Rachel Rener's Blog, page 5

COVER REVEAL: Silver Blood (and important info for ARC readers!)

For those of you who may have missed last week's announcement, the Gilded Blood series is officially becoming a pentalogy!

Introducing Silver Blood: A Gilded Blood Prequel....

SYNOPSIS ( CAUTION: INKED/JINXED SPOILERS AHEAD ):

"I could smell her attraction for me, so potent I could almost taste it; somehow, I knew that if I ever let myself steal a sip of her nectar, I would never be able to satisfy my appetite with anything – or anyone – else ever again."*

I am the bastard prince of the summer court, the lone survivor of my mother’s slaughtered bloodline. Enslaved by her killer, I spend half my days as his emissary in the savage wilds of the Fae Realm, and the other half toiling away in a tattoo studio in the heart of Miami.

Because my curse forbids me from killing my family’s murderer – or myself – I have thusly persisted; a broken, half-elf, half-incubus abomination with the boot of a beast on my back and the thirst of a beast lurking within.

But when a needle-phobic art school dropout appears at my door begging for a job, her eyes glistening with golden tears, my entire existence is turned upside down. For in this strange and beautiful creature, I have found two things: a reason for living, and a means for revenge.

Preorder SILVER BLOOD Now!

(Or, if you’re feeling extra impatient, you can get a sneak peek of Chapter 1 by clicking here!)

Also introducing... My Brand New Street Team! 

I am so excited to announce that I'm assembling a formal street team - The Renergade Rangers!  Our wonderful Queen Bee Britt will be spearheading that endeavor, with me working closely with all involved.

Rangers will have highly exclusive early access to upcoming releases and will enjoy perks such as:

⭐️ Being on my official ARC list and among the first to get sneak peeks of blurbs, covers, etc.

⭐️ Receiving free physical and/or digital copies of my books

⭐️ Getting free swag and exclusive discount codes to use on my shop

⭐️ And.. wait for it..... early access to new Special Edition books (including free proof copies!!)

If you're interested in being on my team, applications are open today through November 15th, with the official announcement to be made December 1st.

Apply here!

BTW, you do not have to be a Ranger to be included on my upcoming ARC list, applications for which will be opening in January. So be sure to keep an eye out for this newsletter (and to add rachel@rachelrener.com to your email contacts list so the call for applicants isn't funneled to spam)!

I cannot wait to have you on my team!

And finally, OUR NEWEST BATCH OF SPECIAL EDITION BOOKS HAVE ARRIVED AT PORT! We expect them to be at our warehouse in a week or two, at which point we will begin shipping the brand new revamped Lightning Conjurer omnibuses and the newest batch of Bone Whisperer SE Duologies, now with lovely plum purple interior ink! If you haven't ordered yours, now's a great time to nab them before the holidays!

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If you've changed addresses since placing your preorder, please let Dani (orders@rachelrener.com) know ASAP by emailing her your order number and adjusted address!

Cheers and happy reading!❤️

Come follow me! Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Twitter | Goodreads | Bookbub | Amazon



Itching for MORE snark and shenanigans? Come join my brand-new reader group, Rachel's Renergades!

If you're reading this on Goodreads or on my blog, be sure to sign up for my newsletter to get the most exciting updates sent directly to your inbox!

The Gilded Blood universe just got a little bigger!



ANNOUNCEMENT:

For those of you who weren't ready for the Gilded Blood series to end, I've got BIG news: our beloved, needle-phobic tattoo artist's sweeping, epic foray into the fae realm is now a PENTALOGY!

Any guesses as to what the 5th book's title will be?

...Pinked?

...Winked?

...Kinked?

...Ex-TINCT?!

Great guesses, but nope

The official title is...

Aptly named for Zayn's argent blood, as revealed in Book 3 of the series! ⬇️

The cover isn't ready to share just yet, but the final version is coming soon, and it looks PHENOMENAL! Here's a tasty little nibble of it while we complete the finishing touches of it:

Be sure to keep an eye out here or in Rachel's Renergades for the official reveal! As for the story, here's what I can tell you at this stage:

1) Silver Blood is a prequel, taking place 2 years before Inked.

2) It will be told entirely from Zayn's POV.

3) Talia will be heavily featured in the story.

4) It is set to release in late winter/early spring of 2025.5)

The preorder link is already live, with the release set for late winter/early spring.

6) The story is darker and steamier than the original 4 books, and I think Gilded Blood fans will be VERY happy with it.

And there you have it!

I have big, big plans for this story, both pre-and post-pubIication, and a LOT more announcements coming your way before the end of the year. But for today, my darlings, that's all the news that's fit to print!

Cheers and have a wonderful day ahead!❤️

PS: Fans of Heath and Delaney need not fret! I am planning on writing an Amethysts & Alchemy sequel and have already started on it. That will hopefully be released next year!

PPS: since it's been over a year since the fourth book in the series came out, it would mean the world to me if you could help share the news so we can find all the Gilded Blood readers from 2022/23 who will be relieved to know there's MUCH more to Talia and Zayn's story! 



