With less than ten days until BLOOD DARK’s release, the official blog reviews are starting to filter through. Last week, I posted Blood Dark’s first review courtesy of Fiona’s Book Reviews. Now Big Little Sister Blog has also had a chance to read and review Blackthorn’s fifth installment – and it was another super-positive one! I’m thrilled. Thank you SO much, Michelle!
“Lindsay Pryor has crafted a world that’s intricate, gritty and genuinely fascinating… Book five is darker and harsher than I expected and all the better for it. Lindsay Pryor’s ability to stay true to her finely crafted story is enviable and her characters are rich and demanding (especially that Kane!). I’d say its fabulous. In fact its beyond fabulous – its fabulous on steroids! And I’m a goner!”
And last month, I shared some reviews from the Sirens of Fiction who had only just started on their Blackthorn journey. Now Blood Shadows has been reviewed by another of the Sirens, so HUGE thanks to Brickley Jules for her terrific review – and for going straight on to read Blood Roses! That’s what I like to hear! 🙂
“The author, Lindsay J. Pryor, did a superior job creating the world the book takes place in. The book was well thought out, with carefully painted characters, who were easy to imagine… I would definitely recommend this book! It has a lot to offer those you enjoy romance, fantasy, futuristic or supernatural.”
I’d like to say a massive thank you too to all the other reviewers that I know are currently posting their reviews for BLOOD DARK on NetGalley. I’m hearing such positive things so far, so thank you for taking the time to support my series.
Don’t forget, the full cover reveal is coming soon as well as those first three chapters!
*WARNING: Contains HUGE spoilers for the first four books in the series*
Now that we’re four books into my series and at the mid-way point in the Blackthorn story, there’s a lot that has happened. On Tuesday, I posted a reminder of who’s who in the world of Blackthorn. Now, here are a few key things to jog your memory of some of the story so far that will prove useful before you read BLOOD DARK…
FIRSTLY, A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE WIDER PICTURE
The regulations were put in place 80 years ago when the third species first outed their furtive co-existence. The outing was instigated by the Higher Order (vampire royalty). At the time, the Higher Order claimed they had the ability to heal humans and offered it in return for a place for themselves in Midtown.
Amidst the third species being outed, there were whispers of unconfirmed prophecies about the vampires rising up against humans. Remaining cautious, the humans set up locales and, within them, districts to manage and contain the third species. Over time, a stratified human society also started to form.
However, it turned out that the benefits of Higher Order blood, though effective, were only temporary. Unhappy about the symbiotic relationship this necessitated and believing their original claims to be time-stalling trickery, the Global Council mounted pressure on the Higher Order. The Higher Order promised a permanent cure existed – and that they would find it.
Now it appears the whispered prophecies were true: the vampire leader has arrived.
If you’re uncertain about the set-up in Blackthorn, how the regulations came into being, or want to understand more about the mythology that underpins the series, you can find posts about it here.
AND THOSE FEW USEFUL REMINDERS OF THE STORY SO FAR
Please note, the racaps below aren’t in chronological order – they’re just meant as reminders for readers familiar with the series.
Kane and Caitlin
Though committing to each other at the end of Blood Shadows, Caitlin has since returned to work at the VCU. Her new temporary boss is Matt Morgan, who was her partner in Blood Shadows. Her first case is trying to find who is responsible for a spate of human murders in Blackthorn and Lowtown. Caleb is a prime suspect.
Within the first twenty-four hours back on the job, Sirius Throme (Head of the Global Council) turned up in Caitlin’s apartment with a threat of invading Blackthorn should Kane not give himself up. Sirius revealed his master plan to conduct soul transferences, for which he needs Kane – a method he’s going to use to create an elite human race that will ultimately lead to a cull of the third species.
Kane doesn’t just have Sirius to contend with. Having come face to face with Phia in the compound in Blood Torn, Kane knows the Tryan is out there somewhere – a serryn appearing in Blackthorn the first sign that the prophecies have started. Aware of the devastating impact of a vampire uprising, he’s intent on killing the prophesied leader as soon as he discovers who it is.
Kane knows Phia is a serryn and that Caleb is hunting her. At the end of Blood Torn, he was on his way to see Caleb to get him to back off from Phia so he wouldn’t trace her to the compound. Due to Caleb’s links with Feinith and the ruling of all serryns to be delivered to the Higher Order, he’s hoping Caleb doesn’t know of the serryn’s role in the prophecy.
