The Darkest Day in the Frost is here!

Hi everyone,

My holiday surprise anthology is available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble for Nook readers.

I enjoyed revisiting Lia, Briand, and Aemi for these holiday stories, and I hope you guys enjoy seeing them again too. All of the stories can be read by anyone, so even if you haven't read the Secrets of Itlantis series or the Frost series or the Kingmakers' War series, you won't find spoilers or be confused about previous plot elements.

Here's the summary:


Return to the world of the Frost (and other fantasy worlds) in this fantasy holiday anthology!

This short story collection contains three stories by Kate Avery Ellison, set in her fantasy series the Frost Chronicles, the Kingmakers' War, and Secrets of Itlantis.

"The Darkest Day in the Frost" - Lia Weaver and her siblings are struggling to survive after the death of her parents. But someone is watching out for her.

"The White Doe of Winterval" - Briand meets the new castle steward, Kael, on the eve of the winter holiday Winterval.

"The Last Sacrifice" - Aemi schemes to get her mother a necklace to wear for the Lighting ceremony. Nol tries to stop her.

Hope you all enjoy!

~Kate

Coming this week! Holiday stories about Lia, Briand, and Aemi!

Guys! I have a Christmas surprise!

I've written a book of holiday short stories set in the worlds of the Frost, A Gift of Poison (the Kingmakers' War series), and Of Sea and Stone (Secrets of Itlantis)!

All the stories can be enjoyed by anyone, even those who haven't read the stories (but there will be some fun things for fans).

The stories include:

"The Darkest Day in the Frost" - Lia and her siblings try to celebrate the new year without her parents. There's a bit of an Adam cameo. :)

"The White Doe of Winterval" - Briand steals a horse and rides in a hunt. She meets Kael for the first time, and he bestows upon her the nickname Catfoot. :D

"The Last Sacrifice" - Aemi does rebellious and risky things in order to win money to buy her mother a necklace for the Lightning that night. She and Nol snark at each other, of course. :)

I hope to have it up for sale sometime this weekend! So stay tuned!

Other news - Briand and Kael fans, you're in luck. I'm still working on the Kael novella and hope to have that out before the end of the year. Then, I'll finish the next Briand book, and then I've got a few new projects in the works as well.

ALL HER SECRETS Tour!

Hi everyone!

ALL HER SECRETS is here!!

You can get a copy at Amazon, Nook, and Kobo. (Also paperback.)

Someone tried to kill Victoria four years ago, and she’s been searching for the reason why ever since. On the weekend she discovers a possible reason for her attempted murder, Victoria is kidnapped and taken to an unknown location deep in the mountain wilderness. She forms an unexpected bond with one of her kidnappers, Sam, and she must decide if she can trust him to help her escape. But both Sam and Victoria are keeping secrets from each other, secrets that might prove deadly.

And there's a blog tour! With prizes!

You can check out the stops for today here:

ACME Teen Books

What Is That Book About

Another Bookworm Life 

The Bookkeeper's Apprentice

New Book Coming Soon!

Wow, it's been a long time since I've posted. I've been sequestered away, hiding from the summer heat like a vampire and writing books and bargaining with my creative muse. (She mostly responds to chocolate doughnuts.)

Lots of things in the works for fall and winter... Some I'll get to another day, but I wanted to announce that I've been writing a new YA thriller, ALL HER SECRETS, and you can pre-order it now!

Here's the cover.

And here's the book blurb:

Nothing is as it seems in this psychological YA thriller set in a not-too-distant future.

A GIRL WITH SECRETS

Eighteen-year-old Victoria, the daughter of robotics genius Bill Faraday, is home from college for the weekend to confront her father about a secret he’s been keeping when she’s kidnapped out of her parents’ luxury mountain home.

A GUY FROM THE WRONG SIDE OF THE TRACKS

Eighteen-year-old Sam is just a poor kid from Valley City, but he knows who Victoria is as soon as his cousin Craig drags her from the trees. He doesn’t want anything to do with what appears to be a revenge kidnapping, but Craig has a gun and needs someone to take the fall if things go wrong.

A DESPERATE PLAN TO SURVIVE

Craig and his buddies imprison Sam and Victoria in an abandoned mountain cabin with the assurance that they’ll be ransomed soon. But weeks pass, and Sam and Victoria worry they’ve been left for dead. Putting aside mistrust for tentative friendship, Victoria and Sam conspire to escape together, and the close quarters and forced teamwork ignite a startling attraction between them. Then they discover strange cave tunnels beneath the cabin. And what they find inside the tunnels gets more and more bizarre.

