Alina Bellchambers's Blog

The Weight of Crowns Cover Reveal

IT’S ALMOST HERE! So excited to share the gorgeous UK cover for The Weight of Crowns which will be coming this September 2025 from Hodderscape! Click here for the full video teaser.

The heart-pounding conclusion to the high-stakes dual POV romantic fantasy duology, with dangerous enemies-to-lovers romance, deadly politics and a war to change the fate of empires.

Two queens. One throne. Who will claim the crown?

On the brink of war, Mira and Scarlett find themselves entangled in a deadly world of gods, magic and duplicity, with the stage set for the ultimate showdown.

Backed by her lover Aric and sorceress mother Zandri, Scarlett has Mira right where she wants her. But winning the Ravalian Empire requires spilling a river of blood, and as past secrets and new threats emerge, Scarlett must decide: is claiming the crown worth becoming as poisonous as the death magic she wields?

With Prince Roran’s campaign of terror spreading, Mira desperately needs allies. Even as Scarlett offers Mira a deal she can’t refuse, Mira embraces her dangerous blood magic and enlists the help of devious Prince Cassius. But can Mira trust him with her crown – or her heart?

As the fate of the empire hangs in the balance, both Scarlett and Mira are poised to shatter the world order – but there cannot be two queens. And only one will be left standing . . .

Thank you to all my amazing readers for your love and support! Stay tuned for other exciting pub dates

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Adelaide Writers’ Week 2025

It’s been a dream of mine to speak at Adelaide Writers’ Week, and soon that dream will become a reality! Head over to the Pioneer Women’s Memorial Garden North Stage at 2:30pm Sunday 2nd of March to hear me chat about all things The Order of Masks with Audrey Menz.

Young Readers’ Day will also feature fellow authors Amie Kaufman, Tigest Girma, Dr Matt Agnew, Lili Wilkinson and Sophie Gonzales on the North Stage. It’s a free, welcoming event and I hope to see you there <3

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THE ORDER OF MASKS: Now Officially International

Thank you to everyone who preordered ahead of my UK release – it means the world to me and I’m so excited to share TOOM with you  I’ve been getting lots of love from US readers (thank you so much!) – I recommend using the UK purchase links for now, which can be found on my ‘Books’ page. Stay tuned for more pub dates

To celebrate the UK release I’ve included some recent press/media relating to TOOM. I also just saw that THE ORDER OF MASKS is a national Dymocks bestseller, which was a great Christmas present for me! Thank you to everyone who has helped make that happen.

I hope you’re having a wonderful Christmas break and all the very best for 2025 <3

Click on the above or read the full article here: https://glamadelaide.com.au/book-review-the-order-of-masks-by-alina-bellchambers/

ALINA BELLCHAMBERS The Order of Masks. Reviewed by Amelia Dudley

Spies, magic, intrigue, and the human cost of an expanding empire all feature in Australian author Alina Bellchambers’ debut fantasy.

Click on the above or read the full article here: https://newtownreviewofbooks.com.au/alina-bellchambers-the-order-of-masks-reviewed-by-amelia-dudley/

The Order of Masks by @AlinaBellWrites is the epic beginning to a new series, a perilous path to vengeance, a dance of moral challenges, with an empire on the line. Read full article here: https://rveight4.wixsite.com/rebelsbooks/post/the-order-of-masks-will-steal-your-breath

Emerging Writers Interview on Vision Australia Radio Part 2: https://omny.fm/shows/emerging-writers/21-sep-2024-emerging-writers-alina-bellchambers-pa

 

Interview with FiveAA can be listened to here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DD37ts2SYIJ/

Previous interview can be listened to here: https://www.instagram.com/alinabellwrites/reel/C_15PP9yniG/

Adelaide author Alina Bellchambers launches debut novel ‘The Order of Masks’ with global release

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INTL Preorder Offer for THE ORDER OF MASKS

