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
It’s been an amazing day for Blackthorn, but I’m not sure how much I deserve it this week! I’ve been mercilessly teasing my readers on my Facebook page (after doing the same to the Into the World of Blackthorn group first) when I asked them this question:
You can only wear ONE T-shirt. Which do you choose?
Kane dies, we riot.
Caleb dies, we riot.
Jask dies, we riot.
Eden dies, we riot.
I think the main problem was the statement I posted at the end:
Think carefully because there could be serious repercussions!
In the words of Colette: “Lindsay I think it’s safe to say you just might have a riot on your hands now for suggesting that kind of madness…”
Well, I think I nearly did!
Now obviously I’m not really cruel enough to make anyone choose between them. After all, their fate was marked out years ago as most of you well know… 😉
Anyway, in between me working on BLOOD INSTINCT today, things started getting busy for Blackthorn in Amazon’s charts after Bookouture ran some promo for my series.
For the first time ever, Blood Shadows not only hit #1 in both Amazon’s U.K. and U.S. Gothic Romance chart at the same time…
…but it also simultaneously hit #1 in both the U.K. and the U.S. Paranormal Vampire Romance chart too.
Blood Shadows even reached #3 in the overall Paranormal Romance chart AND #23 in the main Romance chart (thanks for pointing that one out, Fiona)!
On top of that, Blood Shadows entered the Top 100 on Amazon.com’s main charts, reaching #66. It also broke into the Top 20 in Amazon’s Canadian main chart for the first time ever, and reached #1 in three paranormal sub genres there: Vampire Romance; Fantasy, Futuristic and Ghost Romance; as well as Werewolves and Shifter Romance (Blackthorn is nothing if not diverse). And we nearly, nearly got into the Top 200 in the U.K.
I was equally thrilled that Blackthorn as a series also entered the Top 100 on Amazon.com in three different charts: #15 in Most Popular Books in Paranormal Romance, #32 in Most Popular Books in Genre Literature and Fiction, and #82 in the Most Popular Books in Romance. 🙂
And it seemed we just couldn’t keep Kane down today as Blood Dark hit #1 in Top Rated Gothic Romance and #1 in Hot New Releases too!
APOLOGIES (sincerely) to anyone who has glazed over with all the numbers, but this was one of the best days Blackthorn has had. And to finish it off, Blackthorn was featured on My Guilty Obsession Book Blog‘s Facebook page after one of my lovely readers, Amanda Perrie, applied for them to put me in the author spotlight for the day – which included dedicating their banner to Blackthorn. Thanks so much, Amanda. And thank you too, My Guilty Obsession Book Blog, for hosting me. <3
I’d also like to say a massive thank you to my lovely street team who only just started this week but are already working busily in the background looking out for opportunities to give Blackthorn a shout out wherever they can. Thank you, Darklings! (If you’re a dedicated Blackthorn fan who loves being on social media, feel free to contact me if you’d like to find out more about the team.)
That’s it – no more chart talk! Thanks so much for bearing with me, and to everyone (including the wonderful team at Bookouture) who was a part of making this happen. Have a wonderful weekend! xxx
It’s been over a year since I’ve had an interview and, in this one, I talk about my journey to publication for the first time. If you’re a writer yourself or you’d just like to know a bit more about who I am, what inspired me to write Blackthorn and what plans I have for the future, you might find this one interesting.
HUGE thanks to the extremely lovely Daniel Riding for hosting me – and for quizzing me mercilessly!
There are two other events to look out for this week. On Wednesday, if you’re a member of the ‘Into the World of Blackthorn‘ Facebook group (an additional group to the official Blackthorn Fan Page), I’ll be giving you the first opportunity ever to fire questions at our four Blackthorn heroes: Kane, Caleb, Jask and Eden – and you can ask them anything! If you love talking about all things Blackthorn, you’d be most welcome to join. And towards the end of the week I’ll be launching a competition to win an early e-book of BLOOD DARK. Stay close if you can’t bear to wait another 24 days until it’s yours!
As you’ve probably guessed from my lack of presence here lately, edits are currently consuming most of my time. When it’s not edits, it’s my insistence on working on book six in between waits. I really hope I’ll have some Blood Dark news to share with you in the not-to-distant future. I can’t thank you enough for all the queries coming in about it and for your patience waiting to know when that release day will be.