With a plan in place to escape, freedom seems within reach. But unrevealed secrets from Victoria’s past are coming back to haunt her.

PREORDER HERE ON AMAZON

Another new cover (and paperbacks)!

Hi lovelies,

I've continued to play around with new covers. Sometimes it's nice to have a change. I thought The Season of Lightning could use a little refreshing, so... tada!

I love this book so much. Roth and Verity are very close to my heart. I plan to write a companion novel at some point, although right now I'm not sure when that will be.

Also!

Paperback editions of Steam and Glass and A Bed of Blades are available!

I will have more news soon about upcoming projects!

This Book Got a New Cover!

Hi lovelies!

I know I procrastinate on some things. Proofs for print copies of my books (basically the sample version that I look through in person to check for errors) are one of those things. But! I have copies of A Bed of Blades and Steam and Glass coming to my house, so both of those should be available soon, and I'll post links for those of you who want that new-book smell as you read. :)

Another fun thing:

I designed a new cover for Of Sea and Stone!

I always feel a little stressed when coming up with the cover for a new book, but since the series is finished and it's been out for a while, there was no pressure, and I enjoyed playing around with a new design.

I've got 2 books I'm working on right now--one is a super secret new book (!) and the other the still-untitled Briand Book #3. Stay tuned for more details soon. :)

It's Release Day for STEAM AND GLASS (A New Frost Novel)!

Hello, lovelies! Steam and Glass is live on Amazon for the Kindle and at Barnes & Noble for the Nook!

(Print copies will be available soon -- check back.)

And you can add it on Goodreads!

Ann Mayor has spent her life in the shadows--the shadow of the the Frost, the shadow of her father, even the shadow of her best friend, Lia Weaver.

Ann has never questioned that Lia is the brave one between them. After all, Lia lives outside the village, side by side with the wilderness, close enough to hear the Watchers scream at night. Ann lives under the careful watch of her devious father, surrounded by luxury.

But then the cruel and mysterious Farthers from farther than the Frost invade, overtaking the village of Iceliss and bringing a mysterious agenda as they search the Frost for a device of power. With them comes a nobleman named Korr whose intents and loyalties remain inscrutable. Ann is drawn to him, for he has spent his life in the shadows too. She doesn't know if he is good or evil, but when she is arrested for treason, she's forced to trust him as she's taken from the Frost.

As a political prisoner in Korr's hands, Ann is tested beyond what she ever imagined, and she realizes she has more bravery in her than she knew.

PS ~ Book #1, Frost, will be on sale for a short time to celebrate the release of Steam and Glass. Share the news online! Tell a friend if you think they'll enjoy the series!

Thoughts about Steam and Glass:

So when I first sat down to write Steam and Glass, I felt a little trepidation, because Ann's story is tricky in some ways. I wanted to write it because 1) I knew there was a lot to Ann that never was fully explained or revealed in the main series and 2) I'd received encouragement from a number of readers to write another book about the Frost.

I had to puzzle out the best way to make Steam and Glass interesting to readers, because Ann is both quiet and also occasionally a little vapid, at least initially, but I knew she was much more than that, and I wanted to make sure her story was told in a way that did her justice.  In the first book she comes across as a bit of a fragile, prissy character who does a fair amount of crying and who is a little oblivious to Lia's needs and struggles, at least from Lia's perspective, but as the series goes on, you see her revealed to be a strong, sensible person. I wanted to explore that seeming contradiction. And man, once I delved into Ann's perspective, I found her fascinating to explore. I loved her dynamic with Korr, I loved her inner struggle, and I loved her cleverness. I found myself relating to her and admiring her again and again as she unfolded as a character.

I hope you all enjoy getting to know her as much as I did. She's a lovely character and so strong. Thank you to everyone who suggested I write another Frost book, because I'm not sure I would have done it without your urging, and I deeply enjoying revisiting this series.

~Kate Avery Ellison

STEAM AND GLASS Teaser!

Steam and Glass, Ann's version of the events of the Frost Chronicles, releases April 20th!

And the winners are...!!

A few weeks ago I held a giveaway. The prize: a mention in the dedication of the newest Frost book, Steam and Glass, a companion novel told from Ann Mayor's perspective.

Available for pre-order!

And the winners are!!!

...

...

...

Yary Santana!

and

Karen Reese!



Congrats to the winners. I will be emailing you both. To everyone else, thank you for entering, and you can subscribe to the New Releases Newsletter to be notified when Steam and Glass releases in April.

Our favorite guttersnipe is back in A BED OF BLADES, released today!

Today is a happy day, because A BED OF BLADES is available for the Kindle!