Caleb and Leila
Caleb is of Higher Order heritage. His mother renounced her Higher Order status but went on to have three children – Seth, Caleb and Jake – with a Higher Order male. Caleb prefers to reside with his own where he can better protect them, so has revealed his heritage to no one.
In Blood Roses, Caleb was revealed to be the pending Tryan: the prophesied vampire leader said to rise up and lead the vampires against the human oppression. He was supposed to kill Leila to see his transformation through and, by doing so, kick-start the prophecy. Instead, he took her serrynity leading it to jump to her next sister in line – Sophia (Phia).
Caleb released Leila after she promised she could find an alternative to the prophecy and, with it, an alternative to Caleb killing Phia. He is awaiting her return. In the interim, he is determined to find Phia both as a fail-safe in case Leila lets him down, as well as to fulfil his promise to her should she keep to her word.
Leila knows Phia is safe somewhere in Blackthorn and has warned her to stay away from Caleb. Leila is on the cusp of returning to the district.
Jask and Phia
Before Leila’s serrynity jumped to her, Phia was involved in a vigilante group called The Alliance – responsible for the assassination attempt on Caleb and Jake Dehain in Blood Roses. Phia since found out that a Higher Order vampire called Jarin funded that attempt. Jarin is Feinith’s bethrothed and an enemy of Caleb. Members of The Alliance are now being killed off.
Both Phia and Jask know Caleb is pursuing her. They know Caleb is aware of what she is, and that he let Leila go – but they don’t yet know why.
A secret army attacked Jask’s compound, stole some of the lycan young and destroyed the pack’s herbs days before they are due to morph. Lycanthropy in the Blackthorn world is a life-threatening allergy. Most of the pack will not survive. Jask needs to find supplies from somewhere – and quickly.
By the end of Blood Deep, all the lycan young returned to the compound, except for Tuly, Corbin’s daughter, who ended up in Caleb’s hands. Tuly let Caleb know that Phia is at the compound.
Eden and Jessie
In Blood Deep, Jessie revealed the effects of Caleb and Leila not seeing their destiny through. There has been a split in the fourth dimension and the fourth species are leaking into Blackthorn. The only way to reclose the dimension is for either Leila or Caleb to kill the other.
It is not public knowledge that Caleb is the Tryan. However, as Jessie has seen the prophecy, she’s also seen the face of the Tryan even though she can’t recall it. Sirius is as aware of this as he is of the prophecy itself. He wants to get his hands on Jessie to have her shadow read so he too can discover the identity of the leader and kill whoever it is.
Through Jessie’s visions, Sirius was revealed as being the catalyst to the Tryan’s uprising. It is Caleb and Sirius’s showdown, not solely the vampire leader’s uprising, that leads to global devastation.
Eden revealed that he had seen angel tears before. He believes Sirius Throme is holding angels at The Facility in Midtown, and that he is testing the superhuman abilities their tears create on his secret army. This is the army they believe invaded the compound and that Sirius now intends to use to invade Blackthorn to capture Kane once and for all.
As with Tuesday’s post, I hope that has helped refresh a few aspects of the story. I know Blackthorn readathons have already started and I hope everyone who is a part of them is having fun picking up on all those little nuances that should now be falling into place. I still can’t quite believe we’re at the mid-way point of the series!
On that note, there are only thirteen days left until the official release of BLOOD DARK! The full paperback cover will be posted between now and then, the first three chapters will be uploaded for you to get a taster of what’s in store, and there will be the all-important Bites. Stay close, we’re nearly there!
*Warning: As this post is intended as a memory prompt, it contains spoilers for the first four books in the series.*
Now that we’re four books into Blackthorn and at the mid-way point in the series, I thought it might help to give you a quick recap on the characters you’ve come across in the first four books. I hope this glossary proves useful – and it’s in alphabetical order to make it easier should you need it for reference as you read BLOOD DARK.
I’ve also attached both my Pinterest board for Blackthorn’s Cast as well as a board compiled from readers’ suggestions as to who you could envisage playing our characters on the screen. Thanks to everyone who contributed to this last year!
PLEASE NOTE: THE TABLE ORIGINALLY POSTED HAS BEEN REMOVED DUE TO BEING UPDATED AS THE SERIES HAS PROGRESSED. IT CAN NOW BE FOUND VIA THE TAB ‘ABOUT BLACKTHORN’.
I’ll be back in a couple of days with a recap on where we are in the Blackthorn story so far, which will also hopefully prove useful to you.
