Monday, December 28, 2020

"Not More Lovely Than Full of Glee" - Leanna's Sequel to Edgar Allan Poe's "The Oval Portrait" Now Available in A Winter's Tale: Horror Stories for the Yuletide

Dear Readers,

If you've followed me for any amount of time, and if you're familiar with my work or my goth self, it won't surprise you how connected I am to Edgar Allan Poe. Working with Boroughs of the Dead, I've given countless tours around the areas in which he lived while in New York and I've done even more virtual talks about his influence in inventing modern genre fiction as we know it today, revolutionizing fiction as a working-class, struggling author, critic and poet. 

Poe is my literary North Star, the reason why I became a writer. For more about my connection to Poe, please read this very personal post of mine about his collection of stories and poetry I loved as a child and how that set my course as an artist and author.

Not as many people are familiar with Poe's very short story "The Oval Portrait", but it's one of my favorites. Read Poe's "The Oval Portrait" for free here.

This brief story is a harrowing tale about the power of art. And ever since I was a kid I wanted to write a sequel. What might happen next?

I didn't have the guts to do it for years. I told myself I'd wait until I published 13 novels- an auspicious number - and then I'd allow myself to attempt to imitate my foremost inspiration and seek to further a story he began. This year I published that lucky 13 with the release of my latest Spectral City novel, A Summoning of Souls

I was asked this year if I might join in an anthology meant to represent the long dark nights around the holidays telling ghost stories and fantastical tales, a distinctly Victorian tradition that's seeing a popular resurgence. And it was finally time to attempt what I'd longed to create for so many years.

A Winter's Tale: Horror Stories for the Yuletide is here, the inaugural publication from the new Pavane Press, with cover art by Lynne Hansen. My story "Not More Lovely Than Full of Glee", my sequel to Poe's "The Oval Portrait", can be found within its pages... Ready to tell you what became of the woman in that fated portrait.

My title comes from the original source text and becomes a focus point in the story, demonstrating the supreme power of the written word. 

I hope you'll check out this anthology and enjoy my homage to the brightest star in my literary sky. 

Cheers and Happy Haunting! 

Friday, December 11, 2020

Today Only: THE SPECTRAL CITY 1.99 Sale, a Gothic, Gaslamp Fantasy with Found Family & Slow-Burn Romance!

TODAY ONLY (12/11/20) thanks to Kensington Books and Open Road, THE SPECTRAL CITY, book 1 in Leanna's acclaimed, digitally bestselling SPECTRAL CITY trilogy of ghost-filled, Gothic, Gaslamp Fantasy novels is only 1.99 across all digital platforms!

This book features an adorable slow-burn romance, an inclusive, found family of loveable, paranormally talented characters (alive and dead) and an eerie, gaslit, gilded age NYC! 

Did you like Leanna's Young Adult Magic Most Foul saga beginning with DARKER STILL? This is their family legacy! 

About the book via Kensington Books: Solving crime isn’t only for the living.

Her name is Eve Whitby, gifted medium and spearhead of The Ghost Precinct. When most women are traveling in a gilded society that promises only well-appointed marriage, the confident nineteen-year-old Eve navigates a social circle that carries a different kind of chill. Working with the diligent but skeptical Lieutenant Horowitz, as well as a group of fellow psychics and wayward ghosts, Eve holds her own against detractors and threats to solve New York’s most disturbing crimes as only a medium of her ability can.
 
But as accustomed as Eve is to ghastly crimes and all matters of the uncanny, even she is unsettled by her department’s latest mystery. Her ghostly conduits are starting to disappear one by one as though snatched away by some evil force determined to upset the balance between two realms, and most important—destroy the Ghost Precinct forever. Now Eve must brave the darkness to find the vanished souls. She has no choice. It’s her job to make sure no one is ever left for dead.

“Personable cast, snappy prose, and intriguing premise.” – Publisher’s Weekly on The Spectral City 

Pick your favorite eBook vendor HERE and follow Leanna on BookBub!  

Like the idea of THE SPECTRAL CITY? The whole trilogy is available wherever books are sold with A SANCTUARY OF SPIRITS and A SUMMONING OF SOULS, which just released at the end of July!


Cheers and Happy Haunting!


Thursday, December 3, 2020

Learn from Bestselling, Award-Winning Authors at the Writer Igniter SciFi/Fantasy Summit!

Dear Readers, Writers and Creative Enthusiasts!

I am SO excited to be a part of an amazing event: The Writer Igniter SciFi/Fantasy Summit from DIY MFA!

In this summit you’ll hear me and 10 other bestselling and award-winning authors share knowledge about the craft and business of writing. You’ll discover tools and techniques to help you improve your writing, and you’ll hear how our own careers have led us to where we are now. You’ll leave this summit not only with a better understanding of the craft, but also with new energy and motivation for your own writing. Go to https://writer-igniter-sff-summit.heysummit.com/ and sign up with your email for access to this FREE event.

