Chanticleer Book Reviews

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The 2023 Chatelaine Awards First Place Roundup for Romance Fiction!

The Chatelaine Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Romantic Fiction. The Grand Prize Winner, Gail Avery Halverson’s book, A Sea of Glass will be promoted for years to come in our annual Hall of Fame article, as well as be featured on the Chatelaine contest page year ’round!

The best part about being a Chanticleer Int’l Book Award Winner is the love and attention you get all year ‘round!

The 2023 Chatelaine Winners were announced at the 2024 Chanticleer Authors Conference in April, and you can see the official winners post here!

Join us in celebrating the 2023 First Place Chatelaine Winners!

T.K. Conklin – Guarded Hearts

When a simple touch can hurt or heal, do they dare take a chance on love?

LaRisa spent her life as the town outcast. Whispered to be a witch, she grew and sold healing herbs to the very people that shunned her. Because of the special ability she was cursed with at birth, she fears touching others. She knew she was destined to be a spinster, until she meets a man that isn’t afraid of her.

The beautiful auburn haired witch instantly enchanted Strykes, but he knew he shouldn’t fall in love with her. Haunted by his past and of what he could become, makes him leery of love. Though his hands ache to caress her, he is afraid he will hurt her. Or worse.

When his outlaw past catches up to him and sends them running for their lives, the love between them grows. As well as their fears.

From Chanticleer:

Guarded Hearts by T K Conklin is a sensual romance in the Wild West, with all the passion and excitement natural to the setting.

Sparks fly between a man with an outlaw past and a woman with a terrifying gift to heal or harm. Strykes is a man haunted both by a violent childhood and his time in an outlaw gang. But he has found a place in Rimrock, where he met LaRisa, an auburn-haired woman whom the townspeople have labeled a “witch” due to her healing herbs and rumors of her “powers”.

Read More Here

Find it Locally or on Amazon

Bonnie Rose Ward – Loving Beth

Beth McCullough struggles to keep her West Virginia farm and care for two abandoned children, but the bank is threatening foreclosure, someone is threatening her life, and the man she’s falling for has closed his heart to love. But God works in mysterious ways.

Times were hard after Beth McCullough’s father died in the Civil War, but she and her mother are getting by on their little farm outside Rosewood, West Virginia. The kindly banker holding the loan lets them pay what they can. Then Beth’s mother dies suddenly, and the banker’s arrogant son gives her only thirty days to pay her full debt. Beth is left alone and lonely and fears losing the only home she’s ever known. It would be nice to have someone in her life like Jacob, the handsome man who found her mother. Then to her horror, Beth discovers two small children who’ve been abandoned. It’s one more thing for her to worry about, but Beth has to keep faith in God’s ability to work miracles.

From Chanticleer:

In Loving Beth, a Christian historical romance by Bonnie Rose Ward, a young woman finds herself in dire straits when her widowed mother dies unexpectedly.

Beth’s father had taken out loans to improve their property, but he was killed in the Civil War, leaving his wife and daughter to struggle to keep up with the payments. Now, Beth is alone without any means to keep her home—finding and taking in two young, abandoned children certainly doesn’t help. But even amidst her troubles, Beth’s thoughts keep going back to the mysterious and handsome stranger who found and brought home the body of her mother.

Life is not easy in her tiny settlement in West Virginia, and young, pretty Beth finds that it is not about to get any easier. The new banker holds a grudge toward her for having rejected his advances, and the man’s snobbish wife is determined to make Beth’s life even more miserable. The loans that Beth and her mother worked to pay each month are suddenly due in full— but the banker’s unwanted and ugly advances are foiled with the appearance of the mysterious stranger.

Read More Here

Find it on Amazon

S.G. Blaise – Proud Pada

Lilla is on her next mission as a Sybil, when she must travel to the Pada world following the trail of a ruthless murderer.

Navigating deadly politics turns increasingly difficult, when the Teryn emperor goes missing.

Now the Teryn empire is heading towards civil war, and Lilla must uncover who is behind the conspiracy before it’s too late.

Unfortunately her success depends on the Proud Pada.

Find it Locally and on Amazon

Jo Morgan Sloan- Stableshoes

This LGBT+ Retelling of Cinderella isn’t out yet, but has a release date of July 2025, and we are very excited to see this book come out!

Prince Darian has met all the requirements necessary to claim his father’s throne; at least, he thinks he has, until his sinister cousin Bertram reveals a law that states Darian must marry by his twenty-fifth birthday, or lose the crown.

With only four weeks to find a bride, Darian turns to his beautiful, irreverent, clever friend Ashley for help before a grand ball is to be thrown in his honor. But there is another who catches the prince’s eye: living in perpetual silence is Eric, the stronghold stableman, whose kindness disrupts Darian’s plans to hide his nature.

Each day that passes is another day closer to Bertram’s takeover, and he’s counting on Darian to fail. While Eric has the prince’s heart, the stableman also carries a secret mark that could jeopardize Darian’s claim to the throne. To protect the nation he loves from a tyrant, Prince Darian must choose between true love and living a lie.

For more Information, check out the authors website

Rose Prendeville – Mistress Mackintosh and the Shaw Wretch

In 1725, a secret convent has been established on the Aberdeenshire coast.Jory Mackintosh is more excited by healing herbs than husbands or holy prayers. She craves freedom—and a chance to sneak into medical school. Instead, on the eve of her escape, she becomes an unwilling pawn in her family’s schemes with a rival clan.

Finlay Shaw, the disgraced younger brother of the laird, has spent ten long years atoning for his past failures, but nothing can wash away the stain of fratricide. When the clans order him to escort Jory to her new life as a nun, thus securing an alliance with the freshly formed Black Watch, it’s his last chance for redemption. Too bad for Finn, Jory has no intention of following orders.

Trapped on the road together, often with only one bed between them, the two butt heads and match wits, forced to acknowledge the dark shadows that have haunted them both for years. Can they learn to trust each other, and themselves, to fly in the face of their families’ wishes, or will they choose the solitary futures they always believed they deserve in this unorthodox runaway bride story?

Find it Locally or on Amazon

Thank you for joining us to celebrate the 2023 Chatelaine First Place Winners!

You can see our Spotlight on the Chatelaine Grand Prize Winners, including Gail Avery Halverson’s incredible book A Sea of Glass here.

Your book can join the Tiers of Achievement, but only if you submit to the Chanticleer Int’l Book Awards!

Got a great Fiction Book? The 2024 Chatelaine Book Awards are open through the end of August!

Submit to the Chatelaine Awards Today!

August 20, 2024
The 2024 Chatelaine Spotlight for Romance Fiction!
End the Summer with a little Romance

The Chatelaine Award submissions close at the End of August!

Just like the many objects hanging from a Chatelaine, Romance Fiction can have many different types and we’re excited to see what 2024 brings us! Here’s the Categories-
- Contemporary Romance
- Historical Romance
- Adventure & Suspense
- Romantic Steamy/Sensual (Not Erotic)
- Inspirational/Restorative/Clean
Romance Fiction doesn’t have just one type. Modern Day to History, Adventurous or not, Steamy or Clean, we love it all!

