So we all know that keeping resolutions tends to be tough, sure, but that won’t stop me from trying! Today, I’m looking back at the things I aimed for in 2020, and ahead to my 2021 blogging resolutions! 🎆
Continue reading “Miscellaneous Magic || 2021 Blogging Resolutions”
Never before has there been an author visiting H&WR, and I’m delighted to kick things off through this Q&A with Kelly Coon! Last year, I had the pleasure of joining her Skeleton Crew street team, and of meeting her during one of her tour stops. Now, with COVID standing in the way, we can’t exactly do a fun event together in person, but we can sure toss some questions back and forth!
And I’d be silly not to mention that we’re also celebrating the upcoming release of Warmaidens, the conclusion of Kell’s Gravemaidens duology! This Q&A is part of the official blog tour, and I hope it gives you all a taste of the excitement to come! 💛
Now, if you’re ready for some questions, I think I’m ready too. Let’s hop to it, scorpions and all! 🦂
Continue reading “Miscellaneous Magic || Q&A with Kelly Coon, Author of Warmaidens!”
My parents purchased OwlCrate’s Addie LaRue box for me back in August as a birthday gift, and I have waited so patiently for the box to arrive. Many wistful days sitting by the front door, longing for my package to grace the porch at last, so ready to begin unboxing Addie LaRue…
And now she’s HERE! Any patience I had is gone, and there’s only joyful unboxing ahead. This post contains spoilers for the entire OwlCrate box, so proceed with caution if you’re not ready to know just yet. Otherwise, join me in all in the Addie-related goodies ahead!
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I can’t either, mostly because time super does not feel real this year. But somehow, it’s definitely happening, and even more surprising, I think the universe gifted me a spare brain cell. How do I know? Because I have birthday thoughts.
Could they be pearls of wisdom, or just the exhaust fumes from my disparate brain cells spinning really really really really fast? Finish reading this post, and then you tell me! 🎉
Continue reading “Miscellaneous Magic || Birthday Thoughts: Twenty-Third Time’s the Charm?”
But the fact of the matter is that I’m putting Hail & Well Read on hiatus until August 2020. It’s only for about a month and a half, but it’s a much-needed month and a half. Lately, I’ve been struggling to find the energy and heart for new content, and pushing on through that is a recipe for burnout. So today, I’m going to give you a quick rundown on what you can expect until August, and then I’m off to shove the building blocks of my life back into some kind of semi-sensible order.
Continue reading “Hail & Well Read On Hiatus || See You in August!”
You know, just yesterday, I realized there was a big mistake here on Hail & Well Read: it should be Snail & Well Read! An embarrassing mistake, I know. Here I have all these nice swords and crystal balls and towers, but no snails. None! What an awful case of miscommunication.
Just absolutely terrible.
Embarrassing.
Impossible to live down.
But maybe I can make it up to you? See, better late than never, as any snail would tell you, and it’s time you get a proper introduction to the blog as it was meant to be. And what might that look like? Well…see for yourself. 🐌
Animal Crossing New Horizons is out today, and I have to admit, I’ve been looking forward to this day for ages. Thank goodness Kristina @ Books & Dachshunds made the perfect tag game for it! Today, Animal Crossing meets the bookish, and it’s the perfect blend of my interests. You know, as things should be! 😊🌴🌊
Happy second birthday, dear Hail & Well Readdddddd, happy birthday to us! Though Hail & Well Read only got its name this past January, the blog as a whole has now been around for two entire years. Two! It’s survived all kinds of crises on my part, and plenty of joy otherwise. And, now we get to celebrate!
Go grab a cupcake or a doughnut or whatever sweet treat your heart desires. Celebrations and sappy reflection (and…a giveaway?) start now!
Continue reading “Miscellaneous Magic: Happy Second Birthday, Hail & Well Read!”
This year, Warmaidens is going to bring Kammani’s story to a close, and the Warmaidens cover reveal is upon us for just that reason! If you think you’re ready, you’re not.
No, really. Remember how stunning the Gravemaidens cover is? Have a refresher, before we take the big plunge. Look at how beautiful and blue and delicate it is!
Now, brace yourself. If you love bugs, get hyped. If you hate them, please look anyway. Because it’s here. It’s Warmaidens. And it is incredible!
And please, have a complementary scorpion emoji along the way. 🦂
Those jeweled scorpions? The busted bottle? All of that dark, dangerous pink? You can thank Sammy Yuen for this incredible cover (and view his outstanding portfolio here)! He was the designer for Gravemaidens, and he’s knocked it out of the park here with Warmaidens for sure! That cover has not come to play, not even a little.
But if you’re still on the fence about it, here’s a glimpse at what’s in store, complete with some scorpions… 🦂
Just a few moons after escaping the tomb in Alu, Kammani and the other runaway maidens have found refuge in the city-state of Manzazu. There, Kammani has become a respected healer, especially among the warriors she’s brought back from the brink of death. Now that the nightmares of Alu are fading, she can finally decide whether or not to take Dagan’s hand in marriage.
But when an assassin murders a healer he believes is Kammani and attempts to kill the displaced queen of Alu, the maidens realize they’ve been found.
Hungry for revenge, Manzazu’s queen wants to strike back at Alu with her fiercest weapons—her scorpion warrior maidens—but Kammani knows that war harms more than it heals. To save the innocents and any chance of a future with Dagan, Kammani must take down Alu’s ruler before their lives burn up in the flames of war.
It’s coming October 20th, 2020! We’re only six months and change away (haha… only… 😭), and there’s already a whole bunch of ways you can get your pre-orders in! GetUnderlined has all the details and the purchase links right here, and if you follow Kelly Coon on Twitter, you’re bound to hear about more exciting things in the future. Like pre-order campaigns. Maybe tours, publisher permitting? Oh, and I’m almost certain there will be info about pre-ordering signed copies at some point…
(While you’re at it, you should follow me as well. I did a giveaway for a signed copy of Gravemaidens and a unique booksleeve last year, and mayhaps it will occur once more…)
And in the meantime, be sure to pick up Gravemaidens from your local library, or your nearest bookstore! But if you’re waffling over it, let me direct you to my review from October. There’s a girl who knows exactly what she wants, siblings to die for, and a cinnamon roll LI. Plus a hefty dash of murder, of course! Where would YA fantasy be without murder? 💛
Add more scorpions? More smoke? Enjoy it in its deep pink glory, changing nothing? Let’s chat!