Patricia Sands

Author

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January 6th ~ Epiphany ~ la fête des rois in France

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Happy New Year … now Eat cake like a king!

If you are in France (or Louisiana, hello N’awlins!), it’s again time to celebrate  … oui …  bien sûr … more food! Don’t you love it? This time it’s all about a rich, almond cream (frangipane) enveloped by layers of light, flaky pastry (feuilleté).

Another joyful opportunity to bring friends and family around the table to share La Galette des Rois/The Kings’ Cake, takes place on the first Sunday of January or January 6th and recognizes Epiphany, the arrival of the three wise men (Magis). The history of this special pastry can be  traced to Roman times.

If you read my Love in Provence series, Kat first finds out about the tradition in Book #2, Promises to Keep. 

During the French Revolution, the name was replaced with ‘Gâteau de l’Égalité’ (equality cake), as the word ‘king’ was a little out of fashion!

It’s so popular, many patisseries make the scrumptious cake through the entire month of January.

The cake is cut in the specific number of slices for the people present, with one extra symbolic slice for the first poor person passing by. The youngest child  (or the most innocent adult, if no children are present, which can result in great hilarity) goes under the table and calls out who will receive each slice to ensure fair distribution. The greatest excitement comes when one person discovers la fève (a lucky charm) hidden in a single slice. Just don’t accidentally bit down on it … they’re usually a small porcelain or plastic trinket!

Bon appétit!

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Click here to read an excellent account of the history and traditions of this special fête by my friend, Margo Lestz.

On another topic, I’m excited to let you know that our Sail Away series has launched! The prequel book Welcome Aboard is FREE and contains the prologue to each of the eight stories to follow! All the books are available to preorder! Just click here.

To celebrate the launch of the series, we have a fabulous giveaway. I hope you will join in the fun and wish you good luck! Here’s the link to enter.

Before I say au revoir for now, here’s more good news to start the year off right! Amazon let me know they have placed The Promise of Provence on sale for $1.99 for the month of January! If you already have your copy, now is a great time to pick up some for friends! Happy shopping!

Happy New Year! Bonne Année! I hope 2023 is off to a good start for you. Our hearts are with people struggling in so many places around the world either through war or weather. We hope for better days for all. At all times donations may be made to the Red Cross. Every little bit helps so we can all do our share.

How your pre-order can help …

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One week to go to release day! And the ‘to-do’ list doesn’t seem to be shrinking.

If you are considering ordering The Secrets We Hide, how about placing a pre-order now? That way you are assured the ebook will be sitting in your mailbox on publishing day and your print copy should arrive then too. For some reason, some print copies are being sent out already … the publishing world works in mysterious ways.

The more pre-orders you place for me, the better the chances of The Secrets We Hide making a best seller list. I thank you in advance!

Pre-order on Amazon

Pre-order on Kobo

Pre-order on Barnes & Noble

Have you seen the trailer for The Secrets We Hide? Feel free to share it from YouTube.

Here’s a reminder that the Goodreads giveaway is open now and ten ebooks are up for grabs. Here’s the link for that. Good luck and thank you to everyone for all of your support.

Happy Summer ~ celebrating with a Cover Reveal!

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Hi there! It’s been a while and I hope you all have been safe this summer. I took a hiatus from my blog and newsletter to go back to the south of France in June after almost three long years (Yes, it was magnifique! More on that later.) and to get organized with writing projects.

The first of which has been to prepare for the roll out of my new novel, THE SECRETS WE HIDE. I’m excited to finally be able to share the cover, the publishing date of August 25 and some details of the story.

Here’s the back cover copy to give you an idea of the story.
“The deep traditions and values of Kaito Tanaka’s Japanese heritage are severely tested when he returns home to Honolulu from duty in Vietnam to find his wife, Hana, in the grip of progressive mental health challenges.
As Hana’s condition worsens, Kaito’s life becomes absorbed in protecting and caring for her and their daughter, Kiana. Hana becomes increasingly reclusive while their daughter Kiana grows troubled and rebellious.

A friend’s mysterious death followed by Kiana’s sudden disappearance
cut deeply into Kaito’s soul. Meditation is Kaito’s drug of choice. Secrecy hides the truth from others but Kaito’s commitment to Hana is unwavering. As years go by, Kaito begins to make an annual pilgrimage to a Buddhist retreat in Koyasan that
renews his spirit. In the end, a serendipitous coincidence there opens the door to happiness – if he can allow himself to accept it.”