You know what fits most of our Categories? The Mummy. Modern movie, Historical setting, Plenty of Action, yet the Romantic elements are on the clean side.

While other Divisions also have Romantic inclined categories (Paranormal, M&M, Rossetti, Laramie and Hemingway all have categories for Romance) you can never go wrong with a plain and simple Love story. Or maybe you like a little drama in your books.

Historical Romance seems to be a rather popular category now, in both the books we see and wider in the book market. This year’s Grand Prize for Chatelaine is a Historical Romance! Taking place in the 1600’s in England, Colonial America and the Caribbean, it fits firmly into the Historical genre.

The SKEPTICAL PHYSICK (The Stockbridge Series, Book 2)
By Gail Avery Halverson

In the second in a series by author Halverson, an aristocratic, intellectually curious young woman has fallen in love with a young physician, a commoner whose radical experimentations have jeopardized his reputation. The couple is just recovering from the professional and personal rigors of dealing with London’s plague victims when the city is overwhelmed by fire. Their services are needed now more than ever.

Supported by mentor hospital administrator Father Hardwicke in his medical endeavors, Simon McKensie is finally on the verge of marrying the woman he adores, Catherine Abbott. Even the wealthy, protective Aunt Viola has come to terms with the fact that, though she might not approve the match on social grounds, she sees that Catherine will be happy with Simon.

Read more here!

Did you know? Gail Halverson’s book A Sea of Glass won the 2023 Chatelaine Grand Prize! The review is to come!

EDGED In PURPLE
By John W. Feist

Edged in Purple by John W. Feist welcomes readers to a place outside of time and space, a liminal space where characters of myth wait to return to their fated stories.

The Fold is a beautiful land, a near-utopia shepherded– literally– by Thetis and Peleus of Greek mythology. They raise the heroine of Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale, Perdita, after her father had accused her mother of betraying him with another, the whole sad story a product of his own paranoia.

Perdita’s story is proceeding as it was written. She has already met Florizel, the man who should be the hero of her romance– when her story is intersected by another. Just as The Winter’s Tale features royal courts, doomed relationships, mistaken identities, and family murder, so too does an ancient Greek drama: the Oresteia of Aeschylus, the story of Agamemnon after the Trojan War.

Read more here!

SUMMER STORM: Magic at Myers Beach Book 2
By Alan B. Gibson

In Summer Storm, the second book of Alan B. Gibson’s Magic at Myers Beach series, local business owner Greta the Witch has a chance at fame, fortune, and fairytale love—if she can keep it all from being stolen first.

Picking up cleanly after Summer Thunder (Book 1 in the series), this story opens with Greta worrying about her social life. Her best friend Lily has left on an extended honeymoon with her husband Theos the King. Fortunately, her acquaintance, Julie, moves back to town, and while they soon develop a close friendship, things get awkward when she learns that Julia received a massive financial gift from Lily and Theos, and she was left with nothing.

Greta can at least focus on her business, the Witch’s Cauldron, and being the star of a reality show that’s planning to film her daily life. And when Greta meets a mysterious and charming man—Zsombor, or “Dos” to his friends—she finds herself rocketed to a level of stardom she couldn’t have imagined. She attends an opening gala for the renovated Fairy Kingdom tea house, and after a mixture of disastrous and fabulous public appearances she becomes Myers Beach’s rising influencer star.

Read more here!

LOVING BETH
By Bonnie Rose Ward

In Loving Beth, a Christian historical romance by Bonnie Rose Ward, a young woman finds herself in dire straits when her widowed mother dies unexpectedly.

Beth’s father had taken out loans to improve their property, but he was killed in the Civil War, leaving his wife and daughter to struggle to keep up with the payments. Now, Beth is alone without any means to keep her home—finding and taking in two young, abandoned children certainly doesn’t help. But even amidst her troubles, Beth’s thoughts keep going back to the mysterious and handsome stranger who found and brought home the body of her mother.

Life is not easy in her tiny settlement in West Virginia, and young, pretty Beth finds that it is not about to get any easier. The new banker holds a grudge toward her for having rejected his advances, and the man’s snobbish wife is determined to make Beth’s life even more miserable. The loans that Beth and her mother worked to pay each month are suddenly due in full— but the banker’s unwanted and ugly advances are foiled with the appearance of the mysterious stranger.

Read more here!

Thank you for celebrating this great romance reads with us!

The Chatelaine Awards are open until the end of July!

Submit to the Chatelaine Awards today!
August 13, 2024
Chanticleer 10 Question Author Interview Series with Thomas Goodman – Award-winning book, The Last Man, Laramie Grand Prize Award, Author Life

From the 2023 Laramie Division Grand Prize Winner for Americana and Western for his book The Last Man, we have a brand new Chanticleer Author Interview!

Thomas Goodman won the Grand Prize in the Laramie Division of the 2023 Chanticleer International Book Awards for his novel, The Last Man. The Laramie Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the Americana and Westerns fiction genre. The Laramie Book Awards is a division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards (The CIBAs).

The Laramie division includes:

Western Romance, Adventure, Caper, Classic Western Romance, Adventure Caper Classic Western,

Civil War/Prairie/Pioneer, Contemporary Western, Americana, and First Nation

Join us in getting to know the thrilling writing of the Western genre’s newest talent, Thomas Goodman!

Chanti: Tell us a little about yourself: How did you start writing?

Goodman: I first heard the story of the 1927 Santa Claus Bank Robbery in the 1990s when I lived in the small Texas county where it took place. All the accounts ended with the deaths of three of the four robbers, with little information about the life of the last surviving member of the gang. As it turns out, the details of his spectacular prison escapes and eventual rehabilitation are as fascinating as the violent endings of the other three robbers. By the time he died in his 90s around the same time I learned of the robbery, he had received a full pardon and had been a married model citizen for 50 years. In his honor, I named my book, The Last Man: A Novel of the 1927 Santa Claus Bank Robbery.

Thomas Goodman donating his book, The Last Man, to “Books for the Brave,” which stocks military bases with books the troops can read for free.

Chanti: Let’s talk about genre. What genre best describes your work, and what led you to pick that genre for your writing?

Goodman: Identifying the genre was a challenge. It’s closely based on a true crime, so it’s non-fiction; but telling the story required some measure of speculation, so it’s fiction. Like any good novel in the crime genre, it’s a grim and violent story; and yet like any compelling novel in the inspirational genre, it’s a redemption story, too. And the story begins in the 1920s with an old-fashioned bank robbery in a small Texas town, which makes it a Western; but the story ends in post-WW2 society, which makes it historical fiction.

Thankfully, booksellers and libraries allow books to be cataloged in various genres, but my “go-to” answer when asked about the genre is “historical crime fiction.”

Chanti: What about your own personal writing structure day to day? Do you have a routine?

