Autumn is my favorite time of year. Well, October through Christmas, because I really love the holiday season too, but mostly autumn. It snuck up on me this year somehow (I say somehow, but really it was writing and editing and revising and The Prince's Consort coming out) so I'm playing a bit of catch up and also trying to slow down and appreciate it too. There are so many things I love about autumn - the crisp air, the vivid colors, the scent of woodsmoke on the breeze, the crackle of leaves underfoot. The sweaters and boots and tights. The pumpkin muffins and pumpkin bread baking.

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays too. I love dressing up, though I don't get as much of a chance to as I used to, and I love handing out candy to trick-or-treaters. I'm not a fan of scary things, though. I don't watch scary movies or read horror stories. I know it sounds a bit strange that I like Halloween and hate scary things, but I do. And I do like to read things that feel vaguely seasonal around the holiday, which mostly means I turn to paranormal romances. Which can have some creepy elements, but don't generally scare me. Here is a totally random list of some that I enjoy, because if I gave you all of my favorite paranormal romances, this post would be far too long!

A Little Familiar by R. Cooper - I just read this one this week and loved it. It was wonderfully seasonal and had witches and familiars and I adored Bartleby.

The Tutor by Bonnie Dee - Another that I read and enjoyed recently. It's a historical with a Gothic feel and ghosts and a creepy old house. 

Once Upon a Haunted Moor by Harper Fox - Harper Fox's writing is always lovely and really evokes the eerie moor. It's also the beginning of a series about these two wonderful characters. I love the every book in it and am hoping for another.

Fish and Ghosts by Rhys Ford - I always enjoy Rhys Ford's books, and this one involves a hotel for ghosts, including one that is pretty scary. The sequel is Duck Duck Ghost and it's great too.

Spirit by John Inman - Another with a ghost but with lots of humor thrown in too.

Kick at the Darkness by Keira Andrews - Zombies and werewolves, and this book did scare me a bit - I should not read zombie books, and I will remember this in the future. But the romance is wonderful, and I loved it anyway.

Iron & Velvet by Alexis Hall - I just read this and I'm wondering why it took me so long. A paranormal investigator, vampires, werewolves, demons, witches, some creepy monsters, and it was thoroughly entertaining.

The Darkest London series by Kristen Callihan - Magic, werewolves and other supernatural creatures in a Victorian setting. Loved the characters and the romances and the writing.

The Whyborne & Griffin series by Jordan L Hawk - Really any of her books fit and I'll reread them any time of year. They all have wonderful characters fighting creepy monsters.

The Charm of Magpies series by KJ Charles - This is another of my favorite series that I'll reread at any time. Another historical setting with characters I love. The second book has seriously creepy giant rats.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness - Witches, vampires, demons, and it all starts with a book in the Oxford library.

That turned into a longer list than I planned! What do you like to read at Halloween?

I just received the cover for The Artist's Masquerade, the second book in the Chronicles of Tournai series, and I'm so excited to share it with you. Once again, Anne Cain did an amazing job with the cover. Isn't it beautiful?

As the first-born son of the Duke of Tournai and cousin to the prince, Cathal has always tried to fulfill his duty to family and country, including following through with an arranged marriage to Velia, cousin to the emperor of Ardunn. But it’s Velia’s companion, Flavia, who fascinates Cathal. Cathal doesn’t know that Flavia is really Flavian, a man masquerading as a woman to escape Ardunn, a restrictive place in which Flavian’s preference for men is forbidden.
​
Even when Cathal discovers Flavian’s true gender, he cannot fight his attraction to him. Flavian is intrigued by Cathal, but Cathal is still betrothed to Velia, and Flavian worries Cathal is more taken with his feminine illusion than the man beneath it. While both men battle their longings for each other, spies from Ardunn infiltrate the capital, attempting to uncover Tournai’s weaknesses. They are also searching for Flavian, who possesses a magical Talent that allows him to see the truth of a person just by painting their portrait—a skill invaluable to Ardunn’s emperor.


The Artist's Masquerade will be out in December. As soon as I have the definite release date and pre-order links, I'll share those with you. There's still plenty of time to read the first book in the series. Look here for where to buy The Prince's Consort (the books do stand alone, so you don't have to read The Prince's Consort first, but if you're so inclined...).

I can't believe The Prince's Consort has been out in the world for a week already! Thank you to everyone who has bought it! I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it. And if you haven't bought it yet and you'd like to, Dreamspinner is having a storewide sale this weekend so you can get The Prince's Consort 25% off here.