INTL PREORDER OFFER
The first 500 people who preorder THE ORDER OF MASKS before the 12/12 2024 through any of these links (INTL shipping available), or any independent UK bookstore will receive:
A stunning double-sided bookmark of FMCs Mira & Scarlett (art by @sashac_art)
Three romantic character art prints printed on high quality card stock: Scarlett & Severin, Mira & Aric, Mira & Cassius (art by @morgana0anagrom)
Signed bookplate (art by @tropicalgloom)
Special author letter
And my gratitude

HOW TO ENTER:
Preorder a copy of The Order of Masks from any of the UK links listed in my Linktree or on the Hachette website before the 12th of December 2024 (any format accepted e.g. physical book, ebook, audiobook)
Screenshot your purchase confirmation
Fill out this form (either click to fill out or find it here in my Linktree)
And that’s it! You’re done

A luscious YA fantasy debut perfect for readers who like seductive court politics and confident, badass heroines, THE ORDER OF MASKS alternates between two ambitious young women who are determined to improve their lot in life – no matter the sacrifice

You can expect:⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Enemies to lovers
Forbidden romance
Deadly trials
Devious court politics
Knife to the throat
Blood and death magic
Stabby female protagonists
Seductive princes

Please note:
This offer is international, just check that the UK link you choose can ship to where you live, for example the US.
Any preorders from the UK are accepted, but to outline a few specific options:
Hardcover from any UK bookstore/ retailer or through the UK links e.g Amazon, Blackwell’s, Waterstones, Hive, Foyles, Bookshop.org, WH Smith, Wordery.
Ebook e.g Kindle, Apple Books, Google Books, Kobo, Ebooks.com
Audiobook (narrated by Katy Sobey and Ashley Tucker) e.g. Audible

Happy reading

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RELEASE WEEK IN AUSTRALIA 🎭❤️‍🔥 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

What an action-packed release week for THE ORDER OF MASKS, which is now available for purchase as an audiobook, ebook and physical book in Australian bookstores ⠀⠀⠀

I am so grateful to everyone who has been a part of this journey, and would like to say a massive thank you to the wonderful readers who have already started posting photos and reviews – it’s been incredible to see your support and enthusiasm! I’m so thrilled you loved TOOM

A very special mention to the incredible Pan Macmillan team & my amazing agents Josh and Christabel, for helping to make this happen!

For those of you who came along to my book launches, it was fantastic to celebrate with you in person! I will be sharing a separate blog post soon with photos from each event.

THE ORDER OF MASKS will be releasing in the UK on December 12th, and is available for preorder now.

Some highlights from release week:

Seeing all your posts, reels and reviews! I’ve included just a few snippets below, but please know that I look at and engage with everything readers tag me in, and every single post means the world to me.The Order of Masks being chosen by book clubs! To name a few, thanks so much Sydney Book Society and Brisbane Book Club for selecting TOOM as their September YA fantasy pick.Book launches (more photos and info to come!) Wow, these events were amazing – the turnout was great and it was so special to celebrate with readers in person.Interviews (I had my first radio interview with NOVA entertainment and Stacey Lee on Fiveaa, then had an hour interview on VA Radio for their Emerging Writers program! So if you’re interested in finding out more about my writing process and all things TOOM, check out my Instagram where I will be sharing those. There are also some exciting print articles coming soon and some interviews with bookstagrammers that will be turning up on social media.Book signings! It’s been so much fun going around to bookstores and signing their copies of TOOM. I had a signing today at Dymocks Hyde Park and sold four copies just while I was there, and had marvellous feedback that only three copies were left at another store.And also just seeing TOOM on the shelves, and receiving pics from interstate readers, family and friends who are also noticing and purchasing TOOM interstate. Thank you <3

I’ll share some of these highlights below, in case you’re interested

“This book was a lot of fun and so fast-paced! The author promised morally grey characters and wow did she deliver!…I cannot wait to read more of the author’s work in the future!!” @cupsandthoughts