Goodman: Since I have a full time job, I write 3 days a week from 6:00-8:30am before the office day begins. Between the 2 approaches to writing–the “plotters,” who create a broad outline of the plot before they begin, and the “pantsers,” who start writing and just see what develops–I am definitely a “plotter.” That said, I’m often surprised at what a character decides to do or what turn my well-planned plot takes when I’m in the middle of writing.

Look for the Chanticleer Review of this Laramie Grand Prize Winner! Coming soon and will link to this article!

Chanti: It’s difficult finding time to consistently write. How do you approach your writing day to stay consistent?

Goodman: When I was at a writers conference six years ago, I met an author who had traditionally-published a series of cozy mysteries. She told me she would get up at 5am and write until 7:30am when it was time to go to her “real job” as an assistant elementary school principal. That gave me the idea to write from 6am until 8:30am when my office opened. Once I began to write under that schedule, I completed my book in 2 years.

Chanti: Who are a few of your favorite authors and how have they influenced your work.

Goodman: James Wade’s All Things Left Wild gave me the confidence to believe that the Western genre wasn’t a dead genre.

I also really like Texas author Paulette Jiles (News of the World, Chenneville, and especially Stormy Weather.) She strikes the right balance between situating her story in a world over a 100 years ago without bogging the plot down with a lot of details and explanations of how life used to be—a constant temptation for a historical fiction writer.

For prose that’s beautiful but not syrupy, I love Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead, Cormac McCarthy’s All the Pretty Horses, and Annie Proulx’s Close Range: Wyoming Stories.

Chanti: Reading books in our genre is so crucial to developing voice. What else has helped you grow your author chops?

Goodman: John Trumby’s The Anatomy of Story is helpful. So is Steven James’s Story Trumps Structure. Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird is next on my list.

Chanti: Those are both great. Lamott is the starting inspiration for so many wonderful writers. Do you have any books about the business of writing that have helped you?

Goodman: Ricardo Fayet’s How to Market a Book and Amazon Ads for Authors was helpful. And David Gaughran’s book, Following, Strangers to Superfans, and Let’s Get Digital. Every author should read Tammi Labrecque’s Newsletter Ninja.

Chanti: And from that wealth of knowledge, what are your best marketing tips? What’s helped sell more books? How have you gained notoriety? What strategies have you used to expand your literary footprint?

Goodman: Get a desirable reader magnet and build your newsletter list; sign up for the festivals that fit your genre and engage with customers at your book table; convince customers to leave starred reviews at their favorite online bookstore and review sites, and give them the direct link(s) to those sites.

Author Tom Goodman, hiking McKittrick Canyon in the Guadalupe Mountains National Park.

Chanti: What are you working on now? What can we look forward to seeing next from you?

Goodman: I’m writing a novel around a minor character who showed up late in my debut novel. She’s in her 70s when readers meet her as a boardinghouse owner in The Last Man. I go back to 1905 when she was 35. It’s turning out to be a gentler family drama as opposed to the grim and violent story of my first novel. But I’m liking it so far. After that, I’ll probably return to the crime genre. I’ve discovered a true story from the very early 1900s in East Texas about a “pistol-packing preacher” who faced down a violent gang of bootleggers who was shredding his town to bits. Irresistible story!

Chanti: Before we let you go, who is the perfect reader for your book?

Goodman: Someone who likes historical fiction that closely tracks with real characters and events.

Chanti: Thank you, Thomas Goodman, for sharing your author journey with us. I am looking forward to seeing you at the next Chanticleer Authors Conference!

You can follow Thomas Goodman through his Facebook page here.

Thomas Goodman won the Laramie 2023 Grand Prize for his amazing true crime/historical fiction novel, The Last Man! And also, because he believed in his work enough to enter it into the Laramie division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards…

In other words, if you don’t enter, you will never know how your work stacks up against the other entries.

If you want a shot at the HONOR of Laramie Americana & Western Awards for 2024, don’t delay, enter the Laramie B00k Awards today!

August 7, 2024
The 2024 Ozma Spotlight for Fantasy Fiction! Explore the Categories, the Overlaps, and find your Next Great Read!
The search for the best Fantasy Fiction continues!

The submissions for the 2024 Awards is well underway, and Ozma closes submissions at the end of July!

Fantasy isn’t just elves and magic. There is so many possibilities for a Fantasy Tale and we love that!

Let’s Dive into the Categories!
- Magic, Heroes and Villains is classic High Fantasy like Lord of The Rings.
- Coming of age is Fantasy typically looks at someone coming into their own, like Egwene al’Vere in The Wheel of Time, but it can also be aimed at a younger audience. For YA Fantasy see Dante Rossetti and for Middle Grade Fantasy check out the Gertrude Warner Awards!
- Steampunk and Dieselpunk are a type of Alternative history and Counterculture, Steampunk being Victorian era sci-fi or fantasy, or both, with an emphasis on steam powered or gaslight technology and historical fashions.
  - Dieselpunk is a similar category but more like an industrial Art Deco, Film Noir aspects with aesthetics of the World Wars and Early Cold War. The video game series Bioshock, or Bladerunner could be seen as examples of Dieselpunk . There are quite a few different types of ‘punk’. Cyberpunk is one of the more well known, using 1980s futuristic aesthetics.
- Historical Fantasy is similar to the previous, but with less of the Science Fiction elements. History with magic instead of History with weird tech.
- Modern and Urban Fantasy is exactly what it sounds like. Jim Butcher’s The Dresden Files is a good example. Fantasy, but realistic. Magical Realism stands on its own, and can be found as a Category in the Somerset Awards!
- Last, but not least is Myths and Legends and Fairy Tales. Classic Fantasy elements, Fairies, King Arthur, folktale type stories.
Fantasy can even have many crossovers with Science Fiction! The cast of Star Trek: Next Generation shows just the same thing.

Looking for your next Fantasy Read? Check out some of these incredible books we’ve reviewed!

THE CLAIMING: Fractured Kingdoms Book 1
By J.A. Nielsen

The illegitimate son of a human king accidentally binds himself to a Fae princess in J.A. Nielsen’s YA adventure, The Claiming. As war bears down on the kingdom of Telridge, can the two of them break the spell in time?

Lord Ferrous, ruler of Telridge, smells conflict coming for his people. Even so, he denies a mysterious request from the king of the Winter Fae, and sets his sons to prepare their land for war. His eldest, Prince Dirk, gathers his knights and begins to evacuate the common people to the protection of Telridge castle. His younger son Spense, born out of wedlock to the castle’s head cook, uses his finicky magic to Claim a bridge over a powerful river. If he succeeds, the passing will be barred to their enemies. But he fails to realize that the powerful living force he encounters isn’t the bridge at all.

Dewy, crown princess of the Summer Fae, is Claimed instead of the bridge. Her aunt, Lady Radiant, must exile her from their lands. While Dewy’s careless spirit chafed under Radiant’s authority, she grieves for her lost home.

Read More Here!

The Second Book in the Award-Winning Fractured Kingdom Series comes out September 4, 2024! It’s available for pre-order now!

