We have never before had to do two releases on the same day. This is a bit of a dilemma. Ahem.
The Missing Tyrant
I moved through the inn briskly, Beast dancing by my side. Caldenia hadn’t come down for dinner last night. She took it in her rooms instead, which she had almost never done for the entire duration of her stay. Her Grace relished social contact.
She hadn’t come down for breakfast either. It was past noon now and she hadn’t reached out to Orro. She hadn’t even asked him for her usual snacks. Something was terribly wrong.
I stopped before the ornate door leading to Caldenia’s quarter and rapped my knuckles on it. “Your Grace?”
No answer. She was inside. I could feel her.
“Your Grace?”
A faint moan came from behind the door.
“Is everything alright?”
“Come in,” she called out.
I flicked the door open with my fingertips and stepped inside. A round room with many windows greeted me. Between the windows, glass doors led to three different balconies, one facing the street, one facing the orchard and the third facing our lawn. The floor was dalon stone, a beautiful green ranging from emerald to sage with cream and white marbling and flecks of gold. It looked like expensive marble but had a texture and softness of wood. The walls were cream, and they met above in a domed ceiling. Decorative plants flourished in the pots between priceless statuary from light years away.
Her Grace’s chair by her table at her favorite window was empty. Where was she?
“Over here,” she called out.
I turned to the grouping of couches on the left. A foot in an embroidered slipper stuck out over one of the couch’s armrest. I crossed the floor to the couch. Caldenia lay on it, dressed in a luxurious sage robe. There were bags under her eyes.
“Are you ill? Is everything okay?”
“I’m perfectly fine, my dear.”
“You didn’t come down for dinner…”
“I was reading the most wonderful book.” She plucked her tablet off the coffee table and held it out to me. I glanced at it. A bright red cover with a young darkhaired woman and a handsome man poised against some magical glowing swirls. Not her usual cup of tea. She leaned toward political thrillers and historicals, and she preferred older characters.
“Ruby Fever?”
“Yes. I finally finished a couple of hour ago, and now I’m going to nap. Feel free to borrow it. The heroine is delightful.”
I scrolled to the synopsis. Oh, I guess, it did have a prince in it…
“I’m surprised you like someone that young.”
Caldenia wrinkled her nose. “No, not her. Who cares about her. She has the most delightful grandmother. Now that is a woman I would love to have over for tea. Also Linus, that devious, conniving bastard.”
“Devious and conniving?”
“In the best ways. Enjoy the book.”
She closed her eyes. Beast and I retreated quietly and shut the door behind us.
No Talking
“Arabella?”
My sister lay on her stomach across the oversized stuffed ottoman in the main house’s family room. Her iPad lay on the floor and she didn’t find it necessary to raise her head to look at me. “Wut?”
“How can you lay like that? All the blood will rush to your head.”
“I’m comfy, Catalina. Go away.”
“The Prensky case.”
“What about it?”
“It says here Prensky Junior was trying to flee in a vehicle belonging to the Kellerman family and that you tore the door off the Kellerman’s car to get Prensky Junior out.”
“Do I look like I can tear a door off a car?”
“Not in this form.”
“Did they say I transformed?”
They didn’t, but the Kellermans were trying to bill us for the car.
“No.”
“Then it’s fine.” She waved me off without looking.
“What are you reading?”
“Important things.”
I walked over and squinted at the iPad. “A webcomic?”
She finally sat up and looked at me. “Yes. It’s a webcomic about a magical inn that hosts aliens.”
“And vampires?” The blond man in the webcomic panel definitely had fangs. And armor?
“Space vampires. The vampires are not important.”
“What’s important?”
“The werewolf. I identify with werewolves.”
Did she see herself as a werewolf? She couldn’t possibly think she was some murderous monster who was forced to change against her will by the moon and then indiscriminately slaughtered people… Oh my God.
“You are not a werewolf. Listen, may be therapy could help…”
She stabbed her finger in the direction of the iPad. “This is my therapy. Let me read the Innkeeper Chronicles in peace. I’ve worked very hard and now me and the Tapas app are having our fun time. Go away, Catalina.”