Don’t forget, if you’d like to win an early eBook of BLOOD DARK, you only have a few hours left to enter! Please check out my previous post or my Facebook page to do so. You can also enter by email. Thank you to all the entries that have come in so far! The winner will be announced tomorrow!
It’s been over a year since I’ve had an interview and, in this one, I talk about my journey to publication for the first time. If you’re a writer yourself or you’d just like to know a bit more about who I am, what inspired me to write Blackthorn and what plans I have for the future, you might find this one interesting.
HUGE thanks to the extremely lovely Daniel Riding for hosting me – and for quizzing me mercilessly!
There are two other events to look out for this week. On Wednesday, if you’re a member of the ‘Into the World of Blackthorn‘ Facebook group (an additional group to the official Blackthorn Fan Page), I’ll be giving you the first opportunity ever to fire questions at our four Blackthorn heroes: Kane, Caleb, Jask and Eden – and you can ask them anything! If you love talking about all things Blackthorn, you’d be most welcome to join. And towards the end of the week I’ll be launching a competition to win an early e-book of BLOOD DARK. Stay close if you can’t bear to wait another 24 days until it’s yours!
I know it feels like a lifetime of waiting but I finally have some Blood Dark news coming very soon! Thank you so much for all the queries that continue to come in about its release. Stay close if you don’t want to miss anything! I should have news about its preorder before too long.
For those who still don’t know, especially anyone new here, our debut Blackthorn couple, Kane and Caitlin, are back in this latest installment. (And for Team Jask, Team Caleb and Team Eden – yes, they also make an appearance.)
As we’re talking Kane and Caitlin…
Although we’re almost in book five of the series, some readers are still entering Blackthorn for the first time. Last week, I found out that not one, not two, but FOUR of The Sirens of Fiction reviewed Blood Shadows – AND they enjoyed it! Thank you hugely to Maria, Ingrid, Anna and Scarlett for your time and your wonderful reviews.
“I absolutely love the characters in Blood Shadows…Every time Kane made an appearance I could hear my own heart pounding…Blood Shadows got me more hooked than any other vampire love story currently.” ~ Maria
“What blew me away first was that this was Pryor’s debut book. The detail she gives to the characters is intoxicating and that of a seasoned author…you will not regret reading this book.” ~ Ingrid
“A vampire’s way of putting a whole new twist to “Bite Me”!…I loved this paranormal romance novel from the beginning until the end…I would recommend this book and series to any that ever ask.” ~ Anna
“…the makings of an incredible paranormal series with vampires, lycans, angels, and more. Plot twists that you will never see coming leave you on the edge of your seat begging for more…” ~ Scarlett
Again, thank you hugely, ladies. I do hope you survive Blood Roses!
And for all the other new Blackthorn readers out there…
I’m aware that new readers are joining Blackthorn every day so I thought that between now and Blood Dark‘s release, I’d share a few posts from Blackthorn’s archives.
Last night on Facebook, I posted something for Team Caleb with a flashback to months before even Blood Torn was released.
Back in May 2013, the awesome GraveTells blog asked if they could have an exclusive interview with both Caleb and Jake Dehain in one of the most unique spins on a character interview I’ve ever been involved in. DaVinciKittie (the owner of GraveTells) and her fellow reviewer, Molly, didn’t want just any interview – they wanted to go into Blackthorn and, more to the point, into Caleb’s library to speak to the Dehain brothers face-to-face! Blackthorn readers put forward the questions, DaVinciKittie put together a story with Molly (featuring them as themselves), and I gave Caleb and Jake “a little help” with their answers.
If you missed it the first time around, you can find it HERE (don’t let the original Blood Roses cover throw you).
Another of my favourite interviews from the Blackthorn archives goes back to June last year when I was quizzed by author and reviewer Charles Phipps.
“The Blackthorn series…is the tale of urban segregation in a world where vampires and other supernaturals are regulated to living in crime-ridden slums while the elite of humanity dwell in their own districts. Each novel, a new couple of star-crossed lovers form along class lines as outsider heroines deal with the dangerous supernatural men who make the Blackthorn district their home. Despite the United Federation of Charles not being known for its Paranormal Romance reviews, I find this series one of the most evocative titles of the genre. Its excellent world-building and well-conceived mythology appeals to both my urban fantasy as well as Gothic Punk sensibilities. The seamy Noir mood is a cherry on top of an already rich dessert.” ~ Charles Phipps
It’s one of the most in-depth interviews I’ve ever done so if you’d like to learn more about Blackthorn, such as what inspired me to write it, this is the perfect one to check out HERE.