“Set against lush backdrops in Hawaii, Japan, Corsica, and the south of France, this beautiful story of resilience perfectly balances the heartbreak and destruction of mental illness with the compassion and serenity of an unforgettable hero.”
~ Barbara Claypole White, bestselling author of The Perfect Son and The Promise Between Us
This story contains more serious subject matter than my previous novels, but rest assured you will find yourself in France at some point. My research was extensive and I learned a great deal as I wrote the story. I also had excellent support and guidance and am so grateful to all those who shared their expertise with me. My thanks to them is in the Acknowledgements in the back matter of the novel. This is all part of what makes the writing experience so fulfilling.

My hope is that readers find this story brings strong feelings of love, commitment, hope and inspiration. Life doesn’t always bring what we expect but we should always be open to change. Hmmm – does that sound familiar? This story may not begin like one of my past novels but I’m pretty sure you will agree that it ends like them.

And for your eyes only at this point … the full cover will be posted in my next newsletter. The novel is now available for pre-order. Just click here to have it in your mailbox on August 25th.

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#writersforukraine

The following post is NOT SPONSORED but I wanted to share the Activated Authors charity drive in aid of Ukraine.

I HAVE COPIED & PASTED THIS DIRECTLY FROM THE MASTRESSOFNONE website so you can read all of the information right here. I hope you will feel compelled to join with everyone in this #writersforukraine fundraising event with four days left to go!

We cannot thank you enough. Please read on:

“As you know, there has been no secret made about the atrocities currently being undertaken on the European country of Ukraine. Since its unfounded invasion of Ukraine on Thursday 24th February, things are steadily getting worse.

As a member of a European country we, at Activated Authors, have been watching events unfold with more anxiety than we’ve ever felt at global news. And, as writers, we’ve found that the last week our member writers have been unable to focus on work, wondering where the hell fiction writing fits into the grand scheme of things while so many Ukrainians are suffering, and Russia threatens the “Nuclear” button on a near-daily basis. It seems a strange ordeal to be concerned about character names and fictional worlds while increasingly more Ukrainian refugees are without a homeland.

This is why we decided to take some kind of action and to levy our platform in a way that could not only support Ukrainian refugees, but to also activate the independent writing community in a way that could make a real difference. So far we’ve already seen unity from The Alliance of Independent Authors, Mark Leslie Lefebvre, Jenna Moreci, J Thorn and Crys Cain from The Author Success Mastermind, Katlyn Duncan, Sarra Cannon from Heart Breathings, MiblArt (who have artists in Ukraine), The Writer’s Mindset, The Other Stories podcast, and I’m in the final confirming stages with more widely revered authors, podcasts, and organisations, and we’d be honoured to have you involved, should you wish.

Writers for Ukraine: The One Million Word Challenge

From Wed 9–Tues 15th March, we’re running a global challenge for writers to hit a combined total of 1,000,000 words written (in 7 days), to raise a minimum of £10,000 for the Ukrainian crisis. 

The process is simple: writers and authors of any level, genre, and experience can sign up for the challenge, make their donation, and get involved simply by heading over to www.activatedauthors.com/Ukraine. Total word counts from each author can be updated on the live word tracker sheet, with a tally totalling the overall amount as the challenge progresses.

All proceeds and profits will go directly to British-Ukrainian Aid, a charity with their feet on the ground, supporting those refugees who need it most, with donations made through our GoFundMepage.

What can YOU do?

We are calling on any and all support from writers, publishers, and creatives from all genres and backgrounds to get involved. No matter how big or small your contribution, it would be greatly appreciated.

Below I’ve listed a few ways that you can get involved to help have a real impact in these trying times.

  1. Join the challenge: You can sign up and get involved over our 7-day challenge, adding your word count totals to our sheet to help us reach our 1 million. Just sign up HERE
  2. Make a donation: Donate as much or as little as you can to our GoFundMe page and help us reach our target of £10,000. You can find our donation page HERE
  3. Pledge your support: We’d love to make this a united effort from across the writing community. With your permission, we’d love to share your logo or artwork on our website and social media as a “Supported by” affiliate to show that you’re contributing to this worthwhile cause.
  4. Spread the word: We’ve made it real easy to spread the word. By using #writersforukraine, we’ll be able to share and amplify the support from the community. We’ve also put together a small package of artwork that you can download and use on your platforms, for your convenience. Find a Google Drive folder HERE.
  5. Put me in touch with authors and influencers who may be interested in finding out more.

I realise that the turnaround on this is fast, but it’s a rapidly evolving situation. It’s rare that we reach out to the wider writing community like this, but the time is now, and support is desperately needed.”

Once again, everything you need to know can be found at www.activatedauthors.com/ukraine 

(On behalf of Daniel Willcocks, International Bestselling Author, Award-winning Podcaster, and Founder and Author Coach at Activated Authors)

https://patriciasandsauthor.com/2022/03/12694/