Jeanne G’Fellers has a new queer non-binary/gender fluid paranormal fantasy out in the Appalachian Elementals series: “Keeping House.”
Centenary Rhodes is caught in a deal she didn’t make. Thanks to her eternal lover, Stowne’s, quick thinking, she’ll live forever, but there’s a hitch. Cent’s now fey, and three months out of the year she’ll live on the other side of Embreeville Mountain among the Hunter Fey, serving their king, Dane Gow.
As Cent begins wading through the anachronisms that come with being a Hunter, she learns that nothing is what it initially seems. Cent shares several past lives with Dane, who wants her back, and Stowne’s lied to Cent so many times that she’s having doubts about their marriage. To make matters worse, the past Hunter Kings are influencing Dane’s behavior, and the youngest Hunter, Brinn, might well be the most dangerous of them all.
It’s going to be a cold, dark spring, and Cent needs to unite both sides of Embreeville mountain before her eternal life, her relationship with Dane, and her marriage to Stowne come permanently undone.
Another rich Contemporary Appalachian tale about fantastic people and the magic they possess, including LGBTQIA+ characters Human and otherwise.
Series Blurb:
Come dance with the Appalachian fey and drink a little moonshine under the full moon while you hear Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Death share tales about families of our blood, families of our making, and magic both long ago and flowing through us now.
Warnings: depiction of mental illness including on page psychosis; discussion of gender dysphoria, cutting, and self-harm; discussion of rape and murder; on and off page violence
Jeanne is giving away a $20 Amazon gift certificate with this tour. Enter via Rafflecopter for a chance to win:
In Keeping House, the second novel in the Appalachian Elementals series, Cent Rhodes has to interact the fey king, Dane Gow, on a daily basis and is working to solve Dane’s business accounting issues. So how do you get a king to pay attention? By talking money. Dane’s a business woman above almost everything else, and if there’s one thing she’ll listen to, it’s talk of profits. In this exclusive excerpt Cent’s working with Dane’s right-hand man, Conall, to convince Dane into converting her illegal profits into legitimate ones. This excerpt comes from Chapter Fifteen: “The Bookkeeper Likes her Coffee.”
“So, what’s the verdict?” Dane sat back with her feet on the desk, her work boots atop paperwork until Cent knocked them off.
“Get your nasty feet off my statements.”
“That’s money on my boots.” Dane raised one to look at the bottom, frowning. “Nasty’s right. It’s muddy out.”
“And now it’s all over the office.” Cent held out two pages she’d stapled together. “Here are your numbers.”
“Great!” Dane snatched the pages and hovered over them, reading. “I don’t know what these top totals mean.”
“I’ll walk you through them, but don’t you want Conall in here too? He’s shop manager, after all.” Please get him in here. We need to keep our stories straight.
“Yeah, sure.” Dane yelled for Conall. “Plant it. Cent’s run some numbers for us.” She pointed to the chair she’d sat in, and plopped onto the desk, Cent barely pulling a stack of papers away before she sat. “Got one of these handouts for him?”
“Here you go.” Cent passed him a copy of what she’d given Dane. “Okay, starting at the top. The shop made out nicely last year.” She’d run the numbers three times to make certain and had been duly impressed. “Top left. That’s Gow Welding’s profits after everything.”
“Gross?” Dane grinned.
“Net. After everything. Taxes. Wages. Equipment. Gas. Everything.”
“Seven figures.” Dane’s smile widened. “Just wait ’til we add the chop shop’s earnings. What’s the number beside the first one?”
“That’s the chop-shop’s profits.”
“No.” The joy dropped from Dane’s face. “You got this backwards. The chop shop out-does Gow Weldin’ every year. It always has.”
“Are you sure?” Cent held up a little of the paperwork she’d compiled in case Dane asked for evidence. “The chop shop hasn’t earned the numbers you originally quoted me. It hasn’t for a good five years. You’re not losing money at it yet, but you will be soon enough.”
“We’ve been pullin’ too many people off the cuttin’ torches to work iron.” Dane looked to Conall, who shook his head. “Haven’t we?”
“No, we’ve been doin’ the opposite this year, and the fabricatin’ jobs have been pilin’ up. I’ve had to refuse twenty-thirty jobs, two of them big ones ’cause you said we needed more workers at the Boneyard.”
“Really?” Dane stared at the paperwork. “So what’ll happen if we reorganize so we can take them jobs?”
“Check page two,” said Cent. “I ran estimates once I realized the problem.”
“Lookie there.” Dane flicked the page with her finger and smiled. “Now that’s profit.” She looked at Conall. “So you knew this, huh? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I tried, but you gotta thick skull.” Conall smacked her leg with his papers. “We gotta ditch the chop-shop and ramp things up down here. Hell, Dane, we can even manufacture up in the Boneyard if’n we want. No one cares where we make it, just that we do. What’s old is new. Reproductions are big money. Barn wood and handmade ironwork are what’s popular so let’s take advantage of it.”
END
Born and raised in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, Science Fiction and Fantasy author Jeanne G’Fellers’ early memories include watching the original Star Trek series with their father and reading the books their librarian mother brought home. Jeanne’s writing influences include Anne McCaffrey, Ursula K. LeGuin, Octavia Butler, Isaac Asimov, and Frank Herbert.
Jeanne lives in Northeast Tennessee with their spouse and five crazy felines. Their home is tucked against a small woodland where they regularly see deer, turkeys, raccoons, and experience the magic of the natural world.
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Thank you for the post and excerpt! The cover looks cute,