now you see her...
Bestselling author of historical fiction and the Five Queendoms epic fantasy series (SCORPICA, ARCA, SESTIA).
Just one event this week, and it’s a corker! I’m delighted to be appearing at An Unlikely Story* with Serena Burdick and Judithe Little, talking about THE ARCTIC FURY along with their new historical novels FIND ME IN HAVANA and THE CHANEL SISTERS!
(* = yes, I have events this month at both A Likely Story and An Unlikely Story and I’m glad I didn’t show up at the wrong one… yet)
Sign up to join us Thursday, won’t you?
The Arctic Fury has been out for 10 weeks now and I still get to have virtual events every week! How awesome is that? Things will be slowing down soon, but… not for another month or so, and that’s amazing.
And I’m particularly thrilled to join this Wednesday’s event with Friends & Fiction, the powerhouse group of five bestselling authors who have taken these awful pandemic lemons and made sweet, lively, delicious lemonade. I’m even more excited because my fellow guest is Susan Meissner, whose new novel The Nature of Fragile Things is set in one of my favorite moments of historic importance — the 1906 San Francisco earthquake — and I adored that book. So join us! There will be much gushing!
A very happy Friday indeed! Just got word that AudioFile Magazine gave Eva Kaminsky’s narration of THE ARCTIC FURY a rave review. She really is the perfect match for the material (her Brooks! I love her Brooks so much) and I’m thrilled the audiobook-specific review acknowledges how she makes the story “come alive for listeners.”
And besides, I mean, this is a pretty sweet lead-in:
Dramatic and atmospheric, this audiobook is a powerful story about loss, determination, and hope.
Read the full review here.
Yes, I have been spending an awful lot of time lately spiffing up with lipstick and eyeliner to appear on your computer screens via Zoom (and Crowdcast, and Streamyard, and Facebook Live, etc. etc.) And loving every minute, by the way. But! Sometimes I get to kick back, literally in my pajamas, and do a voice-only podcast, which is a bit more relaxing on my end and hopefully just as fun on yours.
And when we’re all really lucky, these podcasts involve talking to brilliant, book-loving people like Diana and Michele of Wine, Women and Words. So! Make sure you’ve read THE ARCTIC FURY before diving into this spoiler-filled discussion of my real-life inspirations, poor decision-making on the part of certain characters, and just how early on in the book the nature of the Very Bad Thing is revealed if you happen to catch the hint…
Listen to our wide-ranging, spoiler-filled conversation here.
I’ve written and talked before about how virtual events have allowed me to work with more bookstores and reach more readers in more places than a traditional book tour — and here’s another great benefit! If you miss the event itself, many of them are recorded for later viewing.
So! Last night’s Literature Lovers’ Night Out panel was a smashing success, and the replay is now available. So not only can you learn about THE ARCTIC FURY, but also Lauren Fox’s SEND FOR ME (a Jenna’s Book Club pick!), Judithe Little’s THE CHANEL SISTERS, and Sarah Penner’s much-buzzed-about debut THE LOST APOTHECARY, all in one tidy hour. And the sponsoring Minnesota bookstores, Excelsior Bay Books and Valley Bookseller, have signed copies of all the books we talked about — until supplies run out, anyway, so if you want one, get to it!
You can watch the whole fabulous session here.
I had an utterly fabulous time being interviewed by LibraryReads director Rebecca Vnuk for the Murder at the Library series — and it ended up being the biggest book event I’ve ever done, online or off. Amazing!
If you weren’t there to catch it live, good news! You can watch the replay here.
It’s a wide-ranging conversation that covers everything from my fourth-grade college prep program to what five genres I’m currently reading to why everybody cares so much about cannibalism. I had a hoot and I think you’ll be able to tell when you watch. Plus there are a couple of super-quick rounds of “Fast and Furious” Arctic trivia.
What a fabulous way to celebrate THE ARCTIC FURY being out in the world for exactly two months! (Seems like just yesterday and a lifetime ago, as usual.) I just found out from my publicist that THE ARCTIC FURY was named an Editor’s Choice for February by the Historical Novel Society — a fabulous organization that not only does a great job covering and reviewing the latest releases in historical fiction, but also throws a heck of a party every two years for North American historical fiction writers to gather and learn from each other. This year’s conference will be virtual, which means no gathering at the hotel bar, but opens things up for more people to participate without needing to travel, which is fabulous.
But! This post is not about the conference! It’s about the amazing review of THE ARCTIC FURY that I want to share. You can read the whole thing here. And here’s the snippet that resonated deeply with me, made me grateful, and immediately got added to my Praise page.
Macallister is a master of historical fiction with female characters, and The Arctic Fury is perhaps her finest work to date. Mixing courtroom drama with a thrilling Arctic exploration, she fleshes out thirteen distinct, three-dimensional expeditioners. This book passes the Bechdel Test with flying colors, proving that a group of women need not be reduced to cattiness over men and clothes. But neither are the women flawless Mary Sues. Reeve, especially, misjudges people and struggles with self-doubt. These are women as women have always been, regardless of their time period: complex, nuanced, ambitious human beings.
That link again for the whole beautiful review in its entirety? Here.
I’ve been lucky enough to do all sorts of events on this virtual tour for THE ARCTIC FURY, ranging from book club discussions to solo presentations, from being interviewed to being the one doing the interviewing. One of my favorite virtual event types is the historical fiction panel with multiple authors— so not only do I get to connect with readers, but I get to hear my fellow authors talk about their exciting new books!
And the panel I’ve got coming up is particularly special to me — it’s part of the Literature Lovers’ Night Out series, coordinated by the amazing Pamela Klinger-Horn from Excelsior Bay Books in Minnesota. When I toured with Girl in Disguise, I got to visit in person; this year, it’s virtual, but the spirit and enthusiasm is exactly the same as ever.
More detail on the panel and how to register here; the books we’re talking about include stories of wartime sacrifice and conspiracy to commit murder, full of letters and poison and sisters and secrets and… well, you’ll just have to join us and find out.
Love this! Since Melanie Benjamin’s new book The Children’s Blizzard and my own The Arctic Fury are both historical fiction set in very cold conditions, we recently did a joint event to talk about both books, and it looks like we’re not the only ones making a connection! Both books were recently jointly reviewed in the Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette.
Their overall verdict: “Two great historical fiction titles that offer thrilling cold-weather tales combined with life-and-death stakes.”
Yes! And here’s my favorite bit about The Arctic Fury:
“Macallister skillfully traces how friendships and rivalries develop against the backdrop of extreme weather conditions and the women’s grueling quest to survive…. The Arctic Fury is an absorbing page-turner.”
Read the whole review here.
Well, this was a nice treat! The Globe & Mail (hi, Northern neighbors!) did a lovely roundup of “new escapist historical fiction” that viewers of Netflix’s “Bridgerton” series might enjoy — and yes, they included The Arctic Fury!
You can read the whole review here if you’re a subscriber, and my publisher was nice enough to render the most delightful bit about The Arctic Fury in graphic form! Love it.
