Rati Mehrotra's Blog, page 2

Map for FLOWER AND THORN

It’s April and Spring is in the air! Despite falling to -7C two days ago, lol. That’s Toronto for you. But the birds are back! Spotted in the last week during my daily walk: starlings, robins, red-winged blackbirds, grackles, red cardinals, swallows, house finches, and geese. I love this time of year.

But the reason I’m posting today is because I have a beautiful map of Flower and Thorn to share. Many thanks to artist Sarah Macklin for this lovely rendering of my sketch! The map won’t be in the ...

Story Day! Amma’s Kitchen in The Deadlands

Story days are happy days! I am delighted to share my latest publication, a short story about food, death, the afterlife, and one very special frog: Amma’s Kitchen in The Deadlands, Issue 22. I love the fiction and poetry published by this magazine and am so happy to have placed my work there. I can’t think of a better home for this story, which is my very own take on the folkloric ferryman/woman who ferries souls in the afterlife. The story is free to read online.

The Deadlands is a monthly sp...

Flower and Thorn: A brief history of early 16th century India

Now that the cover for my next YA Fantasy book Flower and Thorn has been revealed, and we have a firm date for publication (17 October 2023), I wanted to talk a little bit about the historical background of the book. It is set in an alternate sixteenth century India near the beginning of European colonization of the Indian subcontinent. While it is a fantasy, and all characters and settings are used fictitiously, it is the most ‘historical’ book I’ve written and I wanted to give some background ...

Cover Reveal: Flower and Thorn

I am thrilled to share the beautiful cover of Flower and Thorn – my second YA fantasy novel! It will be released on 17 October 2023 from Wednesday Books. This is also a medieval Indian fantasy, like my previous book Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove, but is set in a different world. It is the most ‘historical’ book I’ve written. It is set in the Gujarat Sultanate in the early sixteenth century, at the time of the Portuguese invasion. It was the beginning of European colonization of the subcon...

One Day in the Afterlife of Detective Roshni Chaddha

Story days are the best days! Delighted to announce that my little novelette One Day in the Afterlife of Detective Roshni Chaddha is now live at Lightspeed Magazine. It’s a supernatural detective story featuring an inept messenger of death, a dashing afterlife policeman, an evil villain, an unreliable ghost, a missing soul, and a Coffee House with a delectable menu. It was very fun for me to write and I hope it will be fun for you to read as well.

I answer some questions about the story and my l...

Appearances and updates

Nearly a month since my book was released! I haven’t had time to worry about how it’s doing, because on the day of release, I got my edits for my next book which is scheduled for Fall 23. Still wrangling with those edits. I am more than halfway through, but it’s hard work. But, in a lovely piece of news to brighten me up, I saw my cover today for the first time, and it’s gorgeous. Just breathtaking. Can’t wait to share it with everyone!

FYI, my next book is also a medieval Indian fantasy but set...

Happy Book Birthday to me!!!

My book Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove was released today! My gratitude to my editor Mara Delgado Sánchez, my agent Mary C. Moore, and the entire team at Wednesday Books for making this beautiful book possible. And a big thank you to all my early readers who reviewed this book on Goodreads, Netgalley, and various blogs. You rock! If possible, I’d love for you to leave a review on Amazon as well. Their algorithm only starts recommending books that hit 50 reviews/ratings, so it would be a b...

Book launch of Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove

Exactly two weeks until my book Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove is out in the world! The release date is 18 October 2022, but I am doing an in-person book launch event on 22 October, which is a Saturday. If you’re in the GTA, and you enjoy reading Young Adult Fantasy, you are most welcome to join. It will be held at the Bakka-Phoenix Bookstore on 84 Harbord St, Toronto at 12.30 pm. There will be samosas and songs! If you want a signed copy of my book but are unable to attend the event, you ...

Girl, Cat, Wolf, Moon

Story day! It’s always lovely to be able to share a new story with the world, especially now, when I write so little short fiction. I am delighted to announce that my story Girl, Cat, Wolf, Moon is now live at Uncanny Magazine, one of my favorite markets! This is a story about hope and transformation. There are cats, monsters, magic, hidden worlds, grisly murders, a rather special girl, and did I mention cats? Yes, cats often work their way into my fiction. They’re clever like that. Also cute an...

A Monstrous Pre-order Campaign!

I mentioned in my previous post that I had seen some pretty things, didn’t I? Delighted to share that the pre-order campaign for my book Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove is now live! If you’ve pre-ordered my book, save your receipts, because you can use them to to receive five monster character cards and a signed bookplate. You can have a daayan, a preta, a vetala, a yatu, and a pishacha of your very own! Feast your eyes on the gorgeous graphic below:

This is open US and Canada while suppli...