Come follow me! Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Twitter | Goodreads | Bookbub | Amazon

Itching for MORE snark and shenanigans? Come join my brand-new reader group, Rachel's Renergades!

If you're reading this on Goodreads or on my blog, be sure to sign up for my newsletter to get the most exciting updates sent directly to your inbox!

I bit a girl and I liked it

(But not really.)

Happy Wednesday and thank you so much for once again choosing to share a small part of your day with me! (The subject of this email, by the way, can be explained here. And hooooo boy, the Renergades are NOT letting me live this one down )

Biting strangers aside, I have a few pieces of book-related news, including an exclusive sneak peek of an upcoming release that I'll be formally announcing next month!

First and foremost, a brand-new shipment of special edition books is on the way as we speak, with an ETA of mid-November. That includes the gorgeous revamped Lightning Conjurer Omnibus, the special edition Bone Whisperer duology (now with purple endpages and purple ink!!), and a small shipment of Gilded Blood omnibuses to bridge us until the holidays, since we'll be selling out (again) early next month. (I knowww, I can't believe it either! )

So, a few things of note (with supplemental pretty videos!): 

1) If you preordered the revamped Lightning Conjurer omnibus and have since moved (or if the address details in your order confirmation need any adjusting), please be sure to let my amazing fulfillment coordinator Dani know ASAP by emailing her at orders@rachelrener.com.

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See original video on TikTok

2) Ahead of the new shipment, the original (black) Bone Whisperer duology is currently discounted by $5 on the website. However, subscribers of this newsletter (woohoo, that's you!) can get an additional $10 off between now and November 11th by using promo code BWNL15. You can use that on either the black version (ships now) or preorder the purple version, which will be arriving in a few weeks!

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See original video on TikTok

3) Lastly, if you were hoping to get the Gilded Blood omnibus for you or a bookstie before the holidays, we will be selling out in the next couple of weeks, and the interim shipment likely won't be enough to last until Christmas. So we definitely recommend ordering sooner than later or perusing our fabulous scratch and dent sale, which gives you gigundo savings on teeny tiny imperfections.

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See original video on TikTok

Please note: we do not accept returns with drool on them! 

NEW RELEASE SNEAK PEEK 

With so many returning favorites, I thought it might be fun to share a snippet from an upcoming new release! (Official announcement and cover reveal coming next month, so keep a close eye out!) My reader group saw this yesterday and immediately came up with some very interesting theoriesToday, I'm extra curious to hear yours!

I can't give you any more hints for the time being, but suffice it to say I am having a blast writing this story for all of you (and I think you'll be VERY excited once I announce it and upcoming related projects)! ❤️

Speaking of Rachel's Renergades, we've been giving out prizes left and right for the most random things: funniest haiku, snarkiest comment, and most unhinged memes. Aforementioned prizes include swag, merch, and, of course, signed bananas and eggplants because, you know, why not? 

So I wanted to ask: what random and ridiculous prizes should I give out next, and what kind of debauchery shall I be rewarding? 

Ending on that gloriously phallic note, I've got to head to ye olde warehouse to prep supplies for my LAST CONVENTION OF 2024! (cue bittersweet waterworks) If you're in Colorado and you'll be at Mile Hi Con this weekend, please come by and see me! I'll be signing my full collection of books Friday-Sunday.As for 2025 conventions/appearances/signings, next summer is already shaping up to be even wilder than this past one:

Will I be seeing you at any of them? Are there any I don't have listed that you think I should add to my growing list? Let me know! 

Cheers and be well!❤️

Come follow me! Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Twitter | Goodreads | Bookbub | Amazon

Itching for MORE snark and shenanigans? Come join my brand-new reader group, Rachel's Renergades!

If you're reading this on Goodreads or on my blog, be sure to sign up for my newsletter to get the most exciting updates sent directly to your inbox!

The Renergades have a bone to pick with you!

Happy Hump Day! (Also, do people still say that anymore?)

For those of you who may have missed it, and about 5 years later than I should have launched it, I have an official reader group - Rachel's Renergades! Now, I knew it would be fun, but I didn't know it was going to be THIS fun! We already have over 600 snarky, comedically inappropriate, slightly-mentally-unhinged Renergades, and now my feed is saturated with bananas of all shapes and sizes, dirty jokes, and bookshelf pjörn.What more could a girl ask for?

Also, today marks the very first day of the group's very first read-along! About 120 Renergades are group-reading The Bone Whisperer duology together, which is the perfect spooky-yet-cozy read for the season! If you'd like to join in on the fun, plus have access to exclusive coupons, giveaways, teasers, and signed bananas, you can check out the pinned post here. There are two groups: one for those who are re-reading the books, and one for first-timers to avoid spoilers.

Happy reading!

Adding to my growing team of the most awesome people on the planet, I've teamed up with one of my favorite Bookstagrammers, Xenatine, to help me with some content creation! What do you guys think of her first video? (I'm obsessed!) If you happen to see it floating around on social media, I would love it if you would throw it a little love!