I did, however, take Monday afternoon off, and for a very good reason: I met one of my U.S. readers! It was actually the first time I’ve ever met a reader from across the pond. Leticia has been a big Blackthorn fan for a while now and has even recently set up a brand new fan page on Facebook (this is aside to the official Blackthorn fan page where I post) where readers can go and chat about my books in a closed group. She once told me that she’d fly all the way from Portland in Oregon to the UK just to attend a Blackthorn book signing and meet me so, when she got in touch to say she was in the UK, we arranged to meet up.
Monday morning, Leticia travelled from where she was staying in London, across to the South West to meet me at The Magdalen Chapter Hotel in Exeter for lunch.
After lunch, I showed her the lounge area where I was sat back in 2012 when I received an email from Bookouture showing me the original Blood Shadows book cover (see below) – so Leticia had some Blackthorn history thrown in too!
Above: Me and Leticia in The Magdalen Chapter’s lounge.
Above: The original Blood Shadows book cover, the Blackthorn banner (both designed by Henry Steadman) and one of the first ‘Bites’ as emailed to me by Bookouture back in 2012 whilst I was sat in the room above.
I was so nervous about meeting Leticia, and promised myself I wouldn’t ramble like I’m prone to – especially considering my Welsh accent kicks in when I’m at top speed, which can be tricky to understand. Fortunately, she was lovely and we quickly fell into chats about her other favourite PNR author Stephanie Hudson (about whom I quizzed her mercilessly and is now on my TBR list), her life in the States (I’ve never been), and our cultural differences. The hot topic soon became about the language differences between the U.S. and the U.K. and there were giggles aplenty when we discussed how even some of our basic vocab (I think everyone knows about the spelling issues) is so different. It’s no wonder my U.S. readers get confused sometimes! It’s not quite the same when I’m talking about Kane fixing his bike in his vest (which is apparently called a tank top in certain U.S. states) and Leticia is envisaging him in what we in U.K. call a waistcoat. Kane in a suit?? Hmm, I’m not sure how that would work… (If anyone is drifting off at this point to try and imagine it, ahem, I’m not quite finished yet…) As an aside, I even learned what ranch sauce/dressing is!
Leticia, of course, got to quiz me about Blackthorn and its creation and my personal takes and thoughts about my characters. One of my favourite moments though was when Leticia looked me in the eye and told me that under absolutely no circumstances, whatever is ahead for Blackthorn, am I allowed to kill off Jask. And, heck, did she mean it! Apparently a little more suffering is kind of okay, but there has to be a HEA for him in the end. So, for all Jask’s fans out there, know that Leticia was right there fighting his corner.
Thanks, again, for spending your afternoon with me, Leticia. I’m so glad you enjoyed your first visit to the U.K. and had such a wonderful 30th.
xxx
I’m a little behind on my blog schedule at the moment, mainly because my edits came back a couple of weeks ago and, well, getting Blood Dark to you as soon as possible seems to be the priority as far as my lovely readers are concerned!
I had to jump on here quickly though to say that I had a notification through tonight telling me that it’s my three-year blog anniversary today. Yay! That means three years ago today, I wrote my first ever post – back at a time when I wasn’t published and didn’t even have a prospect of a publisher in sight. Things have certainly progressed since then!
Above: This blog’s original banner (yep, that is me) before Bookouture’s re-vamp (pardon the pun)
With four Blackthorn books now released and number five imminent, well over 3,000 4/5 star reviews, six-figure sales, audiobooks and, most importantly, daily additions to my incredible Team Blackthorn (that’s you), this is way beyond what I’d imagined three years ago today.
My amazing long-suffering husband aside, three important people were by my side when I launched this blog. They’ve consistently supported me and encouraged me in the background, not least picking me up when my confidence has dropped as well as being there to share the laughs, the adventure and the excitement.
The incredible thing is that I didn’t know these ladies personally. They were fellow entrants in New Voices, the competition through which, in a twist worthy of Blackthorn, Bookouture discovered me. Like me, all three were unpublished authors at the time – and each of them had a passion for Blackthorn that blew me away.