And whilst we’re still talking interviews…
If you’ve joined the ‘Into the World of Blackthorn‘ Facebook group (not the official Lindsay J. Pryor/Blackthorn fan page), I’m heading over tonight between 9.30-10.30 pm UK time for a live chat about Blackthorn in general or even my upcoming release, Blood Dark. If you want to be a part of the group, now’s your chance! Leticia (its founder) and Louise are the lovely ladies who run it and anyone who wants to chat all things Blackthorn is more than welcome. If you can’t make it for the live chat, you can still post questions which I’ll answer at another time.
I’ll be back with another post in the next few days – or even sooner if I have preorder news to share!
As you’ve probably guessed from my lack of presence here lately, edits are currently consuming most of my time. When it’s not edits, it’s my insistence on working on book six in between waits. I really hope I’ll have some Blood Dark news to share with you in the not-to-distant future. I can’t thank you enough for all the queries coming in about it and for your patience waiting to know when that release day will be.
I did, however, take Monday afternoon off, and for a very good reason: I met one of my U.S. readers! It was actually the first time I’ve ever met a reader from across the pond. Leticia has been a big Blackthorn fan for a while now and has even recently set up a brand new fan page on Facebook (this is aside to the official Blackthorn fan page where I post) where readers can go and chat about my books in a closed group. She once told me that she’d fly all the way from Portland in Oregon to the UK just to attend a Blackthorn book signing and meet me so, when she got in touch to say she was in the UK, we arranged to meet up.
Monday morning, Leticia travelled from where she was staying in London, across to the South West to meet me at The Magdalen Chapter Hotel in Exeter for lunch.
After lunch, I showed her the lounge area where I was sat back in 2012 when I received an email from Bookouture showing me the original Blood Shadows book cover (see below) – so Leticia had some Blackthorn history thrown in too!
Above: Me and Leticia in The Magdalen Chapter’s lounge.
Above: The original Blood Shadows book cover, the Blackthorn banner (both designed by Henry Steadman) and one of the first ‘Bites’ as emailed to me by Bookouture back in 2012 whilst I was sat in the room above.
I was so nervous about meeting Leticia, and promised myself I wouldn’t ramble like I’m prone to – especially considering my Welsh accent kicks in when I’m at top speed, which can be tricky to understand. Fortunately, she was lovely and we quickly fell into chats about her other favourite PNR author Stephanie Hudson (about whom I quizzed her mercilessly and is now on my TBR list), her life in the States (I’ve never been), and our cultural differences. The hot topic soon became about the language differences between the U.S. and the U.K. and there were giggles aplenty when we discussed how even some of our basic vocab (I think everyone knows about the spelling issues) is so different. It’s no wonder my U.S. readers get confused sometimes! It’s not quite the same when I’m talking about Kane fixing his bike in his vest (which is apparently called a tank top in certain U.S. states) and Leticia is envisaging him in what we in U.K. call a waistcoat. Kane in a suit?? Hmm, I’m not sure how that would work… (If anyone is drifting off at this point to try and imagine it, ahem, I’m not quite finished yet…) As an aside, I even learned what ranch sauce/dressing is!
Leticia, of course, got to quiz me about Blackthorn and its creation and my personal takes and thoughts about my characters. One of my favourite moments though was when Leticia looked me in the eye and told me that under absolutely no circumstances, whatever is ahead for Blackthorn, am I allowed to kill off Jask. And, heck, did she mean it! Apparently a little more suffering is kind of okay, but there has to be a HEA for him in the end. So, for all Jask’s fans out there, know that Leticia was right there fighting his corner.
Thanks, again, for spending your afternoon with me, Leticia. I’m so glad you enjoyed your first visit to the U.K. and had such a wonderful 30th.
Thank you to every single person who entered this giveaway, both here and via email. There were so many incredible entries that I’m relieved it was Kim, Bookouture’s Publicity Manager, who volunteered to judge the contest and not me!
So, without further ado…
(…but make sure you read on, because this giveaway has a Blackthorn twist all of its own…)
…the WINNER of four signed Blackthorn books is:
ANGE JOYCE
Ange’s entry came via email. In it, she said:
“Blackthorn has to be one of my favourite series hands down! I tend to be a binge reader; I will read and read and read till I get bored then I won’t read for months even if there is a new release. But blackthorn has its claws and teeth in me so deep that I cannot wait for the next book! There are just so many layers to each character and then each character has an integral role in the main plot; which in turn is so twisted it blurs the line of good and evil.
