The First READ THIS! Book of the Month for 2025, My Bday Approaches, & More!

Welcome To 2025! Hope all y'all had wonderful holidays and brought the new year in right, in whatever ways are right for you! We had a great time at the Manse, but now it's time to get back to all the things, especially because January is my birthday month. And, if you want to know what I want, it's reviews. They are the best gift you can give any author (right after buying their books) and they matter far more than you realize. We've got a great book for the first READ THIS! of this new year, plus an update on what all y'all care about most, and more. So let's get to all the things, shall we? We shall!

Read Out Loud! Do you have your copy of the Touched by an Alien audiobook yet? If not, don't wait! Grab yours today and start your year right!

Speaking of Reading Out Loud... Graphic Audio has renewed the contract for The Legend of Belladonna, Part 1: Natural Born Outlaws, by moi writing as A.E. Stanton. If you haven't grabbed this fantastic audiobook, don't delay, grab it today!

READ THIS! A Book Club by Moi for All Y'all Welcome to READ THIS! A Book Club by Gini Koch. This is my chance to introduce you to some great authors that I love and know you will, too. Every month I'll spotlight a book and, even better...every month I'll host a live discussion with the author, that all y'all can join! I know, it's too happy to be true, but true it is!

January 2025 READ THIS! Selection

The READ THIS! Selection for January 2025 is:  Dragons, Cats, & Formidable Femmes A Collection by Jean Marie Ward Gini's Take: A fantastic collection of stories from microfiction to novellas -- there's something for everyone in this one! About the Author: Jean Marie Ward writes fiction, nonfiction and everything in between. Her credits include a multi-award nominated novel, numerous short stories and two popular art books. The former editor of CrescentBlues.com, she is a frequent contributor to Galaxy’s Edge magazine and ConTinual, the convention that never ends. Learn more at her Amazon Author Page.

January 2025 READ THIS! Author Q&A

So, you've read the READ THIS! selection and you want to share what you thought with the author, hang out with them and Gini, and generally talk books for an hour. Well, guess what? You can! The third Thursday of every month will be READ THIS! Author Q&A time. The event will be held utilizing Discord, and the invitation to Gini's READ THIS! room will come out in the week prior to the chat. And that's not all! Near the end of each Q&A session, we'll be doing a raffle and one lucky winner will get a copy of the next month's READ THIS! selection! (You must be present in the Q&A to win. Physical book prizes will be U.S. only. Ebook prizes will be worldwide.)

January's READ THIS! author Q&A  featuring Author Jean Marie Ward will be on Thursday, January 16, 2024 from 9pm-10pm Eastern. Access to Discord is available worldwide, and everyone is invited to attend!

February's READ THIS! Selection   And Remember: One Lucky Q&A Participant can win it early!

The READ THIS! Selection for February 2025 is:  Songs & Sorcery Book One of the Tales of the Walled City By Emelia Quantrille

Check It Out! Something Wicked, the first novel in the Santa Paloma Mysteries series written by moi and Bebe Bayliss, from Ginger Blue Publishing, is alive and well and out in the world, available in ebook and paperback from Amazon, B&N.com, Kobo, and Apple Books. Get your copy today! Also, the Dollhouse Park Conservatory & Imaginarium has some lovely things to say about moi in general and this bookie wookie in specific.

The Great Reviews Keep On Coming! The Festival of Lights anthology from Albert Whitman & Co. celebrating Hanukkah with a diverse collection of poems and stories filled with history, humor, and hope, which released in the first week of September, is still getting awesome reviews. My story, "The Luck of the Irish," deals with a family discovering they have a whole history they know nothing about. This YA collection is great for everyone of all ages, even if you don't know a yarmulke from a menorah. Get your copy today! And check out these great reviews of the anthology from the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal, and The Sydney Taylor Schmooze.

For those who came in late... I wrote "the end"!  I wrote "the end"! I wrote "the end"! Yes, it's true, Aliens Like Us is FINALLY done and Kitty and I are super happy with it. The next milestones -- review by my critique partners and beta team -- has happened. The next milestone has now also been reached! My agent's reviewed the book and she loves it just as much as I do. Now, it'll be going to DAW sometime this month. Once it's reviewed and they go over edits and such with me  I should have at least a guesstimate for the official release date. As always, all y'all will be the first to know! (And yes, I'm getting the teaser pages for Alien Research ready as we speak, so to speak...)

As I said at the start of this blog, reviews are the biggest gift you can give an author. 1 star, 5 stars, or anything in between, it all helps, far more than you realize. So, please, toss a review to your author as a lovely birthday, or unbirthday, present!

So many bookie wookies, so much time to catch up on all of them while waiting for Aliens Like Us and the next READ THIS! selection. Check out my Bookstore for all the things!

That's it for today but, never fear, another Update, including the Discord Q&A chat invitation, will be arriving in a couple of weeks! In the meantime, stay safe and healthy, remember we're all in this together, be kind to one another, give love and support to all those who are on the front lines in any capacity, and let's be readers out there. Peace out, my li'l gangstas, and I'll catch you on the flip side! Love, Gini