A CIRCLE Of STARS: Four Crowns Series Book 1
By Erin Lark Maples

If you’re looking for a beach read with supernatural intrigue, A Circle of Stars by Erin Lark Maples will draw you in from page one. Ember “EJ” James, a newly-arrived stranger in the strange land of Prescott, AZ, immediately begins navigating unfamiliar territory, both physically and metaphysically.

Forty-something EJ doesn’t know it yet, but when she agreed to take over her deceased uncle Hollis’s shop in Prescott, she stumbled into a world of magical realism. The plant shop, as it turns out, is more than just that—it hides secret access to other realms, which supernatural beings will go to great lengths to access. Much like the plants in the shop, this tale is dark, tangled, and intriguing beyond belief.

Anyone else may have felt helpless. But EJ remains upbeat, charmingly self-deprecating, and resourceful to the end. There’s a great joy in seeing how she works through her new surroundings, unfazed by (almost) everything they throw her way.

Read More Here!

SUMMER THUNDER: Magic at Myers Beach Book 1
By Alan B. Gibson

Lily struggles to keep her business, her son, and her home. But in Summer Thunder, first book of the Magic at Myers Beach series by Alan B. Gibson, Lily’s luck begins to turn as she connects with the enigmatic beach king Theos.

With the help of her friend and fellow business owner Greta “the Witch,” Lily tries to revitalize her fairy-themed decoration and figurine store. Her divorce from her abusive ex-husband Kelly is pending, and she must present a calm and reliable home to ensure full custody of her son Jamie. But when her kindly landlord, Ms. Coffey, passes away, she’s confronted with two options: lose her prime business location and upstairs apartment, or somehow make enough money to buy the building herself.

Enter Theos, a kitesurfing champion with adoring fans. He shows true appreciation for Lily’s fairy figurines, bringing her many more sales. But more importantly, Theos becomes deeply interested in Lily herself. Their romance begins on rocky footing, as Theos has a strange air about him and seems to vanish whenever a storm comes into town. But when he begins modelling for a new fairy figurine – aptly named Theos, the King – the two are drawn inevitably closer.

Read More Here!

MISTRESS Of LEGEND: Guinevere’s Tale Book 3
By Nicole Evelina

In Mistress of Legend, the enticing finale of Nicole Evelina’s Guinevere’s Tale trilogy, matters are life-and-death by the second sentence, pulling readers deep into Guinevere’s fate in this retelling of Arthurian legend.

We come upon heroine Guinevere in the midst of an ill-fated romance with Lancelot. It’s far from her first troubled entanglement, but the stakes rise as she’s severely injured and faces even more threats, pursued by possible enemies. The novel’s beginning is woven with backstory, which adds suspense to the drama unfolding in Guinevere’s present. This summarizing might be slow for readers familiar with the series, but makes the story accessible for those who haven’t picked up the first two books.

Many more characters appear, waving the web of intrigue Guinevere finds herself caught in.

Evelina builds this setting through well-researched cultural details, like the holidays and rites of Guinevere’s pagan world, and the symbolism and ideology of the Christianity that threatens to blot her world out.

Read More Here!

Plus, check out our 2023 Overall Grand Prize Winner, A Vengeful Realm by Tim Facciola!

A roaring start with a queen planning her husband’s execution while full of regret for what must be done. Magic is forbidden, knights and gladiators are doing their best to make their way through a complex political world, and the prince is just trying to keep his family safe. Excellent for anyone who loves Brandon Sanderson!

Thank you to everyone who submitted to the 2023 Ozma Awards! We can’t believe that the whole adventure starts again when the Ozma Awards close on July 31st, 2024.

This is the journey from beginning to end for the CIBAs Levels of Achievement is so worthwhile! Every list you make means more promotion for you and your work as each list is posted right here on our website, on our social media, and also out in our newsletter! Your book deserves to be discovered.

Submit to the Ozma Awards today!
July 18, 2024
Steven Michael Beck 10 Question Interview with Chanticleer – Screenwriter, Director, Climate Fiction Author

CHANTICLEER 10 QUESTION AUTHOR INTERVIEW SERIES

Soar a Burning Sky won the 2022 OZMA Grand Prize Award for Fantasy Fiction!

with Award-Winning Author, Steven Michael Beck

Steven Michael Beck was the OZMA Grand Prize Winner for Fantasy Fiction at the 2022 CIBAs, hosted by the 2023 Chanticleer Authors Conference. His book, Soar A Burning Sky looks at a world linked to Earth’s, and both planets are in danger due to the harsh realities of Earth’s drastic climate change.

He is also an award winning commercial director and Visual Effects art director on films like Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, The Abyss, and The Hunt for Red October.

We were so glad to meet Steven and Vicki back in 2023 and are delighted to present this interview.

Chanticleer: To begin with, tell us a little about yourself! How did you start writing?

Beck: Writing has always been part of the creative process for me. As a filmmaker, treatments and screenplays were, and are the preemptive language of my craft. Being able to convey characters, camera movement, narrative arcs complete evocative moments, could only be done by putting words to the page. Given I’d always had the practice, longform wasn’t much of stretch—or so I thought.

Chanticleer: Film and writing always seem to have huge overlap. We run into that a lot with Book to Screen interest at the Conference. When did you realize that, in addition to being a director, you were also an author?

Beck: Here’s the odd answer… I don’t want to be a writer. I have a story to tell, and I want to get it out before I’m no longer able to write anymore. Which isn’t the same thing as wanting to be a writer. What I’d love to be is a relieved human being, thankful we finally got a handle on climate change. I see my contribution to that resolution as being the writer on this one story.

Steven Michael Beck directing Isaiah Washington on the set of the Ghost Ship.

Chanticleer: The issues of climate change are serious, and we’re glad to see the shift in fiction to address this too. Would you say that’s the genre you focus on here?

Beck: My genre is eco-dystopian fantasy. Solving climate change, or at least putting a dent in it is an eco-dystopian fantasy. The only ones capable to do this are those destined to inherit it. Thus, I’m trying to speak to them directly.

Chanticleer: Tell us a little about your writing process. Where do you land on things like idea generation, writing, and writing rules?

Beck: Lol. Rules? There are rules? In coming up with ideas for a story, I imagine a scene, and then let it go. Before it hits the presses, I indent, and re-edit it several times in over in order to get it right. I imagine. It informs. We then edit together.

For the writing day, I write in the mornings until I’m starved. Then I break for lunch, and then edit in the afternoon. Can’t write at night, lest I take it to bed.

Where the writing magic happens!

Chanticleer: It sounds like you’re a fairly intuitive writer. When you’re not writing what are you up to?

Beck: I’m the type of person who’s constantly curious about the creative process. That said, I have a rather inflatable muse. She takes me everywhere; film, design, sculpture, writing, construction, architectural design… Wherever she goes, I follow.

Chanticleer: An inflatable muse? Oh, I hope there’s a picture that explains that! Thinking about the support of muses, what are areas in your writing that you are most confident in? What advice would you offer to writers struggling in that area?

