Fantasy

  • · · ·

    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.

  • · · ·

    Crush the King, Crown of Shards #3, coming March 17 …

    5 Comments

     Crush the King, Crown of Shards #3, will be released March 17. Woot! 😎 

    This book will be 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 news to share on the new series soon.

    Crush the King is up for pre-order at all the usual sites. The ebook, print book, and audiobook will all be released on March 17:

    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.

    I hope everyone enjoys the conclusion to Evie’s story when it it released. Thanks! 😎 

  • · · ·

    Listen to an audiobook excerpt for Kill the Queen, Crown of Shards #1, Oct. 2 …

    2 Comments

    I’m thrilled to announce that the awesome Lauren Fortgang will be the narrator for the Kill the Queen audiobook. Woot! Get a sneak peak at Lauren’s narration by clicking on the SoundCloud excerpt box below:

    Doesn’t Lauren’s narration sound great? Lauren also narrates the audiobooks for my Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series, and I’m excited to hear how she brings Evie and all the other Kill the Queen characters to life. 🙂

    PRE-ORDER THE AUDIOBOOK:

    Amazon audiobook Audible audiobook Google Play Kobo LibroAmazon MP3 CD

    PRE-ORDER THE EBOOK:

    Amazon Kindle B&N Nook Google Play iBooks Kobo

    PRE-ORDER THE PRINT BOOK:

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

    Epic fantasy: I’ve gotten some questions about the book genre. Kill the Queen is adult epic fantasy — NOT YA fantasy.

    There is sex, language, and violence in Kill the Queen, just like there is in my Elemental Assassin series.

    That being said, if you like my YA books, especially my Mythos Academy series, you will probably enjoy this one too. There are some nods to Roman, Norse, and other mythologies in the book, but this is much more of an adult read than my YA series. And like all my other books/series, Kill the Queen features a strong heroine, lots of action/fight scenes, a hint of romance, and magic/worldbuilding, among other things.

    Book description: And here is the book 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.

    In other words: I’m pitching the book as Gladiator meets Game of Thrones with a kickass heroine.

    PRAISE FOR THE BOOK

    KILL THE QUEEN is the definition of epic fantasy: exciting, original, and filled with characters who jump off the page. Jennifer Estep enters the arena and takes no prisoners. Long live the Winter Queen. — Ilona Andrews #1 New York Times bestselling author

    KILL THE QUEEN rocked my world! With court intrigue, a cast of fantastic characters, epic political sweep, and a slow-burn romance to die for, this book had me rapt. I only regret I devoured it so fast. And that I didn’t write it. More please! — Jeffe Kennedy, RITA® Award winning author of The Pages of the Mind

    Jennifer Estep takes the world of high fantasy by storm with a book so perfectly plotted and executed that I gasped out loud at each new reveal and unexpected turn. Evie is the heroine we all want to read about: as compassionate as she is ruthless, as cunning as she is kind, and as fierce and focused as anyone must be in order to KILL THE QUEEN.
    — Amanda Bouchet, USA Today bestselling author of The Kingmaker Chronicles
     
    Read the first chapter: To read the first chapter, go here, scroll down, and click on the Read Excerpt tab.
     
    I hope that everyone enjoys the audiobook when it is released. Happy listening! 🙂

  • Books to add to my TBR pile …

    5 Comments
    It’s time to check in with the old TBR pile. Here are some upcoming books that I’m looking forward to reading. Note that the descriptions are from Amazon.
     
     
    Out on Aug. 28
     
    A standalone epic fantasy adventure featuring a band of legendary mercenaries set in the world of Kings of the Wyld from author Nicholas Eames, who has been hailed as “the voice of modern fantasy” by Michael R. Fletcher.
     
    Live fast, die young.
     

    Tam Hashford is tired of working at her local pub, slinging drinks for world-famous mercenaries and listening to the bards sing of adventure and glory in the world beyond her sleepy hometown.

    When the biggest mercenary band of all rolls into town, led by the infamous Bloody Rose, Tam jumps at the chance to sign on as their bard. It’s adventure she wants – and adventure she gets as the crew embark on a quest that will end in one of two ways: glory or death.

    It’s time to take a walk on the wyld side.

    My thoughts: I’m going to buy this one for Wheezley, who loved Kings of the Wyld, the first book in the series.
     
