Book Release Tomorrow! (With Live Excerpt)

It’s almost time! My Greek Gods meet Regency England romantasy that was SIX YEARS in the making lol. Actually, probably more like three because I kind of got sidetracked from writing novels for a while, especially of the romantic sort.

I tried to figure out a great way to spend this last day before the book release and what I came up with was inspired by how I used to do live poetry writing on my blog. (I plan to revisit that this April, btw!)

I’m going to do live excerpts. That’s right. I have a copy of the book here and I’m going to open it up, find something of interest and transcribe it here. I’m so confident in my writing, I’m certain I can find something to tempt you to buy my book on any page I open to! So get ready…here goes.

Excerpt 1:

“I was born mortal.” Callie wondered if it was true. She barely remembered her parents.

“There are no guarantees as far as that is concerned.” Aphrodite swirled the golden liquid in the glass. “Maybe your mortal mother thought she was never taken by a god, but the things I’ve seen…” She shook her head. “One could have come to her in her sleep, or disguised as your father. Or in a really good bath…” She widened her eyes.

Excerpt 2:

Hades sighed and reached forward as if to touch her face, then stopped, his fingers curling back into his hand. “Very well. But please, join me for a drink.”

Callie looked at the bottle on the table then back at him. His lips curved. “You won’t be trapped here. That was a little fiction my wife and mother-in-law cooked up. I just go along with it. For domestic peace.”

Excerpt 3:

With no other choice, Callie picked up the teapot and went over to the table. She noticed Dionysus’s little frown, Lord St. Clair’s quizzical look. But she focused only on the lady who’d summoned her. “Did you need more tea, My Lady?”

“No, I did not. I wish you to join us.”

Callie’s immediate reaction was dismay. Join the family breakfast table? She had been horrified when Samir proposed she accompany him to dinner, but to sit down with the family for a meal when Samir wasn’t even there? She shook her head. “No, ma’am. I would not presume.”

“You’re not presuming if I ask. There are plenty of servers and we have an empty spot at the table.” Lady Clarissa nodded to one of the footmen. “Please bring another teacup for Callie.”

And that’s all you’re getting out of me. I had so much fun adding my own spin to the gods of Greek Mythology that I fell in love with a long time ago. I don’t exactly remember the first time I picked up a book of Greek mythology, but so much of it has stuck with me. I remember devouring book after book. I thrilled to the adventures of Jason and Heracles, was horrified by the fate of Daphne, and I was always dubious about Persephone lol. (She’s not actually in this one, though, so maybe I’m just taking Hades’s word for it.)

Anyway, tomorrow we’ll open a Pandora’s pithos of our own when I let this book loose on the world of romantasy readers. If you’re intrigued, it will be available on Amazon and at my store, The Next Chapter Books & Art.

Winter Solstice Author Edition out now!

Welp, I did another thing. 🙂

Winter Solstice was my second book, published in 2011 by Lyrical Press, now part of Kensington Press. It was a fun story to write and I was thrilled to have two books published by Lyrical Press, but Winter Solstice, unlike Secrets of the Lotus, was never published as a paperback. So I’ve never had it at my store, so it really feels new!

I was super hesitant to republish Winter Solstice because I actually got a lot of great feedback on the cover, lol. Everybody liked the bare-chested man on it, and the model (yes, he really exists) actually contacted me for information about my book way back (his name is Jason Aaron Baca and if you google him, you’ll find out he’s been on the covers of 500+ romance novels—look out Fabio!). He offered to post the cover on his web page, and if you want to see his other novel covers check it out here. Of course, the cover of Winter Solstice is long since crowded out by the others that have come since then, but I’m sure it’s still there somewhere.

Jason, if you’re still out there somewhere, I had to say goodbye to my old cover in order to republish my book, but still appreciate my little brush with celebrity. 🙂

My new cover probably won’t get that kind of attention, but I did design it myself. Thanks to Canva, I’ve gotten pretty handy at the cover design thing, and it saves money, which, as a bookstore owner and indie author I definitely appreciate!

Below, you’ll find the new cover and blurb for Winter Solstice: Author’s Edition. I hope you enjoy. I’ll have copies in my store next week!

Is it a one-night stand or a lifetime romance?

Becky Gray, newest public relations guru for Buncombe County Hospital in Asheville, N.C., does not do one-night stands. Until she meets sexy ER doc John Grant. He’s got a reputation as a womanizer, and Becky tries to stay away, but she finds herself inevitably drawn to him. It doesn’t help that her first assignment involves writing a blog about John and the hospital’s award-winning Emergency Department. For his part, John finds Becky unique combination of strength and vulnerability intriguing. When the two are thrown together in the crisis situations of the Emergency Room, they can’t help but find comfort in their mutual attraction.

Becky never meant for it to be more than one night. John never even meant for it to happen. Where do they go from here?

Copyright 2024 Michelle Garren-Flye

Far & wee: The (video) audiobook

It’s one thing to tell you how special this little book is. It’s another to show you. So here I am in a one-take video, reading my book out loud and explaining it as well as showing you the pictures as best I could.

Want to look for the balloon-man with me?

Happy Mother’s Day Haiku!

Has it really been more than a week since I posted an illustrated haiku? Trust me, I haven’t been idle. I’m working hard to get out my next illustrated poetry book 100 Warm Days of Haiku by fall. Which basically means I need to keep pace with what I did in April. Today I’m slowing down a little, but I have one ready for Mother’s Day, anyway.

This one is for the mothers. All the mothers. The mothers like me who were lucky enough to go the traditional route. The mothers of fur babies. The male mothers. The single mothers. The childless mothers. The adopted mothers. The old mothers, the new mothers, the tired mothers, the sad mothers, the happy mothers, the proud mothers, the I-don’t-know-why-I-did-this mothers, the will-this-ever-end mothers (yes…and no), the confused mothers (all of us), the grandmothers, the unexpected mothers, the I’m-supposed-to-be-an-aunt mothers… All the mothers.

My heart is with you all. Because we all know what it is to love someone else more than ourselves.

We shouldn’t be so damn hard on ourselves, but those precious lives we take on our souls are a burden we willingly bear—and often worry we didn’t bear well enough.

For you, mothers.

Poem and illustration by Michelle Garren Flye. Copyright 2021.