Today, going live at 1pm EST, you'll get a chance to hear my interview that covers a wide range of topics, such as how I juggle being at the intersection of multiple genres. I go on to discuss (with the amazing DIY MFA Maven herself, Gabriela Pereira) how to go about creating an immersive world but avoiding an info dump and I continue by sharing how I balance multiple jobs and why it's useful that they're related.

This is a limited event that will only be available for a very short amount of time so check out the event page now to take part! I'm in amazing company! Come join us for education and inspiration!

Cheers and happy creating! - Leanna

Monday, November 30, 2020

It's Cyber Monday! My WHOLE Etsy shop is on sale until Dec 2, including all my signed books!

 Hello Dear Readers! 


Some of you may or may not know that in addition to being an author, an actor, a playwright and a ghost tour guide, I also have an Etsy shop! Check out Torch and Arrow!

It's ALL on sale this Cyber Monday! The whole shop! Many listings also have free shipping enabled! Any purchase of $35 and up gains free domestic (US) shipping as well! 

Torch and Arrow is a quirky, eclectic, magical place where my business partner Thom Truelove and I create new delights, talismans, art, accessories and treasures out of vintage parts, or restore vintage pieces to their original splendor. 

We operate with a Gothic, Steampunk, Neo-Victorian aesthetic, with an eye for meaning, mythology, symbolism and mysticism. 

We also have more than a few nods to specific fandoms. (Doctor Who, to be precise.) 

Thom designed this limited-edition special print lanyard in the exact pattern of the infamous, iconic, extra long scarf of Tom Baker's incarnation as the beloved 4th Doctor. 
I made a choker out of one of these scarf patterns as well, with an option for a clock fob. The lanyards ship free in the US!

Many of our pieces also come with added charity initiatives as well. It's a hard time for everyone, but it's definitely hard for non-profits too. We're trying to do what little we can. 

A few examples:


All bat items, whether pins, necklaces, accessories, each unique and re-imagined piece also comes with the promise of helping those most adorable of Goth creatures! I donate portions of every bat item sale to the Lubee Bat Conservancy! Lubee is run by wonderful folks who save, rescue, educate and promote conservation efforts. Bat colonies have suffered this year due to violence and misunderstanding. Help these sweet sky puppies and treat yourself to a cute bat quarter necklace at the same time! 


Another example of portions of profits going to charity, any of our Oscar Wilde pieces helps support the vital work of The Trevor Project. Poe pieces help support the Poe Museum in VA alternating with the Bronx Historical Society which helps upkeep Poe's Bronx cottage. 

Please support small businesses like Torch and Arrow this holiday season! I'm not going to lie, it's been a rough year. Thom and I make our living as full-time artists, public speakers, performers and writers relying on public appearances and conventions. All of those have vanished this year along with all my in-person media and tour guide events, leaving just writing contracts (which I'm very blessed to have but they pay infrequently) and our online shop. So your support keeps us afloat! Have a look and stock up ahead of the holiday rush! Most of our items are one of a kind so if you see something, grab it before someone else does! 

Did I also mention you can get signed, personalized copies of ALL of my books? 

If you missed the signed pre-order campaign for A SUMMONING OF SOULS, the absolutely thrilling and acclaimed finale in the Spectral City trilogy of novels, you can pick up a copy in my shop! And for this limited time, everything is on sale! The store-wide shop sale ends at midnight December 2nd! 

Cheers and as always, Happy Haunting! 


Sunday, October 25, 2020

Guest Post: Judith Starkson - Divining the Past - Of Kings and Griffins

I met Judith Starkson at the Historical Novel Society Conference and I've very much enjoyed her books and her presence in the world of unique historical fiction that includes vibrant fantastical elements. It's wonderful to be in that cross-genre space with her! I'm delighted to have Judith here as a guest! While Judith's Tesha series is all really great, I'm pleased to see that her latest novel can be read as a stand alone book, so if you're just hearing about this series, you can start with the latest! Learn more about her exciting new novel, Of Kings and Griffins! 

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Divining the Past

One of the intense delights of writing historical fiction—even when it blends into fantasy as mine does—comes from delving into the past via research. Sometimes, before covid, that research involved travel. I write about the ancient Hittites, which took me on trips to Turkey, the location of that Bronze Age empire—to archaeological sites, museum collections, and gorgeous physical settings. Definitely fun. But other times, getting to know the past means deciphering obscure texts. You might assume “deciphering obscure texts” would not be on anyone’s list of intense delights, but you’d be wrong. Definitely on mine.