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By the way, as I'm gearing up to make a big announcement about a new project, in the coming weeks, I thought I'd share this super zoomed in, 100% context-free spoiler:

One of the Renergades guessed Moses parting the Red Sea, which has me thinking about embarking on a new subgenre of romantasy: erot!c biblical fanfic!!! (I do wonder if the long, scraggly prophet beards would make it harder to write certain types of romantic scenes, though)

October Deluxe Fantasy Giveaway

I've been fortunate to join five other incredible authors who are ready to give away SIX SIGNED DELUXE/SPECIAL EDITION hardbacks! (I swear, it's times like this that I wish I could enter myself.)



And when I say deluxe/special edition, I mean you're getting some books with sprayed edges, gilded edges, foiled covers, and/or exclusive interior artwork… oh, and did I mention they're all signed?



Seriously… it's the ULTIMATE deluxe fantasy giveaway. We're talkin' over $350 in value.

Enter the giveaway here and may the odds be ever in your favor!

Cheers!❤️



Come follow me! Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Twitter | Goodreads | Bookbub | AmazonIf you're reading this on Goodreads or on my blog, be sure to sign up for my newsletter to get the most exciting updates sent directly to your inbox!

SAVOR THE PlCKLE! (a.k.a. Britt is running amok and has taken over the NL!)

A (Long) Word from the Queen Helper Bee

Hi everyone! While Rachel is dealing with literal lunatics and working on a top-secret new project I'm not allowed to breath a syllable about on pain of ☠️☠️☠️, I'm taking over her newsletter - which means I can write WHATEVER I WANT and possibly even get away with it too!

First item on the agenda: SALT LAKE CITY FANX! (And lots of behind the scenes tea )

What a wrap on my first summer of convention season with Rachel!

Having just arrived home from the amazing Salt Lake City FanX event I can now say with certainty... what a RUSH! Each event we attend really is so special and fun, but there is also SO MUCH work and planning that goes into each one. (I literally don't know how she did it on her own for so long.)

It's been wonderful getting to travel alongside Rachel and witness first-hand the level of care and effort she pours into her work and readers. Watching the way she engages with her readers, both new and familiar, is just something you cannot put into words. They laugh together (and sometimes straight up CACKLE), they cry together, they yell out completely inappropriate things randomly just for funsies ... She gave so many hugs and made multiple people cry, which then made ME cry!

Like my awesome Inked-inspired siren hide leggings??

And through it all, Rachel and I have gotten to know each other a little bit more each time. Really, we keep learning that we're just more and more alike than we thought and you know how each person has their own little quirks and silly things? ... Yeah we have A LOT of those in common.

Rachel and I "savoring the pickle" at one of our rest stops on the way to SLC. Turns out, pickle juice is super hydrating for roadtrips!

Except... I haven't bitten a stranger in public, then tried to apologize but only spit out incomprehensible gibberish and then sprinted away at an impressive speed when realizing the "stranger" wasn't who I thought it was. THAT was definitely just a Rachel thing.  (She's gonna unalive me for sharing that with all of you but still totally worth it!!) 

A few more highlights/revelations from SLC while I can still get away with it:

We're both big fat cry babies for epic instrumental music. Rachel's a BIG fan of Samuel Kim and his epic Star Wars compositions. You should check them out!!

"AAH! This is definitely not tofu!" Rachel took me to my first experience with Shabu Shabu, a Japanese style of eating where you cook the food at your own table. Thinking she'd grabbed some firm tofu in her bowl, Rachel plopped an entire cube in her mouth and then turned white as a napkin when she realized it was actually a fishcake. Turns out, Rachel hasn't gotten over her previous experience with Japanese fish 

I've also decided that I need to drive Rachel around for hours on end WAY more often, because remember that TOP SECRET PROJECT I mentioned above that she's gonna kill me for mentioning? She had SO many epiphanies and awesome ideas about it that I am bursting at the seams to tell you!!! Any guesses as to what it might be? (I can neither confirm nor deny but I'd love to hear your thoughts!)

Lastly, she managed to convince author David Andrew Trotter to climb up onto a vent in the middle of SLC....in a kilt. It. Was. GLORIOUS.

Anyway - let's move on to some other really exciting stuff. We are so excited to be starting a new reader group on Facebook: RACHEL'S RENERGADES! This is going to be a place where you can come for the tea and stay for the snark. There will be a bigger/more official announcement later, but you guys are the very first to hear it and have the chance to join early! We'll have opportunities to join together and buddy read some of Rachel's books in a book-club style, chat about books and upcoming events, and mayyyybee even get insider access to new release teasers before they go live. (Read: you will DEFINITELY be the first to hear about Rachel's most exciting projects way before anyone else.) Oh, and Rachel has said she's gonna routinely give out the most outlandish signed prizes to the most engaged members. I'm pretty sure she mentioned she's gonna send someone a signed rubber banana at some point?!?!?!

