book reviews

Blursday

Blursday

Usually, when I say it’s blursday, I mean that the days are all running together and I don’t know what day it is. Today, though, I know exactly what day it is. It’s the day I get my eyes dilated enough that I see all timelines at once. It’s not a fun experience — my appointment was at 8:15 this morning, and here it is 3:20 in the afternoon and I still can’t see clearly. But things look fine — everything is status quo, so we’re good for another year.

(Why do I do this? Because I am so VERY nearsighted that it’s possible for my retinas to self-destruct with no warning.)

Thankfully, I don’t have much on my plate today. I finished my revision pass on The Sea Prince last night and sent it back to the sensitivity reader, which brings it one step closer to publication. Once I get the all clear from the sensitivity reader, I’ll get the layout done and the cover ordered. I’m looking at a summer release, so that I don’t dilute Raven’s Fall.

The first reviews are starting to come in for Raven’s Fall, and I’ll be honest — I am reading them. I know that it’s not recommended for writers to read their own reviews, but I want to see what people think! And I’m loving that every review so far has called out the accuracy of my research. That makes EVERY bit of web crawling and cross-referencing and finding obscure references worth it! And to my reviewers? You are going to LOVE Raven’s Flight for just that reason! There’s a reference list of healing herbs used in one scene, with the proper names in Latin and Gaelic, cross-referenced from Dioscorides’ De Materia Medica (c. 64CE) and John Cameron’s Gaelic Names of Plants (1883).

Do I overdo it on my research? Possibly. Do I need to go and spend three hours to find a reference on trains from Aachen to Salzburg in February of 1899. in order to find out of there was a direct train, or if they would need to change trains? Possibly not, especially when those three hours of research translated to three lines of text. But my readers are the ones who will know exactly what trains I’m talking about, and will know that I’ve gotten it right. So I owe it to them to get it right from the start. And yes, someone did know the train I was talking about, and did appreciate that the research was correct!

In the case of Raven’s Fall? The areas of research I spent the most time on were on types of gladiators, on Roman weddings, and on Roman baths. Now, no one has yet mentioned the baths in a review, but that was, I think, the largest research topic for me — in what order were the rooms experienced, how were things heated, and what rooms were included. Part of the research was a surprise — actually experiencing a caldarium! (Really, who expects to find a reasonably accurate Roman bath experience on a Disney cruise???) For the record, the baths Lorcan experiences are a combination of the Old Baths at Pompeii and the Baths of Caracalla (with a slight hint of flavor from the caldarium in the Rainforest Room on the Disney Fantasy.)

I am history geek, see me over-research!

Now Available!

Kidnapped from his home and sold as a slave in Rome, Raven-Prince Lorcan must survive in a world where entertainment is murder, diplomacy is betrayal, and love is a commodity. And where a raven who is only supposed to ever have one mate will somehow find two…

Work in Progress

Tales from the Arena: King of Swords
(Tales from the Arena, book 4)

15673 / 90000 (17.41%)

The Coral Throne
(The Sea Prince, book 2)

15354 / 90000 (17.06%)

Promotions

Stuff with Fantasy is coming February 28th! Over 300 authors, over 300 books, free for the taking! One day only!

Appearances

Enchanted Knights: Myths and Legends
March 8th, 2025
Oviedo Mall
Oviedo, FL

***

ICFA
March 19 – 22nd, 2025
Orlando, FL

***

3rd Annual Spring is in the Air
April 13th, 2025
Venetian Center,
Leesburg, FL

***

6th Annual Mother’s Day Bazaar
May 10th, 2025
Ormond Beach Elks Lodge
Ormond Beach, FL

***

Enchanted Knights: Summer Solstice
June 21st, 2025
Oviedo Mall
Oviedo, FL

***

3rd Annual Summer Artisan Market
June 29th, 2025
Brannon Center
New Smyrna Beach, FL

***

Smut Lovers: The Conference
September 17th – 21st, 2025
Orlando, FL

Necronomicon
September 26th – 28th, 2025
Tampa, FL

Posted by EASchechter in a-writers-life-is-never-dull, Blood of the Raven, book reviews, promotions, public displays of geekery, publishing, Ravens Fall, research is fun, The Sea Prince, upcoming books, upcoming work, WIP, wordcount, 0 comments
Updatey Things.

