Spotlight on Kelley Hensing and Magic Most Foul themed art!

Today I want to introduce you to fabulously talented, multi-published fantasy illustrator Kelley Hensing, a graduate of Rhode Island School of Design and the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan, she was the recipient of the "Movado Future Legends" art award for 2010. Her artwork has graced countless gaming books, murals, card designs, scultpures, art shows and events across the country and has appeared in such prestigous outlets as Spectrum 18. I am so proud of her.

Kelley and I go way back, to the Goth clubs of Cincinnati in our youth, to sitting dreaming in coffee shops of the days we'd be in New York writing and making art. Those days are here, we remain treasured friends and I'm so excited to be teaming up with this gifted woman as I prepare to launch the Magic Most Foul finale, THE DOUBLE LIFE OF INCORPORATE THINGS, 3/5 right here on this blog.

For our $50.00 sponsors, Kelley will be creating a limited edition 5x7 Magic Most Foul themed print that will be included with a signed, completed copy of THE DOUBLE LIFE OF INCORPORATE THINGS. Donations will help cover the many and multi-layered editorial and production costs of serialzing the novel for free throughout this year and then making it available fully in print and digital this November. $20.00 sponsors will received signed copies of the book along with a sponsor token, but of course any donations are welcome towards the cause as the first serial prepares to launch 3/5!

Cheers and blessings!

BIG NEWS: The Magic Most Foul finale serializes HERE next month!

Magic Most Foul fans! You don't have to wait until November to get your fix on the next Gothic, Victorian, fantastical and paranormal adventures of Lord Denbury and Natalie Stewart! You can start NEXT MONTH! March 5th I am embarking on a new venture that is a very old venture indeed: serialization. Most Victorian era novelists serialized their fiction at some point into small pieces released in a number of weeks and months in various 19th century magazines. Charles Dickens' "Household Words" was home to many a famous story and novel serializing from one issue to the next. So what better to honour my Victorian tales but to serialize one?

Beginning next month, THE DOUBLE LIFE OF INCORPORATE THINGS, A Finale of Magic Most Foul will begin its first segment right here! For free! The goal is to have segments released consistently from March through November when the novel will then be available for sale in print and across digital platforms. If you think this is nifty, please consider donating to the cause. Donations will directly support this project; me, my editorial staff and the production staff that will be designing and formatting the electronic and print novels for sale. It takes a village to make a book. Any contributions at or above $20 will automatically receive a signed print copy of the novel in November, contributions of $50 or more will receive a signed novel and a limited edition 5 x 7 Magic Most Foul themed print by award-winning, multi-published fantasy illustrator Kelley Hensing. Just use the "Donate" button on the upper right sidebar and you'll automatically be added to the sponsor list at whatever level you choose, donations of any amount are appreciated to help the series reach as far as it can.

Think this is a nifty idea worth sharing? Tell your friends! We need as big of an audience as possible for the finale of Magic Most Foul! But don't let the word "finale" make you sad, this book is a launch cannon onto the next series! You'll see familiar faces and meet new ones who will be served up directly into my new saga THE ETERNA FILES releasing in 2014 from Tor / Macmillan! All my Victorian-set series are parallel worlds and they've only just begun entwining! More news about the second life of my STRANGELY BEAUTIFUL saga coming soon as well!

Happy haunting and we'll see you very soon to tell a harrowing tale!

NEW RELEASE! The World of Tomorrow Is Sadly Outdated

THE WORLD OF TOMORROW IS SADLY OUTDATED - Across all digital platforms for $2.99

A STEAMPUNK / FUTURISTIC / DYSTOPIAN NOVELLA (20,000 words)

 

New York City: The Year is 1889.

New York City: The year is the future.

In 1889 a group of bold pseudo-scientists discover the "temporal current" and begin to view the distant futures that await the Empire City. In the future, all life as we know it has crumbled, leaving New York City a ghost town with a populous scrabbling to survive underground. In the past it's up to an unlikely group of Victorian heroines and heroes to preserve something of their world to save their future generations. In the future it's up to an unlikely group of survivors to take a leap of faith; discovering what their ancestors left for them with no more guarantees than love and hope.

Don't have an e-reader? Don't worry, all platforms have an app / ability to download onto your PC or phone.
Download now from:
Barnes and Noble / Nook  -- Amazon / Kindle -- Kobo -- SmashWords (Includes compatible iPad / Mac formats!)

HER MAJESTY'S ASSOCIATION OF MELANCHOLY BASTARDS - Membership Cards!

Fans of The Twisted Tragedy of Miss Natalie Stewart and the illustrious Mister Veil, I present to you the membership cars for Veil's ASSOCIATION OF MELANCHOLY BASTARDS!

Want one? Send an SASE to Leanna Renee Hieber, PO Box 5532, New York, NY 10185 - And if you don't understand what any of this is about, read THE TWISTED TRAGEDY OF MISS NATALIE STEWART! Happy Haunting!

