Infinite Adventures Await In The Narratess Book Fair 🚀
Aug 24, 2025 7:29 pm
Going to try to keep today's email short since it's the end of the weekend for some of us and the beginning of a new and weird week for others. So first of all let me tell you that the Narratess Indie Sale is happening until midnight PDT on Sunday. (Although we can probably guess the awesome author who runs the page will keep the website active for an extra day just in case.)
This sale spotlights indie books in the fantasy, sci-fi, and horror genres, so you'll probably see some options you don't usually see whenever I share book fairs. I browsed all 300+ books yesterday, snagged 3 freebies I didn't have before, and took note of a few 99¢ books I'm going to grab right after this email hits your inbox. You might find your next favorite story lurking inside, so check it out!
The fun part about the Narratess event is that one of the authors involved organizes a whole bunch of Itch.io book bundles for readers to browse! We've got bundles by genre and bundles by book length—short stories/novellas, mid-length novels (that'd be mine!), and even the weighty chonkers. 📚
Each of the two graphics below will take you to one of the Itch bundles I'm a part of, but definitely check out all the other options while you're hanging out on the Itch website. Each bundle page includes links to the other Narratess bundles, so it's super easy to jump from one to another.
First off, here's the Fantasy 1 bundle where you can find Gift of Snow hanging out with all of its genre buddies:
Second, here's the Mid-Length Novels bundle where Nelke and Tobias are kicked back to read novels of a similar size to their story:
I hope you can find some new-to-you books to add to your TBR from the Narratess sale. If you read on KU, never fear, I found a lot of options for you when I scrolled the sale yesterday. 🙂 Usually read on a Nook/Kobo/phone/tablet/laptop? Those itch bundles are waiting for you, along with the universal links on the event page itself.
Hunted by the Undead: Updates
In my last email I got super honest and admitted I wasn't sure I'd be able to finish crafting Book 2 in Helena and Konstantin's saga, Hunted by the Undead, in time for its set-in-stone release date of September 10th.
Today I'm thinking someone out there is sending me a huge batch of writerly vibes. Maybe you sent off a prayer on my behalf, or cast a (hopefully light magic) spell to boost my creative muse. Because today, just four days after I sent that email, we've made it to Chapter 18 in Hunted by the Undead! 🎉
This means we're at the halfway point. And we've got exactly 2 weeks left before I have to throw the eBook onto the retailers like a shot put challenge. 💪 Keep sending me all those vibes, prayers, good thoughts, and whatever else you can spare, because things are heating up in Helena and Konstantin's story.
Literally right this second Helena is getting tortured. 😭 So if that sort of content would be a trigger for you, you may want to skip over Hunted by the Undead, or at least skip Chapters 16 and 19. Really, really getting grossed out by Nemo, the other undead Teuton priest who wanders the earth alongside Konstantin. Pretty sure he might be a literal psychopath.
But Konstantin's gearing up to rescue his beloved Helena, so fingers crossed he can pull it off. Ready to pre-order your copy of Hunted by the Undead? You can do that right here:
Yes, I'm still all-too-aware that the pre-order isn't ready on certain retailers yet (including my book shop, which means I'm a bum 🤦♀️). Later on this week that should change, assuming I can find enough spoons 🥄 for my exhausted creative brain to carry me through setting everything up on all the retailers.
The pre-order contest for Hunted by the Undead is happening right now!
If you want to snag yourself a peek at how my weird writerly brain compiles a novel out of thin air—namely, get an exclusive PDF that includes the outline and info/brain dump for Book 1 in the series, Claimed by the Undead, plus a fun cartoon artwork of our hero and heroine, Konstantin and Helena—don't forget to send me screenshot proof you've pre-ordered Hunted.
You can paste a screenshot into a reply to this newsletter, or send a fresh email to mail@clcarhart.com. I'll keep an eye on my inbox, waiting to hear from you!
Other Books You Might Like
I found a newsletter freebie for you to check out today, along with a special edition Kickstarter that's in its final stretch. The Kickstarter includes a limited edition paperback and hardback of an epic fantasy dystopian book that ought to interest you if you enjoyed The Hunger Games. Be sure to check it out, and then browse the BookFunnel events linked in the graphics at the bottom.
In this game, players must fight to survive. The Nyclimes call it tradition. Everyone else calls it a nightmare.
Every year, the Nyclimes captures fifty humans and throw them into a twisted, brutal game of survival where the rules are simple: fight to live or die.
Contestants must battle in pairs through deadly obstacle courses, brutal puzzles, and blood-soaked combat—while relying on allies they can’t always trust. They must find food to prevent starvation at camp while navigating shifting strategies, fragile alliances, and opponents willing to do anything to win. When the Nyclime host introduces powerful crystals into the game, everyone wrestles with the temptations of lying, stealing, and joining their enemies—doing whatever it takes to live.
Every choice could be fatal.
The Nyclimes’ twisted game breaks everyone it touches. They’ll betray friends to get ahead. They’ll compromise everything they believe in just to survive. Because in this game, only monsters win.
Lily always wanted to do more than the menial delivery tasks assigned to her, and now she finally has her chance. The witch Matriarch has chosen her for a secret assignment, one that is imperative to the future safety of Faerie. But there’s a problem. When she meets her mission partner, it’s the fae who’s murdering her fellow witches at the behest of the diabolic Summer Court Lord, and to her frustration, she’s inexplicably drawn to him.
Thrown together, Lily and Rune are tasked with laying the breadcrumbs to avert the loss of magic in Cirrelea. Using items stolen from the Summer Court Lord, they’ve committed treason before they’ve set foot outside the court. With a united goal and through perilous adventures, trust grows between them, forcing them to face the truth of their forbidden attraction.
With the weight of prophecies and their loyalty to Cirrelea on their shoulders, Lily and Rune fight against fae beasts and the Summer Court Lord to achieve their goal. All while never knowing if they’ll find a way to remain together when all is complete.
Looks like I'd better wrap up this newsletter so I can do my best to get Helena free from her wicked tormentor...and watch her reunite with Konstantin for the first time in about 10 chapters. 😢 Hunted's story has been ruining my heart almost the entire time I've been writing it, but honestly, can you expect any different after how Claimed ended?
The Teutonic Fantasy Realm isn't all fun and games, even if you can wield elemental magic and talk to tree fairies. 🧚♀️
Don't forget to browse the Narratess Indie Sale; I've included all of the relevant links down below. We'll catch up later this week, but until then, stay weird and wonderful!
Talk to you soon,
C.L. Carhart
Pre-order Hunted by the Undead:
https://bf.clcarhart.com/h3rjjdnaj6
Narratess Indie Sale:
Fantasy 1 Itch Bundle:
https://itch.io/b/3238/narratess-indie-sale-aug-2025-fantasy-1
Mid-Length Novels Bundle:
https://itch.io/b/3245/narratess-indie-sale-aug-2025-mid-range-length-novels