By now, most of you will know I don’t need much of an excuse to be celebrating something Blackthorn related, but this truly is a special day for me. Three years ago today, Blood Shadows, the first book in my Blackthorn series, was published.
Someone asked me earlier how I was feeling three years ago today. The honest answer? A nervous wreck! But it was also an incredible day. Believe it or not, Blackthorn was actually sixteen years old by that point – it had been a labour of love whilst I held down a teaching job and worked on other books in the years that passed. At the time, I had no intention of attempting to get it published. Instead, I wrote it for the love of writing it – and I just couldn’t stop.
Blackthorn has come a very long way since then – and my readers have been a HUGE part of making that happen. So, to say a big thank you for all your support, I ran a giveaway this week both here and on Facebook. Thank you for the amazing response and to everyone who entered – whether via email, this blog, or Facebook. Congratulations to everyone who has won and, for anyone left disappointed, giveaways happen throughout the year so keep a look out! I’m already plotting my Jask-related giveaway for Blood Instinct next year. 😉
And the winners are (you’ve won the prize above your name)…
WINNERS – PLEASE EMAIL ME with your postal address. For those of you who have won signed prizes, don’t forget to let me know if you’d like them signed personally to you! And congrats again! 😀
And to finish, for those of you who have never seen it, I thought I’d share the book trailer that launched not only Blood Shadows but my Blackthorn series. The soundtrack Bookouture chose is called ‘Superhero’ by Tim McMorris. (Oh, and don’t be thrown by the original cover!)
Three years ago this week, Blackthorn was launched. Blood Shadows, my debut novel, was released by Bookouture on 27th November 2012. Since then, Blackthorn has gone on to sell in six figures, with over three thousand four and five star reviews. And it’s thanks to yourreviews and your support that the final four books in the Blackthorn series were signed last year, as well as Blackthorn being discovered by Tantor Media who converted the first three books to audio.
My readers are such an important part of Blackthorn so, to mark the occasion and to say a massive thank you to everyone who has supported me, I decided to launch the biggest Blackthorn giveaway to date.
If you’re a big Blackthorn fan, this is your chance to get your hands on some Blackthorn treats – some of which are limited editions, never to be repeated. The full list of items is below, with a brief description of each. They’re listed in no particular order.
HOW TO ENTER
All you have to do to enter the giveaway is tell me:
HOW YOU DISCOVERED BLACKTHORN
AND
WHAT YOU LIKE ABOUT THE SERIES.
It’s that simple! You can leave your answers:
in the comment section below, or
on my Facebook page (where I’m simultaneously running the giveaway), or
The giveaway is open NOW and closes Thursday 26th November at midnight (UK time). Entries after this time will not be eligible.
HOW WINNERS WILL BE CHOSEN
Anyone is eligible to enter. All entries will be assigned an entry number. Numbers will be selected using a random generator and winners will be announced this Friday evening (27th) to mark the official anniversary.
As with all Blackthorn giveaways, it doesn’t matter where in the world you are – the prizes can be posted anywhere. One of the winners in the last giveaway was on the other side of the world in New Zealand!
BONUS ENTRY NUMBERS
You can only enter your answer ONCE, but for the first time ever in a giveaway, I’m going to give you the chance to win more than one prize as well as increase your chances of winning.
Whilst ensuring I don’t exclude anyone from entering, this is ultimately a thank you giveaway so I wanted to include something extra to show my appreciation to everyone who has gone that extra step to support me and Blackthorn. So, if any of the following apply to you, tell me in your answer and your name will be entered more than once.
Let me know if you:
Have liked my Facebook page, follow me on social media, or follow this blog. This is worth one bonus entry.
Have left a review for a Blackthorn book on Amazon, Goodreads or any other relevant review site. This is worth one bonus entry.
Have left reviews for all five Blackthorn books. This is worth two bonus entries.
That means any one person can have their name entered up to FOUR TIMES which not only increases their chances of winning but means they could win up to four different prizes.
So it’s clear, here are some examples:
“I discovered Blackthorn on Amazon. I really like the plot twists.” Your name will be entered once.
“I discovered Blackthorn on Amazon. I really like the plot twists. I follow your blog.” Your name will be entered twice.
“I discovered Blackthorn on Amazon. I really like the plot twists. I’ve liked your Facebook page and I’ve reviewed all five Blackthorn books.” Your name will be entered four times.
THE PRIZES
As it’s three years since the release of Blood Shadows…
PRIZE ONE – TWO SIGNED PAPERBACKS
ABOVE: There is one prizeof a signed paperback copy of bothBlood Shadows AND Blood Roses. These books have the original covers, as per the launch in 2012. The covers were created by top UK cover designer Henry Steadman who has designed covers for international bestselling authors such as Stephen King, Patricia Cornwell and Dan Brown. Less than fifteen signed copies of each are in circulation. I will never again be giving away signed copies of the original books, so these are a real collector’s item for avid Blackthorn fans!
PRIZE TWO – ONE SIGNED AUDIOBOOK
ABOVE: There is one prize of a signed Blood Shadows unabridged audiobook, narrated by British award-winning actress Anne Flosnik and produced by Tantor Media. The audiobook consists of 10 discs and has a running time of 12 hours. This is the last time a signed Blood Shadows audiobook will be given away.
And now that we’ve come full-circle with Blackthorn’s latest release marking a revisit to Kane and Caitlin…
PRIZE THREE – A2 SIGNED ‘BLOOD DARK’ POSTER
ABOVE: There is one prize of a one-off, signed Blood Dark poster featuring Kane. The poster is a superb, high-quality A2 poster print on satin 200gm paper.
PRIZE FOUR – A SIGNED PAPERBACK COPY OF ‘BLOOD DARK’
ABOVE: There is one prize of a signed paperback copy of Blood Dark. Book length: 398 pages.
And to celebrate three years of Blackthorn…
PRIZE FIVE – A HEART-HANDLED MUG (BLACKTHORN COVERS)
ABOVE: There is one prize of a Blackthorn mug featuring the first four covers (new covers as per the relaunch).
PRIZE SIX – A HEART-HANDLED MUG (BLACKTHORN HEROES)
ABOVE: There is one prize of a limited-edition (never to be reproduced) Blackthorn mug featuring Blackthorn’s four heroes.
PRIZE SEVEN – SIGNED POSTCARD AND KEYRING
ABOVE: There are three prizes of a signed Blackthorn high-quality postcard and keyring, featuring the Blackthorn logo as designed by Henry Steadman.
PRIZE EIGHT: A SET OF FOUR SIGNED POSTCARDS
ABOVE: There are three prizes of a set of four Blackthorn high-quality postcards featuring the first four book covers. Each will be signed by me.
PRIZE NINE – A SET OF FOUR BLACKTHORN HERO STICKERS
ABOVE: There are two prizes of a set of Blackthorn hero stickers. These are waterproof and all-weather vinyl stickers designed to last forever and can be used on everything from iPhones to bikes. They measure 74mm x 52mm. Each winner will receive one set containing all four heroes.
That’s it!
Good luck to everyone who enters! And thank you again to everyone who is supporting my series. I’ll be back on Friday to announce the winners! Have a great week! xxx
Friday 27th November marks three years since Blackthorn was first published. As I can’t let that go by without marking the occasion, I’ll be launching a special anniversary giveaway on Monday. Here’s a sneak peek of a few things to expect:
I hope you’ll join in the fun when the time comes! I already have readers on Facebook trying to guess what’s in store from the images above. It should be a good one! xxx
