On 25 May last year, we were deep in planning mode for a couple of monumental tasks. One: we had a release date for the epic merging of our vampire worlds, A Conclave of Crimson. Two: we planned to meet up in Europe to announce the cover reveal for Conclave to the world.
Though we had spent countless hours on Skype, editing and writing and designing together. We were, at that point, two best friends who had never met in person but had somehow managed to marry two completely separate vampire series into one unforgettable multiverse.
So, one year ago, we were absolutely giddy about our impending adventure: one week in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds, Beverley’s stomping grounds — and one week in Paris.
Here we are at those famous church doors…St. Edwards Church at Stow-on-the-Wold (said to be the inspiration for Tolkien’s Doors of Durin from The Fellowship of the Ring). We visited a lot of graveyards, went to many churches where we had the entire space to ourselves, and touched every yew tree we encountered.
After a beautiful week in the U.K., we headed off to France via the Eurotunnel: destination, Paris. To walk in the footsteps of our vampires, and to carry their words with us wherever we went. We saw their shadows each night we walked the cobblestoned streets.
And, sometimes, we even saw them in the daylight:
We took Conclave to Père Lachaise cemetery, where we spent an entire day: we left briefly to cross the street for a jambon beurre and a choux à la crème, and brought our lunch back to eat quietly amongst the dead. We loved it.
So now we find ourselves deep in edits once again, preparing for the release of Book Two. Sadly, we won’t be able to gather for the announcement of the next instalment: but we’re always together in spirit.
Since the first volume of Conclave is out in the world, we are very excited to announce that it will be going on a Bookstagram tour with Pride Book Tours! Signups are open now at the previous link. The tour is open from 24 June-7 July. Signups will cut off soon, so act quickly. Ebooks will be provided.
We’re so excited to partner with the team at Pride Book Tours, and we’re especially thrilled that Conclave, our queer vampire romance, will be making the rounds during Pride Month.
Curiously enough, Conclave is going out the same weeks as C. Travis Rice’s tour for his new romance novel. You might also also know C. Travis Rice as the son of Anne Rice. We can’t help but appreciate this, as Anne is our patron saint. For us to be on the same roster as Christopher Rice feels like a good omen: as this is our first ever book tour.
If you haven’t yet read Conclave and are curious, this is a wonderful opportunity to both support our book and the important work that Pride Book Tours is doing: spreading the word about queer literature, and helping to get it into the hands of readers who need it most.
Interested in joining the tour? Click here to sign up.
As always, we thank you for reading our posts…and we hope you’ll join us in our deliciously dark vampire world.