Not every moment in human history provides equal access to us today. Occasionally, the random events of war and historical preservation nearly obliterate whole cultures. This sort of erasure happened to the Hittites, a cosmopolitan and sophisticated people in the 13th century BCE whose primary rival was Egypt under Ramses II, the pharaoh in the Biblical story of Moses. Fortunately, we humans are clever about resurrecting the past through archaeology. The Hittite world thus revealed is irresistible to me for several reasons: this patriarchal society’s greatest leader was a woman, they genuinely believed in what we’d call magic, their politics and intrigue are entertaining but pragmatic, and I feel the sheer joy of escape into an exotic time and place that nonetheless feels deeply familiar.

Cuneiform Tablet

What about those obscure texts? Among the main resources now available about the Hittites are thousands of fragmentary clay writing tablets and their proposed translations. They provide fascinating glimpses from long ago.

In my recent novel of historical fantasy, Of Kings and Griffins, I have a pivotal early scene in which the question of who will rule this vast and powerful empire rests on a divination. In the United States and elsewhere, we have elections; the Hittites had divinations. There are a surprising number of parallels. I spent hours studying the available information about divinations from tablets. Such mining into research produced a rich vein of psychological insights that I hope my readers will find refreshing.

Divinations, curses, spells, and all sorts of magic are interwoven into the Hittite way of life. In the case of my key divination scene, the diviners have determined that the gods are angry and not willing to give their blessing to a ruler until some human failure is repaired. (Imagine a scene in the White House on election eve…) The task of the diviner is to identify that failure and what must be done to fix it—and then convince the ruler-to-be to take that action. All by means of yes and no questions only. And of course, the ruler in question is listening in on this process. Tension, egos, drama. Great stuff for storytelling.

In building this scene, I faced a problem that was also a pleasure. I had to tease out from the tablets a coherent picture of what this diviner would actually say and do, and with what objects or other physical “props.” My favorite scholarly source on divinations, a dissertation by Hannah Marcuson, uses the word “opaque” of the techniques described in the tablets. Sometimes we have “scripts” of what a diviner said in a particular divination, but those words include symbolic references that are hard to interpret. Also, physical actions take place in conjunction with the words, but we can’t identify the devices used in those actions.

For a scholar, the project focuses on presenting the conflicting evidence and leaving the giant holes in it wide open. For a writer of fiction, the project requires weighing and deciding on the details to build one continuous vision, like watching a scene in a movie. No gaps or incomprehensible terms allowed. Sometimes I can fill the gaps with elements from other Hittite activities. I became a fan of Marcuson’s dissertation because she did that very effectively, gathering the actual accoutrements of my chosen divination from the known “tools of the trade” that this priestess used in different contexts. Perfect!

After I filled my head with this historical evidence, I immersed myself via imagination into the body and soul of that diviner and watched what she said and did. Writers are adults who have carried their imaginary friends into adulthood. On that writing day, my friend was a sign oracle diviner from the 13th century BCE.

Here are clipped excerpts from that scene as Kantuz, the sign oracle diviner, reads the will of the gods, with the anxious assistance of the Grand Votary and my main character Tesha, herself a priestess and political leader.

The votary leaned closer still to Kantuz’s ear. “If we cannot place Crown Prince Urhi on the throne . . . then who? Keep us from civil war. Restore the divine favor—”

“Are there forbidden questions?” Kantuz asked. Her eye caught Tesha’s.

The Grand Votary hesitated. Drops of sweat beaded on his forehead. His eyes closed for a moment and then opened again. “Listen to the gods. Ask what you must to repair whatever angers them and win them over to Crown Prince Urhi’s throne.” His voice, a whisper, nonetheless carried deep concern. In its sympathetic resonance Tesha heard genuine apprehension about the stability of the throne. She would prefer him to be easier to dislike.

. . .

Apparently, the Grand Votary trusted Kantuz, and he feared hiding the truth more than revealing it. Tesha glanced across the throne. Urhi’s posture had the hardness of ice. He and the votary might not agree on that.

Tesha exhaled and shook out her hands under the cover of her full skirts.

Kantuz lifted a variety of wooden and ceramic figurines from each relevant divider within the three boxes. Some figurines stood for a category of person, like “king” or “heir.” Others represented ideas, like “sin of the heart.” Interpreting what they meant all together when they fell onto the linen was a confusing process that took a great deal of study. Kantuz filled each of the lot vessels with these tokens.

. . .

In a strong, carrying voice, Kantuz asked, “Do the gods bless the throne of Urhi, son of Great King Muwatti?” It had never been the plan to have such a large audience for this process, but the failure of the bird augury left little choice—not for a true and honest reading.

Kantuz shook out a sign from the narrow-necked vessel and placed it at the edge of the linen cloth. Tesha stretched forward to see the carved figure—the token called the “deity.” Kantuz shook from the second vessel, and two tokens fell out. She covered each with a square of linen to mark them as the receiver tokens, the tokens that would be acted upon. Then she shook from the third vessel, and one token fell, a flat ceramic piece with a face etched into the clay and a thin gold band wrapped around it, the “king,” but with a black thread also wrapped around it to add the placement of “to the left.” Tesha swallowed, trying to free the tightness in her throat.