Steven Michael Beck wrestles with his next scene as the Muse looms over him.

Beck: I’m most confident in writing dialogue. Again, I believe that’s due to all the years writing screenplays. Regarding advice… Listen to the conversations around you as you develop original voice. One informs the other.

Chanticleer: How would you say being an author affects your involvement in community?

Beck: It sorely keeps me from it. Writing is a monk’s existence—if you’re going to be good. Which means, you sequester yourself away for hours at a time, day after day, months on end. Sure, you could spend the remaining hours at some bar, Bokowski-ing it, but that’s not community.

Chanticleer: That’s unfortunate that it feels like being an author and participating in community are at odds with each other. Do you feel like there’s a way you can promote and improve literacy in your community still?

Beck: I’m a columnist in our local paper as well as being a local author. One feeds the other when it comes to community dialogue.

Chanticleer: That is so true. Thinking of people reading your column, who would you say is the perfect reader for your book?

Beck: Anyone ages 12-54 who’s concerned their world won’t be here someday. Hopefully I can convince them my work is fantasy.

Chanticleer: So often fantasy and reality intersect, which is one of the great joys of writing. As a final question, what excites you most about writing?

Beck: The sense of discovery. You never expect to find what you do when you write. It’s magical, frustrating, shocking, and complex, all at once. Which is odd when you’re writing a cookbook.

Steven and Vicky Beck at Chanticleer Authors Conference

Chanticleer: Indeed! Thank you so much for making the time for this interview!

You can sign up for the Napa Valley Register and read Beck’s column here.

Steven Michael Beck spent the last 30 years pursuing the art of storytelling through advertising, film, and television. Specializing in visual effects-oriented concepts (and their often-unique storylines), his direction has constantly reflected infatuation with animation—the notion that any object or idea either contained ‘life’, or could be conjured into such (needless to say, he had an imaginative childhood). These projects and life lessons have been nothing if not steppingstones, leading him to see the potential of a new type of storytelling through combinations of sculpture, photography, text, and found object.

June 17, 2024
Dante Rossetti 2023 Awards Update! Deadline moved to September 30

You asked, we listened

We tend to be a little more high tech at Chanticleer

New Deadline for the Dante Rossetti Awards: September 30, 2023

We recently reorganized our Book Awards program at the request of our readers to keep a more even balance for reading and to lighten the load during the holiday season. As we settle into this new schedule, we’re hearing great feedback from authors regarding the best times for them to submit their work. This depends on conferences and workshops (many of which are genre specific) where they can regularly receive feedback and writing retreats that allow them to finish their manuscripts. Thank you to everyone who reaches out and makes our Awards a success every year!

Deadline Extended! Submit to the Dante Rossetti Awards by the end of September!

You now have until the end of September to submit to the Dante Rossetti Book Awards for Young Adult Fiction.

The Dante Rossetti Awards are named for the young British painter and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti, seen on our badge for the Rossetti Awards in a self-portrait.

La Viuda Romana by Dante Rossetti

Chanticleer chose Dante Rossetti as the namesake of our young adult fiction awards, because of Rossetti’s strong connection to works of beauty and emotions as swift as the changing seasons. Both aspects embody what it means to be young. We feel that the sentiment expressed by the Pre-Raphaelite movement exemplifies what inspires many authors to pick up their proverbial pens to express their emotions and their observations of the visceral dynamics of living.

In the spirit of Young Adult Literature, we’d like to celebrate some of our favorite YA reads by Chanticleer Authors in the last year.

PLAGUE Of FLIES: Revolt of the Spirits, 1846
By Laurel Anne Hill
Ozma Grand Prize Winner
Dante Rossetti First Place Winner

Sixteen-year-old Catalina Delgado’s hopes of marrying her love are troubled by strange, unnatural dangers, in Laurel Anne Hill’s novel, Plague of Flies.

Like every dutiful daughter in 1846, Catalina worries about her reputation. However, she must also gain the approval of Ángelo Ortega’s family. Unfortunately, when three strangers ride onto her family’s small ranch in Alta California, she knows that more than her dreams are at risk. Alta California has just been invaded by the men of the Bear Flag, and Catalina fears what will become of her homeland now that it has been claimed by the Yankees. The nearby ranch owned by the valiant General Vallejo has been raided, owners and their servants terrorized and held captive. Plus Bear Flaggers have murdered additional friends of Catalina’s family on a beach.

In connection with the recent killings, the three strangers are harbingers of a dire prophecy repeated to Catalina by a dying vaquero. Catalina is destined to be carried off by a spirit man riding a black Andalusian stallion. She will be tasked to do the bidding of Coyote, a trickster spirit who is trying to stop the advancement of the Bear Flaggers. Catalina grapples with her uncertainty and disbelief, but she desperately wants to save her family. When Spirit Man appears to her, she must ask herself how far she is willing to go to keep her loved ones alive.

Read more here!

THE HIDDEN LIBRARY: Book 2 of the Isle of Dragons Series
By L.A. Thompson

Isle of Dragons: The Hidden Library by L.A. Thompson is a breathtaking race to seize the reins of destiny and find a magical library that was once the subject of stories and lore. Jade and Kaylen, once friends, oppose each other in search of this hidden library and its world-changing secrets.

Demoted and dejected, Kaylen reels from her valiant but failed attempt to bring back the final item that King Jarrod needs to fulfill a prophecy. The iconic stone remains out of reach. Kaylen is summoned for an audience with the king. A glimmer of hope for the future flickers, but the king demands an even more ambitious mission of her. He will restore her rank and honors if she finds for him the mysterious hidden library that can open a gateway between worlds. It’s a deadly challenge that will once again pit her against an old friend.

Jade summons all her strength and courage with others who stand against the king who has made her family suffer. When she and Kaylen clash, sparks will ignite as hot as a dragon’s roar.

Read more here!

OPERATION MOM: My Plan to Get My Mom a Life and a Man
By Reenita Malhotra Hora
Chatelaine Grand Prize Winner
Dante Rossetti First Place Winner

Master storyteller Reenita Malhotra Hora’s YA romance Operation Mom: My Plan to Get My Mom a Life and a Man takes us on a charming journey through the life of one teen, Ila Isham.

Hora introduces Ila and her best friend Deepali, two boy-crazy teens on a summer quest. Readers will fall in love with the smart, sassy, angst-filled, rebellious Ila. A typical teenage girl, Ila lives in Mumbai with her mom and Sakkubai, their house manager. Ila’s mother calls her obsessed, but that seems unfair. Is she obsessed just because her every waking minute is spent thinking of Ali Zafar, famous pop icon, singer, and heartthrob? Or is she obsessed with fellow classmate Dev?

No, Ila couldn’t be taken with Dev because he’s one of three young men that her best friend Deepali is juggling in her summer experiment of exploring her “feminine mystique.” This turn of phrase becomes just one of many opportunities for Hora’s humor to shine as Ila remarks, “That’s a book by Gloria Steinem . . . no Betty Friedan.” Deepali’s response? “Yaar. Don’t be so literal.” The delightful balance between Ila’s book smarts versus Deepali’s street smarts carries us through Hora’s expertly crafted story.