“A fresh voice to fantasy with strong characters and beautiful writing. I had such a good time reading, and I’ll definitely be looking forward to the sequel…Absolutely add this one to your tbr, especially if you love high stakes, romance, intriguing magic and intense court politics.” @booksandbasilisks

“I ate this book UP. The Order of Masks is for fantasy lovers who adore court politics, royal family betrayals, secret identities, forbidden romances and plot twists you couldn’t see coming even if you tried…I never knew truely who to trust, where people’s loyalties lied etc and I LOVED IT…I can’t waittttt for book 2, things are getting so so good.” @ainsley.reads 

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“This story kept me on my toes in a way that I haven’t experienced in quite a while. I could never quite predict what was going to happen next, especially in Scarlett’s POV!…Speaking of endings, I was SHOCKED by the way this book ended! I did not predict a single thing, so I was very very caught off guard (in a good way) I NEED to know what happens next!” @sashabookshelf 

“The Order of Masks surprised me at every turn. The writing was captivating, as was the entire story. Alliances are made throughout the book and I loved that they weren’t exactly the alliances I was expecting as a reader. You can expect forbidden romance, manipulative morally grey characters and an intriguing magic system.” @kindleandkettle

“The Order of Masks is a high stakes fantasy following two girls from different worlds: one a street performer and the other a princess vying for her throne. With elements of death magic, forbidden romance and court politics, this was a story that had me hooked from chapter one.” @readwithacapricorn

“This was such a fun book! I was swept away from the moment I started. The writing is gorgeous, the setting is electric, and the characters are captivating right from their first pages. I love both Mina and Scarlett so much. I’m honestly not sure how I’d choose who to back. BOTH! I WANT BOTH! LET SEVERIN BE RIGHT! They’re both such strong characters in their own ways and I loved their journeys over the course of this book. The political plot is definitely intriguing and I’m looking forward to seeing where things go in the next book because, hooboy, there’s a lot that could happen.” @bookshelvesandtealeaves

“If you love your trails, if you love your magic, forbidden love, treachery, this is definitely the book for you – and you need to put this on your TBR today!” @whatmattreads 

“The Order of Masks is an intricately weaved YA story of connection, love, family and girl power…If you like reading about scheming court, romance, sibling rivalry, morally grey characters, weird mothers, revenge, betrayal, women taking power I would recommend this!” @lin_reads 

TOOM out in the wild (also, I’m planning to get into all bookstores for signings, so this is just the bookstores I have managed to get to this week – in no particular order):

Radio interview with 5aa (I shared this one to Instagram if you’re interested):

 

And another radio interview with Vision Australia Radio (VA Radio) as part of their Emerging Writers program! Each episode is uploaded onto the podcast site: https://radio.visionaustralia.org/podcasts/emerging-writers and is also available via Omny at: https://omny.fm/shows/emerging-writers(which can be accessed from around the world).

Thank you again for everyone who has helped to make this an amazing release week! It is still so surreal to have THE ORDER OF MASKS out in the world, and I am incredibly grateful for your support and enthusiasm.

Love,

Alina

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Book News

My secret is out! THRILLED to announce that my debut fantasy, THE ORDER OF MASKS, will be published this September by Pan Macmillan Australia and December by Hodderscape UK. I am so incredibly grateful for my amazing editors, Claire and Molly, and their respective teams. It is a dream come true to have such passionate people championing this duology.

THE ORDER OF MASKS is a luscious romantasy filled with forbidden love, morally grey characters, magic and deadly court politics. It alternates between two ambitious young women who are determined to improve their lot in life – no matter the sacrifice.

What you can expect:

ROMANCE (and some spice). Tropes: forbidden love and enemies-to-loversA brutal roman-style world with a scheming royal family, devious court politics and deadly TrialsBadass (and morally grey) female protagonistsFIGHTING: swords, daggers and magicComplicated family dynamicsA dark edge (think Game of Thrones and the Hunger Games).