When I finish a book I find myself getting excited about future scenes; as Lindsay knows all too well and loves to tease me about it on social media. I try to predict what’s going to happen and Lindsay manages to surprise me everytime.
The books are amazing and the six figure sales speak for themselves! Any and all supernatural book lovers will not be able to put any of these books down but truth be told Lindsay is the reason I love Blackthorn so much. For starters without her that world would not exist; there would be no vampire legends, no werewolf heart-throbs, no soul sucking demons, no evil councils judging and deciding everyone’s fate and no prophecies which means NO CALEB and that just hurts to even think about…
Another reason I love Lindsay is for her enthusiasm; her love for her creation, her baby, becomes extremely infectious when you speak to her or read her blogs but the way she interacts with her readers just blew me away.
Not many authors speak to their readers as if they are friends. She teases us about up coming scenes, chats with us about other books or TV shows, she will have a laugh with us and seems genuinely humbled by all the praise she gets.
Lindsay doesn’t just plug her own books like most authors, she will share little pieces of her life with us and in turn cares about our lives. I have had many conversations with Lindsay and I can honestly say that no one deserves this success more than she does! I am so happy for her and will be here to harass her for new books every step of the way on this awesome journey that is Blackthorn.”
HUGE congratulations, Ange! Your books are on their way!
The response from Kim, our lovely judge, was:
“Wow, picking a winner for this competition was one of the hardest things that I’ve ever had to do. There were some amazing responses and huge thanks to everyone who entered. I chose this particular winner because she brought a tear to my eye with her emotional and heart-warming response. She’s clearly a die-hard Blackthorn and a huge Lindsay J. Pryor fan who is always keen to get involved and sneak info on social media. Congratulations Ange.”
Thanks so much for your help, Kim! (It brought a tear to my eye too.)
And here’s the twist…
In fact, it was so tough to judge, that Kim decided to give an impromptu three runner-up prizes too! I’ll be in touch with the owners of the entries below to let you know what Kim has planned for you!
The entirety of each entry was taken into account, but here’s a sample of why they came so close:
CAROLYN (email entry):
“…Blackthorn has everything you are looking for in a book. It keeps you in suspense, not knowing what could happen next…The Blackthorn concept got my attention because of the…love and hate relationship between characters, the mystery, the challenges, the pressure, the obstacles that the 4 couples have to face and the fact that none of them are safe…The beauty of this series is that things get more complicated with every book and that is why I LOVE Blackthorn so much…”
SARAH/forever hopeful (blog entry):
“I love that all the books are intertwined with each other and don’t completely and utterly rely on conventional romance plots. I like that there are big conflicts…that connect all the different characters; I also enjoy the fact that these conflicts continue to build off of each other as the series progresses. Even though we may not see certain characters, we’re still left wondering…what decisions they’ll make or what reactions they will have in future books.”
SUZANNE (blog entry):
“The world-building is fantastic. Every scene serves to draw a picture of a stratified society…laced with oppression, segregation, and prejudice. The glaring differences between…Summerton, Midtown, Lowtown, and Blackthorn are heart-wrenching and make you feel the injustice of the situation…how prejudices and judgments can be perpetuated by those wanting to maintain power…instead of looking for ways to make a better world and society for all beings to enjoy. So, these books are not just a typical PNR…the message behind the stories is profound and I love it.”
Huge congrats to you too, Carolyn, Sarah and Suzanne! I’ll be emailing you very soon!
There are more giveaways to come!
Again, thanks hugely to everyone who entered – and for the amount of effort that went into so many entries. If you’ve been left disappointed this time around, don’t forget more giveaways are coming soon, including an early eBook of Blood Dark! I’ll think of something fun for us to do for that one… 😉
Earlier this month, I mentioned that Bookouture asked if my readers might like to be in with a chance of winning the first four Blackthorn books in a giveaway. My answer was easy, and you proved me right with a fantastic response to the prospect both here and on Facebook. Thank you!
Well, today’s the day!
Thanks to the uber-lovely Kim Nash, Bookouture’s Publicity Manager, we have a one-off-never-before-done giveaway of all four of the first Blackthorn books (in paperback) signed by me.
But, for the first time ever in a Blackthorn giveaway, the winner isn’t going to be picked out of a hat. This time, Kim is going to judge the entries and select the winner!
HOW TO ENTER
All you have to do to enter is give your response to:
WHAT ATTRACTS YOU TO BLACKTHORN?
