New Release: The Legend Mirror Bind Up (Books 1-3)

Welcome to Callaire, a town of shifters, magic, and secrets.

THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE

Yasmin is the daughter of a goddess and a mythical creature. As a Legendary, she has telepathic power and the ability to change forms every full moon. In her opinion, that's more curse than gift.

When a voice cries out to Yasmin in her head, and she’s drawn into dreams that aren’t her own, she's led to Fray - a girl who once saved Yasmin from hunters. In Fray’s dreams she has power no human should ever have. Legendary power.

When Fray’s magic catches the attention of a violent and invincible creature, both Yasmin’s mythical world and Fray’s human one will be changed forever. A Gods' war is brewing, and Yasmin and Fray are at the heart of it.

THE DRYAD OF CALLAIRE

Reeling from the battle with Discordia – the incarnation of chaos, an invincible creature - Yasmin and her Legendary family search for answers. Who is Discordia? Why are they stealing power? And where have they taken the girl Yasmin loves? Yasmin will do anything to get Fray back, even if it means unleashing the violent beast beneath her human skin. 

Fray has been kidnapped and taken to an impossible place that is slowly changing her. Her captors are monsters with venom in their teeth and bloody hands, and they want to use Fray to win a war. But armed with a terrifying and empowering new ability, Fray will die before she becomes their pawn. 

THE POWERS OF CALLAIRE

Yasmin’s girlfriend is dead, but she will stop at nothing to bring Fray back. Even if that means going to the Otherland and making a bargain with the Ruler of All Souls. If Yasmin finds Pluto’s lost power, they’ll return Fray’s soul to her body. 

Yasmin’s search takes her, and two of her friends, from Bucharest to France to Wales, and exposes a horrifying secret with Venus, Yasmin’s mother, at the heart of it. With a murderous, fiery god and the incarnation of death in her way, Yasmin will have to compromise her morals and harness the Legendary power in her veins. If she fails, Fray’s soul will be lost forever. 

READ THE ENTIRE LEGEND MIRROR SERIES: 

Book 1: The Beast of Callaire
Book 2: The Dryad of Callaire
Book 3: The Powers of Callaire
Book 4: Coming 2017!
Book 5: Coming soon!
Book 6: Coming soon!
Book 7: Coming soon!

Books included:

BUY ON AMAZON UK

BUY ON AMAZON US

ADD TO GOODREADS

COVER REVEAL: The Legend Mirror, Books 1-3

Hi guys! Remember how I told you about the bind-up of The Legend Mirror's first books? Today I'm revealing the cover! I personally love it and its mysterious glimpse of Callaire and Almery Wood. I hope you love it too. Here it is:

The Legend Mirror, Books 1-3 comes out August 30th!

It'll be available for pre-order from TOMORROW so check my twitter and facebook for links! 

Here's the blurb:

Welcome to Callaire, a town of shifters, magic, and secrets.

THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE

Yasmin is the daughter of a goddess and a mythical creature. As a Legendary, she has telepathic power and the ability to change forms every full moon. In her opinion, that's more curse than gift.

When a voice cries out to Yasmin in her head, and she’s drawn into dreams that aren’t her own, she's led to Fray - a girl who once saved Yasmin from hunters. In Fray’s dreams she has power no human should ever have. Legendary power.

When Fray’s magic catches the attention of a violent and invincible creature, both Yasmin’s mythical world and Fray’s human one will be changed forever. A Gods' war is brewing, and Yasmin and Fray are at the heart of it.

THE DRYAD OF CALLAIRE

Reeling from the battle with Discordia – the incarnation of chaos, an invincible creature - Yasmin and her Legendary family search for answers. Who is Discordia? Why are they stealing power? And where have they taken the girl Yasmin loves? Yasmin will do anything to get Fray back, even if it means unleashing the violent beast beneath her human skin. 

Fray has been kidnapped and taken to an impossible place that is slowly changing her. Her captors are monsters with venom in their teeth and bloody hands, and they want to use Fray to win a war. But armed with a terrifying and empowering new ability, Fray will die before she becomes their pawn. 