Read more here!

TARO: The Legendary Boy Hero of Japan
By Blue Spruell, illustrated by Miya Outlaw
Dante Rossetti Grand Prize Winner

Adventure, classic tales, fantasy, and exciting action combine in TARO: Legendary Boy Hero of Japan, a well-poised debut novel by award-winning author Blue Spruell.

In the turbulent final decades of the sixteenth century, feudal Japan reeled in mayhem as the central hereditary dictatorship collapsed, and tyrannical powers fought to control the empire. TARO: The Legendary Boy Hero of Japan is the story of how one man revolutionized a nation by taking its reigns and forging a new destiny through his depths of compassion and determination.

The story begins with Taro as a young boy. As an heir to the Takeda family, Taro enjoyed reading, much to his father’s disapproval, as he wanted him to follow in his footsteps as a skilled Samurai. Tragedy changes Taro’s presumed destiny when his parents are murdered in a fierce power struggle, leaving him an orphan. Shortly after, a witch saves him from drowning and begins Taro’s new life of adventure, introducing him to a world of mythical creatures. On this new journey, Taro discovers shocking secrets about his lineage, and with them, his ultimate purpose in medieval Japan.

Read more here!

FROM BRICK and DARKNESS
By J. L. Sullivan
Ozma First Place Winner

Dreams become a reality for a high schooler who gets more than he bargains for when he unwittingly releases a demon in J. L. Sullivan’s urban fantasy novel, From Brick and Darkness.

Fifteen-year-old Baxter (Bax) Allen encounters a creepy homeless-looking man at his apartment complex with purple eyes. The stranger, who asks for Greg, Bax’s estranged father, hands him a ring affixed with a purple stone. The man says that the costume jewelry is valuable, although Bax has difficulty believing his claim.

At school the next day, as he shares his weird experience with his best friend, Jason, Bax accidentally rubs the ring, the stone emits a hypnotic glow, and a small monkey-like creature appears, saying, “How can it serve?” Once Bax and Jason realize that the ring summoned a genie (or Janni, as the creature says), the two plan to investigate this strange phenomenon further at Bax’s house. One thing leads to the next, and before the boys know what’s going on, Ashley, Bax’s neighbor catches a glimpse of Janni. She joins the boys and is sworn to secrecy about this enchanted creature.

Read more here!

Thank you to everyone who has entered the CIBAs, and a special thanks to those who keep reading alive for the Young Adults in the world! Good books for young people matter!

The winners of the Dante Rossetti Awards will be announced during the 2024 Chanticleer Authors Conference. First-place winners receive the coveted Chanticleer Blue Ribbon, and the Grand Prize laureate commands the spotlight, epitomizing the exceptional YA Fiction genre talent.

Submit today!

The Grand Prize Winners of the 2022 Chanticleer Int’l Book Awards!

September 7, 2023
The CHAUCER 2023 Spotlight – Bringing History to Life through Fiction
History is alive and well

because of authors like you!

The Chaucer Book Awards recognizes the best of the best in Historical Fiction featuring the Pre-1750s Historical Fiction, including pre-history, ancient history, Classical, world history (non-western culture), Dark Ages and Medieval Europe, Renaissance, Elizabethan, Tudor, and 1600s.

Named for Geoffrey Chaucer who wrote The Canterbury Tales, The Chaucer Awards is the first Historical Fiction division created at Chanticleer, pre-dating the Goethe Awards for Late Historical Fiction and the Hemingway Awards for 20th c. Wartime Fiction. After receiving an overwhelming amount of entries into the 2016 Chaucer Book Awards, the judges requested that the CIBAs divide the historical fiction division.

The Canterbury Tales is considered one of the greatest works in the English language, and is in large part responsible for the strong Germanic influence (the top competing work of literature, Pearl, was much more heavily influence by French, but it wasn’t as popular and we don’t even have records of the author’s name). It was among the first non-secular books written in Middle English to be printed.

A woodcut from William Caxton’s second edition 0f the Canterbury Tales printed in 1483

Our favorite Rooster, Chanticleer himself comes from the Prior’s Tale, written by Chaucer!

“For crowing there was not his equal in all the land. His voice was merrier than the merry organ that plays in church, and his crowing from his resting place was more trustworthy than a clock. His comb was redder than fine coral and turreted like a castle wall, his bill was black and shone like a jet, and his legs and toes were like azure. His nails were whiter than the lily and his feathers were like burnished gold.” – Chaucer

Some interesting tidbits about Geoffrey Chaucer
- Born c. 1342/43 probably in London. He died on October 25, 1400
- His father was an important London vintner
- His family’s finances were derived from wine and leather
- Chaucer spoke Middle English and was fluent in French, Latin, and Italian
- He guided diplomatic missions across the continent of Europe for ten years where he discovered the works of Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio whose The Decameron had a profound influence on Chaucer’s later works
- He married well as his wife received an annuity from the queen consort of Edward III
- His remains are interred in the Westminster Abbey
As our deadline draws near, don’t miss this opportunity to earn the distinction your historical fiction deserves! Enter today!

The Grand Prize Winner for the CIBA 2022 CHAUCER Awards is:

Mack Little, author of

Daughter of Hades

Her a novella Shelter in a Hostile World in the same series is available now!

See the full list of 2022 Chaucer Winners here!

The Chaucer Awards, as a Division of the CIBAs, promotes authors at every step of the way. Each time a book advances we promote it
- Posting it on our high traffic website
- Highlighting it across our social media
- Sending it directly to our audience in a newsletter blast
Beginning at the Short List we start offering digital badges and promotional stickers to all entrants. We love promoting our authors and can’t wait to see who moves up in the lists for this prestigious award!

Submit to the Chaucer Awards Today!

See the full list of CIBAs here
September 7, 2023
Dante Rossetti Hall of Fame — Celebrating Books for Young Readers

Because Youth Reads Matter!

The Dante Rossetti Awards are here to bring the best in Teen and Young Adult Fiction.

***Enter Your Book Today!***

You have until August 31st to share your book with us and enter the 2023 CIBAs!

Elevate the literary journey of young minds with the Dante Rossetti Book Awards for Young Adult Fiction. Beyond genre confines, these awards unlock gateways to captivating narratives that resonate with the vibrant spirit of youth. Whether your tale unfolds in the realms of fantasy, romance, or mystery, the Dante Rossetti Awards celebrate stories that bridge the gap between imagination and reality. With each page turned, young readers are transported to worlds unknown, where characters mirror their aspirations, struggles, and triumphs. These awards recognize the power of storytelling to forge connections, foster empathy, and kindle a lifelong love for literature. Illuminate the path for emerging voices that leave an indelible mark on the hearts and minds of the next generation.

Join us in celebrating the previous Grand Prize Winners of the Dante Rossetti Awards!