Our first buddy read is planned to start on Wednesday, October 9th and seeing as it's spooky season we'll be starting with none other than The Bone Whisperer Chronicles*. Whether you've read this amazing duology before or have been eyeing it on your TBR, you are welcome to join us. Want more deets and info? Join the group here!

* Even though Rachel never discounts special edition books (unless they're damaged), she's given me permission to offer 15% off discount codes to all Renergades. All you have to do is join the group and we'll get you all the info you need!

For those of you who have been asking, we've restocked those gorgeous Gilded Blood calendars for 2025, so go nab yours now!!

Lastly, please help me wish Rachel a HUGE congratulations for Inked winning not one but FIVE categories in the Indie Ink Awards:

- Best book cover and cover artist

- Side Character MVP

- Best use of tropes

- Prettiest book interior, and

- Best light read

That brings her up to 3 first place awards for the year!!!

With that, I shall bid you all a wonderful week ahead. Remember, if you ever need me you can reach me at support@rachelrener.com. Can't wait to talk soon and hopefully see you in the new reader group!

XoXoX,

Britt

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If you're reading this on Goodreads or on Rachel's blog, be sure to sign up for my newsletter to get the most exciting updates sent directly to your inbox!

 EXCITING FREEBIE!!!

From Rachel:

My friend Lisa McBride has an awesome freebie that I wanted to share with you! Boneyard Thief is the prequel to the Riley Cruz series. If you like fun, fast-paced urban fantasy with quirky characters (which I know you do!), this is the book for you.

BLURB:

Sixteen was supposed to be about fast cars and first kisses, not plotting a heist that might get me killed.

As a scrawny goat shifter in a pack of werewolves, my role is to get into places they can’t go. The alpha who took me in after my parents died molded me into a master thief. For four long years, he’s lined his pockets, while I’ve taken all the risks.

Now he’s sending me after the magical artifact he’s chased for years. This is my chance to escape. All I have to do is pull off the biggest heist I’ve ever attempted, escape the seethe of vampires I’m about to rob, and ditch the wolves who watch my every move.

To walk away from this job alive, I better prove I’m as good at getting out of trouble as I am at wading into it.

Read now for FREE!

It's official: Stephen King and I are pretty much besties. (And I've done the math to prove it.)

That's right, you heard me. The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction just published an unprompted review* of INKED in their column, Books to Look For. Now, this magazine has been around for millions and billions of years, having been founded alllll the way back in 1949. They were also the original publisher of Stephen King's Dark Tower, which helped skyrocket him to his current pillar of greatness. 

How does this make the two of you besties? You might be wondering.

Thank you so much for asking; I will tell you.



Be forewarned, this is where the math gets a little tricky, but I'll do my best to lay it out step by step:

If you take 75 - the number of years The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction has been around for, multiplied by the 5 Dark Tower stories that  were originally published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, then divide by 76 (Stephen King's age as of today), then take the square root of that product and subtract 5.1112781 (for reasons that go without saying), and then raise it to the power of 8 (the number of books in the completed Dark Tower series, you get 8,357,135. 

Which, when written digitally, spells out:

Or, "BESTIES".

As you can clearly see, the math is ironclad and incontrovertible and DEFINTELY doesn't need any checking by, you know, actual mathematicians:

___________

((√((2024-1949) x 5) ÷ 76)-5.1112781)^8 = 8,357,135

(And yes, I definitely wrote out that equation perfectly, so don't you dare @ me on #MathTok and embarrass yourself!)

So there you have it; Stephen King and I, having both been mentioned in the same magazine, are officially besties. I'll let you all know when our upcoming collaborative novel will be released!! (Hopefully it won't be too scary since I'm kind of a baby but I'm sure he'd be okay with taking the back seat on the plot and swapping out psychopathic clowns for hunky incubi.)

*Fantasy and Science Fiction Review:

Apparently it will be published in the Summer 2024 issue, which I shall be laminating and framing and - if the mortuary allows for it - taking to my grave!

Oh and PS, the proof for the Revamped Lightning Conjurer Complete Series Omnibus just arrived and it is sexy AF!

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(Here's the link to the video just in case it doesn't load properly!)

Isn't it gorgeous? I just know my new best friend Stephen King would be so proud of how it turned out

GIVEAWAY ALERT!

Here's how to enter: After perusing the big book sale the participating authors are hosting, you can finalize your entry here. The winner gets a crazy number of prizes, including a $20 Amazon Gift Card plus 16 urban fantasy books and swag:

(Yep, that lovely pink book is mine and the first (and possibly last) time I'm offering it in a giveaway!)

Thanks for being here and have a great Tuesday!!

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*If you're reading this on Goodreads or on my blog, be sure to sign up for my newsletter to get the most exciting updates sent directly to your inbox!

Monster *BLEEPS*, Haggis, & also my PA might need an exorcἱsm?!

DISCLAIMER: I am not responsible for any balderdash, gobbledygook, or idiotic mumbo-jumbo you may find in this newsletter since I just got back from Scotland late last night. Also, there may be typos. Sue me.