Kantuz uncovered the two receiver tokens and announced the answer. “The deity takes hidden anger and sickness and puts them to the left of the king. The reading of these signs is: the gods say no.” Kantuz cleared her throat and added, “I will continue the oracle to find the hindrance and clear it away.” Kantuz gave the Grand Votary a narrowed glare that pointed to the complexities she would face.

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Thank you Judith for the thrilling post! 

Of Kings and Griffins is available on Amazon. For more about Judith Starkston and the historical background of her novels, go to her website. About Of Kings and Griffins:

A vicious king, vengeful griffins, and a scheming goddess. Can Tesha outmaneuver foes from these three different worlds?

For Tesha, priestess and queen, happiness is a world she can control, made up of her family and the fractious kingdom she and her husband rule within the Great King’s empire. But now the Great King is dead, and his untried son plots against them. Tesha fights back with forbidden sorcery and savvy. In yet another blow, the griffin king lures Daniti, Tesha’s magical blind sister, into a deadly crisis that Daniti alone can avert.

As danger ensnares everyone Tesha loves, her goddess offers a way out. But can Tesha trust this offer of divine assistance or is it a trap—one that would lead to an unstoppable bloodbath?

Escape into this award-winning epic fantasy series, inspired by the historical Hittite empire and its most extraordinary queen.

Of Kings and Griffins, book 3 of the Tesha series, is also easily read as a standalone.

Saturday, October 24, 2020

Make Art Not War Tarot Draw: The High Priestess

I’m very blessed to be a part of the small Make Art Not War collective of diverse creative women. Check out our #MakeArtNotWar hashtag on Twitter to follow what our group is up to.

Our most recent prompt in our group creativity initiative is for one of us to pull at Tarot card and for us each to write our thoughts about the card, discuss the card as found in our own decks (we fascinatingly have so many different decks between us) and any related ideas that the card brings to mind.

Stina Leicht drew the High Priestess for all of us and this thrilled me. It’s my favorite card.

The High Priestess represents wisdom, feminine intuition and power. For me, the card represents a certain amount of “life goals” – exploring ever further and ever deeper into the realms of spirituality and divine insight. I think of the High Priestess as my guiding light; my North star.

When I first began giving over to more mysticism in my life, a process and journey that has been nothing short of life-saving and wondrous, the Mythic Tarot deck came into my life, chosen because my debut novel series, the Strangely Beautiful saga, deals with Greek Mythology and that’s how the Mythic Tarot breaks down its journey through the entire deck; through Greek Gods and Classical figures.

The High Priestess in the Mythic Tarot deck is Persephone.

While Persephone has always been one of my favorite figures in Greek Mythology, I also reinvented her in my Strangely Beautiful saga and the Goddess I created remains one of my favorite and most mysterious of characters; frustrating, maddening, breaking apart, inspiring, luminous and ultimately selfless; giving herself over into the mortal form of a strange young woman who is so full of love that by the sheer power of her heart she ultimately saves everyone around her. 

For me, tapping into the wisdom that the High Priestess bids us consider means, like it did for my heroine, opening the heart, sometimes wider than we even think is possible. If we can strain at the seams sometimes, as long as we monitor our boundaries, we can find out what's truly possible emotionally, spiritually, physically. 

It’s a particularly resonant and fitting draw for me and for Stina as well, seeing that “Persephone” is critical for us both. I boldly adopted that classic name and bestowed it upon the heroine of my Strangely Beautiful saga; Persephone “Percy” Parker. The title of Stina’s exciting upcoming novel is Persephone Station, and I can’t wait to read it!

If you don’t know my Strangely Beautiful novels, for those interested in how I’ve adapted Greek Mythology to suit my own needs and blended Mythic ideas with extremely Gothic atmosphere and High Fantasy elements, the Strangely Beautiful saga has been compiled by Tor/Macmillan and remains on sale(for a limited time) and the entire 4-book series, over 1k of fiction, is only$2.99!

May the High Priestess shine and bring wisdom into your life as she has done in mine. I hope you’ll take a moment and meditate on the power of introspection and intuition that she bids of those who draw her.

Follow #MakeArtNotWar on Twitter! Subscribe to my blog here, check out my website at LeannaReneeHieber.com and my Torch and Arrow Etsy shop of Gothic, Neo-Victorian, Steampunk accessories, art, signed books and other reimagined curios! 

Wednesday, October 14, 2020

TODAY ONLY! THE SPECTRAL CITY is only 1.99 across all digital platforms! A Perfect Halloween Read!

TODAY ONLY (10/14/20) THE SPECTRAL CITY, book 1 in Leanna's acclaimed, digitally bestselling SPECTRAL CITY trilogy of ghost-filled, Gothic, Gaslamp Fantasy novels is only 1.99 across all digital platforms!

