Today I’m excited to participate in the Creative Blog Tour for These Gilded Bones May Bloom by C.G. Honer hosted by MTMC Tours. A collection of enemies and lovers, sprawling cities and hungry seas, stretching from the hidden magic of our own world to the far reaches of your wildest dreams and nightmares. These Gilded Bones May Bloom is a Fantasy Anthology and it will be published on January 29, 2023.
Title: These Gilded Bones May Bloom
Author: C.G. Honer
Publication Date: January 29, 2023
Genres: Anthology, Fantasy, Magic Realism
Format: eBook, Paperback, Hardcover
Purchase a copy: Amazon | Book Depository | Barnes & Noble
Add on Goodreads!
29 short stories. Three unique worlds.
One navigates battlefields of countryside and cobblestone.
Another ensnares lost souls and sweethearts.
And the last is tormented by deities better left forgotten.
Welcome to These Gilded Bones May Bloom, a collection of enemies and lovers, sprawling cities and hungry seas, stretching from the hidden magic of our own world to the far reaches of your wildest dreams and nightmares. Journey through the Ash Woods, a dangerous forest guarding the body of a long-dead soldier. Follow a thief as he steals into an extravagant garden party. Study the siren of Berkshire University, and the student hell-bent on setting her free.
Brought to life through sweeping prose and lush illustrations, lose yourself in tales where morally gray is king, fate doesn’t play fair, and “The End” isn’t always what it seems.
My thoughts:
Absolutely enchanting anthology that gives the reader a plethora of emotions and different sceneries.
All bundled up in one sweet package!
Divided into three different sections :
The Goddesses We Favor
The Magic We Fear
The Deities We Forget
Love ,magic , jealousy, a little bit of humor....a variety of wonderful and intricate stories supported by wonderful pacing,worldbuilding and characters.
Closest to my heart turned out to be the story The Call her Beloved from the section The Deities We Forget.
It's a heart squeezing story about a queen that desperately wanted to gain love and respect by her people and the cruel side of people if you don't meet certain expectations.
Anthologies are not my usual read and I'm so happy that i picked this one, because it was so intriguing that i didn't want them to end.
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Preorder Incentives:
There are epic preorder incentives available for US and international orders of These Gilded Bones May Bloom!
- US physical copies receive: 3 phone wallpapers, 2 art prints, 1 sticker, and 1 bookmark.
- International/Ebook copies receive: 3 phone wall papers, 1 digital art print, and 1 Digital annotated short story.
Submission window is open now—January 28th, and all submission forms can be found here: https://linktr.ee/cghonerwrites
INTL Tour-wide Instagram Giveaway!
Enter the Rafflecopter below where one reader will win a physical copy of These Gilded Bones May Bloom and the preorder incentives (3 phone wallpapers, 2 art prints, 1 sticker, 1 bookmark)! Ends on January 14th, 2022. Winner will be announced in the Rafflecopter & contacted via email.
Link to Rafflecopter: CLICK HERE!
Tour Schedule:
January 2
The Reader and the Chef - Book Blog
@thetalesofabooklover - Bookstagram
January 3
Books With a Chance of Traveling - Book Blog
Enchanted Elfie - Book Blog
January 4
Paper Fury - Book Blog
Luxe Literature - Book Blog
January 5
Willow's Corner - Book Blog
@bookishsof - Bookstagram
January 6
Book-Keeping - Book Blog
@clauiiixbooks - Bookstagram
January 7
June Is Reading - Book Blog
Bookish Adventures of P - Book Blog
January 8
CaroLibrary - Book Blog
@moyashi_girl - Bookstagram
About C.G. Honer:
Caitlan “C.G.” Honer resides in the evergreen, ever cloudy PNW. When she isn't dreaming up trauma for the characters in her head, she enjoys reading, walks with her dog, the occasional existential crisis, and spending way too much time on Netflix.
Her short story anthology, These Gilded Bones May Bloom, releases January 29, 2023.
For any and all updates, subscribe to the monthly newsletter, follow her on social media, or watch the night skies for carrier dragons.
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THESE GILDED BONES MAY BLOOM EXCERPTS:
EXCERPT #1:
“Far above the city, clothed in the gray mist of night, Aine can almost pretend the red and orange hues below are that of a sunset, a warm glow offering one final caress to the city before evening sweeps in. She can almost pretend the colors have nothing to do with fires built by the humans she gave life to, the lungs she filled and the hearts she started, now cutting each other down over something as petty as territory.
