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A.S. Thornton's "The Bandar Blog"

Daughter of the Salt King
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A.S. Thornton's "The Bandar Blog"

Daughter of the Salt King
Book Reviews
Writing
Blabbering
Archive
- Reviews by Title
- Reviews by Author
About
Contact

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by A.S. Thornton

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Whelp, I’ve gone and done it. I hit my own “da

Whelp, I’ve gone and done it. I hit my own “dark night of the soul,” and man, was it the best thing that ever happened to me.

There’s something about having a new business, two young kids, moving homes, and simply living this life that really made me question everything. Why am I living? What am I living? Where do I go from here?

Probably like you, I’ve asked myself these questions so many times… but this time it was different. I wasn’t coming out of it and I wasn’t moving any direction but down. And I couldn’t accept that.

I sought the most amazing help, I took personal journeys, I’ve read all the help books and I’m taking long, daily looks inside. Questioning everything, accepting everything, acknowledging everything, and loving everything.

And now I am climbing out of that beautiful, dark hole that has taught me so much, and I am learning more every single day. I am on a new, fantastic mission to practice living this life just as I am supposed to be.

One of the things I learned—why I am even making this post—is how meaningful and important writing is to me. How much I love my stories, writing, and diving into that creative brain and those spectacular worlds.

My third novel that was written nearly four years ago is now back on the table getting marked up and revised. AND I AM LOVING IT! I hope that one day you will all get to read it (because guys, I LOVE this story), but even if you don’t, the point is that I am loving being back in that world. And I am so, so lucky that I get to do what I love.

So from the bottom of my heart, hello, I love you and thank you for being here with me. If you’re sitting in a dark place, this is my reminder to you that when you are ready, you can climb out of it, too. ♥️

#publishedauthor #published #fantasyauthor #iwritefantasy #bookishcommunity #readerandwriter #bibliophilelife #asthornton #camcatbooks #bookblogger #bookshelfie #independentpublishing #daughterofthesaltking #saltchasers #sonofthesaltchaser #thewayoutisin #darknightofthesoul

Cyber Monday is here and so is the 0.99 cents e-bo

Cyber Monday is here and so is the 0.99 cents e-book deal going on with BOTH OF MY BOOKS! 🎉🥳

If you like forbidden love stories, then you’ll love the Salt Chasers series. It starts with Daughter of the Salt King, who in her father’s eyes is valued only by the wealthy and powerful man she can wed. When she discovers her father’s best kept secret—his jinni—everything she thought she understood about her life and her father shifts. Things complicate further when she realizes the jinni may mean more to her than a way out of her trapped life…

I promise you slow burn, some tears, some smiles, and a hot hot desert.

Visit naleighnakai.com/99-cents to get SOTSC or search for them wherever e-books are sold ❤️

#cybermonday #only99cents #booksale #nktribecalledsuccess #ILIKEFREEBOOKS #naleighnakai #publishedauthor #published #fantasyauthor #iwritefantasy #bookishcommunity #readerandwriter #bibliophilelife #asthornton #camcatbooks #bookblogger #bookshelfie #independentpublishing #daughterofthesaltking #saltchasers #sonofthesaltchaser

I am crawling out of this incredibly deep hole I’ve been living in to a) say hi 👋 and b) give some updates!

2023 has been by far the most intense year I’ve lived yet. My husband and I opened a vet hospital in July (woot woot @sactown.vet 🥳). It had been a truly amazing experience BUT my goodness it’s been a massive time suck. Never mind that we had our baby and toddler to take care of 🤪 And since we decided we didn’t have enough to do with our time, we *just* moved. Three weeks in we’re starting to settle just a little bit. There’s still a lot of work to be done with the house, the practice, the kids, life… but our brains are calming just a smidge. 🙏

BUT some exciting news is that SOTSC AND DOTSK (🎉) are going to be on sale for super cheap (.99) this Cyber Monday! If you follow the link in this post you can register so that you’re notified of the sale. If you want to gift the series to yourself or your friends, now is the time to buy ❤️

Register here: https://geni.us/CyberMondaySale

#cybermonday #only99cents #booksale #nktribecalledsuccess #ILIKEFREEBOOKS #naleighnakai #publishedauthor #published #fantasyauthor #iwritefantasy #bookishcommunity #readerandwriter #bibliophilelife #asthornton #camcatbooks #bookblogger #bookshelfie #independentpublishing #daughterofthesaltking #saltchasers #sonofthesaltchaser

The time is FINALLY here that I can come clean abo

The time is FINALLY here that I can come clean about what the heck has been occupying so much of my time (besides my two children, of course): I am opening up a veterinary hospital!