Happy Monday! (Or Tuesday, if jetlag smacks me in the face and I don't get this sent 'til tomorrow ) Now, before we get distracted by monster 's and exorcisms, make sure you scroll to the bottom of this email for a super cool urban fantasy giveaway that includes a bunch of signed books, including a certain pink beauty!

Okay, now where was I? Oh, right - Scotland!

Britt, Aaron, and I got there a few days before the convention (and immediately after Dragon Con, in my case) to explore Edinburgh, but I seriously regret doing that. You see, we ended up venturing into these dark, spooky underground tunnels that housed hundreds - if not thousands - of people over the centuries in what were pretty appalling conditions. Apparently, the spiritual activity down there is so high, a coven of witches took up residence there a few decades ago to harness that supernatural energy into channeling their spells. This is the altar where they practiced, which has been preserved behind locked bars:

In general, the ghosts and witches got along - except for in one room. That room housed a spirit so malignant, the witches had to create a circle of stones to trap it inside. 

So what does Britt do?

Yup, you guessed it.

After she ignored my pleas to stay out of the summoning circle, I reminded her that demonic possession is NOT a valid reason for paid time off. She apparently didn't like that, because her head started spinning around as radioactive green goo spewed violently from her mouth.

(In other words, a typical Tuesday )

Anyway, even though Britt was kind of agitated and exclusively speaking ancient Greek from that moment forward, we had a great time exploring some of the gorgeous sites of Edinburgh. We actually saw some of Scotland's elusive blue skies, too!

And then came RARE!

I was so incredibly excited and honored to sit next to my new "Bookstie" and emotional support author, Annette Marie (who also happens to be my favorite UF author of all time)! Her team and mine had so much fun together! Our PAs are now besties, as are our husbands

On the other side of my table was Opal Reyne, a positively delightful Aussie who has a penchant for monster smut. And I don't mean shifter romance, where the raunchy stuff takes place while the werewolf / leopard / silverback gorilla is in his hunky and muscular human form, but, like, MONSTER smut:

And because she's a brilliant marketer, Opal has had all sorts of custom x-rated artwork commissioned for her series. But she didn't just stop at two-dimensional art. She ventured ALL the way into - ahem -  "artistically explicit three dimensional sculptures."

(If you don't want to see HIGHLY detailed monster d*ldos, you should definitely scroll past this next part.)

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Apparently the tentacles wrap around the head like alien face huggers, so that's fun! At one point I ran over to Annette's table waving a massive jiggling d*lgo and shouting, "Look, Annete! Giant monster c*cks!" To which she paled slightly and said something along the lines of, "That's a big ol' nope from me, thanks!" (Only to wander over to Opal's table a few minutes later)

I haven't read much (read: any) true monster smut. Have any of you read Opal's work, or any other books like hers? If so, what did you think?

Speaking of purple tentacled monster appendages, I have GOT to remember that people actually read these newsletters. Do you know how many gals came up to me and asked me about stuffing fish in my knickers or hoisting myself into filing cabinets? (I'll take "An uncomfortably high number of people" for $500, Alex!)

But that's one of the many joys of RARE; everyone there is a little bit unhinged in all the best ways. For example, I had folks asking me to sign various parts of their bodies, gifting me crocheted d*cks and g-string bookmarks, and telling me to write "whatever" I wanted in their autograph books. Which I of course obliged:

And before you all yell at me for defacing their belongings, here are a few of the presents I was given:

I was just driving the same speed limit as the rest of the speeding traffic, Officer!

For those of you who are still here and haven't immediately unsubscribed, we have a number of fun goodies that just arrived and/or restocked in my shop!

My favorite is probably the Topie hoodie, which is so lightweight and incredibly soft!! You can get a closer look of some of the new items in this video I made that TikTok only showed to 6 people. (WTF, Tok?! It's not like I was talking about monster d*cks! (Er......this time.))

SURPRISE GIVEAWAY: The first person to reply to this with a piggy emoji () gets a full set of 5 Topie pins for FREE in thanks for actually reading the newsletter!!

As a reminder, we are getting a new shipment of holographic rainbow Gilded Blood omnibuses, Bone Whisperer Special Edition Duologies, and a brand-new revamped Lightning Conjurer Deluxe Omnibus in early November.

What we are NOT getting is another shipment of gold Gilded Blood omnibuses. Much like gold blood, I'd like to keep the gilded version of the special edition special and rare. So if you've been eyeing those golden, glittering sprayed edges, the time to buy is now!

(Don't mind the mess on the floor. This summer as been pure, unbridled chaos.)

And now for that giveaway I was telling you about! Basically, you follow all the authors listed here on Instagram. (And while you're on the page, you can peruse the big book sale all of us are hosting!)

After that, you go finalize your entry here.

The winner gets a crazy number of prizes, including a $20 Amazon Gift Card plus 16 urban fantasy books and swag:

(Yep, that lovely pink book is mine and the first (and possibly last) time I'm offering it in a giveaway!)