This book features an adorable slow-burn romance, an inclusive, found family of loveable characters alive and dead and an eerie, gaslit, gilded age NYC!

About the book via Kensington Books: Solving crime isn’t only for the living.

Her name is Eve Whitby, gifted medium and spearhead of The Ghost Precinct. When most women are traveling in a gilded society that promises only well-appointed marriage, the confident nineteen-year-old Eve navigates a social circle that carries a different kind of chill. Working with the diligent but skeptical Lieutenant Horowitz, as well as a group of fellow psychics and wayward ghosts, Eve holds her own against detractors and threats to solve New York’s most disturbing crimes as only a medium of her ability can.
 
But as accustomed as Eve is to ghastly crimes and all matters of the uncanny, even she is unsettled by her department’s latest mystery. Her ghostly conduits are starting to disappear one by one as though snatched away by some evil force determined to upset the balance between two realms, and most important—destroy the Ghost Precinct forever. Now Eve must brave the darkness to find the vanished souls. She has no choice. It’s her job to make sure no one is ever left for dead.
 
“There is something truly magical about Leanna Renee Hieber’s writing.”
 —Shana DuBois Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi/Fantasy Blog on Perilous Prophecy

Pick your favorite eBook vendor here and follow Leanna on BookBub!  

Like the idea of THE SPECTRAL CITY? The whole trilogy is available wherever books are sold with A SANCTUARY OF SPIRITS and A SUMMONING OF SOULS, which just released at the end of July!

Please tell a friend!

Cheers and Happy Haunting!


Monday, August 31, 2020

A STRANGELY BEAUTIFUL eBook Bundle - All 4 Books for only 2.99!

DARLINGS! EPIC BOOK SALE! 

In the mood for Gothic, Gaslamp Fantasy? Think Jane Eyre + Ghosts + Penny Dreadful + Greek Myths and you've got STRANGELY BEAUTIFUL, a saga of four award-winning novels, books 1 and 2 combined into STRANGELY BEAUTIFUL, a haunting, epic prequel full of deadly forces and sweeping romance in PERILOUS PROPHECY and the finale, MISS VIOLET AND THE GREAT WAR - all for just 2.99 thanks to Tor Books! What a steal! Only available for a limited time so buy now!

Barnes and Noble - Kobo - Google Books  - eBooks.com - Amazon

About the series, via Tor Books: Award-winning author Leanna Renee Hieber brings to life an exciting, romantic gaslamp fantasy in the groundbreaking, critically acclaimed Strangely Beautiful saga. Set in the Victorian era, Strangely Beautiful chronicles the adventures of the Guard — ordinary people blessed with the ability to see ghosts, heal illness, dispel demons, and more. Despite their weighty tasks, they are still human, and their lives and loves are inevitably intertwined, even as they stand between humanity and all the horrors of the underworld.

Strangely Beautiful: (Contains both The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker and The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker in revised, author-preferred editions with extra content!) Miss Persephone Parker—known as Percy—is different, with her lustrous, snow-white hair, pearlescent pale skin, and uncanny ability to see and communicate with ghosts. Seeking to continue her education, Percy has come to to the Athens Academy in Queen Victoria's London, not knowing that it is the citadel of The Guard. The Victorian Guard, latest incarnation of an ancient order that battles evil in all its forms, is led by Athens professor Alexi Rychman. Percy's lifelong habit of concealment, combined with Alexi's fevered search for the Guard's missing seventh member, nearly prove disastrous as ancient Greek myths begin playing out in modern, gaslit, Victorian London. Percy and her new friends and allies must overcome their preconceptions about each other and their own histories before they can set the world to rights.

Perilous Prophecy: In this enchanting prequel to Strangely Beautiful, Cairo in the 1860s is a bustling metropolis where people from all walks of life mix and mingle in complex harmony. When evil ghosts and unquiet spirits stalk the city’s streets, the Guard are summoned—six young men and women of different cultures, backgrounds, and faiths, gifted by their Goddess with great powers. While others of the Guard embrace their duties, their leader, British-born Beatrice, is gripped by doubt. What right has she, a bookish, sheltered, eighteen-year-old, to lead others into battle? Why isn’t dark-eyed, compelling Ibrahim the one in charge? As ghosts maraud through Cairo’s streets, heralding a terrible darkness, Beatrice and her Guard have little time to master their powers; a great battle looms as an ancient prophecy roars toward its final, deadly conclusion.

Miss Violet and the Great War: An adventure full of passion and power. From childhood, Violet Rychman--daughter of Percy and Alexi--has dreamed of a coming war, of death and battle on an unimaginable scale. Like her mother, she has seen and heard ghosts, who have loved and guided her. Now the future Violet dreamed is coming to pass as World War I rages across Europe. Millions of people are dying; entire villages are disappearing. Violet is nearly overcome when the Muses of antiquity offer her powers greater even than those of her parents or the Guard. The ability to impact people’s memories, even shape their thoughts. To guide their souls. To pass between the world of the living and that of the dead and to bring others through that passage. Violet must use these gifts in an attempt to stop death itself, lest the whole world be destroyed.