THE POWERS OF CALLAIRE

Yasmin’s girlfriend is dead, but she will stop at nothing to bring Fray back. Even if that means going to the Otherland and making a bargain with the Ruler of All Souls. If Yasmin finds Pluto’s lost power, they’ll return Fray’s soul to her body. 

Yasmin’s search takes her, and two of her friends, from Bucharest to France to Wales, and exposes a horrifying secret with Venus, Yasmin’s mother, at the heart of it. With a murderous, fiery god and the incarnation of death in her way, Yasmin will have to compromise her morals and harness the Legendary power in her veins. If she fails, Fray’s soul will be lost forever. 

READ THE ENTIRE LEGEND MIRROR SERIES: 

Book 1: The Beast of Callaire
Book 2: The Dryad of Callaire
Book 3: The Powers of Callaire
Book 4: Coming 2017!
Book 5: Coming soon!
Book 6: Coming soon!
Book 7: Coming soon!

COMING SOON: The Legend Mirror, Books 1-3

Hi guys! With The Powers of Callaire releasing next week, it's time to announce the next book in the Legend Mirror series, and this time it's a bind-up omnibus of the first three books! You'll be able to purchase BEAST, DRYAD, and POWERS as one giant book for a reduced price.

The Legend Mirror, Books 1-3 will be released August 30th on all major ebook retailers! 

The cover will be revealed on this blog a little nearer the release, along with pre-order links, but here's the summary:

Welcome to Callaire, a town of shifters, magic, and secrets.

THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE

Yasmin is the daughter of a goddess and a mythical creature. As a Legendary, she has telepathic power and the ability to change forms every full moon. In her opinion, that's more curse than gift.

When a voice cries out to Yasmin in her head, and she’s drawn into dreams that aren’t her own, she's led to Fray - a girl who once saved Yasmin from hunters. In Fray’s dreams she has power no human should ever have. Legendary power.

When Fray’s magic catches the attention of a violent and invincible creature, both Yasmin’s mythical world and Fray’s human one will be changed forever. A Gods' war is brewing, and Yasmin and Fray are at the heart of it.

THE DRYAD OF CALLAIRE

Reeling from the battle with Discordia – the incarnation of chaos, an invincible creature - Yasmin and her Legendary family search for answers. Who is Discordia? Why are they stealing power? And where have they taken the girl Yasmin loves? Yasmin will do anything to get Fray back, even if it means unleashing the violent beast beneath her human skin. 

Fray has been kidnapped and taken to an impossible place that is slowly changing her. Her captors are monsters with venom in their teeth and bloody hands, and they want to use Fray to win a war. But armed with a terrifying and empowering new ability, Fray will die before she becomes their pawn. 

THE POWERS OF CALLAIRE

Yasmin’s girlfriend is dead, but she will stop at nothing to bring Fray back. Even if that means going to the Otherland and making a bargain with the Ruler of All Souls. If Yasmin finds Pluto’s lost power, they’ll return Fray’s soul to her body. 

Yasmin’s search takes her, and two of her friends, from Bucharest to France to Wales, and exposes a horrifying secret with Venus, Yasmin’s mother, at the heart of it. With a murderous, fiery god and the incarnation of death in her way, Yasmin will have to compromise her morals and harness the Legendary power in her veins. If she fails, Fray’s soul will be lost forever. 

READ THE ENTIRE LEGEND MIRROR SERIES: 

Book 1: The Beast of Callaire
Book 2: The Dryad of Callaire
Book 3: The Powers of Callaire
Book 4: Coming 2017!
Book 5: Coming soon!
Book 6: Coming soon!
Book 7: Coming soon!

Over 100 free SFF ebooks this weekend!

Unlike the last few promos, this one includes books on Nook, Ibooks, & Kobo! 

There's some really great sci-fi and fantasy books, and a couple diverse ones too! I myself will be indulging in Hailey Edwards's Stone Cold Fox (POC) and Stephanie A. Cain's Stormshadow (LGBT) 

Click the header above to visit the promo!

Here's a little more about THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE (POC, L, A), my book in the promo:

Enter a world of magic and shifters in this urban fantasy series. 

Yasmin is the daughter of a goddess and a mythical creature. As a Legendary, she has telepathic power and the ability to change forms every full moon. 