The clouds rumble, fueled by anger and grief and her failures displayed before her. When the world inhaled its first breath, every forest taking root and oceans pouring down from the heavens, all of it bowed. It knew her instinctively and answered to her voice. Maybe she’d made a mistake in giving humanity free will and the chance to know power like hers. To create and exist without rules. Freedoms they waste on war.
Her eyes are drawn back to the battlefield and the city burning itself down. Something akin to pain radiates within her, bursts of electricity and the growl of thunder. The echoes of her children dying. Men and women, young and old, all created for a purpose bigger than fighting a war or dying as its casualty.
All at once, in every corner of the sky, she hears her name spoken in a ragged whisper. A daughter who hasn’t called to her in many years.
Aerilyn.
(— Excerpt From These Gilded Bones May Bloom by C. G. Honer)
EXCERPT #2:
“Half a century ago, the goddesses, all nine of them, began to bestow their power on individuals they deemed fit, bloodlines they found worthy. It came as no surprise that humankind sought to use it, powerless rulers capturing daughters and sons and making them into weapons. Sarai was blessed by Ademar, Goddess of the Harvest. She doesn’t know what she’s done to deserve this power, but she can make things grow in the worst conditions. And Gennady knows it.
If she was wiser, she would’ve fled to one of the larger cities without telling a soul about what she could do, condemning herself to living in the crowds and obscurity. But she’d hoped that being a priestess, a daughter blessed by the goddesses, might lead to Gennady falling in love with her. Instead he fell for Inessa, and now Sarai fears he’ll slip up. If she’s found out, her life will belong to Lord Henry. He’s as desperate as any other ruler in Ecror to claim the country for himself, and victory is easier with priestess soldiers.”
(— Excerpt From These Gilded Bones May Bloom by C. G. Honer)
EXCERPT #3:
“Every year, in the last dregs of winter, Odette entered the Ash Woods.
Early morning air left chilled kisses on her cheeks, her boots crunching over frost-covered grounds. Tree branches, mangled and bare, snagged on her hair, now the same bleak color of snow, the remains of which melted more with each passing day. Warmth came in exhales, and soon spring would turn the valleys a vibrant green, freckled with flowers and the buzz of bees. But the Ash Woods was different. The Ash Woods had a ruler. And he claimed all the color for himself.
She saw her brother long before she reached him. Eskender stood out in the barren wasteland. Only the ground beneath his body was lush, reminiscent of what the forest had once been. Vines brushed his chin and ears. Blossoms crowded around his feet and between the crooks of his elbows. Daffodils cradled his head, the yellow petals a stark contrast to his tar-black hair and tar-black lashes.”
(— Excerpt From These Gilded Bones May Bloom by C. G. Honer)
EXCERPT #4:
“Elden Keep came to being in the far northern cliffs of Ostela, overlooking seas of deep blue and gleaming beneath pale sunlight. The city was one of many that rose in the aftermath of the Holy Wars, which left priestesses free and peace blooming. Born of that peace, Elden Keep welcomed all who sought to call her home. She smiled for every person that built houses or laid cobble. When kings came to rule from her cliffs, opening harbors and trade and imports, Elden Keep thrived. At the start of each new season, her people celebrated with music and vibrant powders that stained the streets. Laughter flowed as abundantly as the wine. Even in the frigid, harsh winters, her people clustered around hearths, telling stories of the goddesses.
Her reach expanded far beyond what she’d ever imagined, and her memory kept an echo of all who lived within the bounds of her walls. She remembered every king and queen that reigned, every babe born, every child that raced across her hills to play knights and thieves and princesses—everyone that inhabited her expansive streets, embraced the jagged nature of her cliffs and the sandy shores below. “She ceased to remember what it was like before their arrival, and couldn’t imagine an existence without them.
The changes came slowly, tranquility so gently disturbed she didn’t notice until the damage was done. An argument. A mugging. A dock fire. She ignored those moments in favor of the kind ones. Ignored and ignored and ignored because there were children playing and families growing. Priestesses built a temple, and Cylenia Sinclair attended its unveiling. There was so much to witness that Elden Keep didn’t care for the darker things, the sins and the mire that snaked their way into her city. And by the time she noticed, it was too late. Thieves had made Elden Keep their home. Smugglers and killers, too.
She hadn’t known anger before then.”
(— Excerpt From These Gilded Bones May Bloom by C. G. Honer)
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