Updatey Things.

New book means new updatey things on websites and price lists and all sorts of places. And it means that I’m thinking of how to add in new options.

I already sell signed paperbacks on my website. If I started selling ebooks directly from my website as well, would that be of interest to people? You’d actually OWN your copy (instead of licensing it from some big retailer.) There’s the added bonus that if spicy romances are banned, you wouldn’t have to worry about books being taken off your reader without your consent, which is what would happen if you buy through Amazon (they’ve done it before, in 2009.) I’m interested in seeing what people think before I take the next step and spend money on upgrades and subscriptions.

I also need to make a request of everyone out there reading this. If you have a Netgalley account, you can apply for a review copy of Raven’s Fall. It’s been a week, and either Amazon’s ranking systems are broken (again) or no one is buying my new book. I really think it’s the former, but a review would go a long way to helping get this book in the public eye. (If you don’t have a Netgalley account and still want to review? Talk to me. I have review copies.)

I started my last pass on The Sea Prince today, while sitting at the dealership waiting for my car’s oil change. This is the pass where I go through and read the sensitivity reader’s comments and make those changes, and so far, it’s pretty minor. I hope to have this done this week so I can send it back to her for final thoughts. Which means… maybe May for a release? I still have to do the layout and commission a cover.

The other thing I need to work on this week is the panel I’m leading at ICFA, on the reimagining and reinvention of classic monsters in modern pop culture. It’s a panel discussion, so I really just have to put together questions and talking points, but I want to make sure they’re GOOD questions and talking points. This is going to be my first time on the academic side of presenting, and I’m really looking forward to the discussion.

My to-do list seems to be getting longer by the minute! Off to do all the things!

Now Available!

Kidnapped from his home and sold as a slave in Rome, Raven-Prince Lorcan must survive in a world where entertainment is murder, diplomacy is betrayal, and love is a commodity. And where a raven who is only supposed to ever have one mate will somehow find two…

Work in Progress

Tales from the Arena: King of Swords
(Tales from the Arena, book 4)

15673 / 90000 (17.41%)

The Coral Throne
(The Sea Prince, book 2)

11848 / 90000 (13.16%)

Promotions

5 authors, 8 minutes each – on February 20th, come find your next favorite speculative fiction read by women authors and non-binary authors with us! **FREE* tinyurl.com/m5n37k5n


Stuff with Fantasy is coming February 28th! Over 300 authors, over 300 books, free for the taking! One day only!

Appearances

Enchanted Knights: Myths and Legends
March 8th, 2025
Oviedo Mall
Oviedo, FL

***

ICFA
March 19 – 22nd, 2025
Orlando, FL

***

3rd Annual Spring is in the Air
April 13th, 2025
Venetian Center,
Leesburg, FL

***

6th Annual Mother’s Day Bazaar
May 10th, 2025
Ormond Beach Elks Lodge
Ormond Beach, FL

***

Enchanted Knights: Summer Solstice
June 21st, 2025
Oviedo Mall
Oviedo, FL

***

3rd Annual Summer Artisan Market
June 29th, 2025
Brannon Center
New Smyrna Beach, FL

***

Smut Lovers: The Conference
September 17th – 21st, 2025
Orlando, FL

Posted by EASchechter in 2025 plans, a-writers-life-is-never-dull, accountability, appearances, Blood of the Raven, book reviews, forthcoming works, ICFA, progress, promotions, Ravens Fall, Revisions, The Sea Prince, upcoming books, upcoming work, WIP, wordcount, 0 comments

It’s Still Monday.