When a voice cries out to Yasmin in her head, and she’s drawn into dreams that aren’t her own, she's led to Fray - a girl who once saved Yasmin from hunters. In Fray’s dreams she has power no human should ever have. Legendary power. And worse, somehow that power is linked to a shadowy god. 

When Fray’s magic catches the attention of a violent and invincible creature, both Yasmin’s mythical world and Fray’s human one will be changed forever. A Gods war is brewing, and Yasmin and Fray are at the heart of it.

~Saruuh

COVER REVEAL: The Legend Mirror series

Cover reveal month continues!! 

I wanted to redesign The Beast of Callaire + The Dryad of Callaire to better reflect their urban fantasy natures, and make the books stand out more. The previous green and blue covers will still remain on the paperbacks, and that design will continue through the rest of the physical books.

What do you think of the new design? Comment below with your thoughts!

~Saruuh

FREE ON AMAZON

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Words & Wonders (15)

Welcome to Words & Wonders, a weekly journal of writing updates, links I've found useful or interesting, and book recommendations. I hope W&W will prove to be useful to you writers out there as well as offering an insight into my writing progress for my readers. Don't forget to leave a comment with your own writing progress!

THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE is finally free on Amazon. Find links on the sidebar! If you've been looking for a YA fantasy inclusive of POC and queer characters, grab a copy and read it.

In the Writing Cave, this week I have:

- Gotten into a sort of slump with TLM3, which I'm forcing my way through. I don't want to get stalled and not write anything for a month or three (like I did with The Wandering...) and now I think I've avoided that. Here's hoping, anyway. I want to keep to my schedule and get this book out at the very beginning of next year, with The Revelation and another (YA fantasy stand alone) book making up the rest of my 2016 plan.

- Written 2,923 words. Disappointing word count again, but at least it's some words - my mood and productivity has been so low that I almost ground to a halt.

In my life:

- I got a TONNE of craft supplies for my birthday so I'm making cards and art journalling a lot lately.

On the internet, this week I found useful:

- Weapenry, a publisher of nonfiction who write helpful books for indie authors (and, I'd say, all authors!) I/m looking to get both their books when the next one comes out.
- Cheap villain killin'
- Tangents and Subplots, by Jami Gold
- 5 Tips For Making Any Scene In Your Novel More Tense by Martina Boone

A Book I've Enjoyed Recently:

Awesome historical world, cool witchy concept, and heartfelt characters who I absolutely fell in love with. John has my heart, and the best thing is the romance between him and Elizabeth is the slow burn kind. I adore this book.
You can find my full review over at Syntax Reviews.

What have you written this week?
~Saruuh

Words & Wonders (12)

Welcome to Words & Wonders, a weekly journal of writing updates, links I've found useful or interesting, and book recommendations. I hope W&W will prove to be useful to you writers out there as well as offering an insight into my writing progress for my readers. Don't forget to leave a comment with your own writing progress!

Just a quick note to say THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE IS FREE on B&N/Ibooks/Smashwords etc. to celebrate the release of The Dryad of Callaire, so if you've yet to read my YA mythical fantasy (with hella diverse characters) get it now!

In the Writing Cave, this week I have:

- Read 153 pages of The Dryad of Callaire proof in a frantic read-everything-today Friday. (Remember you can pre-order a signed copy of DRYAD here!)

- Formatted a lot; DRYAD is now fit for print and Kindle and Smashwords consumption. It wasn't easy but we got there.

- Written 3,895 words and officially started book 3 of The Legend Mirror, which I am 99% sure will be titled:

But there's always the chance that during drafting a more appropriate title will spring up. For now though I'm referring to it as TLM3 or POWERS.

In my life:

- I'm stressing majorly over the cover of the printed DRYAD. I had a proof of the new BEAST printed and it's excessively green, but I have no choice but to approve it (because I literally cannot afford to get another proof printed RN) and change it in a few months. But now DRYAD has changed on the print preview from a nice blue to HOLY MOTHER OF TURQUOISE and my printer has no idea why it's happened. So I'm stressing about that and waiting impatiently for the proof to arrive and seal my fate :/

- I'm stepping up my reading game by taking part in ARC August, so expect plenty book recs over the next few weeks.