In honour of this publication post, I’ve included some early feedback from editors below:

“I am absolutely buzzing with enthusiasm for this vicious, backstabbing, torturous, HUGELY pacey, shocker of a debut. I did not expect THE ORDER OF MASKS to thrill me so utterly and completely – nor to be so unapologetically steeped in deadly courtly games. The politics! The romance! The vibes! I loved, loved, loved reading this gem, and whipped through it at almost breakneck speed. Mira and Scarlett are so morally murky, and so flawed as protagonists, and I was enthralled by their relationship, and how edged with danger and deceit it was. Also, those twists. And that ending! I must have book two.”“As you know, there’s enormous in-house excitement about The Order of Masks. The richly imagined Ravalian Empire with its brutal Emperor, its scheming royal family, and its merciless Court has really captured our imagination. So too have the three magical Orders. It’s an exciting and thrilling world filled with political intrigue, relentless scheming, and alluring sorcery. I loved the constant jostling for power and favour, the plotting and double-crossing and the seemingly endless depths to which these characters sink, but I also loved that this is a world in which, for women especially, power and living well are inextricably linked: Mira and Scarlett are characters we understand even if we sometimes despair of their choices. I love that Mira and Scarlett are both adversaries and allies on this journey and while they seek power, they are also just trying to survive and through it all, they are resourceful, capable and incredibly tough. Definitely kickass heroines!

Can’t wait to see THE ORDER OF MASKS out in the world, and to share Mira and Scarlett’s stories with you

Love,

Alina

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Writers’ Week

One of my favourite things about living in Adelaide are the festivals. ‘Mad March’ celebrates the arts and is packed full of theatre, dance, music, literature, circus, film, music, comedy and more. By far my favourite festival is – you guessed it – Writers’ Week. It draws a number of international authors along with local and Australian talent.

I had a great time catching up with other Adelaide writers, including thriller author Mercedes Mercier. I discovered her debut novel, White Noise, in October of last year and am so excited to continue Dr Laura Fleming’s journey in the second book, Black Lies, which is set to release in June.

A particular highlight was listening to Jane Harper on the final day of Writers’ Week. Jane is the author of bestselling crime novels set in rural Australia. Her latest book (the final instalment of her series based around detective Aaron Falk) is set in the vineyards of South Australia, which are very familiar to me! But what really stood out was Jane’s advice to aspiring authors, and her down to earth approach. I love that her popular novel, The Dry, came from a place of pure passion rather than intending to write for the market. She highlighted the importance of that age-old advice – write what you want to read, which I think is a great message for writers. Understanding the market you’re writing in is undeniably important, but passion and intuition as a reader shouldn’t be underestimated. After all, it’s always possible to edit your work to make it more marketable, or to pivot and write something new if necessary, but passion for a project can’t be faked.

It’s always inspiring to attend Writers’ Week, and this year was no exception. While writing itself can be solitary, there are so many ways of coming together to motivate each other and celebrate the process.

With that in mind, I’m signing off to work on my latest manuscript.

Happy writing x

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How I Got My Agent

I recently saw a tweet that I think is appropriate: so much of writing success is persistence. If I had stopped writing after my first manuscript, or my second, I wouldn’t have reached this milestone. In the end, it was my fourth manuscript that received multiple offers and resulted in me signing with Josh Adams of Adams Literary.

Josh is an agent I’ve wanted to work with for a long time. In fact, he read my third manuscript (a young adult fantasy) when I first started querying. He passed on that project with an invitation to share future work, and I knew I wanted to approach him again.

In the meantime, I completed my fourth manuscript, an adult thriller. An editor friend of mine loved it so much that she offered to send it out to her colleagues at various Australian publishing houses. I booked in through Jericho Writers to receive agent feedback on my pitch, synopsis and opening chapters – and received requests to read the full. This interest prompted me to selectively send out my fourth manuscript, and the response was overwhelmingly positive.

After I had finished revising my second manuscript (another young adult fantasy) I submitted it to Josh, believing that he only represented young adult work. A week later, I had my first offer of representation – for my adult thriller.

