"A Sacrifice of Blood & Stars" OUT TODAY!

My new Astromance series is out today! Available in all formats ... including a great audiobook narrated by Cindy Kay and Daryl Mayfield ...

Big news—my new book “A Sacrifice of Blood & Stars” OUT TODAY!

This is the first book in planned series. The book is up for order now! There is also a great audiobook narrated by Cindy Kay and Darryl Mayfield.

It’s also my first new book series under “Jennifer Brody” since my dystopian YA series “13th Continuum” series came out in 2015 (full trilogy is available).

“A SACRIFICE OF BLOOD & STARS”

“Fourth Wing” meets “The Expanse” in “A Sacrifice of Blood and Stars,” the first book of an enemies-to-lovers sci-fi series for the ages.

“Old Man’s War meets Dear John. An epic love story set against the war-torn stars.” —Scott Sigler, #1 New York Times–bestselling author of the Generations Trilogy

“Conjures the magic of romance amid the horrors of a war-torn future. Fast-paced, filled with action, and alive with love and need. Highly recommend!”

—Jonathan Maberry, New York Times–bestselling author of the Sleepers War and NecroTek series

On a distant dwarf planet, a young soldier discovers her mortal enemy is her only tie to the world she left behind, in a high-stakes sci-fi romance.

Two months after her eighteenth birthday, scrappy Hikari Skye is ready to leave her ramshackle mobile home on Earth for icy dwarf planet Ceres and the underground bases that house Space Force. She’s trading her dingy trailer park; her baby sister, Bea; and her best friend, Rho, for the excitement of the Proxy Wars and the freedom of the galactic front lines—where her father once deserted his own platoon. And the most appealing part? She’s leaving behind Draeden Rache, the cocky, privileged bully who tried to kiss her last year.

Appealing, that is, until Drae and Kari are tied together by the Pairing Ceremony as Sympathetics. Each week, she’ll share everything with him and him alone: emotions, fears . . . and the sneaking suspicion that something is very, very wrong. As Kari struggles to survive life in a unit that can only see her as a defector’s spawn, Drae and Rho work to solve a mystery of their own back at a futuristic UC Berkeley while their professor is hunted down for daring to teach beyond propaganda.

With the California Federation’s proxy war with the Siberian Federation heating up and Raiders creeping closer by the day, Kari and Drae’s weekly interactions turn into a race against time, even as their feelings for each other grow. And there’s something both Kari’s tough drill sergeant and Drae’s wealthy father don’t want them to know . . .

MORE ON MY PROCESS

A Sacrifice of Blood and Stars has been a labor of love over the last many years.

Since I started this book, presidents have come and gone. We experienced a global pandemic. I wrote a seven-book series for Disney, along with stories for Star Wars, Frozen, and many anthologies. I moved. More than once. The world realigned itself. But interestingly, this book only became more topical (chilling to contemplate).

I first had the idea to write a “Dear John” in outer space sci-fi romance back in 2015, following the completion of my The 13th Continuum trilogy.

That was my debut as an author and marathon writing to meet deadlines for the second and third books. I wanted to explore the militarization of space that I figured was coming. I started writing in my own little bubble.

This is before the president announced Space Force.

ON WRITING SCI-FI

That’s the thing with being a sci-fi writer. The future tends to catch up to your work … if you’re doing your job right. That’s both exciting and horrifying in equal measure.

In fact, I had to pause drafting the book numerous times, including during the time between the infamous speech where the president accidentally-on-purpose (I mean, who really knows?) announced the creation of the fifth branch of the US military—and the official speech from our vice president solidifying this brave new world. We were officially militarizing outer space.

With the cascade of real world events, I had to go back and rework some of my worldbuilding. My little book had a spotlight on the subject matter. I had to rename the military branch that my character enlists in “Space Force.”

I had to call them not “soldiers” but “guardians.” Even the Star Trek-esque logo happened. I tucked my head down and kept writing.

Then Disney came knocking in this time period. I signed a deal for Disney Chills for three books. Then five books. All before the first one—Part of Your Nightmare with Ursula from The Little Mermaid had even come out. We debuted the series in Spring 2020 right in the midst of the pandemic. California was under strict lockdown.

I kept writing. On and off, I worked on Sacrifice in the shadows. Disney Chills burst into the world, miraculously finding an audience even though the main places for kids to discover new books—schools, libraries, and brick-and-mortar bookstores—were closed. The books got translated and went international. Next, Star Wars hired me to write a canon Darth Vader story. Disney wanted more books, expanding the series to seven total.

I kept writing. I moved again and again.

Why? The cost of living skyrocketed. This was true in SoCal more than anywhere. Across the city, rent soared. Inflation hit. Under the cover of the pandemic, corporations had bought up affordable single family housing that hadn’t already been converted to Airbnbs. Now, these companies own more than 40% of housing.

And I kept writing.

It wasn’t easy, but I finally finished the first draft of Sacrifice. I sent it to my agent … my breath held. The book was “new adult.” Stylistically it had YA accessibility and coming-of-age themes, but it was more of an adult-style romance. But also a military sci-fi.

Who would want this book?

Luckily, my agent loved it and gave notes. I started a big revision to clean up my sprawling draft (first draft was 185k words). I cut it down. This is a normal part of my process.

Unfortunately, “New Adult” was a dead zone per the Big Publishers. So was science fiction. It didn’t sell at Barnes and Noble—and they dictate the industry in a lot of ways. They passed and passed. They didn’t get it. They didn’t know how to market it. They pondered—where do we shelve it at Barnes & Noble? How do we market this book?

They kept passing.

But meanwhile, things were changing in the publishing landscape. Readers were speaking out about what they wanted to read—NA fantasy was catching fire. The books that were blowing up were indie-driven.

I won’t bore you with all the submission details. You can go back and read the archives, where I documented much of that process. I got lucky, too. The editor from my debut sci-fi series had gone to a new publisher that specialized in Sci-Fi and Fantasy. They had published “The Martian” audiobook among many others.

Also as mentioned, the market had shifted … again. Publishing was in total flux.

But “romantasy” had become the rage. An indie book called Fourth Wing was the biggest book in the world. The sequel was inspiring release parties at book stores. It was also NA with Hunger Games and military vibes. Would my little “astromance” align with what readers were craving? I signed my book deal and hoped.

I guess we’re going to find out!

It has never been harder to be a creator, but it has also never been more important. I love the cover design. I’m proud of this book and the core messaging. I hope you’ll agree and give the serie sa chance—and support it today!

WHAT’S NEXT?

I delivered the second book! “A Sacrifice of Flesh & Fury” will be out next year. We’re finalizing the cover design, and the preorder link should drop soon. I’m REALLY proud of the build out of the series and what’s in store for Kari and Drae next.

And now? You guessed it—I have to write some more!

I’m on deadline for a new dark thriller / dark romance series that I sold based on my short story (“Namaste & Slay”). And also … Book 3 in the Sacrifice series!