Barnes and Noble

Kobo

Google Books 

eBooks.com

Amazon

Tuesday, July 28, 2020

A SUMMONING OF SOULS videos! Launch Party Conversation, Theatrical Readings! Rave Reviews!

Greetings, kindred spirits! Since we weren't able to have an in-person book launch, we recorded some readings and author conversation to celebrate the Spectral City finale, A SUMMONING OF SOULS, now available in digital and trade paperback wherever books are sold! Check out these release week theatrical readings and author conversations! 

First, Leanna reads a fun tidbit from the Summoning of Souls prologue!
Second, Leanna reads a cute scene from everyone's favorite slow-burn couple, Eve Whitby and Detective Jacob Horowitz, leading into a discussion with Spectral City series sensitivity reader and talented author Brina Starler. The two authors discuss the process of sensitivity reading, answer what a sensitivity reader is and how it can make books better and other craft and process insights. They also discuss their love of New York City and writing about it! 
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Praise for A SUMMONING OF SOULS from Avalinah's Book Blog: 

"I really enjoyed the whole Spectral City series, as well as its ending, A Summoning of Souls. I really can say that I recommend this series to you wholeheartedly! It’s full of warmth and hope, and it’s just a book that may give you back some belief in the world. It is respectful, diverse, soft and very, very sweet!" - Avalinah's Book Blog - read the full, glowing review here! 


The Gothic Library, who always does an incredible deep-dive discussion on Gothic tropes and themes, does a positive, comprehensive review of A SUMMONING OF SOULS! A highlight: "I love the way that Leanna often defies Gothic genre conventions that tend to be rooted in sexism" - read the full review here!

Due to printer delays due to the pandemic, the physical shipping of the books have been delayed so THERE'S STILL TIME to get a signed copy of A SUMMONING OF SOULS and enter to win the grand prizes for both US and International Readers! All orders via WORD Brooklyn will be automatically entered to win a custom made accessory from Torch and Arrow! If you've ordered via another retailer and/or digitally, send proof of purchase to preorders at leannareneehieber dot com and you'll be automatically entered to win! One international reader will be chosen to win custom digital art! Contest ends Aug 3rd, winners drawn by Random.org. 


Cheers and Happy Haunting! 

Tuesday, July 21, 2020

A SUMMONING OF SOULS is Now Available Wherever Books are Sold!


THE SPECTRAL CITY series continues! Think of it as if THE ALIENIST met GHOST DETECTIVES, with action, spooky thrills, adventure, found family, psychic fireworks, sweet, slow-burn romance and a host of friendly spirits!

HAPPY RELEASE DAY, A SUMMONING OF SOULS! Book 3, The Spectral City Finale is NOW AVAILABLE WHEREVER BOOKS ARE SOLD! In digital and trade paperback!

While I plan a series of future novellas featuring these characters and The Ghost Precinct, THE SPECTRAL CITY series as it stands is a complete trilogy!

At the dawn of the twentieth century, New York City houses both the living and the dead. And when it comes to crimes of an otherworldly nature, it falls to the psychics and spirits of the city’s finest secret agency—The Ghost Precinct—to serve justice beyond the earthly realm . . .

The ethereal denizens of New York owe a great debt to Eve Whitby, the young talented medium who leads the all-female spiritualists in the police department’s Ghost Precinct. Without her team’s efforts on behalf of the incorporeal, many souls would have been lost or damned by both human and inhuman means.

But now Eve faces an enemy determined to exorcise the city’s ghostly population once and for all. Albert Prenze is supposed to be dead. Instead he is very much alive, having assumed the identity of his twin brother Alfred, and taken control of the family’s dubiously made fortune. With unlimited wealth at his disposal, Albert uses experimental technology to banish ghosts to an eternal darkness forever.

To achieve his vicious ends, Albert plots to manipulate Eve and twist her abilities into a psychic weapon—a weapon that not only poses a threat to spirits but to everyone she cares for, including her beloved Detective Horowitz . . .

The Spectral City is a spooky thrill . . .  filled to the brim with beauty and peril.”
Cherie Priest, Locus Award-winning author

“Otherworldly mystery [with] gorgeous writing and slow burn of a romance.”
National Public Radio on A Sanctuary of Spirits

Hieber’s momentous third Spectral City fantasy sees tensions in the spirit world come to an explosive head…It is extremely satisfying to witness the scrappy heroes rise up . . . Hieber’s latest fires on all cylinders.
Publishers Weekly on A Summoning of Souls

I LOVE this series so much! These really are books of my heart. I wrote them to reimagine a ghost story and to explore the possibilities of what haunted places can mean and the many possibilities of ghosts in historical fantasy. This book brings Eve and Jacob's adorable relationship to a whole new level of care, and the found family dynamic of my girl-gang of psychic mediums proves invaluable yet again, proving that love, determination and a fighting spirit seeking justice and compassion will always save the day. 

