I should know better than to make any grandiose statements about not posting again for the entire year (as I did two entries below). New York publishing is reputed to shut down during the holidays, but Harper seems to be bucking that trend … or, at least, they’re certainly keeping me busy. Here’s some of the latest news as to what you can look forward to from me in 2012, but first — some gifts for my readers:

1) My first book, THE SCENT OF SHADOWS is temporarily reduced to .99 as an e-book read. I believe both Amazon and B&N have ways you can gift others with e-reads, so if you know someone who hasn’t started this series yet, this is a great time to get them SCENT. It won’t stay this low, so maybe load your reader with it too: http://bit.ly/uieXhn & http://amzn.to/usSdRG

2) My holiday anthology, HOLIDAYS ARE HELL, featuring Joanna Archer’s mother, Zoe, is still being offered as an e-book for $1.99. Other included stories are by Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands and Marjorie M. Liu. This, too, is a temporary low, and the antho is hard to find on shelves, so I’d load ‘er up! http://amzn.to/vdVsgq & http://bit.ly/rPuZkv

So that’s all the news concerning my backlist, and the best part is that you don’t have to brave the lines at the post office to score (or give) these goodies. I hope you enjoy them.

As for my new Celestial Blues series…

1) A tentative tour has taken shape and it looks like I’ll be visiting Dallas, LA, Redondo Beach, San Diego, Houston and Vegas. I’ll update you when those dates are firmed up a bit, but if you’re in those cities the week of June 12, do look for me. I’ll be poking my head into the doors of some of the finest indie bookstores around.

2) And a picture is worth a thousand words…

What this picture says is that I’m utterly lacking in the ability and patience to flip this damned photo around so you can see it properly. Sorry.

It also says that we finally have galleys for THE TAKEN! My editor told me late last week that they’d been sighted, and immediately shipped my a couple as proof. Galleys are early copies sent to reviewers and bookstores, and in my very humble opinion … these are gorgeous. Some details like cover copy will as yet be tweaked, and cover quotes will be added as they roll in. Also pretty foil. New bio on back. But you can see from the photo that I’m already chuffed. THE TAKEN is, in my opinion, the biggest story I’ve written yet, and it’s being given bigger treatment as a result.

I can’t wait to share it with all of you!

I know. I signed off for the year below. But I just received news from my publisher that from now til December 26th, HarperCollins is offering up my HOLIDAYS ARE HELL anthology – featuring Kim Harrison, Lynsay Sands, Marjorie Liu, and moi – for $1.99 e-book. See?

For those who haven’t read this yet, my story is ‘The Harvest’ and it takes place in my Zodiac world. It’s also a prequel featuring Zoe Archer, Joanna’s mother, and shows how she worked for years in the background to help Joanna, why she disappeared, how she felt about it and why the Tulpa hates her so very much?

You can’t stuff your stocking with an e-book, but you can escape the holiday craze with a fantastic paranormal read. Click through for the link to your preferred bookseller. And enjoy!

I can think of no better way to sign off in 2011 than the above photo. That was how I spent the bulk of November – a wedding, honeymoon, the assorted fabulous events and hoopla and well wishes surrounding that, along with a milestone birthday – and, well, just enjoying the joy that went with all of it. In any case, the photo is pretty representative of my life just now – looking forward, feeling the love – that I’ve simply got nothing to top it. Certainly not this year.

So 2012 is looking to be a year of too many new beginnings to count, and of course, professionally, this means my new Celestial Blues series. You’ve already seen the cover art for THE TAKEN (below), and the reaction has been fantastic. I’ll be rolling out the cover copy, excerpts, blurbs, and a west coast touring schedule early next year. Also coming, a new website, and some behind-the-scenes looks at what inspired the series, like:

What does Kelley Armstrong have to do with it?

What iconic on-screen couple reminds me of Kit and Grif (hint: the female half and Kit – Katherine – share the same first name)?

And how did I research the fascinating, fun world of rockabilly culture (victory rolls and rum played a big role – I know, what a hardship.)?

So I’m going to disappear into the holiday season with my family and new husband, but wanted to wish all my readers – wherever you are and whatever you celebrate – the happiest of holidays and a wonderful new year.

See you in 2012!