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Augustine Cover Reveal, This Kingdom Preview Preorder, and This Kingdom Goes to Spain

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We have three announcements for you today.

First, the most important announcement. To recap: Tor is offering a very long free preview of This Kingdom on KU and other retailers. It will be released at the end of January and the “preorder” is up now.

Right now we are seeing it on Amazon and BN. If you find it elsewhere, let us know and we will add the link to this post.

Amazon / BN / Bookshop / Google Play Books

If you are in Europe, you should be seeing this promotion on the main Amazon storefronts like Germany and France; it’s also available in Japan. If you are in the UK, Australia or India, you are likely not seeing it, because this is a US-publisher initiative.

Second announcement: This Kingdom Goes to Spain. We are delighted to work with Hidra in bringing you this translation.

The Cover of This Kingdom but in Spanish
The Spanish cover with what is probably tropes written around it.

Full announcement here: Instagram.

And now finally, the reveal. Augustine’s novella is finished and is sent to our self-pub release editor. It is a novella, about 30,000 words, so about a third of a typical book length. It will include bonus scenes from Arabella’s point of view and Arabella’s short stories from the blog, so you will have them in e-form to keep.

Behold, the beautiful cover: Augustine Montgomery and Diana Harrison.

Augustine, very handsome, his suit torn and bloody, standing next to Diana Harrison with golden eyes, who is holding an adorable blue tiger. They are standing against a backdrop of a distance city with an arcane circle over it and the color scheme is light blue and greens with flashes of purple. On the lower left corner, there is a view of the tiger cub from the back.
Click to enlarge
The cover but without text

The incredible art is by Helena Elias: website / Instagram.

I will pause now to assure some of you that yes, Augustine does look like that, yes, he is of correct age, and if you remember him differently, a reread is in order. We understand that GA casting was unfortunately misleading, and they are recasting that role.

The target date for this release is the end of January.

There will be no preorder. This will be a cold drop like the Inheritance.

No snippet for now, but Mod R read it and she says it’s not awful, so hopefully this will be fun.

PS Mod R: I would like to formally note on record that “not awful” is a paraphrase, and I distinctly remember using terms like “edge of my seat exciting”, “gulped it down”, and ”chopped onions“ instead.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Wow. Augustine looks hot in this one. Reminds me of a surfer dude ala Baywatch. Diana reminds me of Mila Kunis but she is supposed to older than Cornelius . Are Augustine and Diane of the same age?

    • Around the same, yes, mid-thirtyish 🙂 . Cornelius was 28 when Rogan and Augustine were very early 30s, so he’s a few years behind their cohort.

    • I believe the first sparks came around Sapphire Flames, when Diana asked Augustine to go pick up Matilda as a favour and the BDH’s eyes lit up with shipping urges. Her panthers appeared and were so memorable, and we ofc knew about his Pancakes nickname from Rogan.

      Definitely the ship name in use when Ruby Fever was released and the two of them sat together at Runa and Bern’s wedding.

  3. So glad to have this picture of Augustine and Diana. I need pictures of everyone. Most of the leading book men look like either Jason Momoa or Henry Cavill in my head. Cornelius looks completely different in my head than the description, somehow I pictured him completely different when I first read him and by the time I re-read multiple time and realized i was wrong, it was too late to recreate him lol.

  4. I love the cover – but did I miss something? Why does Panthercakes have white tigers?

    I’m glad that GA is changing the voice actor for Augustine – the voice didn’t really work for me, it was a little too whiny.

    Now I have another TBR book this month, to add to Silver &Blood from Jessie and Echoes of Insurrection from TA White.

    Woohoo x 3!!!!

    • I think they are not actually white tigers – they are the blue tiger-creatures from the arcane realm, only missing their neck tentacles and extra nostrils!

      Sometimes artists have to take artistic licence, I guess – they still look really cool to me. I love the cover 🙂

      • I think maybe because the background next to the cub has a lot of blue in it, the cub’s fur is reading blue-tinted from the lighting rather than blue in fact. I had provisionally assumed it was illusion-camouflaged to look like an Earth white tiger cub, thereby deflecting discovery as an extra-dimensional species.

  5. Jan 27 is coming soon! This is so generous of TOR and you. Unfortunately work gets in the way of my hobbies yet again. I probably won’t have time to read until at least Thursday.

    Thank you for letting us have an exciting January 🙂

  6. THANK YOU.

    So happy – my month started of horrible – this will be a great way to end Jan.

  7. Yay! I can’t wait to get Beast Business! This Kingdom whoop whoop! Spanish cover is so fun-some things just sound so dramatic in Spanish. Thanks.

  8. I’m sorry, did you just say the novella would drop at the end of this January? In the year of our Lord, 2026? Two weeks away? That January?

    Cool, cool, cool…I am very calm about this surprise release. It’s totally cool.

  9. I was just at my local library in Boise, Idaho and got a copy of January’s “Book Page”. “Our Most Anticipated Books of 2026″. On page 15 Ilona Andrews book, ” This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me” is mentioned as one of the Worth the Wait Books. I was very pleased to see that and wanted to share it with everyone. Congratulations to Ilona and Gordon!

