Crown of Shards series

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    Some of Jennifer’s upcoming projects …

    2 Comments

    Here are a few of my upcoming book projects:

    The Beauty of Being a Beast short story — October 2020

    My story will first appear in Von Flusshexen und Meerjungfrauen (aka “River Witches and Mermaids”). This is a fairy-tale-themed short story anthology that will be released in German in October 2020. I will self-publish the story in English later on, probably in spring 2021.

    Here is a look at the anthology cover art. Isn’t it gorgeous? I love the colors.

    My 7,000-word story (about 25 pages) is a feminist take on Beauty and the Beast. That is one of my favorite fairy tales, and I enjoyed putting my own twist on the story.

    Elemental Assassin #19 — Spring 2021

    I’m hoping to release the next Elemental Assassin book in spring 2021. The book is (mostly) written, and I’ve started the self-publishing process, but things are taking a lot longer than usual, due to the pandemic.

    Capture the Crown — Gemma Ripley/Crown of Shards World #1 — Summer 2021

    This is the first book in a new trilogy set in my Crown of Shards world. The new trilogy will take place 15 years after the events of Crush the King, Crown of Shards #3, and will focus on Gemma Ripley, the crown princess of Andvari, and her gargoyle Grimley (from Protect the Prince).

    As of right now, the first book is called Capture the Crown, although that could change. The series name has not been finalized yet either. 

    Note: I have a few other publishing projects in the works. I’ll share info on them as soon as I can. Also, please note that these dates are TENTATIVE and could change at any time, due to my writing schedule and various publishing whims (including the pandemic).

    Thanks for reading! 😎 

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    Kill the Queen on sale for $2.99 …

    Kill the Queen, book #1 in my Crown of Shards epic fantasy series, is on sale for $2.99 during May. Woot! 😎 

    You can get the ebook at all the usual retailers:

    GET THE EBOOK:

    Amazon Kindle B&N Nook Google Play Apple Books Kobo

    Some retailers are also discounting the print book. As of the writing of this post, it was less than $12 at Amazon.

    GET THE PRINT BOOK:

    Amazon print B&N print Books-A-Million IndieBoundWalmart

    GET THE AUDIOBOOK:

    Amazon audiobook Audible audiobook Google Play Kobo LibroAmazon MP3 CD

    Fun fact: Lauren Fortgang, who narrates the audiobooks for my Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series, is the narrator for Kill the Queen. You can listen to a clip of Lauren’s narration by clicking on the SoundCloud excerpt box below:

    KILL THE QUEEN DESCRIPTION:

    The thrilling first novel of the Crown of Shards epic fantasy series combines magic, murder, and adventure when a member of the royal family becomes a contender in a clash for the crown… 

    In a realm where one’s magical power determines one’s worth, Lady Everleigh’s lack of obvious ability relegates her to the shadows of the royal court of Bellona, a kingdom steeped in gladiator tradition. Seventeenth in line for the throne, Evie is nothing more than a ceremonial fixture, overlooked and mostly forgotten.

    But dark forces are at work inside the palace. When her cousin Vasilia, the crown princess, assassinates her mother the queen and takes the throne by force, Evie is also attacked, along with the rest of the royal family. Luckily for Evie, her secret immunity to magic helps her escape the massacre.

    Forced into hiding to survive, she falls in with a gladiator troupe. Though they use their talents to entertain and amuse the masses, the gladiators are actually highly trained warriors skilled in the art of war, especially Lucas Sullivan, a powerful magier with secrets of his own. Uncertain of her future—or if she even has one—Evie begins training with the troupe until she can decide her next move.

    But as the bloodthirsty Vasilia exerts her power, pushing Bellona to the brink of war, Evie’s fate becomes clear: she must become a fearsome gladiator herself . . . and kill the queen.

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    New Crown of Shards trilogy coming in summer 2021 …

    11 Comments

    Several folks have asked me about the future of my Crown of Shards epic fantasy series. As of right now, Crush the King, book #3, is the conclusion to Evie’s story.

    However, I am THRILLED to announce that I will be writing a new trilogy set in my Crown of Shards world. The new trilogy will take place about 15 years after the events of Crush the King and will focus on Gemma Ripley, the crown princess of Andvari. So if you liked Gemma and her gargoyle Grimley in Protect the Prince, then you should enjoy the new trilogy.

    The first Gemma book is tentatively titled Capture the Crown, and it will hopefully be released in summer 2021.

    Woot! I’ve been sitting on this news for MONTHS, and I’m so happy to finally share it with everyone. 😎 

    I do hope to write some more books about Evie in the future, and I’d also like to do some e-novellas from the points of view of some of the secondary characters, like Paloma. There are a few little plot threads from Crush the King that I would like to address someday. (And no spoilers for folks who haven’t read the book yet.)

    I would also like to do a novella from Maeven’s point of view, just to see if I could make her sympathetic and interesting to read about. My writing schedule is already full going into 2021, so we’ll see what happens.

