Books and More!

One of the fun things about running a Kickstarter campaign for new editions is when all the goodies come in. Let’s have a look at most of the goodies and books for the Blood Brothers special editions campaign.

Last week, the first lot of books arrived. These were the trade paperbacks, and I’m so pleased with them. The matte finish is so velvety!

Blood Brothers special edition trade paperbacks with duplexed covers

These editions have the new illustrations by Dar Albert. For the trade paperback, the covers are duplexed, which means the illustration is printed on the inside of the cover, like this:

Blood Brothers special edition trade paperbacks with duplexed covers

The part of the illustration with the sword is on the inside back cover but I didn’t take pix ot it.

These special edition interiors include some different typographic elements, but also include the Blood Brothers map and family trees. The family tree for Jean Le Beau is in all four books, then each book has a family tree for the hero and for the heroine. Those elements are included in all of the special editions – ebook, trade paperback and hardcover.

The spiral notebooks featuring the new illustrations have also arrived.

Blood Brothers spiral notebooks

And there are postcards. There’s a set of four of the new illustrations, and a set of four of the original cover art (with the guys alone). They all have the same reverse side which is shown at the bottom right.

Blood Brothers postcards

Plus those big bookmarks have arrived. There’s a set of four of these: they all have the same reverse side with the original covers.

Blood Brothers bookmarks

I’ve been packing boxes for the fulfillment of the Kickstarter. The hardcover editions have shipped to me, so I’ll show them to you once they arrive. I’ll pack the rest of the Kickstarter pledges then and the campaign will be done. I’ve also been making book charms with these new covers and will show you those with the hardcovers.

You can pre-order signed copies of the print books in my online store – that will be for the first fulfillment after the Kickstarter campaign, and I’ll place that order in June.

The spiral notebooks that are left are available in the store now. They won’t be restocked, so once they’re gone, that’s that. You’ll find them in New Arrivals there, as well as the discounted sample copies of The Hunter & the Heiress that I ordered in advance of the campaign. Those books have the illustration on the cover, but don’t have the map or family trees inside.

Blood Brothers Special Editions – and Kindle Unlimited

The Wolf & the Witch, book one of the Blood Brothers series of medieval Scottish romances by Claire Delacroix, special hardcover edition
The Wolf & the Witch special hardcover edition dust jacket

The Kickstarter campaign for the new special editions of my Blood Brothers series ended on Saturday night. It not only funded but we reached stretch goals to add the Blood Brothers map and nine family trees into the new editions, as well as two sets of postcards and one set of bookmarks, printed for backers of signed books and as digital downloads for all backers. I also added some pretty spiral bound notebooks this time and will be doing that in future campaigns, too.

What happens next is the fulfillment, which will be all behind the scenes (pretty much in my dining room.)

Two other things are happening now that the campaign is completed. First, there’s a pre-order available in my online store for these new print editions. The Kickstarter fulfillment will be completed first, then the books ordered through this pre-order. If you pre-order before June 1, your books will be ordered in June and ship to you in July. These editions are signed, so they will ship from Canada.

See the Blood Brothers pre-order at Deborah Cooke’s Books.

The Dragon & the Damsel, book three of the Blood Brothers series of medieval Scottish romances by Claire Delacroix, special hardcover edition
The Dragon & the Damsel special hardcover edition dust jacket

You might notice that the special edition e-books aren’t listed there. That’s because Blood Brothers will be enrolled for a 90-day term in Kindle Unlimited. The first two books have been in KU before, but not the last two, so you’ll be able to binge the series there. The plan is for the books to be enrolled by the beginning of April, which will take their 90-day term through the end of June, but that will depend upon how promptly the other portals remove the books from sale. They have to be available exclusively at Amazon for their KU term.

Yesterday, I began to unpublish the four books from portals with long distribution chains, so depending where you shop, they may be vanishing. The last place I’ll unpublish them is my own online store, since it updates immediately.

My next Kickstarter campaign will be for a new hardcover omnibus edition of my fantasy YA Dragon Diaries trilogy. Watch the blog on my Deborah Cooke site for more details about that.

Updates for the Final Week of my Blood Brothers Kickstarter Campaign

Tick tock! The Blood Brother’s Kickstarter campaign ends this coming Saturday. Don’t miss out on these special editions – or of being a part of making them happen!