Okay, my brain is grumbling for sleep and my stomach is grumbling for food, even though it's 3 pm and I shouldn't be needing either of those things. 

Have a wonderful week ahead, be well, and happy reading!❤️



Come follow me! Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Twitter | Goodreads | Bookbub | Amazon

If you're reading this on Goodreads or on my blog, be sure to sign up for my newsletter to get the most exciting updates sent directly to your inbox!

A Word from our Queen Helper Bee  

WOW! I just have to take a moment to share how grateful I am right now. Being able to travel with Rachel (and Aaron) to Scotland for RARE Edinburgh and be right back in the assistant element of a book convention like when I first met Rachel was such a surreal experience. Add playing tourist and being our goofy a$$ selves in another country was such a highlight for me! I mean come on, castles, catacombs and red telephone booths?! Yes please!

ps. Those red doors were A LOT heavier than I thought they would be! Oh and, pretty sure I brought the sunshine there - grateful for not needing half of what I packed or having to fix my hair due to "rainy Scotland" LOL.

Meeting readers in person, and hearing their stories of how much Rachel’s books have influenced their lives, brought and back their love for reading was so cool. The gifts were hilarious and beyond thoughtful and I thought it was really really cool when a few of you even asked to have me in your photos too! I was taken aback a little, NGL. I love how much you’ve all welcomed me into the Rachel world and I can’t wait for more adventures to come.

Getting to meet Annette Marie and her team, and literally making a new bestie with her PA was SO much fun! Us PA's gotta stick together and Francine is an absolute delight! I'm already looking forward to our next convention together.

Also, knowing that while we were abroad all the orders were being handled with the utmost care was just icing on the cake and I couldn’t be more thankful for our new fulfillment coordinator, Dani! Thanks for holding down the fort while we were gone babe! You’re truly amazing and we appreciate having you on the team more than you know!

That’s all I have for now so thank you for having me!

XoXoX

Britt

Have you ever seen a Sandworm light a for a Disney princess?

No? Well, keep reading!

Dragon Con has been a wild, nerdy, extravagant carnival of debauchery and pocky.

For those of you who have never attended, the convention takes place in the heart of downtown Atlanta in not just one but six different hotels. It attracts upwards of 85,000 people from all over the globe, not to mention a few tens of thousands more who show up in their finest cosplay and wait for the unticketed after-parties.

I've had a very full schedule of panels so I've sadly not been able to stick around for the late-night shenanigans, but I have still managed to:

Disrupt a parade by running across the street to get to a panel on time (It just kept going and going!)

Made 6 different rooms of people yell BOOBS! at the top of their lungs (to make sure the other nearby panels all had sufficient FOMO)

Get locked in a stairwell (Not my fault.)

Receive a BEAUTIFUL crocheted potato (with prominent buttcheeks on its posterior) from an amazingly generous reader

Watch Alan Tudyk give a limp banana to a fan (She was thrilled)

Offend a prominent urban fantasy writer during our panel by spilling a cup of water in my lap and telling the audience, "Ack, I've wet myself!" while she was monologuing about her book. (She did not find this funny.)

Clandestinely play Tic Tac Toe with A.J. Hartley during a live panel (and lost)

Hang out with Jim Butcher without putting my foot in my mouth (Yet.)

I've also gotten to meet some wonderful authors and readers in-person, see some of the coolest cosplays I've ever seen, AND witness a sandworm light a cigarette for Belle!

Here are a few more of my favorite photos from the weekend:

Dr. Doom is my little brother, Joey, who braved 100 degree weather in a tin can made out of airplane sheet metal!

Hanging out with authors who are far more intelligent than me (including Kim Harrison!) at the "Scientists Who Ditched Math for Magic" Panel

<3

I even made Jim Butcher laugh - and I'm 97% sure it was with me, not at me!

Speaking of the Dresden Files, if you love paranormal PI's with humor and (a surprising amount of heart), my friend and Pilfered Quill co-writer David Green just released the newest installment in his Hell in Haven series and I hear it's the best one yet. I personally don't believe it since I've read the others and there's pretty much no way they can be topped. But we shall see, Mr. Green. We Shall see.

Do yourself a favor and go nab your Labor Day binge-read now!

I have one more panel tonight and then tomorrow my husband and I are headed to the Georgia Aquarium for a behind the scenes tour. After that, we are off to Scotland for RARE! (Britt is coming too!!) Wanna know the coolest part? While Britt and I are away, we have a brand new FULFILLMENT MANAGER who will be handling orders! You heard it here: the Rachel Rener dream team is up to three!

Have a wonderful holiday weekend!

Fish Heads Do Not Go In Pants (or so my PA has just informed me )

Happy Friday, Friends!!

As you know, I try not to spam your inboxes unless I have interesting things or big announcements to share with you, and this newsletter is no different! I have tons of exciting stuff to tell you, so please stick with me until the end!