  13. SO I do still want to know if this is Augustine or Augustine when he adjusts himself to be more streamlined.

    after the sparring scene doesn’t he make himself shorter or taller and less full of muscles??

    lol. I mean, both ARE Augustine, but is he born with it or maybe it’s Maybelline??

  14. So excited ! Interestingly enough it still shows the old title Maggie the undying on my Amazon – maybe I pre ordered it when it had that name? Whatever title I’m super excited !!

    • The series is called Maggie the Undying 🙂 The first volume in the Maggie the Undying series is This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me.

  16. Exciting announcements! We have a lot to look forward to in 2026 and I, like many others, could really use the distraction from real life. Thank goodness for fiction. Authors provide a wonderful escape.

    (really looking forward to the Augustine novella 🙂 )

  19. I’ve got my Waterstones special edition of Maggie on order and will w**t semi-patiently for its arrival (I’ve also got it on order via Kindle). Pancakes looks like I’ve imagined Bern and Diana reminds me of Brad Pitts ex wife, (sorry, can’t remember her name at 1.30 in the morning). I’m also really looking forward to reading this as I love the hidden legacy series. 😁😁😁.

  20. Wait, so did I miss a merch announcement? I know you talked about having someone else do it, but did they and can we order? I tried looking for a search thing for the website and can’t find it. Likely because my brain is dead.

  21. OMG, so much goodness coming our way!!!! Am VERY excited. My love for GA is deep and true, so it’s the cherry on top to get Augustine from them 🍒

  22. Cover is incredible but very confused about the very earth-like cub. I can’t see the blue that everyone is talking about, or any other extra features either…. Not going to stop me from reading it anyhow.

    • Cub is very definitely blue, maybe a screen adjustment issue? Night mode can be confusing that way sometimes 🙂

      You’ll have to read the novella for the rest, and let’s not forget artistic licence of illustrator!

  23. I knew he looked like that and I figured that in GA he was changing his voice too – because he also hides how big he is- right?

  24. I’m so excited. I am at the end of the series (reread I don’t even know how many times already) to prep for this. Thank you!

  25. Poor mod R. They are so mean to you and misquoting you.

    I cannot wait for Augustine’s book!

    Thank you!

  26. Love this image. It’s amazing! I hope Diana gets to see the real Augustine. So excited to read it! TY TY!

  27. SO excited for the Augustine novella (we all knew “short story” was not happening— I was pulling for novel! 🙂 ) and to also get the extended preview of This Kingdom is also exciting! Cannot wait for all the House Andrews goodness! THANK YOU!

  28. The story doesn’t seem anywhere near complete for a release in two weeks, unless I have seriously missed some snippets. Help?

    • It wasn’t a serial 🙂 We only got a couple of snippets at random, not the chapters in order, while the complete manuscript was finished in private.

  29. Friends – am I misremembering from the books, but aren’t the Harrisons all blonde? Or is that artist license?

  31. “Edge of my seat” and “gulped it down” sound great. “Chopped onions”, especially if raw would make me terribly ill, so I’ll avoid them. So excited for Augustine!!

  32. Oooh! Panthercakes and TKWNKM Extended Preview all in a couple weeks! We are so loved!
    Thank you Mod R for all the answers you provided in previous comments – you answered all mine because of your posts! 🤗

  33. i cant wait for this novella. ausgustine’s one of my fave characters from the hidden series and it’s a go-to listen for me. (renee raudman was the best). I don’t wanna gripe about it cuz I know the GA stuff is out of yalls hands, but their version was a bi let down for me… oh well… at lease their innkeeper one is still good.

  38. Are there any Ilona Andrews books in italian? I would love for my godmother to read something by them, they are my favourite writers, but she only speaks our mothertongue

  39. I am actually in the process or re-reading the Hidden Legacy series and i remember the description of Augustine!
    I would say it is very close to the image (which is beautiful by the way) but i didn’t picture him in my mind so bulky – the muscles 😀

    But now i have a clear image in my mind thanks to the cover!!
    Thank you very much for the novella, it is very much appreciated!

  40. Mod R, do you know when the GA re-recording will take place? Will people who purchased it previously get an automatic update?

  43. PANCAKES!!! Absolutely love the cover, so much easier to picture the two of them now 🙂 and of course excited about MAGGIE’s release coming closer!!! 😀

  46. Hi! Could someone please remind me if there is a link out for a signed TKWKM? I saw a UK site, but looking for a US one. Hopefully I haven’t missed the chance!

  48. So yeah, the artwork pretty much captures what I thought Augustine was giving. Hotness w/ glasses. Diana reminds me of Angelina Jolie though. Not a bad thing, just an observation. Can’t wait for the novella to drop!

  51. I’m so excited about Augustine!! I love the cover. If anything, he and Diana are better in this cover than I pictured in my head. I had her middle aged and librarian like. I had a hard time with Augustine because he was so prim and proper. This one makes him better.