On the internet, this week I found useful:

- This post by Chuck Wendig, which I really needed. This post made me feel 100% better when I felt shitty.

Hope you all have a great weekend!!
~Saruuh

New Legend Mirror covers & DRYAD pre-order!

In case you somehow missed my excessive tweeting about it, THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE and THE DRYAD OF CALLAIRE covers got revealed this week!!! I am exceptionally proud of these and can't wait to see them on actual printed books.

The Dryad of Callaire is now up for pre-order on Kindle. Paperback pre-order and other retailers will be up in the next few weeks and I'll be sure to link to them here, too. Remember you can also sign up to my reviewers list and be sent an early review copy of DRYAD!

The Beast of Callaire is up on Netgalley, for you book bloggers and reviewers out there. I am seriously chuffed to finally have a book of mine on Netgalley, since it's something I've wanted for SO LONG.

And finally The Lux Guardians short stories are free until August 1st on Smashwords. Use the code PL42X when you check out!!

What do you think of the covers? Do you prefer the new BEAST cover or the old one? Comment below!

~Saruuh

The Legend Mirror guide

The second edition of The Beast of Callaire is coming out in a couple month's time (late August), with a totally new cover, book design, updated text, and just general overhaul. So I thought it would be pretty cool to post the guide to The Legend Mirror that you can find in the front of the books. 

If you ever wanted a clear guide to Legend-Bloods and Numina, you now have it!! If you got your version of The Beast of Callaire from Smashwords, you can now download a new version with the guide in the front. And if you haven't read The Beast of Callaire, from tomorrow all Kindle editions will have the guide, and in a couple days you'll be able to get it from Barnes & Noble too!

And for those who can't update the versions they already have, you can find the guide below!

~Saruuh

A GUIDE TO THE BEINGS OF

THE LEGEND MIRROR

NUMEN

These ancient beings can be classified into two categories, Gods and Creatures. These are a species, like human or canine.

GODS (e.g. Juno, Jupiter, Venus)

How mythological? The original Gods the Romans worshipped.

Magic? Enough to cause a world war.

Dangerous? Hella.

CREATURES (e.g. the Manticore, the Phoenix)

How mythological? The original Creatures of folklore and bedtime stories.

Magic? Enough to Change forms at will and tear through armies of Legendaries.

Dangerous? Hella.

LEGENDARY

Legendaries are the descendants of the Numina, and can be classified into two categories depending on how much Legend is in their DNA. These are also a species.

LEGEND-BLOOD (e.g. Yasmin, Cornelia, Mavers)

How mythological? Pretty mythical.

Human DNA? None at all.

How many Legendary or Numina parents? Two.

Magic? If they have God ancestors, it’s very likely.

Do they Change form? If they have Creature ancestors, it’s very likely.

Dangerous? About as much as a lion.

CROSS-BLOOD (e.g. Vic, Guy, Willa)

How mythological? Fairly mythical.

Human DNA? Yep.

How much human DNA? Depends. A Cross-Blood could have one human parent, a human grandparent, or a human many-greats ancestor. It all results in a weakening of Legend, and makes them a Cross-Blood—though some are much stronger than others.

Magic? Unlikely, and it’s weak in the rare cases its present.

Do they Change form? Extremely unlikely, since they wouldn’t have enough Legend to spark the Change.

Dangerous? About as much as a household cat.

Breed of Legendary

Depending on what Numina ancestors a Legendary has, they can belong to one of two (or both!) of the following breeds. Returning to the canine example, if you have a dog they might be a Labrador or a Poodle. If you have a Legendary, they might be Dei or Crea.

Example: the child of a human and a Legend-Blood descendant of Mars would be a Cross-Blood Dei because 1) human and 2) God. Things get tricky when a child is a descendant of a God and a Creature—for example, the child of a Legend-Blood descendant of Juno and a Legend-Blood descendant of the Phoenix would be a Legend-Blood Crea and Dei (like Yasmin Wikke!)

DEI (e.g. Minnie, Guy, Mavers)

Descended from Gods? Yep.

Descended from Creatures? Nope.

Can be either Legend- or Cross-Blood? Yep.

