This story is one that poured itself out of my heart in the span of three weeks this February (no, really--shoutout to my dear wife for dealing with me during that very distracted period of time), and I am so thrilled to finally be able to share it with you.
As a nebulously neurodivergent person (will we ever figure out what it actually is? Who knows), the process of writing this exploration of unconditional love was a deeply personal one for me as the author. The flood of positive feedback I have received about Farah's representation as an autistic character has made ME feel so very seen as a person, and I thank you.
The universal link will direct you to pretty much all of the major distributors, but if you want to max out your support for this indie author, you can grab your copy from me directly (below)!
Upcoming Events
I'll be at 3GenLove in New Bedford, MA this Sunday, August 30 from 1pm - 3pm to sign copies of Farah's Familiars! If you're local to New England, come say hi and help me practice my brand-new author autograph. You can RSVP here to get the signing on your calendar!
What's next?
I'm really excited about continuing this series, and I hope to be able to share some snippets with you as Rune's Relics (working title of The Chronicles of Ferndell, Book 2) continues to develop. In fact, if you buy Farah's Familiars, a little birdie told me you'll get an exclusive sneak peek of chapter 1...😏
I'm currently about 20,000 words into the first draft. For those who don't measure in words, since this is a series of novellas, I'm basing my expected "complete" word count to land around 35,000-40,000. So Rune's story is about halfway written!
This book has proven to be a tough needle to thread so far, though, which came as something of a surprise. With Farah's Familiars pouring out of my brain in such a small span of time, I suppose I expected its sequel to be similarly simple to draft. But the biggest surprise of all has been the fact that my main struggle is figuring out how to keep this dang story cozy! More to come...
But before Rune's book comes out, I have another project to loop you in on.
Have you heard of a little town called Brinewood, Oregon?
Probably not, because it's fictional.
In all seriousness, I am delighted to share that I am part of a group of 12 authors writing an anthology of queer interconnected standalone romance novellas (phew that's a lot of words), all set in the quaint coastal town of Brinewood, OR!
The twelve books will be released once a month, beginning in the spring of 2027, and can be read in any order. I am incredibly excited for this project, and it's my first time writing collaboratively with other authors (as an adult, anyway--shoutout to my writing group and our terrible story in like fifth grade).
My book, The Lightkeeper's librarian, is currently slated for release in May 2027, featuring a sapphic romance between Tara Booker, the bubbly, new-to-town bookseller-turned-librarian who just bought the Cedar & Ink Bookstore, and Shaye Agbayani, the gruff, jaded caretaker of the Brinewood Lighthouse.
Follow @brinewood.stories on Instagram to follow along as we develop this queer, cozy small town together!
Release Day Twinsies & Recent Reads
Fellow sapphic author C.L. Smoke and I write in totally different genres. She writes dark romance, while the Chronicles of Ferndell is cozy fantasy that straddles the line between YA and adult fiction. But sometimes you need one as a palate cleanser for the other, and I'm so excited to read Haven, book 1 of the Vexxed Vipers duology—especially since we're release day "birthday buddies!"
I picked up The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich earlier this month, and it was so delightful! It's a sapphic graphic novel that I found to be a quick read. I adore "girl pretends to be a boy" stories, particularly the ones that end in a love match with someone who really doesn't care about their gender, and this one really hit the spot for me. Plus it's punny as hell, to the point where I was shouting my newest pun findings to my wife across the house. I mean, the main characters are literally named Camembert and Brie.
Another book I read as an audiobook recently is A Grim Reaper's Guide to Catching a Killer. Now, I was surprised to find that I enjoyed this book, because pregnancies and straight romance aren't much my thing these days. But the tender, parental relationship that forms between the MC and the teenage ghost whose murder she's trying to solve, and the way it shapes her relationship with her unborn child and her own self-image, was actually quite moving.
I mentioned last month that I had started Dungeon Crawler Carl, and... oops, I'm already finished with book 3. Jeff Hays is an incredible narrator, and I've really enjoyed seeing Carl develop from a pulp archetype to a nuanced and complex character with realistic feelings, values, and qualms. I'm already halfway into book 4 and find it compelling, but it's getting more complicated to follow as an audiobook, so I might switch to reading the text.
Thanks for being part of the Ferndell fam!
With all the warmth in my hearth and heart,
Holland E. Armeta