Three and a half years on, they remain my inspiration. Amity Grays has signed her first publishing contract, Tracey Rogers has had five books released, and CC Mackenzie (who forced me set up a blog, oh and has her own vampire series out *wink*) has now become a USA Today Bestseller and an icon for self-published authors. Last year, for my 40th birthday, I had the pleasure of meeting the latter two (it might have been a bit far for Amity to pop over from Idaho!). There were certainly tears a plenty because, without these ladies, I’m not convinced Blackthorn would have been with you.
Thank you, Amity, Christine and Tracey for being Blackthorn’s true heroines.
And perfectly-timed to mark the occasion, I received an email today telling me that BestChickLit.com, who previously described Blood Shadows as “fantastic”, have now read and reviewed Blood Roses, and referred to it as:
“An absolute triumph that has kept me hooked on the series.”
Thanks so much, Charlotte! <3 You can read the full review here.
Oh, and look whose latest release was reviewed on the same blog just before me! A glowing review for Ms Rogers, of course!
Once my edits are in, I promise that normal service will resume! Take care. xxx
I’m thrilled to announce that this morning, whilst organising information for this year’s London Book Fair, my publisher emailed to let me know that Blackthorn sales have ventured well into six figures!
For those who have no idea why I’m so pleased, various online sources state that an average book sells around 10,000 copies with a major publisher. Being optimistic, the average first novel sells around 1,000. So with it being as tough it is out there for fairly new authors, let alone with a small independent publisher, six figures are quite an achievement – especially for a niche genre like dark paranormal romance.
With this in mind, I have to give a massive shout-out for my awesome publisher, Bookouture, whose ongoing work behind the scenes ensures that Blackthorn stays where readers can find it. Thankfully, they’re already being recognised for their achievements by being nominated as Digital Business of the Year alongside big names such as Kobo, Bloomsbury and Pan Macmillan in this year’s Bookseller Industry Awards – and it is so well deserved.
I know, I’m biased. I was the first author signed by Bookouture after Oliver Rhodes, its Founder and Managing Director, discovered me through an online romance writing competition. I was only a month into subbing elsewhere when he approached me to see if I would consider submitting Blood Shadows and Blood Roses (both finalist entries in the competition) to Bookouture. Knowing who Oliver Rhodes was, and his fantastic track record in publishing, it was a heart-stopping moment. I was also quite taken aback. I’d not long started researching online for prospective publishers for Blackthorn when the message echoing everywhere was that I was trying to catch the market right at the tail end of the PNR craze, where the big names were ruling, and publishers and agents were rolling their eyes and slamming the door on any further mention of the word ‘vampire’.
It also seemed that unique concepts, like Blackthorn, were a heightened risk for publishers, especially from a debut authors, so only added a challenge. On top of that, its dark and gritty, occasionally close to the mark, content was going to rule out some romance readerships, whilst the very prospect of romance and vampires would alienate a readership that may otherwise enjoy the complex and twisty thriller-style undertones of the series. In addition, Blackthorn’s British-isms could also cause problems if trying to appeal the biggest PNR market – the U.S.
But within a week, Bookouture were back in touch showing interest in both books, as well as a third (then to become Blood Torn). They put a detailed proposal in front of me including a marketing plan (very rare for debut novelists these days). Far from being intimidated by the alleged decline in interest in PNR, they had big plans for Blackthorn. More importantly to me, they had complete faith in it. All that remained was whether I had enough faith in them to sign over my beloved Blackthorn. It wasn’t a difficult decision. The rest, as the cliché says, is history. Since then, Bookouture have gone on to sign many incredible names, including both debut and established novelists, achieving superb reviews and competitive chart positions. I’m so privileged to have been there from the beginning.
So as well as a massive thanks to Bookouture for selecting Blackthorn and helping prove that readers still want PNR, here’s a massive thanks to you too for being so relentless in your support for my series, for being so vocal, and for ensuring that every Blackthorn book since has been signed. Those figures are just as much down to you spreading the word. Bookouture made my dreams come true, my loyal readers sustain it. Hugs to you all. xxx
It’s the start of a new year for Blackthorn, and that means a new year for this blog. If you want to know everything there is to know about my series, this is the place to be. This is where I record all the major happenings throughout the year, details about my books that you won’t find anywhere else, as well as it being an open forum for readers to comment or ask questions. In fact, quite a few posts over the past two years have been inspired from your input. So, as always, if there is anything you would like me to include over the forthcoming year, do feel free to let me know. I already have a few posts lined up to start us off though…
THE YEAR AHEAD
Blog posts about me…
I was blog-tagged a little while back to reveal some previously undisclosed facts about myself, so that’s up first. I’m already wracking my brain!
