Announcing Paper & Feathers!
The first book in the Euphony of Seasons series
It’s finally happening! After many long years of work, countless revisions and rewrites, the first book in the long-awaited Euphony of Seasons series is about to arrive on digital bookshelves near you. And hopefully real ones also, a hardcover version will follow shortly afterward. Some quick facts:
The release date is 11/03/23, which happens to be St. Martin de Porres’ feast day.
The book is 56,000 words long, so it should take about 3 hours to read.
The genre is slice-of-life fantasy.
You can pre-order it now at the ZMT Bookstore. Other platforms will follow.
Series Blurb:
The country of Alcabast is not ravaged by war, all of its neighbors get along rather well. Magic is neither deep nor mysterious, in fact it’s quite useful for daily life. Fierce creatures do roam the forests, but a sharp blade and a well-aimed musket will keep them at bay. Steam-powered conveyances transport people and goods, as long as they've been maintained properly. People live in harmony with the Seasons and with each other. Well, mostly...
Story Blurb:
Ahlden Creiori is employed by the Stellaire Library to uphold the ideals of truth and knowledge, wisdom and beauty. He enjoys a fulfilling career, a high degree of prestige, and looks forward to marrying the lady he's courted for many Seasons now. His comfortable routine is disrupted when he's sent away from the city to a bucolic little town, to authenticate a mysterious book that no one will tell him anything about. The journey there takes him to the brink of an entirely new outlook on life, and a chance encounter on the way home pushes him off the edge entirely. He gains a new perspective, but what must he lose to maintain the balance?
Now that’s all out of the way. This book has always been a little hard to describe, since it’s pretty unique. I know most authors think their books are unique, but this one really super is. It falls firmly in the cozy/slice-of-life fantasy genre, meaning that while it takes place in a fantasy world, the plot doesn’t follow the standard hero’s journey or quest to defeat the darkness or anything else that has come to be associated with fantasy. It is not high, epic fantasy, it’s very low, everyday fantasy. The main characters aren’t assassins or lost royalty or mighty adventurers, they’re librarians, one of whom may be slightly autistic. It’s not a gripping, page-turning thrill ride of action and danger. It’s pretty slow, and the story takes its time to paint each scene to make sure the reader understands just how important the characters and relationships are.
But that slowness and quiet is something that we really need now in our world. Real life is harsh and dangerous enough, so why would we want to escape into a world that’s even harsher and dangerouser? Readers need a break, now more than ever, and that is what we aim to provide.
You can get the book by pre-ordering it now, or you can also sign up to be an Extraordinary Seasons Supporter, which will gain you access to not only this ebook, but every one I’ve published so far and every one in the future. Not a bad deal!
I’ll close with some of the amazing feedback I’ve received so far from even more amazing readers.
“The writing is exquisite. The language used, the word-building, it’s all intensely beautiful. My brain was filled with rich colors while I was reading. It was a joy to experience and imagine the different places and people who populated them.” –Ginny Kochis
“I was continually struck by the world-building, which was done masterfully. There was a beauty and quiet deepness to the story… like a still pool with shafts of sunlight lazily penetrating deeper and deeper… yet not reaching the bottom. I will be thinking about this for a long time.” –Todd Foxwood
“This story doesn’t involve life-or-death stakes, but that didn’t make me care any less for the characters and their problems and challenges. I felt immersed in this book’s unique world and setting almost from the very beginning. The main characters were so charming and realistically created… The beginning of the story was altogether magical, and the themes built very well on each other, leading to a satisfying conclusion.” –Mary Rose Kreger
“[The main character] was spectacular, the world was beautiful, and the themes were deep and touching…The writing style is comforting and lovely.” –@zoiya_morell
“First and foremost, it is very unique. The world…especially with its various peoples, is unlike anything I’ve read.” -Alcuin Fromm