In other writing news, The Artist's Masquerade, book 2 in the Chronicles of Tournai series, is in the proofing stages and will likely be out in December. I've seen a rough sketch of the cover design, and it's gorgeous. I love how Anne Cain has drawn Cathal and Flavian. I'm eagerly anticipating the finished cover. Hopefully I'll have more updates and a cover reveal for you soon. I've also submitted book 3 of the series, Etan and Tristan's book, to Dreamspinner. It's tentatively titled The Scholar's Heart. 

I took a couple of days off writing after I submitted book 3. I needed a little break (when did it get to be late October?), and my house was in dire need of a cleaning! I attended the NJ Romance Writers conference, which was great as usual, last weekend. Interesting workshops and time spent with writer friends. I posted some updates and photos from the conference on Facebook and twitter while I was there. Now, with a cleaner house and a clearer head, I'm getting started on book 4 in the Tournai series. No title yet because I'm horrible at coming up with titles!

What have you been up to?

The Prince's Consort is out today from Dreamspinner Press!

Legends tell of large cats defending the principality of Tournai, but such creatures have been lost to time.

Or have they?

Prince Philip inherited the throne at a young age, and since then, his life has centered around ruling his country and resisting those pressuring him to take a wife and conceive an heir—forcing him to hide his attraction to men. When kind-hearted Amory is offered to the prince in exchange for more time for Amory’s father to complete a commission, both Philip and Amory are horrified. But Philip agrees to keep Amory at the palace, where they gradually become friends, then lovers. For the first time in his life, Philip is free to share not only his heart, but the magical shape-shifting ability that runs in the royal bloodline.

Neither Amory nor Philip imagined falling in love, and they certainly don’t expect the lengths those who oppose their relationship will go to keep them apart—maybe even resorting to murder.


Buy it here in ebook or paperback:
Dreamspinner Press
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
ARe
Kobo
Google Play

I'm also at Cate Ashwood's blog today doing an interview. Take a look here.

And two more places for you to learn more about the book!

I'm at the Dreamspinner Press blog today talking about how I created the characters in The Prince's Consort. And there's a giveaway! You can enter for a chance to win an ecopy of the book. Find the post here.

I'm also at Anna Butler's blog today sharing an excerpt from the book. You can read the excerpt here. I hope you enjoy it!

I can't believe it's almost here! The Prince's Consort is out this Friday. I'm very excited (and a little anxious, but we won't mention that part). I had a great time today chatting on Dreamspinner Press's Facebook page about the book. Thank you so much to anyone who joined me! I'm also over at Brynn Stein's blog today talking about writing and The Prince's Consort. You can find the post here.

I'm over at Charlie Cochet's Purple Rose Teahouse today sharing an excerpt of The Prince's Consort, so head over there to check it out.

Also The Prince's Consort is available for preorder on Amazon now! 

That title sounds rather ominous but it really wasn't meant to.

The Prince's Consort is out in less than two weeks, and the first of some blog posts I'm doing to promote it went up today. Come on over to Shae Connor's blog, where I'm talking about why I read and write fantasy romance and about The Prince's Consort. Find the post here.

There will be more posts and interviews and excerpts in the coming days, all leading up to release day on October 16th. I'll post the links as they go live. I hope you enjoy learning a little more about me and The Prince's Consort!

I can't quite believe that today is the first of October. I kind of think it should be summer still. I'd wonder where the time went, but I'm pretty sure I spent it in a flurry of writing and editing. But despite my lack of any kind of life outside writing this summer, there's lots of exciting stuff going on. 

The Prince's Consort releases on October 16th, just fifteen short days from now. I can't believe it's so soon! I'm very excited and kind of anxious too. I'll be visiting some blogs and sharing info about the book and me and some excerpts starting over the weekend, so watch for that. 

I've just gotten the last round of edits for The Artist's Masquerade, so I'll be spending some time with them this weekend. I'm excited about this too though - we're at the last stage of editing! I'm also working through my revisions for the third Tournai book and hoping to submit that to Dreamspinner in the next couple of weeks. So, yes, these next few weeks will be super busy! But it's all good stuff.

In other news, October is Queer Romance Month, which is a celebration of romance across the LGBTQ spectrum. Last year was the first QRM, and there were wonderful posts every day of the month. There's a fantastic line up again this year, so check it out here: www.queerromancemonth.com.