Magic? Yes, although Cross-Bloods with majority human DNA will only have weak Majick—Aqua Majick with an ability to only influence water temperature, for example, instead of being able to manipulate water into any form like most Legend-Bloods with Aqua.

CREA (e.g. Ran, Willa, Vic)

Descended from Gods? Nope.

Descended from Creatures? Yep.

Can be either Legend- or Cross-Blood? Yep.

Magic? Extremely rare, and only ever elemental Majick connected to their location of Change. If they change near the sea, they’d most likely develop Aqua Majick, for example. Majick in a Crea only ever occurs when the Legendary has a God ancestor.

PURE

The children of all-human ancestors.

Any mythological ties? Nope.

Any magic? Nope. 

APRIL: Of DRYAD snippets and a BEAST blog tour

How long has it been since I last wrote a post? Three months? Jesus. That I had literally nothing to report for those months is quite sad. I'm disappointed my monthly post schedule has fallen behind, but at least I have something to show for it now. By the end of this week, I will have finished the first draft of The DRYAD of Callaire, which means things can finally start happening. I can edit it and fix everything and write the draft of the next book! Covers for DRYAD and the redesigned BEAST cover will be revealed! The Legend Mirror will make a scary debut on Netgalley. Lots of things.

This month I'm taking part in Camp Nanowrimo, and so far I've written 24,293 words which is pretty awesome. April is also the month of The BEAST of Callaire blog tour with Diverse Book Tours! Here are some posts you may have missed:

My interview over at Twinja Book Reviews

Why do you find diversity important in your writing?

I write diversely because I can walk into any bookshop in any city and see myself, a cis white person, reflected in every single book. Because there are so many people out there who can’t do the same, and because I wish there were books for them in every bookshop, too.

I wrote 30 Random Things about The Beast of Callaire and The Legend Mirror. You can find 10 on Howling For Books, 10 on Donnie Darko Girl, and 10 over at Constance Burris's blog! There are some hints about future TLM books in there, too, so you don't wanna miss 'em.

3 – One of the characters isn't who they claim to be.

BEAST was featured by THHernandez and Authors To Watch where you can also read an excerpt.

Talons unfurl from my fingers. My vision sharpens all at once and I know I look beastly, that my eyes are the most golden they’ve ever been.

On top of this (so many things happening!) Angie at Pinkindle and Tamara Philip reviewed The Beast of Callaire. Here's what they're saying:

"I also really liked how this wasn’t a story about coming out or accepting ones sexual identity. Yasmin just happens to be gay and that’s that. She has bigger things to worry about than who she’s attracted to."

"This book is a definite must read especially for someone looking for something DIFFERENT and diverse in the YA genre."

Now for the snippets I promised in the title. To make up for the lack of posts these past few months, below are two unedited snippets of DRYAD, one from Fray, one from Yasmin. The Dryad of Callaire is out this August and will be able to pre-order from July! Add it to your Goodreads.

“I’m all human, actually,” I say. I keep my voice even, as though I’m not scared, as though I’m not even moved by his presence. I know enough from experience that it’s more frightening when your opponent is deadly calm than when they’re blazing fury. “But I have a lot of Majick. More than I had this morning, actually. Enough to knock out an Incar, and more than enough to deal with you.” 

---

I hear the others climb out of the van and stand behind us but I’m too transfixed on the boy in front of us to look at them, because I recognise him. The last time I saw him he was still, sat in a basement cellar, staring at nothing. There were more of them, though. At least a handful more. I scan the road and scrubby trees around the gates, expecting more than one boy, but I can’t see another stranger. I reach out with my Majick but all I sense is us, and him. He’s wrong, inhuman—not even Legendary, not even Numen—he’s made entirely of Majick but that’s not what feels wrong. The Majick is tarnished, dark.

“He’s dead,” Mavers says.

I hope you enjoyed these glimpses at DRYAD and followed the Beast of Callaire blog tour!
For more regular content, you might want to follow me on The Lux Guardians and The Legend Mirror facebook pages, where I post weekly :)

Hope you're all having a great April!

