A.F.E. Smith's Blog, page 2

Excerpt: Three Promises by Bishop O'Connell

Today marks the release of Bishop O'Connell's latest American Faerie Tale book, Three Promises. I really enjoyed both The Stolen and The Forgotten, so I'm looking forward to reading this one too! Read on for an excerpt from the book, introduced by Bishop himself ... Three Promises: An American Faerie Tale Collection is my third book. It’s a compilation of short stories—technically three short stories and a novella—and while I’ve always struggled with short ficti...

Guest post: How To Be A Writer (without going crazy) by Liana Brooks

Today I have a guest post for you from Liana Brooks, whose twisty sci-fi thriller CONVERGENCE POINT - the second volume in the Time & Shadows Mystery series - has recently been released. You can find out more about the book after the post, but for now, here's Liana! First: Writing Goals

A lot of people will tell you right here that you need a daily word count. To that I say: Ha! Ha! Ha! No.

You don’t need a daily word count. You need realistic expectations and to write on your schedule. T...

Goldenfire cover reveal!

Today is the official cover reveal for Goldenfire, my first Darkhaven sequel.It will be released by Harper Voyager on 14 January, but if you want to read it sooner, you can enter the giveaway below for your chance to win an advance ebook copy!
In Darkhaven, peace doesn’t last long.

Ayla Nightshade has ruled Darkhaven for three years. With the help of Tomas Caraway, her Captain of the Helm, she has overcome her father's legacy to find new confidence in herself and her unusual shapeshifting abili...

Barren Island Books character interview: DS Joe Lamont of Psychic CID

Welcome to another instalment of my occasional Barren Island Books spin-off series! The rules remain the same: guests imagine they’re being exiled to a remote island with only five books for company, selected from the categories I give them. But the twist is these guests aren’t authors but fictional characters.

My interviewee this week is DS Joe Lamont, the hero of the paranormal crime novel Incarnate Justiceby Juliet B Madison.The Psychic CID series is set in the future so this interview with...

Barren Island Books – Michelle Hauck

Welcome to Barren Island Books, the author interview series that’s in no way related to a popular music-based radio programme. You know the rules by now: my guests are exiled to a remote island with only five books for company, selected from the categories I give them. It’s up to them to make sure they choose wisely, because they’re going to be stuck with those books for a long, long time …

My interviewee this week is Michelle Hauck, author of epic fantasy novel Grudging– out this week from Ha...

Excerpt: "Wings of Sorrow and Bone" by Beth Cato

Today I'm sharing an excerpt from Beth Cato's new novella Wings of Sorrow and Bone. I can't wait to read this new Clockwork Dagger story!

Wings of Sorrow and Bone: A Clockwork Dagger Novella

A few months after the events of The Clockwork Crown...

After being rescued by Octavia Leander from the slums of Caskentia, Rivka Stout is adjusting to her new life in Tamarania. But it’s hard for a blossoming machinist like herself to fit in with proper society, and she’d much rather be tinkering with h...

Barren Island Books – Jeff Pearce

Welcome to Barren Island Books, the author interview series that’s in no way related to a popular music-based radio programme. You know the rules by now: my guests are exiled to a remote island with only five books for company, selected from the categories I give them. It’s up to them to make sure they choose wisely, because they’re going to be stuck with those books for a long, long time …

My interviewee this week is Jeff Pearce, author of brilliant sci-fi novel The Karma Booth.When he’s not...

Reviewing the Voyager Digital Firsts: Supervision

This is part of a review series in which I take a look at some of the other books that were picked up by Harper Voyager at the same time as mine. For all the usual disclaimers, refer back to thefirst episode in the series:-)

The main thing that struck me when reading Supervision was the poetry of it.

Which isn't to say that it's full of verse or, you know, written in rhyming couplets or anything like that. But it's one of those books that gives the impression, when you read it, of being as...

Barren Island Books – Aurora Walderhaug

Welcome to Barren Island Books, the author interview series that’s in no way related to a popular music-based radio programme. You know the rules by now: my guests are exiled to a remote island with only five books for company, selected from the categories I give them. It’s up to them to make sure they choose wisely, because they’re going to be stuck with those books for a long, long time …

My interviewee this week is Aurora Walderhaug, author of humorous dark fantasy comic Mortis Comoedia, wh...

Reviewing the Voyager Digital Firsts: The Rule

This is part of a review series in which I take a look at some of the other books that were picked up by Harper Voyager at the same time as mine. For all the usual disclaimers, refer back to the first episode in the series :-)

‘No person of Helvik may kill another person of Helvik. Any person who breaks this rule is no longer a person of Helvik.’

The idea of a society that has only a single law is a fascinating one. It is presented in the book as the town leader's way of ending the blood fe...