    In the meantime, Crush the King is available now in ebook, print book, and audiobook from all the usual retailers:

    CRUSH THE KING EBOOK:

    Amazon Kindle B&N Nook Apple Books Google Play Kobo

    CRUSH THE KING PRINT BOOK:

    Amazon print B&N print Books-A-Million IndieBoundWalmart

    CRUSH THE KING AUDIOBOOK:

    Amazon audio Audible Google Play audio Kobo audio Libro audio

    Amazon MP3 CD

    The audiobook is once again narrated by the awesome Lauren Fortgang.

    CRUSH THE KING DESCRIPTION:

    A fierce gladiator queen must face off against her enemies in an epic battle in this next thrilling installment of New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Estep’s Crown of Shards series—an action-packed adventure full of magic, murderous machinations, courtly intrigue, and pulse-pounding romance.

    Queen Everleigh Blair of Bellona has survived the mass murder of the royal family, become a fearsome warrior trained by an elite gladiator troupe, and unleashed her ability to destroy magic. After surviving yet another assassination attempt orchestrated by the conniving king of Morta, Evie has had enough. It’s time to turn the tables and take the fight to her enemies. 

    There is no better opportunity to strike than during the Regalia Games, a time when warriors, nobles, and royals from all the kingdoms come together to compete in various sporting events. With the help of her loyal friends, Evie goes on the attack at the Regalia, but things don’t turn out the way she hopes. Soon, she is facing a terrifying new threat, and she will have to dig deep and learn even more about her growing magic if she has any chance of defeating her foes.

    Because to secure her throne and ensure her kingdom’s survival, Evie must think like a true Bellonan: she must outsmart and outwit her enemies . . . and crush the king.

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    Read it now — Crush the King, Crown of Shards #3, available …

     Crush the King, Crown of Shards #3, has been released. Woot! 😎 

    I’m so excited to finally be able to share this book with everyone, and I hope you all have as much fun reading it as I did writing it.

    Crush the King is available at all the usual sites in ebook, print book, and audiobook formats:

    CRUSH THE KING EBOOK:

    Amazon Kindle B&N Nook Apple Books Google Play Kobo

    CRUSH THE KING PRINT BOOK:

    Amazon print B&N print Books-A-Million IndieBound

    CRUSH THE KING AUDIOBOOK:

    Amazon audio Audible Google Play audio Kobo audio Libro audio

    Amazon MP3 CD

    The audiobook is once again narrated by the awesome Lauren Fortgang.

    CRUSH THE KING DESCRIPTION:

    A fierce gladiator queen must face off against her enemies in an epic battle in this next thrilling installment of New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Estep’s Crown of Shards series—an action-packed adventure full of magic, murderous machinations, courtly intrigue, and pulse-pounding romance.

    Queen Everleigh Blair of Bellona has survived the mass murder of the royal family, become a fearsome warrior trained by an elite gladiator troupe, and unleashed her ability to destroy magic. After surviving yet another assassination attempt orchestrated by the conniving king of Morta, Evie has had enough. It’s time to turn the tables and take the fight to her enemies. 

    There is no better opportunity to strike than during the Regalia Games, a time when warriors, nobles, and royals from all the kingdoms come together to compete in various sporting events. With the help of her loyal friends, Evie goes on the attack at the Regalia, but things don’t turn out the way she hopes. Soon, she is facing a terrifying new threat, and she will have to dig deep and learn even more about her growing magic if she has any chance of defeating her foes.

    Because to secure her throne and ensure her kingdom’s survival, Evie must think like a true Bellonan: she must outsmart and outwit her enemies . . . and crush the king.

    Note: Crush the King is the conclusion to Evie’s story. I am planning to write more books in my Crown of Shards world, although they will be from another character’s point of view. I should have more information to share on the new series soon. Thanks! 😎 

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    Remembering a friend …

    10 Comments

    Today is bittersweet.

    On the bright side, Crush the King, Crown of Shards #3, has been released (Go! Read! Enjoy!).

    On the not-so-bright side, today, March 17, is the birthday of my friend Karen Borrelli, who passed away in February from metastatic breast cancer. She would have been 62. I dedicated Crush the King to Karen (among other people), although she never got to see a finished copy of the book.

    Karen was a self-described “diva” who had a rescue dog named Biscuit, a cat named Rewrite, and a red Cadillac that she nicknamed “Ruby Sue”. She was a journalist and romance author who loved to travel and take photographs. Karen worked at The Buffalo News, which ran a very nice story about her life and journalism career: https://tinyurl.com/sty77sa

    The last book that Karen wrote (under the pen name Trixie Stilletto) was Do Grave Harm, which focuses on a woman undergoing breast cancer treatments who comes across a murdered technician. I always got a kick out of the fact that Karen named the book’s heroine “Jennifer”.

    Karen was one of the most cheerful people I’ve ever met, and she always tried to look on the bright side of things. She was also one of the most determined people I’ve ever met. When she got her cancer diagnosis, Karen had to cancel her dream vacation to Alaska. But she went to Alaska the next year, even though she had to take her chemo medication with her in a cooler. Karen had moxie. 

    Karen was always there when I needed to talk about book stuff or just life in general, and she always loved to chat over lunch, often saying, “Hey, we gotta eat!”

    In honor of Karen, I’m going to make a donation to my local food bank. I hope that you will consider making a donation to your local library, animal shelter, food bank, etc. Let’s put some positive vibes out in the world, just like Karen did.

    Thank you for reading.