Tag: Writing

Coming Soon: The Lady Between Thorns

On By cherylmahoneyIn Novel News, WritingLeave a comment

It’s been a long time coming this time around, but my newest book will be out in just a week: The Lady Between Thorns, Book Three of the Thorns Saga.  The Kindle edition is already available for pre-order, and the paperback and hardback will be available on launch day, December 19th.  Get yourself a copy as a Christmas gift!

Book Three was started way back in 2022, so it’s been a few years!  I wrote this one to fill a gap in the series after somewhat accidentally writing what will eventually be Book Four – that story had some references to another adventure that I thought was worth exploring more fully.

Both Books 3 and 4 continue the ongoing story of what happens after the Princess Behind Thorns returns home, but move the focus from Rose and Terrence to give supporting characters their chance to take center-stage.  In this book, it’s Elena and Henry, and it was so much fun to explore them more fully.  I think very quiet Henry has more dialogue in the first chapters of this book than he did in the entire previous two!

Here’s a little more about the story, from the back of the book:

With civil war engaged, this fight for the throne will test even the deepest loyalties.

Lady Elena has been waiting for what feels like her entire life to help her cousin Terrence gain the throne.  Now that goal is almost in reach, but steep obstacles still stand in the way – like the current king who’ll fight to keep his place.  With the war going against them, Elena leads a clandestine mission to seize the capital and turn the tide.

Sir Henry never wanted to go back to war, but this time he believes in the cause, and he definitely doesn’t want his wife going on a dangerous mission alone.  Accompanying Elena to the capital, Henry struggles with the ghosts of his own past, and his fears for the woman he loves in this risky endeavor.

Elena and Henry must work together and rely on each other, to protect themselves and the country, but both are holding important things back.  Certain secrets could jeopardize not just the mission, but the bond between them.

This fantasy romance, the third in a continuing series, shifts focus to a new couple, while continuing the story of Sleeping Beauty and her prince claiming the throne after the curse is lifted.  If you enjoy heroines growing through trials, couples supporting each other, and intrigue in fantasy worlds, this is the series for you.

Launch Day: Pesto and Potions

On By cherylmahoneyIn Novel News, Writing2 Comments

I’m finally back with a new book to share!  This is an especially exciting one, because it was a collaborative project with three of my closest writing friends – and we’ve been working on it since 2019!  I think you’re going to love Pesto and Potions, a paranormal lesbian romance featuring witches, parkour, recipes and vampires.  Buy your choice of ebook here, or buy a paperback copy.

Here’s more about the story:

With vampires on the rise and the city under threat, who would have thought love – and a long lost recipe for pesto – could bring everything undead to a head?

Lola Morelli enjoys her life in Sacramento – jumping over walls with her parkour team during the day and climbing the kitchen ladder to be head chef at the hottest restaurant at night. Even her love life is going great. She doesn’t have one special woman in her life, she has several. Sure, she’s concerned about all the stories of the Disappeared, but the rise of missing people isn’t enough for her to change her ways.

Charlie Ryan has a lot on her shoulders – dancing as a professional ballerina, grieving the loss of her grandparents, and facing pressure from her fellow witches to help with the growing vampire menace. It’s a lot for one woman to handle. But life starts looking up when she meets the attractive chef at her new favorite restaurant, and not just because she can make an amazing vegan dish or keep up with Charlie at a Pilates class.

With the number of Disappeared growing, Charlie’s coven is desperate to protect the people of Sacramento. It isn’t until Charlie meets Lola that the witches find a delicious secret weapon that could tip the balance against the bloodsuckers. But will Lola understand that Charlie’s not just into her because of her pesto recipe? Can Lola and Charlie’s new spark of romance withstand the secrets and lies needed to keep everyone safe?

I love getting to share this story – I hope you’ll have as much fun reading it as we did writing it!

Launch Day: The Princess Beyond the Thorns

On By cherylmahoneyIn Novel News, Writing1 Comment

My newest book is launching! The Princess Beyond the Thorns, Book Two of the Thorns Saga, is now available as a Kindle, paperback, or hardback.

This has been a long time in the writing (since 2019!) and I’m excited to finally share this book. It continues the character and relationship arcs of the first book, exploring deeper into the world and the new challenges the characters are facing.

