*Scam Alert: Imitation the Sincerest Form of Flattery?

Doesn’t feel like flattery when someone is impersonating you on social media. Just a heads up that someone on Facebook is posing as me at the moment and contacting other authors, and likely not in a flattering way. I’m not on Facebook. Never have been. Never will be. Apologies to anyone who followed or interacted with this account believing it was me.

*Update: I’ve learned this person is trying to sell marketing “advice” to authors on Facebook. Please don’t engage with any account on Facebook using my name. They are imposters. If you are contacted by them, please report the account as fraudulent. Thank you!

**While we’re here, I also did not employ ghost writers to pen any of my novels despite various websites claiming just that. They, too, are only after your money and will do nothing for your writing career or help you get published.

— Luanne

One Month to Go!

Fantasy is one of those genres where multiple books in a series is the norm, but there's always that big gap between finishing the first book and waiting for the next one to drop. I often see an uptick in interest on the first book just before the second releases. I suspect there's a subset of readers who prefer to wait until a series is complete before diving in to the first book. I’m the same when I’m invested in a story. I gotta know what happens next!

The Order of the Seven Stars series will be complete when THE WOLF'S EYE publishes on May 14th. In case you're one of those readers who waits. 😉

out may 14th!

The sun and moon's relevance in ancient alchemy play a large part in the outcome of this novel. On May 14th you can find out why it's a thin line between curse and cure. 🌛🌞🌜

Pre-Order the sequel to THE WITCH’S LENS at these shops:

Amazon Target Barnes&Noble

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Under the full moon of World War I, a baleful curse threatens to tear apart a witch’s found family in a novel by the Amazon Charts and Washington Post bestselling author of The Raven Spell.

Petra Kurková—a witch who wields magic worth its weight in gold—is tasked with combating the undead on World War I’s eastern front. The battlefield has yielded a newfound closeness for her spellbound team, especially for Josef Svoboda, a recruiter for the Order of the Seven Stars. But Josef was bitten at the start of the war, leaving his blood tainted by a strain of the vlkodlak curse, which makes him a target of the Order’s latest mission: slay the werewolves prowling the eastern front under the moonlight.

Petra refuses to give up on one of their own. From the hasty kill order of a clandestine society to the long-lost spells in an old grimoire to the unraveling mysteries of Petra’s own past, the urgency to save Josef grows, particularly as his feral impulses become harder to control. The werewolves are closing in. So, too, are the bounty hunters eager to collect. As Petra’s team finds itself at a magical crossroads, Josef devises an ambush of his own—one that could wipe out the cursed threat forever or endanger everything and everyone he loves.

Hungarian Cover for The Raven Spell!

I’m pleased to share the Hungarian cover for The Raven Spell. As is often the case, the Hungarian publisher chose to retain the original U.S. cover with just a few minor changes. I love the detail of the green gemstone from the jewelry box that they added to the spine! Not sure what the release date is for this foreign edition, but if you’re Hungarian and looking for historical fantasy, this one should be out soon.

Another Trade Review for The Witch's Lens!

Thank you to Booklist, a publication of the American Library Association, for their wonderful review of THE WITCH’S LENS!

And thank you to all the Amazon Prime readers who’ve downloaded and reviewed the book so far during the First Reads pre-publication promotion!

“The Witch’s Lens launches Smith’s (The Raven Song, 2022) newest historical urban fantasy focusing on Petra Kurková and a team of witches who are recruited to combat undead at WWI’s eastern front. When the countries went to war, their magic users went with them, unleashing vile forces that mortals cannot fight on their own. Petra, whose husband, Marek, enlisted without sending home his wages, is scraping by doing tarot readings for her landlady and others, using any extra cash to fund her photography habit that allows her to see souls of the dead on film. This and her other long-suppressed magical abilities lead to her recruitment by the mysterious Josef Svoboda, a mortal who is fighting a terrible curse. Teamed with witches who either avoided the wartime draft or were rejected by the military, Petra is forced to reexamine the limits she has placed on her own magic as she stumbles through encounters with other occult foes. Smith’s thorough descriptions make this first novel in the Order of the Seven Stars series an immersive experience for readers.”

— BOOKLIST