It’s a wide-open question that allows die-hard fans to enter as well as those wanting to try the series for the first time. You can comment on what first drew you to the series, or what compels you to keep reading it. Maybe it’s your favourite series and you’d like to share why, or you simply want to say what (or who!) you love about it. How you answer is up to you!
THE RULES
You will need to post your answer either in the comment section below OR, if you’d prefer, you can email me. Please include ‘competition’ in the subject line.
You can only enter once.
CLOSING DATE
The competition is open now and you have until midnight (UK time) on Tuesday 2nd June to post your entry. I hope that gives you plenty of time to mull it over. The winner will be announced on Friday 5th June.
Whereas I usually like to jump on and comment on entries, as this is as judged competition this time, I’ll be good and stay quiet. The very best of luck to everyone who chooses to enter, and have fun coming up with your answer!
Whilst I’m immersed in Blood Dark edits, Bookouture’s fabulous Publicity Manager, Kim Nash, is already plotting the build up to its release.
Today, she asked if I thought my readers might like to be in with a chance to win all four paperbacks of Blackthorn so far – signed by me. That’s Blood Shadows, Blood Roses, Blood Torn AND Blood Deep.
I think it’s an awesome prize for a Blackthorn fan, especially as it’s the first time we’ve ever offered signed copies as a ‘collection’ so, obviously, I couldn’t say yes quick enough!
I just wanted to give you the heads-up to watch out for it in the forthcoming weeks. I have other giveaways and more blog posts to come soon too. Edits first though! I’m nearly there…
I’m thrilled to announce that this morning, whilst organising information for this year’s London Book Fair, my publisher emailed to let me know that Blackthorn sales have ventured well into six figures!
For those who have no idea why I’m so pleased, various online sources state that an average book sells around 10,000 copies with a major publisher. Being optimistic, the average first novel sells around 1,000. So with it being as tough it is out there for fairly new authors, let alone with a small independent publisher, six figures are quite an achievement – especially for a niche genre like dark paranormal romance.
With this in mind, I have to give a massive shout-out for my awesome publisher, Bookouture, whose ongoing work behind the scenes ensures that Blackthorn stays where readers can find it. Thankfully, they’re already being recognised for their achievements by being nominated as Digital Business of the Year alongside big names such as Kobo, Bloomsbury and Pan Macmillan in this year’s Bookseller Industry Awards – and it is so well deserved.
I know, I’m biased. I was the first author signed by Bookouture after Oliver Rhodes, its Founder and Managing Director, discovered me through an online romance writing competition. I was only a month into subbing elsewhere when he approached me to see if I would consider submitting Blood Shadows and Blood Roses (both finalist entries in the competition) to Bookouture. Knowing who Oliver Rhodes was, and his fantastic track record in publishing, it was a heart-stopping moment. I was also quite taken aback. I’d not long started researching online for prospective publishers for Blackthorn when the message echoing everywhere was that I was trying to catch the market right at the tail end of the PNR craze, where the big names were ruling, and publishers and agents were rolling their eyes and slamming the door on any further mention of the word ‘vampire’.
It also seemed that unique concepts, like Blackthorn, were a heightened risk for publishers, especially from a debut authors, so only added a challenge. On top of that, its dark and gritty, occasionally close to the mark, content was going to rule out some romance readerships, whilst the very prospect of romance and vampires would alienate a readership that may otherwise enjoy the complex and twisty thriller-style undertones of the series. In addition, Blackthorn’s British-isms could also cause problems if trying to appeal the biggest PNR market – the U.S.
But within a week, Bookouture were back in touch showing interest in both books, as well as a third (then to become Blood Torn). They put a detailed proposal in front of me including a marketing plan (very rare for debut novelists these days). Far from being intimidated by the alleged decline in interest in PNR, they had big plans for Blackthorn. More importantly to me, they had complete faith in it. All that remained was whether I had enough faith in them to sign over my beloved Blackthorn. It wasn’t a difficult decision. The rest, as the cliché says, is history. Since then, Bookouture have gone on to sign many incredible names, including both debut and established novelists, achieving superb reviews and competitive chart positions. I’m so privileged to have been there from the beginning.
So as well as a massive thanks to Bookouture for selecting Blackthorn and helping prove that readers still want PNR, here’s a massive thanks to you too for being so relentless in your support for my series, for being so vocal, and for ensuring that every Blackthorn book since has been signed. Those figures are just as much down to you spreading the word. Bookouture made my dreams come true, my loyal readers sustain it. Hugs to you all. xxx