“What about the Kellermans?”
“How much do they want?”
“19K.”
“We made 300K on that case. If they are trying to save face by claiming I ripped a door off their car, let them. No need to make an enemy. I will issue them a payment. It will be fine.”
She flopped back down.
Sometimes there was no talking to her.
Please stand by for the individual posts with spoiler threads on Ruby Fever and Tapas Innkeeper Chronicles. Please do not post spoilers here.
Oh my god this is the best the best the best the bestest everrrrrr!!!!!
THANK YOOOOOOO!!
This makes me so happy!!!
I checked at 11:30 pm in the Midwest to see if Ruby Fever had arrived on my kindle. I ended up going to bed at 5:00 am. I can identify with Caldenia.
I love the release snippets! So much fun!
First time post – cried last Friday and now am grinning like an idiot. Appreciate you all and all that you do to bring a little bit of joy into the world.
OMG! This is so much fun! Great crossover! I just finished my re-read of all the House Baylor books last night, so I’ll be starting Ruby Fever tonight!
I hope it’s okay I post this, Mod R, feel free to remove this if it’s not!
If anyone is looking to make a new Tapas account, you can use my invite code to get 500 free ink to start with.
EMAI767N
Happy reading!
I’m late in reading the book. Periodically B&N manage to totally screw up my pre-orders. Usually for a book I have been counting down for its release. (Sound familiar to anyone?) I spent 6 hours yesterday trying everything that they had ever had me do in the past to get “Ruby Fever” to download with no luck. I finally went on-line for some assistance. The poor person helping me had me going through everything again with no luck. We worked together on it for 45 minutes (a very dedicated help-desk person) before she gave up and told me that all she could do was tell me to call back to the 800 number today because we had eliminated everything except some kind of issue with my credit card that only that one book had. I almost cried, and somehow that wonderful person understood. She offered me a final option–canceling my pre-order and allowing me to do a straight order for it. Which is what I did. So I did get my ecopy on release day, even if I didn’t get to start reading it until today.
Ilona, Gordon and Mod R. For the last 6 weeks you 3 have been a bright spot in my day. And I want to thank you all three for your abilities to entertain, move, and thrill your faithful fans. The world would be a duller place without your literary contributions. I am sure the rest of this group feels the same way, but I thought that today would be a good day to remind you all how much you are lived and appreciated. Thank you for another wonder book.
Loved and appreciated, autocorrect sometimes does strange things to messages
???? That’s so lovely to hear, I’m so happy you enjoyed the book (and that you managed to get it, oy!).
Super cute!
Delightful. This Post, Ruby Fever, and the Innkeeper comic on Tapas. Read Ruby Fever twice – once very quickly and the second time to savor. The Innkeeper episodes were consumed all together, so yes you will be getting Ink from me. I will be re-reading the comic daily until the next episode is out. So glad I was on vacation through Tuesday and returned at 11 am Wednesday. I used the 10 days I was off to read and re-read 1-4 books a day. It was very restoring. I did laundry at the start and admit to wearing the same clothes each day. I was enjoying my vacation ay home.
I get the books in both e-book and physical form. The E-book for me to read immediately and the physical book to say to people “Take this and read it! Return it when you are done.”
Lovely! Perfect way to celebrate the double release 😀
That was fabulous.
OMG – I LOVE LOVE LOVE the two snippets. Such a wonderful tie-in between the two.
That was so delightful.! I almost missed it. So funny and unexpected.
It felt like my mind this week when I re-listened to “Sapphire…” then “Emerald…”
then “Sweep In Peace” back to back, pausing only to sleep.
SUCH FUN!!!!
Heh. I’d been picturing a tea party with Caldenia and Evil Grandma – oh to be a fly on THAT wall 😀
I have all the feels. Kept refreshing Tapas for 3rd web page after 3am at work on lunch break ( not happening )and downloaded Ruby Fever as soon as I got home at 8am. Had a Dr appointment for a mammogram at 10am that was 45min away. Read all day until I finished, slept, got up to download Innkeeper, and had to go to leave for work at 10 pm. Thank you!!! I so enjoyed both!!! Now I am reading Soul Taken, and then…a reread of Ruby! Ahhhh I love when a new book comes out.