Blood Brothers BookWorm Swag Box

We have enough goodies now for the BookWorm Swag Box, so I’ve added that tier to the rewards. It includes the new special edition trade paperback of The Wolf & the Witch (that’s the one with the duplexed cover), a spiral notebook with the cover of The Hunter & the Heiress, a set of the new postcards, a book charm with one of the new Blood Brothers covers on it, as well as all digital swag in the campaign. If we add more physical goodies, they’ll be included in this box.

One of the things I’m hoping to add is a set of character cards, but we need to reach our stretch goal for the set of nine family trees first – it’s so close!

There’s another new addition to the campaign, too. Everyone who backs a full set of the special edition books in any format (ebook, trade paperback or hardcover), signed or not, will have their name included in the acknowledgements of the new editions. Yes, in all four books, in all three editions.

Come on over to Kickstarter and check out the Blood Brothers campaign! Don’t miss your chance to make pretty books together!

The Scot & the Sorceress special edition available in the Blood Brothers Kickstarter February 2024

Set of Four Notebooks Available in my Blood Brothers Kickstarter Campaign

Once again, I’ve added new rewards to my campaign. Since people liked the single notebook, I’ve added a set of four, one with each cover illustration. Here’s my digital mark-up of how they’ll look.

4 spiral notebooks with Blood Brothers cover illustrations

These notebooks are 5.5″ by 8.5″ with 80 blank (lined) pages inside. Better yet, they’re spiral bound so you can open them flat for writing. When you back the tier with the four notebooks, you’ll also get a set of four new bookmarks.

Four Bookmarks for the Blood Brothers Kickstarter campaign

And as a special bonus, if you order the set of four bookmarks before Friday February 23 at midnight, I’ll include a book charm. I’ve made book charms in the past with my book covers, and I’ll make some with the new Blood Brothers covers. Here are the ones I’ve made before:

Bookcharms made by Deborah Cooke

I’ll make some this weekend with the new Blood Brothers covers. They’ll be like the new duplexed trade paperbacks, with the illustration on the inside front flap. So, order a set of notebooks by Friday and you’ll get one of the new bookcharms, too, as well as the new bookmarks.

Remember our other stretch goal now, to add NINE family trees. First, there’s the family tree of Jean le Beau and his four sons. That will go in the front of each special edition. Then there are two additional family trees for each book, one for the hero and one for the heroine.

Blood Brothers stretch goal of nine family trees

So, when we unlock this goal, the special editions of The Wolf & the Witch, for example, will have Jean le Beau’s family tree at the front, as well as Maximilian’s family tree and Alys’ family tree at the back of the book. The family trees will also be available as digital downloads for all backers. This stretch goal will unlock when the campaign reaches $2900CA in total funding.

Come on over to Kickstarter and check out the Blood Brothers campaign! We’re making pretty books together!

new edition of The Dragon & the Damsel in the Blood Brothers Kickstarter

New Notebooks in my Blood Brothers Kickstarter Campaign

I added a new tier to my campaign and wanted to share it with you. We have notebooks!

one spiral notebook in the Blood Brothers Kickstarter campaign

I was thinking of other ways to enjoy Dar Albert’s fabulous new Blood Brothers illustrations, and I thought of blank notebooks. I love blank notebooks! These notebooks are 5.5″ by 8.5″ with 80 blank (lined) pages inside. (That’s a digital mockup of the cover above.) Better yet, they’re spiral bound so you can open them flat for writing.

Right now, we have a spiral notebook with the illustration for The Hunter & the Heiress on it. If you back the reward with one notebook, right now, this is it. BUT we have a new stretch goal – once there are seven backers of this tier, I’ll add notebooks with all four covers. Those who back one notebook will get a choice, but there will be a new tier with all four.

Remember our other stretch goal now, to add NINE family trees. First, there’s the family tree of Jean le Beau and his four sons. That will go in the front of each special edition. Then there are two additional family trees for each book, one for the hero and one for the heroine.

Blood Brothers stretch goal of nine family trees

So, when we unlock this goal, the special editions of The Wolf & the Witch, for example, will have Jean le Beau’s family tree at the front, as well as Maximilian’s family tree and Alys’ family tree at the back of the book. The family trees will also be available as digital downloads for all backers. This stretch goal will unlock when the campaign reaches $2900CA in total funding.

Come on over to Kickstarter and check out the Blood Brothers campaign! We’re making pretty books together!

New print editions of the Blood Brothers series of medieval Scottish romances by Claire Delacroix coming to Kickstarter in February 2024