The offering agent was incredibly enthusiastic about my manuscript – she read it in one day! After speaking to her over Zoom, I asked for two weeks to consider her offer and allow other agents the chance to finish reading.

Soon after, I had another call – and an offer – from an agent who represents one of my favourite thriller writers! Then came interest from agents who had the young adult fantasy I originally queried, including an offer, and an enthusiastic response from Josh based on my adult thriller.

In the end, I received multiple offers from amazing agents and positive responses from others who may have offered if I could have extended my deadline. Everyone I spoke with was dynamic, professional, and would have made passionate advocates for my manuscripts. But I was impressed by Josh’s strategic vision for my body of work and the whole ethos of family-owned Adams Literary. I’m very much looking forward to working together and being out on submission.

For those writers currently querying or planning to, I hope this is helpful. Here are some useful links for researching agents and polishing submission materials:

Jericho Writers

Manuscript Academy

Manuscript Wish List

Publishers Marketplace

Query Tracker

Querying can be a testing process, but at the end of the day, there is no such thing as failure in writing. So long as you keep writing, so long as you keep honing your craft, you’re succeeding.

Love,

Alina

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My Writing Journey

Like many writers, I discovered my love of literature at a young age. You know that distinctive smell of new books? Well, that forever reminds me of my childhood. My family owned a bookstore in the heart of the Adelaide CBD, and I was fortunate to grow up surrounded by the written word. Even before I could read and write, I had an innate appreciation of books and entertained myself by making up fantasy plots and characters.

That passion has sustained me ever since. I’ve lost count of how many stories I’ve written (most which will never see the light of day but were crucial in developing my skills – sound familiar?). Throughout school I excelled in creative writing and devoured books with kick-ass heroines, like Garth Nix’s Sabriel. I can remember gaining a lot of confidence in my abilities after I started writing speeches for public speaking competitions. Fun fact: my first speech was about the exhilarating experience of riding the Superman Escape rollercoaster in Movie World (which left quite the impression on my nine-year-old self).

Thinking back, I can’t remember a time when I didn’t write. Even during year twelve, I had a WIP on the go – and somehow still managed to achieve an ATAR of 99.40. Don’t ask me how because that year is a caffeinated blur. Disclaimer: for any students who may be reading, please don’t place unnecessary stress on yourselves trying to achieve certain results. There are many pathways into degrees and careers. Safeguarding your mental and physical health is the most important thing.

Which brings me to psychology. Most people think that my choice of university degree was influenced by my mother’s background in psychology (she’s a non-fiction author and presenter of self-empowerment workshops). But my interest in mental health stems from a near-death experience I had at age eight, which resulted in PTSD symptoms for a long time afterwards. I wanted to pursue a career that would allow me to better understand the brain and use this knowledge to help others.

Fast forward to enrolling in a Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) at the Australian National University and moving to Canberra. This was an amazing experience. Living on campus with other students meant having an immediate social circle and a family away from home. My first year of university was one of the happiest of my life. But I ended up pushing myself too hard whilst sick with glandular fever. I ended up with Chronic Fatigue and had to move back home to Adelaide.

Chronic Fatigue is a difficult condition to explain if you haven’t experienced it. It’s not like normal tiredness. It’s as if all the strength and vitality has left your body, and even the simplest tasks become a monumental effort. Sometimes I couldn’t even leave my room, let alone the house. Thankfully, I was still able to write. And writing, as usual, became my solace.

I deferred university and, after recovering from Chronic Fatigue, spent the next two years living in Melbourne and Sydney. I returned to modelling (I started modelling when I was sixteen) and have always loved the creative side of it. The industry is competitive, and it can be hard on self-esteem, one of the reasons I didn’t pursue it more vigorously during my teen years, but I have always loved fashion. Some highlights: being named a state finalist for the Miss Universe Competition, shooting in Lexi Clothing, and working with amazing photographers like Linda Pollachi and Peter Soulis (see below):

After completing some acting courses at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), I moved to Sydney. Living in Sydney was an eye-opening experience, and very different to living in student accommodations in Canberra. It was lonelier than I thought it would be, and there were plenty of challenges along the way. Hours after I first moved into my apartment building, the roof was torn off during a storm and I spent the following few months living in a hotel.