Reader Art and Queen Victoria's Book of Spells' STARRED Reviews!

You know what I love? When readers are inspired by my books or stories and make art. There is no finer compliment in the world. It makes my heart soar and validates why I do what I do. It brings my beloved characters to life in a whole new way. Take a look at this particular beauty from artist Nancy Lee. Here's a take on Miss Percy Parker from the Strangely Beautiful saga (which remains currently out of print but I promise I'll have updates on that front soon). In the meantime, enjoy Miss Parker:

And enjoy this good news:

QUEEN VICTORIA'S BOOK OF SPELLS: An Anthology of Gaslamp Fantasy (Tor 3/13), the upcoming anthology features my short story "Charged" that stars an Eterna Files character, received a STARRED REVIEW in both Publishers' Weekly AND in Kirkus Reviews! I am so honoured to be in this anthology with such great writers I've admired for years. So thrilling! Here's the full text of the Kirkus review:

QUEEN VICTORIA ' S BOOK OF SPELLS [STARRED REVIEW!] - KIRKUS REVIEWS
Editor: Ellen Datlow
Editor: Terri Windling

Eighteen tales of Gaslamp Fantasy, that is, historical fantasy set in an alternate 19th century where magic worked or supernatural events occurred, together with an extensive and informative introduction from editor Windling tracing historical roots and adding context. A majority of the tales here use historical events or biography as their foundation. Delia Sherman, then, portrays Queen Victoria as a highly effective wizard. Genevieve Valentine probes a highly unsavory aspect of London ’s 1851 Great Exhibition. Elizabeth Wein spins a tale of writer-designer William Morris and artist Edward Burne-Jones. Kaaron Warren writes movingly of a house where unwanted women are confined and how they gain revenge. Dale Bailey takes an actual case of spiritualism and fakery and demonstrates how it is not always clear which is which. Veronica Schanoes strikes sparks both real and figurative in her account of the unionization of the all-female workforce at a lucifer-match factory. And Jane Yolen reimagines the relationship between Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli and Queen Victoria. Other tales take their inspiration from Victorian literature. Catherynne M. Valente, for instance, revisits the fantasies of the Brontë children. Tanith Lee offers a steampunk variant on the Frankenstein’s Monster theme. In Gregory Maguire’s continuation of A Christmas Carol, Scrooge marries and has children, and Tiny Tim’s life takes an unexpected turn. And Theodora Goss offers up an existential literary-games scenario à la Jasper Fforde. Elsewhere (via Jeffrey Ford, Ellen Kushner and Caroline Stevermer , Maureen McHugh, Kathe Koja, Elizabeth Bear, James P. Blaylock and Leanna Renee Hieber), the fiction is purer, the surprises no less welcome. Splendid tales that illuminate a bygone era’s darker corners. - Kirkus

You can pre-order a Hardcover copy at a pre-order sale price, or a paperback copy at a pre-order sale price, or pre-order the book to your Nook or Kindle! Barnes & Noble is linked here, and Amazon here.

 

Booklist has lovely words for Twisted Tragedy!

It's always exciting when the major publishing industry publications weigh in on your novel. 2013 is starting off with some lovely gems!

Booklist gives The Twisted Tragedy of Miss Natalie Stewart a lovely review!

The Twisted Tragedy of Miss Natalie Stewart

By Leanna Renee Hieber, 2012. 336p. Sourcebooks, paper, $8.99 (9781402262036)

"In this second Magic Most Foul novel (Darker Still, 2011), Natalie Stewart has gained her voice and Jonathon Denbury is alive, his soul rescued from a painting by Natalie's newly discovered magical powers. Escaping to Minnesota upon Mrs. Northe's advice, the young couple experiences a few days of happiness before Jonathon decides to avoid the ominous Dr. Preston by returning to London, where he dons the visage of his doppelganger to solve the mystery of his murdered family. Hieber's second YA novel is filled with bizarre evil: a resurrectionist doctor who collects severed hands; a dark, foreboding actor who inserts himself between Natalie and Jonathon in her nightmares; and a deaf-mute friend who hears the tormented spirits of the dismembered dead. Readers, who will benefit from a prior reading of the first book in the series, will enjoy not only the dark, supernatural mystery and then-daring romance but also the Victorian setting of elegant houses, beautiful gowns, and historical yet surprisingly contemporary New York City." - Frances Bradburn

RELEASE DAY! "Song of Saire" featured in THE MAMMOTH BOOK OF FUTURISTIC ROMANCE

2013 is starting off just how I want it! With a new release!

Happy Release Day "SONG OF SAIRE"!

My story "Song of Saire" is featured in this anthology edited by Trisha Telep, available in paperback and digital. Set in the world of my DARK NEST novellas, the Matriarch of a psychic community persecuted by their homeworld risks everything to save her students. Her only hope lies in her great star-crossed love that has spanned decades, but he's thousands of miles away.

For more about Leanna's DARK NEST novellas, click here.