. Just go straight to the novella. Which is, as per usual, Grant’s excellent brand of zombie-ridden grim.
  • The Lady Astronaut of Mars, by Mary Robinette Kowal. I’d already read this but when Tor put it out for ebook purchase, I decided I needed to grab it. It’s a novelette up for a Hugo this year, and it’s a bittersweet little story about an aging astronaut having to choose between one last mission in space–and remaining at the side of her dying husband.

From B&N in print:

  • Shaman Rises, by C.E. Murphy. The final Walker Papers novel! Already bought in ebook, but this is me getting it in print. Because KIT.
  • The Jedi Doth Return, by Ian Doescher. Finishing up Doescher’s delightful adaptations of the original Star Wars trilogy into Shakespeare-style plays. Can’t wait to giggle at this one. 😀

And last but not least, from Carina in ebook:

  • Trancehack and Witchlight, by Sonya Clark. Sonya Clark is one of my fellow members of the Here Be Magic blog, and these are her first two books with Carina. They’re paranormal romances, but set in a futuristic timeframe, and they sound fun. Plus, I wanted to grab Trancehack while it was still on sale for 99 cents. Which ends TODAY, so if you think you might want to check this book out yourself, grab it fast before the price goes back up!
  • An Inconvenient Kiss, by Caroline Kimberly. Historical romance. Grabbed this one because the plot blurb sounds interesting, and the cover is beautiful. I approve of this recent trend in romance covers of the heroines in beautiful gowns.

100 for the year.

Carina Press, Faerie Blood, Valor of the Healer

Day 2 of sales: proceeding nicely!

Well, yesterday’s numbers weren’t as awesome as Monday’s–but that said, yesterday was still my third best sale day ever for Faerie Blood, so I’d say that was still a triumph!

Many, many thanks to those of you who’ve bought either Faerie Blood OR Valor of the Healer thus far, or signalboosted. Please, please do keep signalboosting, it helps immensely!

(Note in particular as well that on the Valor of the Healer post, I’ve updated that to include links off to the official CarinaPress.com pages for the other Carina titles participating in the promotion. I encourage anyone who’s interested in seeing Carina’s other SF/F offerings to check those out!)

If you’re on Twitter, here are a couple of shortened URLs you can use to plug into tweets, which go to the two posts I made with full info on the sales (and of course you can use these URLs on Facebook or Google+ or wherever, but the shortened URLs are ideal for Twitter):

Valor of the Healer link: http://bit.ly/1reiFHF

Faerie Blood link: http://bit.ly/1lxLhDN

If you’re on Tumblr, I have two posts up there that you can reblog if you’re so inclined. Those posts are:

For Faerie Blood: http://annathepiper.tumblr.com/post/90522353994/kendis-thompson-of-seattle-thinks-shes-as-normal

For Valor of the Healer: http://annathepiper.tumblr.com/post/90522657939/the-rook-an-assassin-hired-by-vengeful-elven

Looking forward to seeing what my numbers do today! 😀

Carina Press

How Apple users can get my Carina books in the UK

We’re having an interesting discussion on the Carina authors’ loop, where a few of us have reported in that readers in the UK can’t get Carina titles via the iBookstore. As Carina titles are available in the US iBookstore, you can expect we find this a little frustrating!

We’ve also been discussing that Carina’s own site has issues with not accepting UK-based methods of payment, so that means directing UK readers to the main Carina site won’t necessarily be a workable solution, either. Also frustrating!

However, we have determined that there are still viable ways for UK-based readers who happen to be owners of Apple devices to get Carina books. The drawback to this is that you have to be willing to buy books from sources other than the iBookstore.

(This post is long, so the details are behind the fold.)

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Carina Press, Other People's Books

Working list of Carina Press POD titles

Good news everyone! Carina Press has launched a Print on Demand program, making an initial wave of titles available for ordering via Amazon.

The bad news is, I’m not in that list. The better news is, if this initial wave of titles generates enough interest, it bumps up the possibility that I might be added to the list later. So if you have a vested interest in seeing the Rebels of Adalonia trilogy get into print, the best things you can do are:

  • Buy the ebooks if you haven’t already (and as always the links for where to buy the ebooks are on the Valor of the Healer and Vengeance of the Hunter pages)
  • Encourage others to buy the ebooks
  • Show support for the first wave of Carina POD titles

With the third of these in mind, I showed my own support by ordering a copy of Cindy Spencer Pape’s Steam & Sorcery, the first of her steampunk romance series, the Gaslight Chronicles. I’ve already bought this in ebook form, but I wanted to see what the output of Amazon’s POD system would look like, and hey, I like the book. Yesterday evening, my copy arrived.