As you can imagine, during the pandemic, as a performer, tour guide, public speaker, convention presence and general public person, my income streams have been vastly limited so your support of this series has never been more helpful! Please tell a friend about this series, word-of-mouth is the best thing you can do for an author! Please leave a review on your favorite sites! 

CHEERS, THANKS AND HAPPY HAUNTING!

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Tuesday, July 14, 2020

A SUMMONING OF SOULS pre-order contest & 7/21 Virtual Launch Party via WORD!

Darlings! A SUMMONING OF SOULS (Spectral City # 3) is nearly here via Kensington Books, Now Available for Pre-Order wherever books are sold! We've a VIRTUAL launch party on 7/21 AND we've a pre-order campaign with awesome prizes for US as well as INTERNATIONAL readers! Check out the following details:

Come celebrate release day with us, 7/21 at 7:30pm EST on InstagramLive via WORD BOOKSTORE!

I'll be in conversation with the amazing Brina Starler, who is not only a fiercely talented writer but has been one of my main sensitivity readers for the entire Spectral City series and she has wonderful insights about what that process is like and we'll be discussing the process of quality, inclusive fiction and much more! Theatrical Reading! Ghost Stories! Don't miss it!

Now for our PRE-ORDER CAMPAIGN! With PRIZES! 
As always, if ordering from the wonderful independent books tore WORD, please note to whom you'd like the book signed in the "notes" section of the order!

Everyone who orders a signed, print, trade paperback copy of A SUMMONING OF SOULS via WORD will automatically get a bunch of fun Hieberverse goodies & coupons inside AND will also be entered to win the grand prize: for US readers, that's a hand-made, custom-commissioned accessory order per your delight and preference from the Torch and Arrow Etsy store! International Readers! I don't want to leave you out! International orders will be entered to win a custom commission of digital art and/or illustration from talented artist and writer (and my business partner) Thom Truelove! Winners chosen the evening of 7/22 via Random.org!

Have you already pre-ordered A SUMMONING OF SOULS digitally for your eReader? Have you already pre-ordered the print edition from another retailer / bookseller? Never fear! You can still be entered into the contest for the grand prizes! Just email a sales confirmation # and/or redacted proof of purchase to preorders@leannareneehieber.com and you'll be entered to win! Please note whether yours is an international or US order.

A SUMMONING OF SOULS might be my favorite book I've ever written. It's gotten a lot of wonderful praise from Publisher's Weekly to book bloggers to podcasters and more. It's got a TON of love, heart, spirit, joy, fight and light infused throughout the narrative. It's been a joy to work on the Spectral City trilogy and I can't wait to share this finale with you! As always, word-of-mouth is the BEST thing for any series so please let friends, family and fellow readers know about this exciting Gothic, Gaslamp Fantasy series full of ghosts and a psychic girl-gang here to save the day!

Remember to order your signed, print, trade paperback copies via WORD - please support this series and an amazing independent bookstore (support for indie bookstores has never been more important than now!) all at the same time!

Other Sales Links:
Paperback via IndieBound
General copies in digital or trade paperback via Barnes and Noble
Kindle or trade paperback via Amazon

As always, Cheers and Happy Haunting! - Leanna

On the Many Possibilities of Ghost Stories...

 
As we gear up to A SUMMONING OF SOULS on 7/21, One of my very favorite blogs, THE GOTHIC LIBRARY, hosted me for a discussion on the many possibilities of ghost stories and why I choose to write ghosts in the manner in which I do. I've seen reviewers for this series enthusiastically support my choice to write a different kind of ghost story through the course of THE SPECTRAL CITY series. Here are insights into why... 

Friday, June 26, 2020

Theatrical Techniques for Blockbuster Storytelling - Fiction Writing Advice from an Actress & Playwright

Writerly folk!

As some of you may or may not know, I began my professional career as an actress and playwright. Many techniques utilized in theatre have been very useful to me as a novelist. I've shared some of the highlights of my "Direct Your Book: Theatre Techniques for a Compelling Novel" workshop over at the Science Fiction / Fantasy Writers of America blog. Check it out! If you've any comments or questions, you're welcome to leave them here or at the SFWA blog, I'll be checking in! Cheers and Break a Leg! - Leanna



Friday, June 19, 2020

A SUMMONING OF SOULS is available for Pre-Order Wherever Books are Sold! Signed Copies Via WORD Brooklyn!

DARLINGS! A SUMMONING OF SOULS, the final Spectral City installment in this exciting Gothic, Gaslamp Fantasy trilogy about a girl-gang of psychics and their favorite friendly ghosts solving weird crime in 1899 NYC, is now available for Pre-Order in digital and trade paperback wherever books are sold!