But first, I should probably explain that subject line. You see, Britt And I were at Fort Collins Comic Con this past weekend, where we had an absolute blast hanging out with readers, convention participants, and fellow authors! One such author, Hayley Rae Johnson, joined Britt and I for dinner at a sushi restaurant. I'm not going to lie to you; sake was involved. And, well, one thing led to another, and before I knew it I was telling Britt and Hayley about the time I lived in Japan for 6 months. I was a traveling English teacher in Machida, Tokyo, and had four elementary schools (and something like 2,000 students) under my wing. What that meant is that anytime I showed up to teach for the day, the students would get really excited and would request that I eat lunch with them in the cafeteria. (Super cute, I know.) I want to preface this story by saying that I love Japanese cuisine, which IMO boasts some of the tastiest, most innovative dishes on the planet.

That said, I don't love all Japanese food. For example, I would sometimes see things like this being plated on my tray:

Those are baby mackerel - a Japanese staple - and they are served exactly like that: bones, scales, eyeballs, and all.

Now, Japanese people are very particular about their food and show it a great deal of respect while eating: Not pouring soy sauce on rice or shoving their chopsticks in their food to prop them upright, for example. It's also very important in Japanese culture that you finish every bit of food on your plate, down to the last grain of rice.

Chopstick finagling aside, that's not exactly an easy feat when you have the pallet of a picky toddler and a strong gag reflex. But I also couldn't risk getting in trouble or dishonoring myself, or worse, offending their local cultural norms, by not eating all of the food on my tray.

So, anyway, long story short, on more than one occasion I would randomly jerk my attention to the ceiling, pull a funny face like I had just seen Godzilla walk by the second story window, wait for all of the students to turn and inspect aforementioned giant reptile... And then shove the dried mackerel in my pants to avoid the very real possibility of regurgitating fish eyeballs.

And no, I will not be answering further questions about any post-prandial activities regarding the trouser fish.

Now that we've taken a moment to revel in my past humiliation, I have some cool book stuff to share - specifically special edition book stuff!

First and foremost, The Lightning Conjurer Series Special Edition is getting a SEGGSY makeover in the form of silver foil and sprayed edges!

The Lightning Conjurer series was my very first book baby and I'm so excited to show it even more love as I venture into the super fun world of special edition books.

***NOTE: If you already bought the first version of the special edition and are also eyeing the newly-revamped version, please shoot me an email and I'll make you a special invoice with $40 off and free shipping (a $50 discount in total). I never want my readers - especially those who have supported me the longest - to feel put out when I release new products. You guys are my reason for writing, after all!

If you haven't read TLC yet, you can read the complete series for $9.99 (or FREE with a KU membership!) Or you are also welcome to preorder the special edition, which we expect to arrive in early November! Just select "Preorder - REVAMPED Collectible Hardcover Omnibus" from the drop-down menu and you'll be among the first to receive your copy this fall!

In case you missed my FB poll yesterday,I have some exciting news about the Gilded Blood Deluxe Edition Omnibus as well!

Demand has been so steadily high, we're looking to get a warehouse and dedicated fulfillment team for 2025! This means we'll be able to handle more orders faster, and I'll have WAY more time to write, which will be fantastic! The downside, and something we've been discussing in-depth, is that hand-signing books will be much harder. I have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, the same joint-affecting condition Rebecca Yarros has. Currently, I can handle signing 10-20 books a day as there are breaks in between. But I won't be able to sign 5,000+ tip-in sheets to be sewn into the books ahead of time without doing serious damage to my wrist. But here's the good news: after polling you guys and getting some BRILLIANT suggestions, I have decided to do an embossed gold foil stamp of my signature on the title page. It'll cost a bit extra (for me) but will be so worth it in the end! So thank you so much for helping me puzzle that out AND come up with a really fun and beautiful solution! Until then, my local team will be using transparent matte bookplates that are hand-signed by me and look REALLY nice :)

✨IMPORTANT NOTE✨

I have decided that I will NOT be doing another print run of the gold-foiled edition. It's my favorite of the two variants and has the most meaning, given Talia's gold blood. Therefore, I think it's only appropriate that it remains rare and elusive, kind of like Gilded Blood :) So if you've been eyeing the gold version, I recommend you order it as soon as possible because I don't expect to have any left in stock by 2025.

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Lastly, don't forget we're doing our big SCRATCH 'N' DENT SALE on holographic rainbow omnibuses, which will only last as long as our limited stock allows. We're talking BIG discounts (up to $40 off) for some seriously minor damage! So get on that while you can!!

Well friends, that's about it for now :)This Wednesday I head down to Atlanta for Dragon Con, where my schedule is insanely chock-full

Once Dragon Con is over, I'll be heading directly to Edinburgh, Scotland for RARE. And then after that comes FanX in Salt Lake City and Mile Hi Con in Denver. I hope to see you at one or more of those events!(BTW, Australia readers, I'll be heading to Sydney for BABE in May of 2025 and cannot wait to see you there!!)

Be well and have a wonderful weekend ahead!

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Rubbing Elbows with Jim Butcher (Dresden Files)

Hi friends!

