Advance Reader Copies | Brielle York

Book One

Her husband drowned on a Saturday. By Sunday morning the arrangements had already been made.

Bee Hayes has lived on Beauclaire Isles for nine years without ever being introduced to the man who runs it. On the morning two company men appear on her steps, that changes, and it does not stop changing.

There is a car and a driver. There is a woman in his office who will call the bank and the county in the order that works, which is not the order they will tell you. There are school fees, and an estate, and a list of three things she should say no to, offered by the one person who did not have to offer anything at all.

Every kindness arrives with a receipt. Bee is good at managing things, has always been good at managing things, and the thing she cannot manage is how quickly a favor becomes a fact.

Shadows of a Stolen Heart is upscale domestic suspense: 4.83 square miles, one very bad year, and a widow learning what her husband's employer already knew.

The Arrangement

What is actually being asked of you.

No fine print, because there is no fine print worth hiding. Here is the whole of it.

A free copy, two weeks earlyThe complete book, delivered through BookSprout, readable on a Kindle, a phone, a tablet or a computer. Nothing to pay, now or later.
An honest review on release dayHonest is the operative word. If the book does not work for you, say so. A review you did not mean helps nobody, and a wall of glowing five stars is the least believable thing on a book page.
Two sentences is a real reviewHow the book made you feel does more for a new series than a full essay. Nobody is grading your prose.
Amazon, Goodreads, or bothAmazon only accepts reviews from accounts that have spent fifty dollars there in the past year. If yours has not, Goodreads counts just as much, and it will not be held against you.
Nothing is owed if life happensYou will get one reminder and then silence. No chasing, no removal from anything, and you are welcome on the next round regardless.

Two Rounds Open

Take one. Take both.

You are asked once which you want, on the next screen. Reading them in order is worth doing, because every book in this series ends by opening the door to the following one.

Reading Now

Shadows of a Stolen Heart

Book One · releases 29 September

Copies go out the week of 15 September, which gives you two clear weeks. Bee Hayes, a boating accident nobody saw, and an island that closes ranks before the funeral.

Reading in October

Book Two

Copies out early October

A different woman, a different corner of the Isles, the same calendar year. Put your name down now and the invitation reaches you as soon as the manuscript is ready.

Say Yes If

You read domestic suspense where the danger is social and financial, and the weapon is usually a favor.
You finish books you start, or you are honest with yourself about the ones you do not.
You have left a review before and did not find it painful.
You want to be early to a series rather than catching up to one.

Say No If

You only review books you loved. That is a perfectly good way to read, and it is not what this is for.
Two weeks is not enough time right now. There will be another book in October, and another after that.
You want a thriller with a body in the first chapter. This one does its damage more slowly.

Advance Reader Copies

Put your name in.

Tell me where you review and I will send your invitation as soon as the copies are ready. Book One goes out the week of 15 September.

Free copy · No card, ever · Unsubscribe in one click

Before You Decide

The questions reviewers actually ask.

Do I have to leave a good review?

No, and you should not. You are asked for an honest one, which is a different thing. Nobody is checking what you said before deciding whether to invite you again, and a book page full of identical praise is the fastest way to lose a reader's trust.

How do I get the book?

Through BookSprout, which handles advance copies for the series. Once you are approved you get an email with your download link, and the book opens on whatever you normally read on.

When can I post the review?

Goodreads takes reviews as soon as the book has a page there, so early finishers can post straight away. Amazon does not accept reviews until a book is actually on sale, which for Book One is 29 September.

Why is there an Amazon spending requirement?

It is Amazon's rule, not mine. Accounts need to have spent fifty dollars there in the past twelve months before they can leave customer reviews. It catches a lot of enthusiastic readers by surprise, which is why it is mentioned here rather than after you have finished the book.

Is this the same as the free novella?

No. Silence of a Defiant Heart is a free novella anyone can have, no strings. This is the full novel, before publication, for readers who will review it. If you have not read the novella yet, it is a good two hours and it opens the island.

What happens to my email address?

It is used to send your advance copy invitation and occasional letters about what is being written next. It is never sold or handed on, and one click removes you.

Two Weeks Early

The island will have its version by the end of the month.

You can have yours first, and say so out loud while it still counts.

Put My Name In

Read it before the island does.