There were plenty of exciting opportunities too (I was able to wear a real police uniform for a shoot), and I had the chance to act in various productions. I even got to meet Jessica Malbouy during my brief appearance on Channel 7’s The Secret Daughter.

I started managing the Mimco store at Bondi Junction to help my dwindling finances, and throughout all of this, I was still writing. When I did eventually return home to my family in Adelaide, where I volunteered at the South Australian Medical and Research Institute (SAHMRI) and returned to my psychology degree, I had written a 600,000-word science fiction trilogy. Perhaps I should have been thinking about publication then, but despite my family insisting that I should be a writer, that story was (and currently still is) reserved solely for my entertainment. Perhaps one day, after extensive editing, it will be ready to show to others. Perhaps.

But then, in January of 2020, I had a dream. A nightmare, really, and remembering its ending still makes me shiver. Terrifying though it was, the concept was fascinating. Even my parents, who can’t stand horror elements, told me I should write it. My partner said it would make an excellent movie (he’s not a reader). Either way, the consensus was clear: it was a concept worth telling. But was I capable of telling it?

In the end, my inner critic didn’t allow time for self-doubt. Once I started thinking about the concept, it refused to let me go. So I wrote a short pitch, which is the way I start every project, with just enough information to get my creativity flowing. Then I sat down to write. And boy, did I write.

I’ve never written an entire story so quickly. It was complete in three weeks. Three weeks of furious typing, and I felt like if I stopped, the words might too. There was no option except to keep going and let my inner muse run free.

The result was what I consider to be my first proper manuscript, a young adult thriller. I spent a year rewriting and editing it, before finishing both my manuscript and psychology degree in 2020. Soon afterwards I started my second proper manuscript, a young adult fantasy perfect for fans of Witches Steeped in Gold by Ciannon Smart and The Kinder Poison by Natalie Mae, with plenty of court intrigue and sword wielding action.

By the time I finished editing my second manuscript and prepared to begin my third, publication was at the forefront of my mind. I pitched a few story ideas to a senior editor at Harper Teen, who resonated with one in particular – so much that she invited me to send it to her when I was agented. Another editor has since expressed interest in reading the full, and the excitement of my author friends has been so encouraging, leading me to begin the daunting (but exciting) process of querying my third manuscript.

As you may have read in my first blog post, this manuscript can be pitched as Caraval meets The Cruel Prince. It includes all my favourite things – an enemies to lovers romance, a dangerous bargain, plenty of moral complexities and a strong female protagonist who doesn’t rely on a man to save her.

Even after extensively editing and polishing my manuscript, I don’t expect the query trenches to be easy. But I believe in this story, I believe in these characters, and I believe there is a readership out there. I’m excited to see what happens next!

Wishing you all the best with your writing journey

Love,

Alina

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Welcome

Hi everyone, and welcome to my first blog post! I’m Alina, writer of twisty psychological thrillers and dark fantasies. My latest manuscript is in the vein of CARAVAL meets THE CRUEL PRINCE. I’ve created this blog to share my writing journey and hopefully connect with more fellow writers and readers.

Writing is sometimes considered a solitary pathway, but it doesn’t have to be. As I’ve seen from the amazing writing community on Twitter, there are so many fun ways to take an interest in each other’s lives and projects. If you have anything that you’re currently working on, or any topics that you would like to see discussed in this blog, please let me know in the comments section below. I’m looking forward to getting to know you and chatting about books!

At this stage, I’m hoping to update my blog semi-regularly. I will be sharing posts related to writing and editing, advice for aspiring authors and whatever else comes to mind

Thanks for stopping by!

Best,

Alina

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