So this totally counts as a Monday blog. Right?

Children of Dreams is now out, and I am officially taking a break until the end of the year. I’m holding The White Raven: Morrigan’s Wrath until January. I intend to spend the next month refilling my creative bucket, planning for next year, working on some edits, and doing some research.

The White Raven: Morrigan’s Wrath
(The White Raven, Book 2)

19677 / 90000 (21.86%)

Now, that being said, what am I doing?

Cleaning my house, that’s what. While doing my pre-Thanksgiving prep.

I’m both tired and bonkers. But the house has to be clean before guests arrive, and I have to have something to feed them, so there you go.

I am a little worried, though. My turkey has been in the refrigerator since last Wednesday, and it’s still a 16lb block of ice. I need to it thawed by the day after tomorrow so I can brine it. So… ummm… that’s a thing. And the guest of honor for Thursday’s dinner may need to have a long soak in the bathtub tomorrow.

I’m very pleased with the reception that Children of Dreams has had over the past week — the first review hit two days after the book released, and the reviewer loved it! It is, I think, a satisfying ending to the series, to know that readers are loving it.

It’s a good way to end the year.

Now, Cookiepocalypse is coming, so I will still be blogging. But the writing year is over for 2022. And it was a good one. Weird, but good.

On to 2023?

Posted by EASchechter in 2022 plans, 2023 plans, baking, book reviews, Children of Dreams, Cookiepocalypse, From the Writer's Kitchen, Grateful writer is grateful, Heir to the Firstborn, post novel ennui, reviews, The White Raven, 0 comments

Busy week

Short post tonight. It’s been a busy, and very odd week here in the Schechter household. I’ve been working around the edges on Adavar, and I’ve posted some more worldbuilding to Patreon. But the end of the week has been a bit distracting, so I’ve done very little since Thursday. I’m hoping things settle into place this week.

One of the changes has to do with our homeschooling status. In a nutshell, it’s coming to an end — starting in August, my son is going back to school, to an amazing school that we’ve been trying to get into for a few years now.  So come August, I’m going to have a lot more writing time, and I’m going to have to get used to that! It might mean that Ashes and Light gets written faster, or it might mean that I work on both Swords of Charlemagne and Adavar at the same time. I’ll figure it out as I go.

I’m also working on refreshing my brain, aka catching up on my reading. Last night, I read the first four pages of Catherynne Valente’s delightfully dippy Space Opera aloud to a very confused child of my acquaintance. I think I’m going to need to start him on Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy while I read this.  (If you haven’t read Space Opera yet, go get a copy now.  Right now. I’ll wait.)

Also on my pile are Roxane Gay’s Hunger, and a reread of Ursula Vernon’s Castle Hangnail.  And I’m still reading Damon Suede’s fantastic writing book Verbalize, which I have to take in small chunks, the better to absorb the information. Oh, and I’m refreshing my memory on Victorian household management for when I dive back in to Swords of Charlemagne.

The reprints of the Tales from the Arena books release soon — I know it was supposed to be June, but things happen. I’m still loving the new covers, though.

I should stop — I’m rambling like a Lake Wobegon broadcast. Although I do have to say — here in the Schechter house,  all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average.

 

Posted by EASchechter in Adavar, Ashes and Light, book reviews, children, cover art, Elemental Project, Homeschool, new books, Patreon, silly, Swords of Charlemagne, Tales from the Arena, Worldbuilding, writing-mom, 0 comments

New review for Counsel of the Wicked!

“Let me count the ways I like this latest offering from Elizabeth Schechter! Counsel of the Wicked (Rebel Mage: Book 1) is an exciting, fast-paced, genre-bending m/m romantic adventure; distinctively imaginative, sexy, thought-provoking, heart-warming, compulsively page-turning, and one heck of a cracking good read! Of course, all this is what her fans have come to expect from Schechter, a bona fide mistress of the storyteller’s craft with a hyperactively wide-ranging imagination, and a no-lesss impressively puissant intellect coupled with a preternaturally acute sense of focus. ”

Review from Erotica for the Big Brain.