And I’m pleased to report that it looks pretty awesome, layout-wise. Paper quality is good, design’s quite nice (though Dara had quibbles with the guttering closest to the spine), and while my copy sustained a bit of damage in transit, I would in general consider this as an option for POD for future self-published works.

Check it out, it’s a book! With a spine and a colophon and everything!

And, here’s a roundup of titles I know for sure are on the POD lineup! I will be adding links to this list as more of Carina’s POD authors make themselves known to me, so check back here often!

Steampunk romance:

Historical romance:

  • Ruined by Rumor, by Alyssa Everett (note: I’d already nabbed this one in ebook because I appreciate a romance cover with fully-clothed cover models, and the plot sounded fun too)

Mystery:

  • No One Lives Twice, by Julie Moffett (note: I’ve read this one! It’s lighter-hearted)
  • Fair Game, by Josh Lanyon (note: this one has an M/M romance in it)

Urban fantasy:

Contemporary romance:

See anything on this list that looks interesting? Go buy it! Carina authors will thank you!

ETA: Since Michele Mannon was kind enough to send me her cover for Knock Out, check it out! I normally roll my eyes at shirtless hero covers, but given that she’s writing romance about fighters, it’s actually appropriate for her guy to be shirtless. He totally looks like he’s about to step into a bout, or maybe he’s coming out of one. Either way, it’s a visually arresting cover.

Knock Out

Knock Out

Boosting the Signal, Carina Press

Boosting the Signal: Cooking Up Love, by Amylynn Bright

Got another doubleheader on Boosting the Signal today, folks–and specifically, a Carina doubleheader! Our first post is for Amylynn Bright’s new romantic comedy release, Cooking Up Love. And I think it’s safe to say that her heroine Holly has a very sensible goal: i.e., not wanting her kitchen to EXPLODE. Well, that, and she’s a food critic, so you’d think she should know something about food, right? Speaking as someone who is just barely able to boil water without burning it, though, I would just like to note categorically and for the record that to date, I have not actually set any kitchen appliances on fire.

(We won’t talk about how my wife has banished me from the kitchen.)

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Cooking Up Love

Cooking Up Love

A copy of the homeowners insurance claim form Holly Darcy filed after the incident.

Date and Time of Occurrence: Yesterday at dinner time

Location of Occurrence: The general kitchen area in my condo

Type of Occurrence: Small, alright medium, kitchen fire. (I’ve had bigger if that matters)

Property Damaged: Self-cleaning Freestanding Electric Stainless-Steel Convection Range – 4 months old. (Was this purchase overly optimistic? Probably.)

Describe the Occurrence: Boy, I’m tired of filling out these forms. Too bad I can’t just copy the last claim, huh? Well, this time I’d already taken off my work clothes and was in my pajamas. That’s what really started the problem. I should have stopped for take-out. There was no way I was going to eat pizza again and the guy at the Chinese place already calls me honey, I’m in there so often. Still, I know better. I have no idea what got into me. Some sort of inflated sense of accomplishment since I’d had a really great day at work, I guess. I thought I could handle a Lean Cuisine. I mean how hard is that? The directions on the box seem deceptively easy. I thought I’d brave the oven instead of the microwave—mostly because I hadn’t cleaned out the microwave since that mac & cheese explosion from Tuesday. I can’t honestly tell you what happened from there. Is it possible my oven is possessed? It seems crazy I know, but perhaps an exorcism is in order. Maybe the meal is supposed to come out of the box before you put it in the oven? Anyway, I may have forgotten to check on it like the box said. I do know for sure I never stirred it as per the directions. The next thing you know that damn fire alarm is going off and the kitchen is filled with smoke again. The regular fire department guys came in the big truck. I have no idea why they always send the big truck. It’s a small kitchen. Anyway, Captain Gary said the oven was a total loss. This is the second one this year. I don’t know if I should bother to replace it, but leaving a hole in the kitchen is admitting defeat, isn’t it? Jeez, all I wanted was some dinner.

Suggested Course of Action: I’m certain that you’re as tired of receiving my claim requests as I am of writing them. I have enrolled in a cooking class for beginners and I’m very optimistic. Cross your crossables.

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Boosting the Signal, Carina Press, Other People's Books

Tuesday Boosting the Signal and general news roundup

Hi all! Was your Memorial Day weekend a good one?