    Toil & Trouble anthology by various authors
     
    Out on Aug. 28
     
    Scorn the witch. Fear the witch. Burn the witch.

    History is filled with stories of women accused of witchcraft, of fearsome girls with arcane knowledge. Toil & Trouble features fifteen stories of girls embracing their power, reclaiming their destinies and using their magic to create, to curse, to cure—and to kill.

    A young witch uses social media to connect with her astrology clients—and with a NASA-loving girl as cute as she is skeptical. A priestess of death investigates a ritualized murder. A bruja who cures lovesickness might need the remedy herself when she falls in love with an altar boy. A theater production is turned upside down by a visiting churel. In Reconstruction-era Texas, a water witch uses her magic to survive the soldiers who have invaded her desert oasis. And in the near future, a group of girls accused of witchcraft must find their collective power in order to destroy their captors.

    This collection reveals a universal truth: there’s nothing more powerful than a teenage girl who believes in herself.

     
    My thoughts: I like to read anthologies since they let me check out several different authors at once, and this one sounds really interesting.
     
     
    Out on Nov. 6
     
    A spy is dead. A legend is born. This is how it all began. The explosive prequel to Casino Royale, from bestselling author Anthony Horowitz. 

    Forever and a Day is the story of the birth of a legend, in the brutal underworld of the French Riviera, taking readers into the very beginning of James Bond’s illustrious career and the formation of his identity. 

    M laid down his pipe and stared at it tetchily. “We have no choice. We’re just going to bring forward this other chap you’ve been preparing. But you didn’t tell me his name.”

    “‘It’s Bond, sir,’” the Chief of Staff replied. “James Bond.”

    The sea keeps its secrets. But not this time. 

    One body. Three bullets. 007 floats in the waters of Marseille, killed by an unknown hand. 

    It’s time for a new agent to step up. Time for a new weapon in the war against organized crime. 

    It’s time for James Bond to earn his license to kill.

    My thoughts: I love the James Bond books and movies, so I’m looking forward to checking out this new Bond story.

    What about you guys? What books do you want to check out this summer/fall?

  • ·

    New covers for Bigtime superhero books …

    4 Comments

    [row cols_nr=”2″][col size=”4″]

    Book #1

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    Book #2

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    Book #3

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    Some of you have seen these online already, but I have put some new covers on my Bigtime superhero paranormal romance series. The books are still the same, but I wanted to update the cover art and give the series more of a comic-book feel.

    The covers were designed by the awesome Jenny Zemanek of Seedlings Design Studio. Thanks, Jenny!

    [row cols_nr=”2″][col size=”4″]

    E-novella #3.5

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    Book #4

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    E-bundle

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    The covers are all so cool that I don’t know which one is my favorite. Maybe A Karma Girl Christmas, or Nightingale, although I really like them all. 🙂 Which new cover do you guys like the best?

    If you’ve never checked out the series, my Bigtime books are paranormal romances that feature superheroes and ubervillains. They are very fun, zany, and campy — sort of like the Batman show with Adam West or Wonder Woman with Lynda Carter.

    Book #5

    As of right now, I do not have plans to write any more books in my Bigtime series. I’m currently writing three other series — Elemental Assassin, Mythos Academy spinoff, and Kill the Queen epic fantasy series — which is all that I can juggle. So the Bigtime series is the odd series out. I hope to get back to it someday, although I have no idea when that might be. Not anytime soon, though.

    The books (with the new covers) are available at all the usual sites in ebook format — Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, etc. The books are also available in print format from Amazon and will be available in print format from Barnes & Noble and Ingram in the next few weeks — in case you work in a bookstore and want to order some print copies.

    Karma Girl — Amazon Kindle — Amazon print

    Hot Mama — Amazon Kindle — Amazon print

    Jinx — Amazon Kindle — Amazon print

    A Karma Girl Christmas — e-novella — Amazon Kindle — also available in the print version of Karma Girl

    Nightingale — Amazon Kindle — Amazon print

    The Bigtime Bundle — e-bundle — Karma Girl through Nightingale — Amazon Kindle

    Fandemic — Amazon Kindle — Amazon print

    I hope that everyone enjoys the new covers and gets a chance to check out the series, if you haven’t already. Happy reading!