I think it’s safe to say he liked it!

Posted by EASchechter in book reviews, Counsel of the Wicked, 0 comments

The quiet buildup…

I’ve been quiet.  I realize that I’ve been quiet. Which is no way to go in to the week before the release. However, there’s been a LOT of things going on. Some personal, some professional, some just plain silly.

On the personal front, I’m stressing a little (okay, a LOT). My son gets tubes put in his ears tomorrow morning. So I’ve been preoccupied with making sure all the ducks are in a row for that.

On the writing front, I’ve been plugging away at both Heart’s Master, and at my very first Sherlock fanfic. (If anyone is interested, it’s over here.) I will freely admit that the fanfic took over my brain for almost a week, so not as much got done on Heart’s Master as probably should have been done.

Building up for the next couple of days, leading into the 20th and the release, I’ll be starting an LJ author chat on Thursday the 17th, talking about Princes of Air and writing and life, and revealing the SUPER SEKRIT PROJECT! You can find the Circlet Press LJ over here, and I’ll be mirroring the posts a day later here.

And now, let me leave you with this, the FIRST REVIEW OF PRINCES OF AIR!!!

 

 

Posted by EASchechter in book reviews, circlet, fanfic, Heart's Master, heeheeheehee, Princes of Air, Release date, Sherlock, SQUEEE, upcoming books, writing, writing-mom, 0 comments

>How did I miss this???

>Apparently, I missed a major shout-out back in 2009. IO9 reviewed Like Clockwork, and mentioned “The Succubus!”

Somehow, I don’t think this is ever going to get old.

Posted by EASchechter in book reviews, 0 comments

>Dark Diva reviews Like a Sacred Desire!

>Now this is the thing to wake up to on a Monday morning! Dark Diva reviewed Like a Sacred Desire and gave it FOUR Divas, and named The Hand You’re Dealt her favorite story in the anthology!

EEEEE!!!!!!

Posted by EASchechter in book reviews, writing, 0 comments

>Book Reviews: _The Plot Chickens_ and _Do Not Open This Book!_

>I don’t know if I’m going to do this often, but these two books caught my eye the last time I took my son to the library. I find it very amusing to find children’s books about the writing process.

The Plot Chickens by Mary Jane and Herm Auch. (Holliday House)

The story of Henrietta, a chicken who loves books and loves to read. She decides to write her own story on her trusty “Hunt and Peck” typewriter, and has to deal with the joys and tribulations of writing the story, rejections, publishing and bad reviews. This book is written by a couple who have a series of chicken-pun kid’s book (Bantam of the Opera, anyone?), and it’s a good, if simplified look at the publishing world. Just right (write?) for the child of a writer, who may not understand just yet why Mommy is pounding her forehead on her laptop keyboard. The illustrations are oil painting (by Mary Jane), that were digitally enhanced by Herm, and are nice and sharp, and very amusing.


Do Not Open This Book by Michaela Muntean. Illustrated by Pascal Lemaire. (Scholastic Press).

The story of a young pig author, who is working hard at getting the words set up in the blank book. There is no fourth wall in this book — the reader is interacting directly with the ‘author’, who is angry that the reader is interrupting him while he’s trying to write the book you are reading. There are one or two places where this book reminds me strongly of The Monster at the End of this Book, but the authorial pig is not nearly as endearing as Grover (then again, who is?). The tone is fiercely antagonistic, even though the pig admits at the end that the reader helped him write a good book. The art is spare, which fits the ‘unfinished book’ theme.

On the whole, I’ll be looking for more from the Auchs. The Plot Chickens was cute, and actually informative about the process that writers go through. Do Not Open This Book was a bit too angry for my tastes.

Posted by EASchechter in book reviews, 0 comments