Category: Blog

Cover Reveal for Book 4!

It’s here! A Kiss of Embers is finally available for pre-order. If you like sassy HEROS, falling for the enemy, and impossible love, this is the book for you. Coming May 2, 2023!

Blurb

She’s the enemy. Loving her could turn his world to flames.

When Seraphina Nova’s younger sister is captured by her enemy, the Forest Fae, she will do everything in her power to get her back. Even if it means breaking into enemy territory, taking the chief’s heir as her prisoner, and using him to ensure her sister’s safe return.

Getting poisoned and literally dragged across the entire forest had never been on Bastien Dalena’s agenda, even if his captor had nice legs and beautiful wings. Despite the danger to his life, he knows one thing—Seraphina’s kiss is hot. It’s fire. It’s deadly. And he can’t help but want to feel the burn of her flames.

But as war reaches its peak between their people, an unexpected danger threatens their lives and forces them to fight together and build a fragile trust. Time is running short. He must form an alliance with Seraphina… Before their people destroy each other first.

Preorder a Kiss of EMbers
by Sydney Winward

Selkie Release Date!

I’m super excited to announce the release of Selkie! This is a multi-author series, but each book can be read as a standalone. A mortar and pestle help guide two fated lovers together throughout the series, and this book is the one that starts it all. Hope you enjoy it!

Blurb

No one has ever managed to capture a selkie. Until now…

On their wedding day, Klaus Lovik’s bride is stolen by an enemy chieftain. He will travel to the ends of the earth to find her, and in desperation, he captures a selkie and uses her as a bartering piece. But the selkie’s magic is powerful enough to drown entire islands, and if he’s not careful, he might find himself in a watery grave.

Mayla Brior is gifted with the power to shed her seal skin, enabling her to walk on land. But when a man robs her of the pelt, she is forced to follow his commands, endangering her skin, and preventing her return to the sea.

Venturing into enemy territory, Klaus and Mayla bond, escalating their relationship into more than adversaries. He realizes his pending nuptials are a dreadful mistake. But it might be too late to choose another path, especially when he knows he has to eventually let her go.\

*Vikings

*Selkies

*Enemies to lovers

*Fated mates

*Magic

Get Your Copy of Selkie!
by Sydney Winward

Ashley Evercott’s Enchanting Gold Is Now Available!

Blurb for Enchanting Gold

She made a bargain to save her life. But falling in love was not part of the deal.

Lying is forbidden, but Lynn cannot stop her father from weaving the biggest lie of all. Forced to atone for his crime, Lynn must spin a room of straw into gold. Fail, and she and her father will die.

However, a peculiar half-fae agrees to complete the impossible task in her stead. In exchange, Lynn must risk her life to steal a powerful item from her Lord. But one night of spinning straw isn’t enough, and Lynn makes another deal that will force her on a precarious journey.

Rumpelstiltskin has made a mysterious bargain of his own. With a monster. He will do anything to save his mother and free the creature when the blood moon rises. Even if it means jeopardizing another person’s life.

The only problem? He’s falling in love with the woman he’s deceiving.

Can they fight off their growing attraction, or will it cost them their lives?

Enchanting Gold is a new adult Rumpelstiltskin retelling and book two of a fairy tale retelling series. This takes place hundreds of years before the first, but each book is a standalone novel within the same world. No need to read them in order. Perfect for readers who enjoy slow burn, morally gray love interests, and all the angst. Happily ever after, guaranteed.

Get Your Copy of Enchanting Gold
by Sydney Winward

Cover Reveal: Forever, Mirabelle

Blurb

He was the monster from her past. She was everything he didn’t know he wanted.

When Mirabelle Waters’ father falls ill, she must return home from Edilann and find a husband quickly to take over the ranch. When two men are lining up at her doorstep for their chance to win her hand, the decision is easy. Because Barnaby is everything she wanted. And Gilberd? He was her childhood nemesis.

The only thing Gilberd Keats aspires to be is a soldier in the king’s army. But he soon comes to realize he must choose between a life with a sword in his hand and one with Mirabelle at his side. However, wooing her is not easy, especially when she has her eye on someone else. That, and the woman hates his guts.

As the two become closer, Mirabelle realizes Gilberd might not be the villain she always thought he was. But will she get the chance to give him her heart? Or will her father’s sinister past destroy any chance they have at happiness?

Find out how Gilberd becomes Prince Sterling’s personal bodyguard in this story that takes place 8 years before Yours, Sterling!

Preorder Your Copy
by Sydney Winward

Through Wylder Meadows is Now Available

When Sophia Meadows’ closest friend dies—the man she has secretly loved for years—a piece of her soul dies with him. Two years later, along her journey to meet her new fiancé, bandits derail and rob her train. She encounters the man who ripped her heart out with his death two years earlier. Alive and healthy.

Samuel Woods is a bounty hunter, and when one of his jobs goes south, he fakes his death to protect those he loves. When he runs into Sophia during a job, he’s floored. He has to win back her trust, and her heart, before she shuts away from him completely and returns to the man she’s been promised to.

However, the danger Samuel feared for so long returns when the bandits threaten her life. He must stop them and finish his job, otherwise he’ll lose the woman he loves for a second time.