Briand Varryda hasn't seen Kael and his company of Monarchists since they succeeded in destroying the Barrow Bridge and thwarting the march of the enemy. She's been hidden away for two years with the Hermit, forgotten. But when the Hermit protecting her is killed, she flees, hiding among thieves from the insidious Seekers.

Briand doesn't want to be a pawn for the Monarchists or the Seekers. She doesn't want to pick a side in the war. She simply wants to live and be free.

When another thief betrays her, Briand makes a deal for her freedom and joins another Monarchist plot with the enigmatic Kael to steal a legendary treasure from a dragon-infested cave. But there are problems. She might have feelings for Kael. The Seekers are pursuing them. The caverns rest beneath an estate of perilous dangers.

And Briand has secrets of her own.



There will be heists, gambles, dragons, and Monarchist plots! And this time, there is some kissing. :D

You can get your copy here!

I appreciate all of you readers so much. You make the stories come alive by reading them. You're the best. I hope you all love the book.

In addition!! I've put A GIFT OF POISON on sale temporarily to celebrate the release. If you haven't read that one, you can get it for $0.99 right now. Hurry, it won't be at that price very long!

Finally, here is a giveaway to celebrate the release! Two winners will have STEAM AND GLASS dedicated to them.

Hello Catfoot

Hi everyone,

Here's an excerpt from A Bed of Blades, available for pre-order now and releasing in February. It is the sequel to A Gift of Poison and the second book in The Kingmakers' War series.

In this scene, Briand has been kidnapped and is trying to escape.

 ~ ~ ~

   A figure was running from the boat, pursuing.

   Briand hit the ground in an explosion of sand, feet stinging, gulping air. She skidded on pebbles as she ducked beneath the dock and made for the city in the distance. She was Catfoot. She was fast. She had the advantage of surprise, a head start.

   Gulls screamed overhead as she ran. She couldn’t hear the pursuer over the pounding of the waves and the crashing of her pulse. The sounds throbbed together, a cacophony.

   A body slammed into her, knocking her forward. She hit the sand on hands and knees before she scrambled up, this time with the knife from her boot in her hand. The figure behind her caught her wrist and yanked her around.

   They went down together hard on the ground. She couldn’t breathe. She stabbed blindly, blade meeting flesh along his ribs. He hissed as the knife clicked against bone.

He had her pinned down with one shoulder while he grappled for the knife with both hands. Black trousers, black shirt, long gray cloak. Necklace swinging in her face, a brown amulet. Face half-hidden by a red scarf.

   The man wrestled the knife out of her hand and threw it into the waves. She was already pulling out the other one, the one she kept in the other boot, but he’d anticipated her move again, catching her wrist in his hand and twisting it hard. She dropped it.

   Now he had taken two of her knives.

   Briand lay still, hoping he’d drop his guard now that he thought she’d given up. There was a third knife. She drew in another breath. Her lungs ached.

   “I surrender,” she said, to make him lower his guard.

   His scarf fell away as he shifted, and shock lanced her like lightning, immobilizing her.

   “Hello, Catfoot,” he murmured for her ears alone as the others came pounding up the shore.

   Kael.

~ ~ ~ 

I'll post more soon! 

Cover for A BED OF BLADES (Sequel to A GIFT OF POISON)!

Hi everyone!

I hope you all had a lovely holiday season. I was sick for almost three weeks, which put me waaaay behind on my writing, but FINALLY I have gotten the sequel to A Gift of Poison back to my editor and I'm preparing for the release in February.

Aaaand I've got the cover finished and ready to show you!

A Bed of Blades is book two in the series, which will be called The Kingmakers' War.

Briand Varryda hasn't seen Kael and his company of Monarchists since they succeeded in destroying the Barrow Bridge and thwarting the march of the enemy. She's been hidden away for two years with the Hermit, forgotten.

When the Hermit protecting her is killed, she flees, hiding among thieves from the insidious Seekers. Briand doesn't want to be a pawn for the Monarchists or the Seekers. She doesn't want to pick a side in the war. She simply wants to live and be free.

When another thief betrays her, Briand makes a deal for her freedom and joins another Monarchist plot with the enigmatic Kael to steal a legendary treasure from a dragon-infested cave. But there are problems. She might have feelings for Kael. The Seekers are pursuing them. The caverns rest beneath an estate of perilous dangers.

And Briand has secrets of her own.

<<You can pre-order it by clicking here.>>
 
So that's the summary. I'm really excited for you guys to read it.

After A Bed of Blades releases, I'll be at working on Steam and Glass. More information about that soon.

Other news - Of Sea and Stone is on sale temporarily. So if you haven't read it, you can get a copy here.