Taro: The Legendary Boy Hero of Japan
By Blue Spruell

Adventure, classic tales, fantasy, and exciting action combine in TARO: Legendary Boy Hero of Japan, a well-poised debut novel by award-winning author Blue Spruell.

In the turbulent final decades of the sixteenth century, feudal Japan reeled in mayhem as the central hereditary dictatorship collapsed, and tyrannical powers fought to control the empire. TARO: The Legendary Boy Hero of Japan is the story of how one man revolutionized a nation by taking its reigns and forging a new destiny through his depths of compassion and determination.

The story begins with Taro as a young boy. As an heir to the Takeda family, Taro enjoyed reading, much to his father’s disapproval, as he wanted him to follow in his footsteps as a skilled Samurai. Tragedy changes Taro’s presumed destiny when his parents are murdered in a fierce power struggle, leaving him an orphan. Shortly after, a witch saves him from drowning and begins Taro’s new life of adventure, introducing him to a world of mythical creatures. On this new journey, Taro discovers shocking secrets about his lineage, and with them, his ultimate purpose in medieval Japan.

Read More Here

The Best Week That Never Happened
By Dallas Woodburn

Dallas Woodburn’s debut novel The Best Week that Never Happened is a roller-coaster ride through Hawaii and the mysterious depths of its briny deep, sparkling with unreal magic, a poignant romance, and incessant hope.

Tegan Rossi, a freshly graduated eighteen-year-old, awakens in the secretive hideout she discovered with Kai Kapule as two eight-year-old children on her first trip to Hawaii Island. She needs to make amends with Kai as they had a major squabble over something very important that she now oddly forgets. When Tegan catches up with Kai in Hawaii, she enters her best week yet – the Best Week That Never Happened.

The first-person narrative is a fusion of Tegan’s past three years ago and ten years ago, as well as a mystified chronicling of her present with Kai on the Big Island of Hawaii.

Read More Here

But Not Forever
By Jan Von Schleh

Like most fifteen-year-olds, Sonnet McKay loves a good adventure. Still, when she, her siblings, and cousins discover a deserted Victorian mansion in the middle of the woods outside a ghost town near Seattle, they get much more than they bargained for. In an upstairs bedroom, Sonnet inadvertently steps inside a time travel portal and is whisked away to 1895. In her place stands Emma Sweetwine, an identical doppelganger for Sonnet.

Emma’s family was prominent when Monte Cristo was a booming mine town, but life is not what it seems for the oldest of the Sweetwine children. With a mother who seems to despise her and a secret engagement, Emma’s life is oppressive and controlled – a sharp contrast to the spirited, independent Sonnet. With no idea how or why they were switched, Sonnet and Emma must quickly adjust to their new environments and rely only on their closest friends and family. But like any good story, time is running out for the girls as both of their lives rush in opposite directions. They must find a way back to their own times before their chance is gone forever.

Read More Here

Whispers
By Lynn Yvonne Moon

Whispers by Lynn Yvonne Moon explores the issue of incest through the life of twelve-year-old Musetta, whose father has just died. We meet Musetta at her father’s funeral and realize that this girl is dealing with serious issues. Still, more than grief, she’s filled with rage – and relief. And we cannot blame her. Whispers is filled with enough intrigue and family secrets to glue readers’ eyeballs to the page and hug their parents when they reach the end of the tale.

Musetta can’t get the attention of her grieving mother, and she’s not sure who she can turn to for help. Who will believe her story? But she knows what happened to her. After her father’s funeral, she believes the Friday night ritual of rape is over and that the molestation will stop. However, it’s not quite that easy.

First off, there are voices in her bedroom walls – and worse, the molestation continues. Is it her father’s ghost? She can’t go to her mother for help, and she won’t go to the law unless her mother is by her side. Who would believe her over her late father’s reputation as an upstanding citizen and the favorite local judge?

Read More Here

The Grand Prize Winner for the CIBA 2022 DANTE ROSSETTI Awards is:

Wages of Empire

by Michael J. Cooper

Manuscript

See the full list of 2022 Dante Rossetti Award Winners here.

Now that you’re set on your next reads, what are you waiting for? The only way to join this amazing list of Dante Rossetti Winners is to submit today!

Those who submit and advance will have the chance to win the Overall Grand Prize of the CIBAs and $1000!

Submit to the CIBAs Today!

Don’t miss your chance to light up the minds of young readers everywhere. Send us your Young Adult stories by the end of August for the chance to be recognized and celebrated for your amazing work!

The Dante Rossetti Awards is your next step!

The 2022 Grand Prize Winners from CAC23!

And remember! Our 12th Anniversary Chanticleer Authors Conference (CAC24) will be April 18-21, 2024, where our 2023 CIBA winners will be announced. Space is limited and seats are already filling up. Sign up and see the latest updates here!

August 22, 2023
Chatelaine 2023 Hall of Fame Celebrating Romantic Fiction

Need more Romance in your life? Read These!

The Chatelaine Awards are here to bring you the best in books about Love in all its forms.

***Submit your Novel today***

You have until August 31st to share your Love Story and enter the 2023 CIBAs!

Everyone deserves more love, and we’ve got lots of it for you to read! Steamy (Not Spicy), Historical and more! Other categories also include romantic themes, but if you’re looking for Romance- look no further!

Lets take a look at the Grand Prize Winners for the Chatelaine Award

Operation Mom
By Reenita Hora

Master storyteller Reenita Malhotra Hora’s YA romance Operation Mom: My Plan to Get My Mom a Life and a Man takes us on a charming journey through the life of one teen, Ila Isham.

Hora introduces Ila and her best friend Deepali, two boy-crazy teens on a summer quest. Readers will fall in love with the smart, sassy, angst-filled, rebellious Ila. A typical teenage girl, Ila lives in Mumbai with her mom and Sakkubai, their house manager. Ila’s mother calls her obsessed, but that seems unfair. Is she obsessed just because her every waking minute is spent thinking of Ali Zafar, famous pop icon, singer, and heartthrob? Or is she obsessed with fellow classmate Dev?

No, Ila couldn’t be taken with Dev because he’s one of three young men that her best friend Deepali is juggling in her summer experiment of exploring her “feminine mystique.” This turn of phrase becomes just one of many opportunities for Hora’s humor to shine as Ila remarks, “That’s a book by Gloria Steinem . . . no Betty Friedan.” Deepali’s response? “Yaar. Don’t be so literal.” The delightful balance between Ila’s book smarts versus Deepali’s street smarts carries us through Hora’s expertly crafted story.

Read More Here

The Long Desert Road
By Alex Sirotkin

Alex Sirotkin’s debut novel, The Long Desert Road, navigates the emotional arcs of life in contrast with the greater expanse of the cosmos. Here a young woman must face her addictions while the people around her try to move beyond her backlash.

We meet Henry Spinoza, a 44-year-old quirky science writer. He ponders his life as half over, looks for the right woman, and wonders if there isn’t more to existence.