Since we’re coming out of a long holiday weekend, I wanted to remind y’all that this past weekend I posted not one, not two, but THREE Boosting the Signal posts. If you happened to miss them, here they are:

Fraser Sherman

Danielle Ackley-McPhail

Kimberly Long-Ewing

Related to Danielle’s and Kimberly’s posts, I wanted to mention that while their two books are officially not released until September, you can in fact buy the paperbacks now. So the links I included for pre-order on their pages are actually viable purchase links. I’m told this is how Dark Quest Books operates, and that soft-launching books is helpful for accommodating reviewers.

And on a related note, I’ve got some more Boosting the Signal posts coming over the next few weeks. However, they’re going to get rather more spotty through June and July, because I seriously need to be in focused deadline mode for Victory of the Hawk. I will continue to post pieces as I get them, but they won’t be as common for a while. Your patience in advance is appreciated!

* * *

Meanwhile, in the name of giving a bit of outside-of-Boosting-the-Signal signal-boosting to some of my Carina peeps, I’d like to call the following things to your all’s attention!

One! Jeffe Kennedy, one of my fellow posters at Here Be Magic, is dropping her first fantasy novel this week! She’s been marketed more in the past as fantasy romance, but this is the first of her books getting designated as straight-up fantasy. Speaking as someone who likes having her fantasy with a side serving of romance, I expect to be checking out The Mark of the Tala. Jeffe’s got a post up at Here Be Magic about her favorite fantasy tropes, too, if you want to go check that out.

Two! My fellow Carina author Kari Edgren turns out to ALSO be a fellow Pacific Northwest author. And her new Carina release Goddess Born turns out to be HIGHLY relevant to my interests–not only because it’s invoking Brigid from Celtic mythology, it’s also got a heroine who’s a healer. And y’all know how much I like me some healers. I’ll be buying this one, too.

* * *

And, another post of mine from over the weekend that you may have missed: Amazon has been throwing its weight around again. I link off to some other posts about it, too.

Bone Walker, Carina Press, Faerie Blood, Other People's Books, Vengeance of the Hunter

A few promo things make a post

Item the first: Debut Carina author Sonya Clark would like y’all to know she’s having a giveaway for her forthcoming release Trancehack, which is futuristic paranormal romance. Call it PR with a side helping of SF, if you like! Deets can be found right over here.

***

Item the second: speaking of my fellow Carina authors, the awesome Joely Sue Burkhart and Raelyn Barclay are running Coyote Con, a virtual convention, all this month! What’s a virtual convention? It’s a series of online chat discussions on various interesting topics, pretty similar to what you’d find at an actual convention in person.

I’ve been in a few of these panels now myself, and there are more to come as the month progresses! And for those panels you may have already missed, Joely and Raelyn are posting transcripts too, so you can catch up on those here.

The panels I was in in particular were Epic Fantasy, Self Publishing, and LGBTQ/Diversity.

There are a couple more panels today, and there’ll be more the remaining weekends of the month. And one chat room’s also dedicated to just general hanging out too! The full schedule is here!

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Item the third: I will be going to Orycon from November 8-10–the weekend right before my forthcoming surgery, in fact. So unless you’re one of the people likely to show up for the annual Murkworks Thanksgiving Day Homeless Waifs Turkeyfest, this is going to be the last chance to spot the elusive Wild Anna outside her natural habitat. If you’re going to be there, find me and say hi, mmkay?

Likewise, I am going to GeekGirlCon this coming weekend, right after I go see Great Big Sea in Edmonds. I’m going to be REAL busy this weekend. 😀

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Item the fourth: This is your friendly reminder that I am down to three print copies of Faerie Blood, so if you’d like a print copy of this book, talk to me! Getting it directly from me remains the only way to acquire it since I currently have no way of selling it online. I ask $15 if I’m going to hand deliver it, $20 if I need to mail it to you.

I also have a small stock of CDs that contain the various formats of the ebook edition, both the original Drollerie release AND the current Second Edition as well. For these, I ask $5 each.

I will have both of these items with me at GeekGirlCon and Orycon as well!

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Item the fifth: Kickstarter backers, just so y’all know, I have totally had my brain eaten by Vengeance of the Hunter edits. I ran behind on it, and am scrambling along with my editor (who is made of solid gold awesomeness, All Hail Her Name) to get the manuscript finished up so that we don’t impact the schedule. We’re in the middle of line edits now. I will be jumping back to Bone Walker the instant we sign off on this book.

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Item the sixth: I have not forgotten the series of posts on advice on self-publishing; these too have had to be paused while I charge through edits on Vengeance. They will resume soon. Thank you for your patience on that; I’ve seen quite a few hits on these posts, so I do want to finish the series up.