  57. Love the cover! Also, kitties! I alway pictured Augustine with rectangular glasses for some reason. I can’t w*it.

  58. I am so excited!! The cover is gorgeous, they are gorgeous, the kitty is gorgeous, house Andrews is gorgeous, and, of course, is Mod R is gorgeous!

    I have been dying to read Maggie’s story from the first ever snippet that I read. When they were drinking tea on top of the building looking down at the building that held the sword masters son.

    So many moons ago.

  60. This looks great! I’ll admit that this isn’t how I envisioned Augustine, but I also don’t really ‘see’ the characters in my head when I read, so I kind of only had a rough impression. That said, this picture of Augustine is *very* handsome! I think he might actually be my favorite-looking MMC yet. 🙂

    Diana definitely reminds me of Angelina Jolie, though! In a good way, of course! 🙂

  67. I am loving all these versions of This Kingdon Will Not Kill Me! I am sad that the US version is the least fancy of all the reveals so far. I want to preorder, but I want really pretty edges. Is there going to be a US version that has the more decorated edges? Or will I have to figure out how to order from the UK?

  68. Can’t wait, and I love the cover art! I’m starting to learn Spanish, so I might check it the translation as well as the English version!

  69. Now I’m super curious if there was ever something of House Andrews that Mod R actually thought was ‘…not your best work…’ cuz I feel like that would be interesting to read. Totally only for comparison/calibration reasons, I swear. 0: )

    On the other hand, Mod R is basically the stand in for the BDH, and we love everything, so it may never have happened. ; )

    • I didn’t vibe super hard with Alphas, does that count? Still liked it, just different tone than what I go for.

      Not exactly fitting here, and probably a bit dangerous to admit to the BDH (#safespace) but I prefer Silent Blade to Silver Shark in the Kinsmen series. There, I said it. I just get more out of the limerence, and the gardens and the just raspberry desserts 😉 .

      The Horde at large is the opposite, Silver Shark cult comfort!

  70. Just a note – I checked for the extended preview of This Kingdom on Amazon and it shows up but only with a link to preorder which it states will auto deliver on January 27, 2026. No way to read the preview on KU or other info as to how to see only the extended preview without preorder. There is a separate link for the regular book that has the preorder link and the auto deliver date of March 31, 2026. It was a little confusing, but then again I may need more coffee. I am VERY excited about Augustine, mainly for Kitty, but it all makes me happieeee for new adventures. (more sentient beast buddies please!) 😉

    • You have to preorder the preview in order to read the preview 🙂 It’s basically novella size, not a mere “look inside” few pages.

      It has its own release date of January 27, different to the entire book release date of March 31st.

  77. I used Barnes and Noble for the download of the extended excerpt. I had to make an adjustment in “SETTINGS” so that samples and preorders are visible.

  78. The art looks amazing!! (For some reason, I always imagined Diana Harrison as having a blonde blunt-cut bob.)

  79. love the covers so much. can’t wait for both stories. hidden legacy is in my reread and re-listen list.

  80. So a free 126 pages now, just to make our wait for the remaining 354 pages more. . . restful?

    I don’t think it will work that way for me, and must decline the gracious offer of the free preview.

    • This Kobo link takes me to the novel listing in the U.S. Kobo store, not the long free preview. Did you find a link to the long preview on Kobo, and which country was it for?

  87. I’ve ordered the Inheritance. I will buy the Augustine book in whatever format you care to release it – e-book, paperback, audio, all of the above…. Thank you!!! Your cover artist is amazing, I love their work.

  88. That artwork is stunning! Out of curiosity, do you have other examples of how you imagine the arcane circles look?

  89. Oh my god I am SO excited for the Augustine novella, I’ve JUST got a friend into Hidden Legacy so this is fantastic timing

  92. I love the cover art for Augustine’s novella, but in White Hot, when we are introduced to Diana for the first time, she and Cornelius have the same silver blond hair. Is there a reason she is portrayed on the cover as having auburn hair ?

  95. Would love an ebook of your advice! I think the insight into writing mind is fascinating.

    Augustine and This Kingdom news superseded everyone’s squee brains. Ask again of BDH! I just don’t think we can comprehend beyond the upcoming release news🤩

  96. I don’t know who is cuter: Augustine or the tiger…

    Also: does my brain deceive me, or is the description of the tiger similar to that of the big cat in Inheritance? Dare we, the BDH, the faithful followers of HA, who w*it with p*tienc* and are incredibly chalant, dare we to hope for a crossover?

  97. Congrats on the wonderful art, new language markets. I can’t wait. Anticipation is making me wait…

  99. I’m happy like a dog with two tails! I’m sure there is an equivalent idiom in English but it doesn’t come to mind right now.
    Nice to know GA is recasting the Augustine role: nothing wrong with the performance but it definitely does not convey “this” Augustine. I’m going for a walk to celebrate!

  100. That is NOT how I pictured Augustine Montgomery.
    That is NOT how I pictured Diana Harrison.

    But it is now! Congratulations to Helena Elias!