That title is a bit of a mouthful, but I wanted to make sure the gravity of the situation could sink in before you read the rest of this post. That’s right.  Stina Leicht — one of our lovely hosts — has just announced her two book deal with Simon & Schuster imprint, Saga.  And it’s a secondary-world flintlock fantasy.  From the author of Of Blood and Honey and And Blue Skies From Pain.  If that doesn’t entice you, then perhaps the description will: The future for the ancient Kingdom of Eledore is grim. A small pox epidemic is sweeping through the land. A decadent aristocracy employs immense magical powers to quibble with one another, and dominate the populace, the Regnum of Acrasia has declared a holy war against magic, and an ancient evil living beneath Eledore threatens to break free. Can Princess Suvi navigate her family’s deadly politics, create justice for her people, unify the survivors, and hold back a demon horde at the same time? Disowned and cast off, can her twin brother Nels successfully fight a war that no one is willing to acknowledge against a nation whose technology is far superior? You can read more about the books on Stina’s blog (including a little snippet). Needless to say, we’re super excited about these books and cannot wait for them to be in our hands!  Delicate, book-loving hands.  After all, Jen and I have spent the last three years handselling Stina’s previous books on the intergalactic scene, so we’re happy we’ll get to handsell some more of her work (this time to the Necrophages of Sirius, who are really into that whole flintlock thing). Congrats to Stina and to Simon & Schuster’s new imprint, which will clearly be successful because they have good taste.