T-Minus One Week

US publication is on the 14th of April!

Author

Amy Coombe
April 07, 2026

Well, I had grand plans to write a newsletter once a fortnight from January on. I even drafted a couple of newsletters, one a chatty bit about Bridgerton and worldbuilding, another about Ron Howard and The Princess Bride, and then… well, here we are, one week from the US publication, and this is your first newsletter since January.

What can I say; life found a way (to get in the way).

The important thing is: we’re officially one week out from the US publication of Stay For A Spell! I’ve got two events lined up, and you can get signed editions at four US bookstores, all of which I’ll link to below.

If you follow a single author on any form of social media, you’ll have heard them plead for pre-orders. Pre-orders help everyone - the author, the bookstores you buy from, the publisher - we all benefit. So please, take this as your heartfelt plea from me to pre-order books from authors you love, whether they’re my book or anyone else’s. It really does make a difference!

The UK publication is on 23 April, so I’ll send another email a week before (next Thursday!), but just as a quick preview: the UK first edition - that is, the first printing of the hardback, available online and in bookstores, will have some incredible special features, including beautiful rainbow endpapers and, if you remove the dust jacket, a special treat: the cover has been designed to look like a book mentioned in Stay For A Spell! But only the first printing will have these bonus features, so the best way to ensure you get a copy is to, you guessed it, pre-order.

(International readers, Blackwells does free international shipping…)

In birdwatching news: the place I’m currently staying has a gorgeous Cooper’s hawk that visits a couple of times a day. S/he sits in a dead tree just opposite the house and glowers at passers-by, once in a while making the cutest little bubbly squawks, and occasionally being dive-bombed by foolhardy crows.

I’ve also gotten a few new lifers on this trip, including a great-tailed grackle, a hooded oriole and a vermillion flycatcher. Birds! They’re the best.

In non-birdwatching news, I went to my first Renaissance Faire since 2001! It was exactly as I’d remembered and also delightfully free of influencers chasing clout; everyone was having a great time and that was about it. It was such a nice experience! There were a lot of Shreks, a lot of Jack Sparrows, a couple of guys in business suits, and one person dressed as a Star Fleet engineer - all new additions from my times at the faire decades ago, and all wonderful.

My promise to myself, years ago, was that when I could afford to I’d rent one of the really elaborate Tudor costumes and swan around all day dressed like one of Elizabeth’s ladies in waiting; it was much too hot for me to do that this time around, so I guess I’ll just have to go back some day. Instead, I bought myself a pair of antlers:

I am categorically incapable of taking a selfie without making a face.

Right, here are my US events! You can also pre-order signed copies from the bookstores below, even if you can’t make the events:

  • The Ripped Bodice, 13 April. I’ll be in conversation with Kiri Callaghan!

  • Vroman’s Bookstore, 15 April. I’ll be in conversation with Betsy Berkhemer-Credaire (who loved the entrepreneuership angle of the book!)

You can also order signed copies from

And here are all the other places you can pre-order copies of Spell - and anything else you fancy!

You can also pre-order copies of THE ELEMENTS OF DARK ACADEMIA, an all-new anthology edited my no less a person than my husband! One story and all the editorial matter is original… and having been there during its creation, I can assure you that the original material is amazing.

BUT WAIT, there’s JUST ONE MORE THING!

I once wrote a newsletter about gingkos and edible (but poisonous if you eat too many) ginkgo nuts - and guess what I found for sale at H Mart? GINKGO NUTS! Also taro ice cream, of which I bought a giant tub and managed to eat a single scoop before my teenaged nephews got hold of it… (but it was delicious.)

That’s it! Have a great week!