In 1918, the world seems on the verge of apocalypse. Americans roam the streets in gauze masks to ward off the deadly Spanish influenza, and the government ships young men to the front lines of a brutal war, creating an atmosphere of fear and confusion. Sixteen-year-old Mary Shelley Black watches as desperate mourners flock to séances and spirit photographers for comfort, but she herself has never believed in ghosts. During her bleakest moment, however, she’s forced to rethink her entire way of looking at life and death, for her first love—a boy who died in battle—returns in spirit form. But what does he want from her?
Featuring haunting archival early-twentieth-century photographs, this is a tense, romantic story set in a past that is eerily like our own time.
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I'm trembling with excitement as I type up this post to reveal the hauntingly beautiful cover for
In the Shadow of Blackbirds and to finally share an official synopsis for the novel. The cover was designed by the talented
Maria T. Middleton, and the photography is by
Symon Chow. The lovely cover model is portraying a scene in which my protagonist, Mary Shelley Black, begrudgingly poses for a photographer who claims to capture the spirits of lost loved ones with his camera.
In celebration of the cover reveal, I'm giving away an
In the Shadow of Blackbirds prize package. I don't have advance copies of the book available yet
—those will wait for a future giveaway. But I do have some pre-Halloween treats involving creepy dark birds, which play a major role in my novel:
If you enter my giveaway using the Rafflecopter form below, you'll have a chance to win a copy of Kristen Lawrence's Poe-inspired CD,
The Raven, four vintage-style crow bookmarks, and a signed bookplate featuring a line spoken by my
In the Shadow of Blackbirds spirit photographer character during the scene pictured on the book cover. I'll run the giveaway until
Thursday, October 4. Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