…about Blackthorn…
Having already given my personal take on each of my Blackthorn couples – Kane and Caitlin, Caleb and Leila and Jask and Phia – I’ve been asked a few times when it will be Eden and Jessie’s turn. I’m pleased to tell you that they will finally be in the spotlight next month. Hopefully you have now read Blood Deep, so there won’t be any spoilers. If there are any details you wish you knew about our latest hero and heroine, do let me know!
Although it feels like ages away, it won’t be long before we’re counting down the weeks to Blood Dark’s release. Nearer the time, I’ll be posting a glossary of all of Blackthorn’s characters (just in case you need to refresh your memory). And, now that we’re at the mid-way point in the series, I’ll also be summarising the Blackthorn story so far – something else that could prove useful with so many threads now coming together!
…and even more giveaways!
Your response to Blackthorn giveaways last year was fantastic. Creating the Blackthorn soundtrack was definitely a highlight of 2014 for me. I was truly blown away by your suggestions, mainly because the lyrics you chose demonstrated just how much you “get” these books. Of course, I also discovered some superb songs and albums thanks to you!
Your participation in my Audiobook giveaway was particularly brilliant, so much so that I have more Audiobooks to give away very soon. Thanks to Bookouture and Lorella Bella Literary Agency, it’s going to be an even bigger giveaway than last time. Stay close for that one!
As Blood Dark draws closer, there will be an early eBook copy up for grabs as well as a signed paperback copy after its release. I might even have a few more limited-edition postcards up for grabs later on in the year as well – I know they always prove popular.
And then we can do the same all over again with book six (no spoilers with the title yet 😉 ), which may also make it out this year.
I think it’s going to be a busy one! 😀
Today, is the second anniversary of both the launch of my first Blackthorn novel, Blood Shadows, and also the launch of its fantastic publisher, Bookouture.
Above: Happy 2nd Birthday, Blackthorn! What a 2 years it has been!!
Bookouture are currently celebrating with cake and bubbles, and rightly so! Since signing me, they have gone on to acquire many exceptional authors – both debut and established. Bookouture have had eight Amazon top 100 hits in the UK, three in the US, two in Canada and even one in France. They’ve sold hundreds of thousands of eBooks – and quite a few paperbacks, too! This week alone, they have three books in the Amazon UK top 100!
From being a one-man-band consisting of its Founder and Managing Director, Oliver Rhodes, Bookouture has expanded its publishing team too. Claire Bord, formerly of Avon (HarperCollins), became Bookouture’s Publishing Director with the aim of developing and expanding their publishing programme. As part of that, Keshini Naidoo (previously having worked with eBook bestsellers, also at Avon) joined the team as Senior Commissioning Editor with a focus on crime and thriller titles. To keep up with increased demand, the super-supportive Kim Nash joined as Bookouture’s Publicity Manager. Bookouture also linked up with the Lorella Belli Literary Agency who has since sold rights in France, Germany, Norway, Italy, Turkey, India and the Middle East, as well as doing deals for audio rights.
It’s amazing how far Bookouture have come, and I am immensely proud to have been there from the beginning. Bookouture has undoubtedly been the best thing to happen to Blackthorn. It might be a small, independent publisher, but darn they’re exceptional at what they do (proof above)! With ‘Big 5’ experience within a dedicated, hard-working, author-centric team of professionals, it’s no wonder that, along with the success of their books, Bookouture continues to be so highly praised by its authors.
As for me, it’s hard to believe that it was two years ago that I held a copy of my book for the first time; that I was a bag of nerves waiting to see what PNR reviewers, let alone readers, would make of my debut, Blood Shadows.