Here’s a little more about the story, from the back of the book:

What’s a princess to do when happily ever after proves anything but guaranteed?

Princess Rose Amelia has defeated her curse and married her prince – and now the real work begins. Rose and Terrence must navigate politics and court intrigue to gain support for their claim on the throne – while also evading assassination attempts and facing their own disagreements about the threat from Terrence’s father and brothers.

Rose and Terrence can only rely on each other, but with new conflicts erupting between them, they start to question their whirlwind romance. Love and loyalty will be tested and new dangers faced in the world beyond Rose’s enchanted wall of thorns.

This fantasy romance, the second in a continuing series, is a unique fairy tale retelling about what happens after Sleeping Beauty wakes up. If you enjoy heroines finding their strength, fantasy worlds with a touch of intrigue, and increasingly magical cats, you won’t want to miss the Thorns Saga.

I hope you enjoy reading your copy today!

Coming Soon: The Princess Beyond the Thorns

On By cherylmahoneyIn Novel News, Writing1 Comment

I’m so pleased to announce my next book will be out in March: The Princess Beyond the Thorns, Book Two of the Thorns Saga.  The Kindle edition is already available for pre-order, and the paperback and hardback will be available on launch day, March 12th.

As I’ve shared on the blog before, I’ve been working on this one for a very long time – since NaNoWriMo 2019!  That makes it especially exciting to finally be sharing it with all of you.  I hope you’ll enjoy reading the next installment in the series (and if you haven’t started it yet, this is a great time to read Book One!)

Here’s a little more about the story, from the back of the book:

What’s a princess to do when happily ever after proves anything but guaranteed?

Princess Rose Amelia has defeated her curse and married her prince – and now the real work begins. Rose and Terrence must navigate politics and court intrigue to gain support for their claim on the throne – while also evading assassination attempts and facing their own disagreements about the threat from Terrence’s father and brothers.

Rose and Terrence can only rely on each other, but with new conflicts erupting between them, they start to question their whirlwind romance. Love and loyalty will be tested and new dangers faced in the world beyond Rose’s enchanted wall of thorns.

This fantasy romance, the second in a continuing series, is a unique fairy tale retelling about what happens after Sleeping Beauty wakes up. If you enjoy heroines finding their strength, fantasy worlds with a touch of intrigue, and increasingly magical cats, you won’t want to miss the Thorns Saga.

NaNoWriMo 2023 – Day #30

On By cherylmahoneyIn NaNoWriMo1 Comment

It’s the last day of November, and that means the end of NaNoWriMo!  I’m happy to report a very successful NaNoWriMo this year.  I actually passed 50,000 words on November 26th, and managed to make it to 60,000 words today, for a final total of 60,417.

I really wanted to get as much of the story written as I could while I had good momentum going.  I probably need around 10,000 words more to get to the end of the story, so I plan to continue in the first part of December.  At a slower pace, though!

I’ve really enjoyed writing this one all through the month.  I hit some walls around the 3/4 mark, which I hear is common – it’s when the story needs to stop expanding and start contracting down towards the end, and pay-off all the things that have been set up along the way.  It’s a change of focus so it’s a bit of a bump, but I had a couple scenes I was excited to write that helped me make the shift.  I have a couple more scenes coming up now that I’m excited about, so I hope that will help me keep up momentum even though we’re past NaNoWriMo now.

I have a few more books in this series to finalize before this new one will be going out into the world, but in the meantime, here’s an excerpt…

Rose stared across the length of the long lawn, heart pounding in her chest, and felt time double-back on itself.  Surely she wasn’t now, surely she was having some hazy hallucination of then – but the shouting council members, the lurching ground, Elena’s wide-eyed gaze all felt too real, too present.

Which did not explain what she was seeing across the lawn.

A wall of thorns was growing.  Stalks were springing up out of the ground, putting out branches, growing and doubling and expanding at a visible rate.  They stretched along the edge of the lawn and out of sight, surely wrapping their way around the perimeter of the castle.  The branches were brown and gnarled, not a softening leaf or flower in sight.  She couldn’t see thorns from here, but she knew, deep down inside, that they were there.