~Saruuh

Regarding the Accidental Early Release

The more twitter-ly active of you will notice that THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE has published a month early. While this is great for you (the book a whole month early!) it's not so great for me (crippling unprofessional-ism!) I had intended for the book to drop on May 20th, you know ... its actual release date, but my printer was vastly wrong in estimating how long it would take for the book to be in stores (read: 8 weeks now means 2 weeks! Take note. In a fortnight it will be June.)

But this means you can now get The Beast of Callaire in glorious paperback, AND in digital!!

Paperback: Amazon UK | Amazon US | Book Depository | B&N

Digital: Kindle | Nook | iTunes

If you have a few dollars spare, I'd love it if you gave my book a chance. I've extended the pre-order swag reward, so if you email proof of purchase to saruuhkelsey@hotmail.com I'll send you some awesome book swag.

If you enjoyed the Wicked Lovely or Shiver series, you might like this - paranormal romance, dubious characters, sweet love interest (no bad boys or girls here.) Here's the full blurb:

Yasmin is a descendant of the Manticore. A creature of Persian mythology. A Legendary.

But she doesn’t want to be. Unlike the Legendaries in The Red, Yasmin wants nothing more than an ordinary life. She tries to fool herself into believing that she doesn’t change into a beast every full moon and savagely kill innocent people.

But when Yasmin starts hearing a voice in her head and is drawn into dreams that aren’t her own, she is led to Fray—a girl who once saved Yasmin from hunters, who has shadowy memories that hint at her having Legendary magic—and Yasmin is catapulted into a life of Majick and malevolence.

Despite the danger around her and Fray, Yasmin might finally have a chance at being a normal girl with a normal girlfriend. But with Legendaries being killed, a war between the Gods brewing, and the beast inside Yasmin becoming stronger each moon, her mundane life is little more than a dream.

Swag for all pre-orders!

If you didn't know, The Beast of Callaire is up for pre-order. In just over a month, it'll be out and people will be able to do crazy things, like read it. I'm very excited for its release and I hope you are too, but if you're not I'm here to change your mind with bookmarks and bribery!

Whenever you pre-order The Beast of Callaire, no matter whether physical or digital, I'll send you a swag pack of 2 signed postcards, 2 stickers, and 1 charm bookmark. They look like this:

Sorry for the terrible photo quality.

If you're wondering what the charms are, they're a moon, a tree, and an arrow - all three of which are very significant to the book.

You can preorder THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE here on my blog in paperback (signed, fancy, and personalised), or from Barnes & Noble for NOOK, or iBooks for Apple devices. You won't be able to pre-order from Amazon, much to my frustration, so sorry about that! But if you have a nook or an ipad/pod/phone (and let's face it, who doesn't?) you can get the book to read on there.

Paperback | B&N | iBooks

And: the ebook is only $3.48/£1.99!

All you need to do is send proof of purchase (a screencap or photo of your receipt, though without all your personal details and such) along with your mailing address to saruuhkelsey@hotmail.com and I'll send your swag out to you ASAP. But make sure you send proof of purchase before May 18th or it won't count as a pre-order!

This reward is open to all countries.

Go forth and pre-order! And if you share/promo this post/the book in any way, I'll send you a few extra stickers. Everyone needs extra stickers, right?

~Saruuh

THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE Pre-order & ARCs

I'm a little delayed making this post because I've been extra busy this past week. But The Beast of Callaire is now available for physical pre-order! And not only do you get your book faster than people who don't pre-order, get it signed and personalised, and have the extra bonus of making me squeal with joy, but you get free swag. A fancy metal bookmark with beads and pretty charms, postcards, and stickers! 

Pre-order here!

This swag package is available for all who pre-order in both digital and paperback forms (and send proof of purchase) - digital pre-orders will go up in the next month on Smashwords, Barnes and Noble, and (with a slight delay) iBooks. I'm sure Sony Ebooks will also offer it for pre-order too, but I'd have to check that and I am quite lazy, plus nobody has yet downloaded any of my books through Sony, so I'm thinking it's a less popular vendor. 

But that's enough about pre-orders. Look at my shiny new proofs! Complete with grumpy teenage Nolan who did not want to participate in photo taking! Click to enlarge.

Ahh so pretty. So comfy to lay on!

Here's the form to request an ARC, if you're interested in reviewing.

Hope you're all having lovely Wednesdays.

~Saruuh