Above: A sample of reviews from the launch of Blackthorn, Nov 2012
Thankfully, many bloggers and reviewers embraced Blackthorn – and so did many more readers. If you’re reading this now, you’re likely to be one of those very readers who, like Bookouture, decided to take a punt on a new PNR series. You’re probably part of the reason why, through your reviews, ratings or word-of-mouth recommendations, the rest of the series has been signed. Thank you. Because being signed by a terrific publisher may be one of the best things to happen to an author, but so are great supporters. I have the privilege of having some of the best. 🙂
So before I leave you with the trailer that kicked the series off two years ago (which includes the original cover before the rebrand), I can’t do so without first wishing all my U.S. followers a wonderful Thanksgiving. Enjoy!
I’m uber-thrilled to be able to share that the rest of the Blackthorn series has officially been signed! I’m just as thrilled to be able to announce that Blackthorn will remain with its original publisher, Bookouture.
Having been inundated with queries as to how many more books there will be, I can now reveal that Blackthorn will consist of eight books in total – that means there are four more to come!
Above: We’re halfway there… spot the “unintentional” giveaway clue on the spine of the books.
It feels like a long time since I shared Bookouture’s interest in the rest of the series. Before signing a contract though, there’s a lot to take into account. Firstly, I needed to make a final decision as to how many books there would be (the final book could have been broken into two parts, but we opted for an epic finale). I also needed to think carefully about the timescales for when I could deliver those books. Most of you will know that, like most authors, writing isn’t my only job. So when Bookouture offered me a contract for the rest of the series, I had a huge decision to make. Six weeks ago, I resolved to step out of teaching for a while and focus fully on finishing writing Blackthorn. So, as of 2015, I will be a full-time author for the first time ever – and Blackthorn will be receiving my undivided attention all the way through to its conclusion.
Blackthorn has certainly come a long way since its inception back in 1996 when, having just moved to a big city hundreds of miles from all I knew, I got lost on my way home one night. I then spent fourteen years dipping in and out of developing the series amidst working on other writing projects and teaching full time. Back in 2010, I finally bit the bullet and entered the opening chapter of Blood Roses into the international online romance writing competition, ‘New Voices’. Although up against thousands of entries, a combination of editors’ decisions and reader votes saw Blood Roses through to the final. A year later, Blackthorn made it to the final again – this time with Blood Shadows.
For those who don’t know, it was Blackthorn’s success in that competition that brought me to the attention of Bookouture. I’d just started submissions when, out of the blue, they got in touch. A three-book deal soon followed. Just over a year later, back in January, they signed Blood Deep. Blackthorn has gone on to sell tens of thousands of copies, with new readers finding the books every day. It doesn’t mean I’ve ever taken the signing of the rest of the series for granted though. That’s why it still felt momentous signing the last of the books over.
So here they are in Blackthorn’s full line-up: all your heroes and heroines who now have their work cut out in bringing down the oppressive system that surrounds them. I can’t wait to share how they’re going to do it! 🙂
And on that note, I’m also pleased to be able to reveal that Blood Dark will be released next Summer* (2015)! Yes, I know it probably feels likes ages away, but I’m afraid a lot of work goes into publishing a book even after I’ve submitted it. Fingers crossed I’ll be able to persuade Bookouture to give away an early book or two like we did with Blood Deep. 😉
Of course, I’ll also be sharing a summary of ‘the story so far’ before Blood Dark’s release. I get the feeling it might prove useful by then!
Thanks, as always, for your continued support. xxx
*That’s UK Summertime.
It’s FINALLY here! It’s Blood Deep release day!!! 😀
I am already totally overwhelmed by all the incredible support that has been flooding in since midnight last night. Thank you so, so much for all your emails, tweets, messages, and comments on my Facebook page. For everyone who has taken the day off work especially or, as I’m being told by a few, pulling a sickie (which I couldn’t possibly condone, of course 😉 #GoTeamBlackthorn), just so they can get straight into reading it, I’m beyond thrilled you’re that excited! You truly are making this the best Blackthorn release day ever.
Thanks to you (and the incredibly hard-working people at Bookouture), Blood Deep has gone straight in at #1 this morning on Amazon UK’s Paranormal Vampire Romance chart and Amazon.com’s Gothic Romance chart!
There have been a lot of other things going on in the background too, which you might want to catch…
The AWESOME GraveTells, who have been supporting my series since the very first Blackthorn book, have an exclusive interview with Eden, the hero of Blood Deep, live on their website right now.