I completely understand Caldenia’s book obsession, I couldn’t put Ruby Fever down either! Thanks for this fun post, and all the engrossing books from HA!!!
Love it!
Having them reading about each other is spectacular, almost a as good as a crossover book. ♡♡♡
These snippets are so cute. Congrats on the double book birthday!
Thank you so much for the time and effort you’ve put into not only Ruby Fever but all of Hidden Legacy. It is truly one of my favorite series of all time and one of my comfort rereads when I need a pick me up. I finished RF and my heart was just so full and I was basically giddy because it was everything I wanted. I am really hoping for an Arabella series or a Cornelius novella because I just love this family so much, but if it doesn’t work out this book wrapped it up so completely… truly the characterizations, the world building, the relationships are all masterclasses.
And then on top of it the new Innkeeper adaptation dropping the same day?!?! You have truly spoiled us between the gorgeous Tapas comic which is so freaking pretty and the Graphic Audio which is so incredibly immersive. This is also right up there as one of my favorite series and an ultimate comfort reread and now I have the pick of the litter!!
Both of these series have brought me so much personal joy, and I cannot thank you enough for sharing all of this us. BDH forever!!
I loved that snippet thank you! I am on vacation in Italy right now and my one regret (besides missing my kids) is not being able to read Ruby Fever yet!
I mean I know I could get it but I would be intolerable to my husband and friends with staying up late and trying to read instead of going anywhere haha.
So excited to read it and the webcomics when I get back!
First, Congratulations on the awesome reviews for Ruby Fever,and expanding In keeper to Tapas. Next, I need to say a big thanks to House Andrews for being such amazing writers, artfully crafting worlds and friends I revisit time and again over the years. Then,there’s this lovely blog where we celebrate with snippets(yay!),artwork,pets,food; we commiserate at times and survive pandemics and more together. Since 2018 I lost Dad (feb), Husband (mar), a brother (aug) to health issues, Mom fell (with brain injury-aug),Brother-in-law was an a$$-got prison(dec). 2019- Mom moved in with me (more care-giving on top of hospital job) & I had emergency retina surgery. 2020 we both had Covid (dec-before vaccines)Moms brain took a big hit from the virus. 2021-emergency appendectomy (dec again!)for me (at my age!) So, your stories, your generosity, the BDH with all their fun, ModR, have so helped me survive the last few years. I am so very grateful, House Andrews. You make our lives brighter. Thankyou.
Just finished *Ruby Fever,* and it was awesome, amazing and all-around terrific!
And while we’re talking about much-anticipated books…
(Whispering so the rest of the BDH won’t hear…)
…is the second Julie/Derek story next in line after the current Innkeeper is complete??
I just re-read the first after-publication Blood Heir post with those eye-popping sales figures, and then immediately opened my Kindle copy to re-read again. I can hardly wait!!!
Thanks to you both for adding so much action, adventure, true love and creative amazingness to my Kindle library. Would you believe a Kindle library can actually exceed 4,500 books (including every Kindle-available Ilona Andrews ever published)?
I’m now off to re-read the current Innkeeper blog posts for the umpteenth time.
Faith
House Andrews have taken the decision to not announce the next projects until they are ready to be published in order to manage both their wellbeing and fan expectations.
For an extended explanation behind their decision, please see the announcement here https://ilona-andrews.com/2022/on-being-difficult/
Thanks for the heads-up, Mod R. I somehow missed that post. Will go read it now.
Cheers, Faith
P.S. add me to the crowd in stitches at the prospect of Caldenia and Victoria sharing afternoon tea.
More thanks! Faith
All I have is ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
That. Was. Cool. Thank you for the best ever promotion!
Omg how did I miss this? Folks commenting on Ch 24 also talked about two gifts already this week and I had to go check it out. Seriously fun stuff! Of course Caldenia would identify with the evil grandmother chortle! Thanks so much HA. And congrats on two delightful releases! ????????