I'm keeping this NL extra short and sweet because the Time of Insanity is officially upon us. (Or, well, upon me.) As convention season ramps up to full swing, I'll pretty much be in a different state/country every weekend for the next 6 weeks! (WHAT HAVE YOU DONE, PAST RACHEL?!)

This week, for example, I'm heading to World Con in Glasgow, Scotland to sign books, attend a couple of panels, and hang with some of my favorite book-loving Europeans! After that will be Fort Collins Comic Con, followed by a tiny break, and then Dragon Con in Atlanta (followed by RARE in Edinburgh, Scotland (and yes, I am going to Scotland twice in one month)).

Speaking of Dragon Con, you wanna know what's really, really, REALLY cool/terrifying? I just got my panel schedule, and it's a doozy. First of all, I'm confirmed on five panels and a backup for several others. But the craziest thing of all is that I'll be on multiple panels with JIM BUTCHER, worldwide bestselling author phenomenon of the Dresden Files.

(Please excuse me while I go hyperventilate into a paper bag.)

I also get to talk to a room of people with my brother, Joey (DM of the popular D&D podcast, Of Dice and Friends), about world-building and magic systems in fantasy and D&D! 

Broseph and Me in Moab!

If you're planning on going to Dragon Con at the end of the month, here's my (tentative) schedule!

Title: Supernatural, Super Stories

Description: Vampires, werewolves, ghosts - paranormal is back in YA in a big way. Let's talk about the books about things that go bump in the night.

Panelists: TBD

Time: Friday, 01:00 p.m.

Location: YA Lit track

Title: 15-Minute Author Mentor Session

Description: A chance for budding authors to talk one-on-one with a successful industry professional about business, promotion, the writing process, & career advice. Sign up in the Writer's Track. (Embassy E/F)

Panelists: Jessica Cage, Todd J McCaffrey, Alex Shvartsman, Rachel Rener

Time: Friday 04:00 pm

Location: Embassy G Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

Book signing at The [Fantasy] Gather:

When: Friday, August 30th, 2024

Time: 08:00 pm to Midnight

Location: International Ballroom, Hyatt Hotel

Title: Scientists Who Ditch the Math for the Might of Magic

Description: Coming from a wide range of science backgrounds, our panelists will talk about what drove them into the tender loving arms of magic and how it has held them their with all its might.

Panelists: Milton J. Davis, Kim Harrison, Rachel Rener, Michael J Allen, Robert W Ross(M), Katie Cross

Time: Saturday 11:30 am

Location: Embassy CD Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

Title: How Hot is Too Hot? How Violent is Too Violent for YA

Description: One of the hottest markets these days is YA fiction. But, where does a writer draw the line with sex, violence, & other "mature" topics?

Panelists: TBD

Time: Saturday 04:00 pm

Location: Writer's Track

Title: Building Better Worlds: The Sorcery of Storytelling

Description: Come join international bestselling author (and DnD voice actor!) Rachel Rener as she sits down with Joey Rener - acclaimed Dungeon Master from the popular Dnd Podcast, Of Dice and Friends - to discuss the magic and wonder of worldbuilding, word-smithing, and magic-casting. All ages welcome!

Panelists: Rachel Rener(M), Joey Rener

Time: Saturday 08:30 pm

Location: Galleria 7 Hilton (Length: 1 Hour)

Title: Magical Artifacts & Items of Power

Description: Artifacts and imbued items have long been a staple of fantasy. Our panelists will discuss how they use this feature within their own work, and how it has evolved over time.

Panelists: Jim Butcher, Richard Kadrey, Rachel Rener, D.B. Jackson, Carol Malcolm(M), Andrea Stewart

Time: Sunday 10:00 am

Location: Chastain 1-2 Westin (Length: 1 Hour)

Title: Favors, Bargains, & Schemes: The Fae in UF

Description: In folklore & contemporary fiction the Fae take various forms & have a wide range of characteristics & goals. Our panel of authors will discuss the depictions used in their work, & how the variety of traits & features led to their choices.

Panelists: Sarah J. Sover, Jim Butcher, Rachel Rener, D.B. Jackson, Jennifer Blackstream, Carol Malcolm(M)

Time: Sunday 08:30 pm

Location: Chastain 1-2 Westin (Length: 1 Hour)

Before I run off to finish packing, I wanted to thank each and every one of you who preordered the Gilded Blood Deluxe Edition Omnibus and the Bone Whisperer Special Edition Duology. As of this week, ALL 2500 preorders have been sent. Seeing the giant green ZERO by the unfulfilled orders section in my website shop elicited a literal sob of joy

Also, to those of you who have already read and reviewed Amethysts and Alchemy, you have my entire heart. Thank you, thank you, thank you for the overwhelming love and support you've shown Delaney, Heath, and Topie. I truly could not ask for better readers than you!❤️

Hope to see you soon!

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If you're reading this on Goodreads or on my blog, be sure to sign up for my newsletter to get the most exciting updates sent directly to your inbox!