Hey awesome,

I hope you are enjoying the longer days as spring has sprung - or thinks about springing, at any rate. It's cold and blustery in New England this week, but to be fair that suits my mood.

Our sweet old lady pup Josey passed away on Sunday. It was sudden, and by all appearances peaceful, and she was in her favorite spot stretched across my husband's feet while we all lazed around together on a weekend morning. May we all go so easily when it's our time, surrounded by love, after some truly beautiful days.

But not soon. She was 16 years old and had an amazing life, and still I could have taken 16 more years with her without a blink. Dogs - and pets as a whole - bring so much joy, and so the grief when we lose them is correspondingly devastating.

I'm going to focus on gratitude for the time we had with her, and probably everything I write for the next little while will be a little heavy-handed with sadness, but that's what editing is for, to smooth those sorts of things out. If you have pets, please hug them for me (or if they don't prefer such things, please tell them I said hi).

In the meantime I'm curled up under blankets with Olive, reading books and leaning into peace. What have you read lately that's brought you joy? I will always take those recommendations!

In writing news, the Valkyries Initiative is getting closer. Last week The Spider released - a crossover Hit World/Valkyries book, setting the stage for what our Valkyries will be up against. William Alan Webb and I wrote this together, with 4 POV characters - and each of them are definitely the antagonist in 2-3 of the other characters' perspectives. If urban fantasy is your thing, I hope you'll check it out and let me know what you think!

Are you more a physical book, ebook, or audiobook person? I used to be a physical book snob, and while I still love them, life in an RV (and currently curled up with dog + blankets) taught me the value of ebooks. My husband, meanwhile is 100% Team Audio.

If audio is also your preferred delivery system, Beyond Enemies is now available in said form, narrated by the award-winning Morgan Hallett. And if you send me a picture of either your own pets being adorable, or a favorite joyful gif/meme featuring an email, I'll enter you into a random drawing to win your own free audiobook of Beyond Enemies. We need more joy in the world, right? Hoping this helps!

Speaking of joy, one of my favorite people in the whole world - who is excellent at bringing emotional catharsis into her work - has a release this week. Kacey Ezell's latest, The Queen's Fixer, will be out in the world tomorrow, March 22. The link won't be live until then, but on Friday you can find it on my facebook page, her website, the CKP website, or by searching on Amazon, whichever is easiest for you.

And what will you find inside? Amazing space opera like you want to know about. From the blurb:

All Laethine wanted was to go home.

With the death of her beloved husband, the Jaerl of Antiroc, Laethine knew she had to take his place and be a good leader for her people. However, her husband had a secret, one that would thrust her into the cutthroat world of royal interplanetary politics and dark conspiracies.

Now she’s beset on all sides, and despite her grief, she must pick herself up and move forward with cold precision, even as her heart breaks with every step.

Victory seems impossible, but she cannot fail, for the fate of her entire planet hangs in the balance.

She must become the Queen’s Fixer.

I read this early, and I'll read it again. Also, if you're a completist, the full trilogy is done, and the next two books will come out over the next two months. I recommend getting on the (space?)train early - there will be more to come!

I hope even in the hardest of times, you continue to find reasons for joy.

Til next time,

Marisa