Here’s what its owner has to say about the series:
“I’ve been a fan of the Blackthorn series since I read the blurb for the first book – Blood Shadows – and Eden Reece is hands-down my favorite hero so far in the series. That’s saying a lot with all these sexy, commanding supernatural men running around being badass! I had the honor of giving early feedback on Blood Deep during the editing process and it has that same edgy, dark, addicting feel all the other Blackthorn books have, with an even stronger element of risk and danger and I loved it. If you are already a fan of the series, you’re gonna wanna read this ASAP.”
Thank you, Sue, for all your continued support – it means a lot.
Comet Babe’s Books has snagged my first interview in a while, so do head on over if you want to know a little more about me. Jo, who is hosting me, is brand new to the series, but is planning a week of Blackthorn reviews very soon. I’m going to hold on tight for that one! Thanks so much for hosting me today, Jo! I really appreciate it.
And I’m beyond thrilled to tell you that Blood Deep has received its first review – thanks to Shirley at The Romance Cover. And she’s given it 5 stars!! I think my happy dance on seeing it was my most uncoordinated yet.
*Be warned* the review does contain some minor spoilers about the beginning of the book, so you may want to hold on until you’re a little further on before reading, but here’s a safe snippet:
“This is Book 4 in this oh so brilliant Blackthorn Series. Ms Pryor has done it again with this blistering series, seeing all the different sides that make up the complex place called Blackthorn…The viciousness that was The Circus that they had to fight against to keep alive and their growing attraction for each other makes this book a book you cannot put down until you reach the end…a really great read, and a real deserving 5 stars from me.”
Thank you so very much Shirley for taking the time to do this. I’m delighted you enjoyed it!
Hopefully, I’ll have more to share with you over the next couple of weeks – I’ll keep you posted.
But on a more personal note, not only am I celebrating a release day, but it was exactly two years ago this very day that I signed my very first publishing contract – handing my first three Blackthorn books over to the fabulous Bookouture.
They were a new publisher at the time (although its founder had long been well-established in the industry with a brilliant track record) and I was a brand new author. Since then, I’ve watched Bookouture go from strength to strength with incredible new and established authors signed with numerous chart-topping bestsellers in each of their respective sub-genres. I feel really proud to have been a part of it from the beginning.
I also feel very privileged that its Managing Director and Founder, Mr Oliver Rhodes, even took time out today to share a quote on their Facebook page:
“When starting a new business, those first few decisions that you make can be crucial. Thankfully signing Lindsay is still one of the best decisions that I’ve made. Two years on it’s fantastic to see her Blackthorn series so successful and getting such an amazing reception from so many readers.”
How amazing is that? Thanks so much, Oliver! 😀
Hopefully, I’ll continue to do Bookouture proud because it’s not over yet! I’m already being asked for assurance from readers that this isn’t the last Blackthorn book you’re going to get. Absolutely not! I’m underway with writing book 5 – and, before too long, I’ll have an announcement about how many books you can expect in total.
Please keep all your support coming through. I might be a bit slower than usual responding today, but I promise I will get back to you. Connecting with readers truly means a lot to me, so thanks for being there to share my day.
Happy reading, Team Blackthorn!! xxx
* RELEASE DAY UPDATE *
I’m super-excited to tell you that Blood Deep has received its second 5 star review!!! This time from Gaga Over Books!
Again, there are a few minor spoilers involved, so you may not want to read it until after you’ve finished Blood Deep, but here’s a safe snippet of what I think is a fantastically passionate review:
“Blood Deep was… How can I say it? It was brilliant like its predecessors that is for sure. The one thing I kept saying while reading it to my sister was This is sooo good… So, if you want to miss out on awesome characters, amazing story-lines, fantastic world-building, clever writing then don’t read this series… I don’t know what to expect from the fifth book. The anxious waiting has already begun.”
Thank you SO much!! <3
I would also like to thank the wonderfully supportive Moonrise Book Blog for retweeting their Blood Deep cover reveal post today to celebrate Blood Deep‘s release. Thanks hugely for your relentless support of Blackthorn, Stephanie. You’re brilliant.
And, of course, I’m going to extend even more thanks to all my fabulous readers who are continuing to tweet, share, comment, message and email me. You’ve made this day one to remember, that’s for sure! xxx