Get Your Copy of Through Wylder Meadows
by Sydney Winward

Review of Hellfire and Honey by A.N. Payton

Doom your entire kingdom? Or surrender to the vampire king?

I love reading enemies to lovers books, and this story is one of my top favorites I have read in a while. I really enjoyed the vivid descriptions the author painted throughout the book. The romance developed incredibly well, especially considering the complicated, tangled past the hero and heroine had with one another. And the stakes kept piling up more and more, pulling me into the story with each page.

Kadence’s push and pull within the budding romance really made sense for the story. I know others might not agree with it, but in my opinion, it was well done. His was a fragile heart surrounded by bars of steel, and I really liked watching how Sal dislodged one bar at a time.

This book had great romance scenes, incredible action, amazing characters, and vivid details. Definitely worth the read!

by Sydney Winward

Cover Reveal: Through Wylder Meadows

Blurb

When Sophia Meadows’ closest friend dies—the man she has secretly loved for years—a piece of her soul dies with him. Two years later, along her journey to meet her new fiancé, bandits derail and rob her train. She encounters the man who ripped her heart out with his death two years earlier. Alive and healthy.

Samuel Woods is a bounty hunter, and when one of his jobs goes south, he fakes his death to protect those he loves. When he runs into Sophia during a job, he’s floored. He has to win back her trust, and her heart, before she shuts away from him completely and returns to the man she’s been promised to.

However, the danger Samuel feared for so long returns when the bandits threaten her life. He must stop them and finish his job, otherwise he’ll lose the woman he loves for a second time.

Pre-Order Through Wylder Meadows
by Sydney Winward

Release Date for Yours, Sterling!

Blurb

If the enemy finds her, they will kill her.

An arranged marriage to a younger man wasn’t what Kathleen de Clare had in mind for her future, but after an assassination attempt on their wedding day, a war tears them apart. Sequestered in the safety of the mountains stitching up injured soldiers and mending broken bones, she must wait out the war.

But what if it doesn’t end?

For all his life, Sterling Winfield has only known loss. His parents were assassinated, forcing him to take the throne at a young age. When his new wife’s very life is threatened, he does the only thing he thinks he can do. He hides her. But are letters enough to build a friendship with a stranger and keep their relationship alive? Will he lose her to war? Will the distance destroy what happiness they could have had together? Or will their reunion be as sweet as her letters?

Get a Copy of Yours, Sterling!
by Sydney Winward

Cover Reveal for Marilyn Barr’s Pirate Series

  • Walk the Walk Amazon Buy Links (Available on KU after release dates)

Walk the Plank Book Blurb:

Branko learns he will be sold into slavery when they dock in Charles Town, so he doesn’t hesitate to jump ship onto a neighboring sloop in the harbor. This boat will weigh anchor with him at the helm–once he decides what to do with the lady chained in the cargo hold who claims she’s a vampire.

Magda Dashkovari’s body has been given to science while she’s still living in it. Her prayers are answered when a pirate boards her boat, but she should have asked for her rescuer to be less bloodthirsty than she is…

Scientists hunt her in town, plantation owners hunt him from the north and south, Blackbeard blocks Charles Town Harbor to the east, and a war rages between settlers and natives to the west. These unlikely allies will have to link together to escape a life in chains…but will their trust in each other endure their journey to freedom?

Walk the Plank Excerpt:

“Who is Blackbeard?” My heart skips a beat at her naivete. Her accent is foreign, so I forgive the slight. Unfortunately, she takes the opening to worm her way further into my mind. “We got off to a poor start. I am Magda Dashkovari, and I am a vampire.”

My disbelief bubbles like a good ale as we reach the deck. Gut-busting, belly-aching, side-stitching laughter brings tears to my eyes. From a madman captain who masquerades as a demon to a madwoman boat owner who masquerades as a vampire—I can pick ’em, can’t I? She wraps her wrist with furious revolutions while I wipe my tears.

“I don’t care what you are,” I tell her, “as long as you are leaving.”

“I could drain you.”

“I could throw you overboard.”

“I’m staying.”

“—in Charles Town Harbor, and this boat is leaving.”

“I will sink this boat before I let you return it to my husband! Whatever he has promised in reward is a lie. Once you are in his harbor, one of his minions will drain you—”

“Oh, he’s a vampire, too. Is there a whole colony waiting for me somewhere? Listen, sea hag, I don’t know your husband, and the last thing in my future is to return his boat.”

Author Bio:

Marilyn Barr currently resides in the wilds of Kentucky with her husband, son, and rescue cats. She has a diverse background containing experiences as a child prodigy turned medical school reject, published microbiologist, special education/inclusion science teacher, homeschool mother of a savant, certified spiritual/energy healer, and advocate for the autistic community. This puts her in the position to bring tales containing heroes who are regular people with different ability levels and body types, in a light where they are powerful, lovable, and appreciated. 

When engaging with the real world, she is collecting characters, empty coffee cups, and unused homeschool curricula. She is a sucker (haha) for cheesy horror movies, Italian food, punk music, black cats, bad puns, and all things witchy.

Marilyn’s Social Media Links:

website * Instagram * Twitter * Facebook * Amazon author profile * Goodreads * BookBub

by Sydney Winward