For twenty years, Henry, a science writer, has been researching a non-fiction book on the universe that he intends to write. Henry’s feeling “bored, boring, and budget-conscious…the trifecta of gloom,” as he puts it. But in the middle of this ennui, his sister-in-law invites him to dinner, along with her divorced friend, Isabel Dalton, an attorney, and “the setup is afoot.”

Read More Here

When The Wind Chimes
By Mary Ting

In When the Wind Chimes by international best-selling author Mary Ting, Kate Summers wants to make this Christmas extra-special for her older sister, Abby, and four-year-old nephew.

A year ago, she’d given up Christmas with her family to spend the holiday with her boyfriend, Jayden, whom she had caught cheating on her the next day. Not only is she hoping to erase that memory, but she also has another even more important reason to make this Christmas special. A few months after her disastrous break-up with Jayden, her brother-in-law, Steve, passed away from cancer, so Abby and Tyler will be spending their first Christmas alone.

After taking a leave from her job as a graphic designer in LA, Kate flies to Poipu, Kauai, determined to make this an amazing holiday, but on her way to her sister’s house, she meets a mysterious man, who gives up his cab for her. Kate can’t get the handsome stranger out of her head, and when she sees him again in her sister’s art gallery–and destroys his expensive shirt with paint–she is both mortified and excited.

Read More Here

The Skeptical Physick
By Gail Avery Halverson

In the second in a series by author Halverson, an aristocratic, intellectually curious young woman has fallen in love with a young physician, a commoner whose radical experimentations have jeopardized his reputation. The couple is just recovering from the professional and personal rigors of dealing with London’s plague victims when the city is overwhelmed by fire. Their services are needed now more than ever.

Supported by mentor hospital administrator Father Hardwicke in his medical endeavors, Simon McKensie is finally on the verge of marrying the woman he adores, Catherine Abbott. Even the wealthy, protective Aunt Viola has come to terms with the fact that, though she might not approve the match on social grounds, she sees that Catherine will be happy with Simon.

If winning her aunt’s approval and administering aid to plague victims wasn’t enough, just days before their planned nuptials, a fire breaks out that threatens to delay them yet again. Worse, Catherine sustains a severe injury on her way to the hospital to help Simon treat burn victims. It seems that there may not be a wedding. But Simon acts quickly and effectively to save the life of his beloved, exchanging wedding vows with her even as she is barely recuperating from her accident.

Read More Here

The House At Ladywell
By Nicola Slade

A surprise bequest, a cryptic benediction, and a box of long-lost letters thrust Freya Gibson in the middle of a life-changing mystery. As the personal assistant to successful novelist Patrick Underwood, Freya never takes a vacation. She believes herself content to be surrounded by the hustle and bustle of London, keeping Patrick on track and reigning in her newly discovered and completely uncertain feelings for her boss.

When Freya inherits a house from a heretofore unknown relative, she isn’t sure what to do. What’s more, the house comes with a clause preventing the immediate selling off of the relic. Freya has no choice but to visit the estate, still reasonably sure she will rid herself of the property; until, of course, she sets foot in the ancient home in Ramalley.

With Patrick gone on a business trip to the US, Freya decides to spend a week getting to know her new home and the village nearby. She quickly decides she wants to keep the enigmatic house with the enormous stone mantle, former church windows, and hand-carved hares. Still, as she falls in love with the house, she uncovers evidence that Violet, her cousin, and the former owner, knew a great deal more about Freya than Freya knows about herself. With each step closer to the truth, the house seems to draw her closer in a protective grip, perhaps giving her a chance at a new future.

Read More Here

Now that you’re set on your next reads, what are you waiting for? The only way to join this amazing list of Chatelaine Winners is to submit today!

Those who submit and advance will have the chance to win the Overall Grand Prize of the CIBAs and $1000!

Submit to the CIBAs Today!

Now is your chance to touch the hearts of readers everywhere. Your Romance story deserves to be discovered, and you can submit to the 2023 Chatelaine Awards by the end of the month. Don’t miss this chance to give your book the recognition it deserves.

The Chatelaine Awards is your chance to shine!

The 2022 Grand Prize Winners from CAC23!

And remember! Our 12th Anniversary Chanticleer Authors Conference (CAC24) will be April 18-21, 2024, where our 2023 CIBA winners will be announced. Space is limited and seats are already filling up. Sign up and see the latest updates here!

August 21, 2023
A Spotlight on the 2023 Dante Rossetti Awards for YA Fiction
There’s still time for the 2023 DANTE ROSSETTI Awards!

Because Youth Reads Matter

Submissions close August 31, 2023!

Eager to showcase your YA Fiction manuscript or recently published novel? Seize the opportunity and submit to the CIBA 2023 Dante Rossetti Awards. Your book deserves to be discovered!

Named after the celebrated British painter and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti, the Dante Rossetti Awards encapsulate the essence of youth, beauty, and emotions evolving like the seasons. As a founding Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood member, Rossetti’s passion inspires our awards, mirroring the emotions you infuse into your YA Fiction narratives.

Why Opt for the Dante Rossetti Awards?
- Credibility: Our awards spotlight extraordinary writing, guiding readers to excellent YA Fiction. We are partnered with or recommended by ALLi, IBPA, Reedsy, and Book Award Pro.
- Prestige: Whether it’s the Blue Ribbons, the Author Interview, or the Book Reviews, even advancing partway through a Book Award Program shows readers and publishing experts that you’re doing right by your book when it comes to marketing.
- Support: The CIBAs are run by human beings, and we’re here for you. Each time you advance in our Tiers of Achievement, your name and book title are promoted on our high-traffic website, across social media, and in our newsletter.
We love to celebrate our Book Award Winners:

The Dante Rossetti Awards have celebrated remarkable authors who’ve subsequently soared to great heights. We’re still over the moon about our 2022 Winners!
- W.W. Marplot – Space Story
- Steven Michael Beck – Soar a Burning Sky
- Reenita Malhotra Hora – Operation Mom
- Frances Howard-Snyder – Sighs of Fire
- Lenore Borja – The Last Huntress (Mirror Realm Series Book I)
- Laurel Anne Hill – Plague of Flies: Revolt of the Spirits, 1846
The Grand Prize Winner for the CIBA 2022 DANTE ROSSETTI Awards is:

Wages of Empire
by Michael J. Cooper

Submit Today!

Don’t procrastinate—submit your YA Fiction manuscript or recent novel for the CIBA 2023 Dante Rossetti Awards by the August 31, 2023, deadline. Join a vibrant community of authors who comprehend the written word’s power to ignite hearts, stimulate minds, and captivate readers.

The climax of the Dante Rossetti Awards unfolds during the 2024 Chanticleer Authors Conference. First-place winners receive the coveted Chanticleer Blue Ribbon, and the Grand Prize laureate commands the spotlight, epitomizing the exceptional YA Fiction genre talent.

Submit today!

The Grand Prize Winners of the 2022 Chanticleer Int’l Book Awards!
August 14, 2023