Signed trade paperback Pre-Orders are being run exclusively through WORD Brooklyn! Please support this book and a wonderful independent bookstore to help get them through this difficult time! 

FB LIVE EVENT! JOIN US! This Sunday 9pm EST, to celebrate that we'll be 1 MONTH OUT from Release Day, I'll be doing a FBLive theatrical reading of a ghost-filled portion of A Summoning of Souls, announcing all the Pre-Order goodies and coordinated contest that will be open to all who Pre-Order the novel and answering any questions about ghosts, my writing process and NYC history!

Cheers and HAPPY HAUNTING!  

Tuesday, May 5, 2020

A SUMMONING OF SOULS gets a "MOMENTOUS" review from Publisher's Weekly!

Coming 7/21 in digital & Trade Paperback!

Hello friends! I'm THRILLED that Publisher's Weekly gave a STELLAR review of A SUMMONING OF SOULS, releasing 7/21 from Kensington Books! The highlights: 

“Hieber’s momentous third Spectral City fantasy (after A Sanctuary of Spirits) sees tensions in the spirit world come to an explosive head…It is extremely satisfying to witness the scrappy heroes rise up…Eve and Jacob’s growing attraction, meanwhile, provides a welcome romantic respite from the fast-paced action. Hieber’s latest fires on all cylinders.”- Publishers Weekly 

Check out the full review, additional plot details here

Pre-order a digital copy wherever eBooks are sold! Print pre-order links are coming soon! Nook - Kobo - Zeebra - Amazon - Apple - Google

Please share with fellow-readers looking for their next ghostly, gothic Supernatural Suspense with a sweet romance! Cheers and Happy Haunting!


Thursday, March 19, 2020

DARLINGS! I'm on Syfy

The amazing folks at SYFY WIRE are hosting the exclusive cover reveal for my next Kensington novel, book 3 in the Spectral City series,  A SUMMONING OF SOULS!

Hop over to Syfy Wire to check out this beautiful cover, read my very personal note about this series, some kind words from the Syfy team AND you'll get your first look at the entire prologue of the novel!

A SUMMONING OF SOULS will be available July 21st from Kensington Books in digital and trade paperback!

Pre-order links are digitally available in this BookBub list here, trade paperback pre-order links will be available soon!

Cheers and happy haunting! Your support of the Spectral City series helps more than I can say!

It is, of course, a scary time for all. As a freelance artist / author / actress, all my various freelance work has entirely vanished. One thing that I can rely on are my books so if you're able to support this series in particular and tell friends, I'd be very grateful and your support will help keep my family afloat in uncertain weather.

Blessings!

Wednesday, February 5, 2020

The Historical Novel Society Review praises A SANCTUARY OF SPIRITS!

Dear Readers!

I'm so thrilled to report that the spring edition of The Historical Novel Society Review loved my latest Spectral City novel, A SANCTUARY OF SPIRITS! See what Audra Friend, blogger and reviewer at Unabridged Chick, has to say, I'm so honored by her words!

From HNR Issue 91 (February 2020)
A SANCTUARY OF SPIRITS - Nov, 2019 from Kensington Rebel Base Books

"This second book in Hieber’s Spectral City series returns with another powerful, evocative story set in this unique alternative history of 1899 New York City in which the NYPD has a secretive paranormal department where mediums work with ghostly spirit guides to solve crimes. This refreshing and inventive setting provides a wonderful freshness to the crowded murder mystery shelf, and the supernatural elements evoked by the work of the Spiritualist crime fighters are interesting, emotional, and intriguing.
Readers will benefit from – and enjoy – Hieber’s previous book, The Spectral City, which introduces this world and the main character, Eve Whitby. Eve is a cautious, empathetic medium who leads séances with three other mediums, working with the dead and the living to solve crimes. This book quickly dives into an atmospheric and moody mystery involving the seemingly impossible: a criminal who can hurt the dead. (Sensitive readers should be aware that there are child victims, but there is no in-scene violence depicted, just the aftereffects.) Most challenging for Eve and her squadron of mediums is that ghosts are as unreliable as humans.
Hieber expertly mixes atmospheric setting with compelling and complicated relationships – grandmother to granddaughter, friendship between women, a burgeoning romance between individuals of different cultural backgrounds, the tenuous threads connecting the dead to the living – with an unearthly and moody plot. The social mores and restrictions of late 19th-century life are still real in this world, making Eve’s work and her burgeoning romance with the Jewish Detective Jacob Horowitz resonant and emotionally satisfying. Her world building is rich and imaginative, diving into the everyday realities of what life would be like if the living could communicate with the undead.
This is a compelling read that will leave readers eager for the next in the series; start with the first book to most enjoy the growth of characters in this one." - Audra Friend, Unabridged Chick, for The Historical Novel Society Review
A SANCTUARY OF SPIRITS - Barnes and Noble - IndieBound - Amazon - Books a Million