It has been years in the works, and I am soooo excited that I am near the end of all the planning and coordinating and only months away from opening the doors to my own place for people and their pets.

This is obviously an enormous project that is going to demand SO MUCH of my time the next year or so. I will absolutely continue to be quiet in this instagram space as well as the book world. BUT part of the reason I want to open my own hospital is so that I can one day work less (never stop completely, I love being a vet too much to stop 😍) and write more. This will be a temporary step back from the book world in order to make space to settle back here in the near future. I’ve got more books I want to write, and I have another manuscript already drafted that needs to TLC.

If you live in the Sacramento area or know someone who does, find me here: @sactown.vet 😎 Tell all your cat and dog-owning Sactown friends! ♥️

#sacramento #sacramentoproud #veterinarian #sacramentobusiness #sacramentobusinesswomen #sactownvet #catfriendly #fearfree #locallyowned #midtownsacramento #midtownsac #bookishveterinarian #bookshelfie #underconstruction

If 5 years ago you told me I’d be a home-birthin

If 5 years ago you told me I’d be a home-birthing, cold-shower-taking, meditative-breathing, cloth-diaper-using, power-of-the-mind obsessed momma of two, I would have laughed in your face.

But man, when things change you they change you. COVID was my “origin story,” and I have become a different person entirely than who I was before all that crazy. (Although I’m sure having kids has contributed to that, too.)

And I am so pleased with who I am now and what my priorities have become. My husband is just as committed to this strangeness, and his latest contribution was having me read the Wim Hof Method. Regardless of what you think about the method (it’s all about cold showers, breathing, and meditation and its influence on our health)—it’s amazing what that man has achieved and will continue to achieve. If he isn’t an example of the power of the human mind, I don’t know who is.

I love reading books like this: seeing what people can accomplish when they set their mind to it. And I hope that I can be one of those people, too. In control, powerful, and at peace with myself, my life, and my family.

If you, too, are interested in finding more about what YOU can do, I’d suggest you give his book a read.

#wimhof #wimhofmethod #coldshower #powerofhumanmind #shelfiewednesday #shelfies #bookstagram

What have you got planned for this month?! Frankly

What have you got planned for this month?! Frankly, I can’t believe it’s March. 😱 I have a 12-week old since I last posted and a sequel that’s been out in the world for nearly four months!

This month some very cool things are happening that I wanted to make sure you knew about:

1. The most exciting news is that DAUGHTER OF THE SALT KING was selected to be the @unpluggedbookbox March book! Now, it appears that they have a big waitlist for their boxes so I’m not sure that you’ll be able to get a box with the special edition of DOTSK, but you should still check them out because clearly they are awesome and have great taste 😏

2. SON OF THE SALT CHASER is a part of the kindle monthly book deal! You can get the ebook for $2.99! So if you’ve been waiting to read it, now is a good time to snag it 👌

Now that my baby (and me) has graduated from the fourth trimester and my toddler has accepted her new little sis, life is settling a bit. I’ve got some big life plans that I’ll share in due time (unrelated to books but it’s a big chunk of what’s keeping me from the book world right now), but I still hope to carve out a little time to connect with you all again. I miss my bookish friends, see. ❤️

#publishedauthor #published #fantasyauthor #iwritefantasy #bookishcommunity #readerandwriter #bibliophilelife #asthornton #camcatbooks #bookblogger #bookshelfie #independentpublishing #daughterofthesaltking #saltchasers #sonofthesaltchaser

Well here we are almost a MONTH after #SonOfTheSal

Well here we are almost a MONTH after #SonOfTheSaltChaser has been released and I’m JUST NOW posting about it being out in the world 🙈

Listen, it’s been a bit busy around here. Between the 🥔 turning two, Thanksgiving, and insane Christmas prep, I’ve been cooking this second little human who is due in two days (‼️‼️ please send all the positive labor vibes, I’m ready not to be pregnant anymore). While the cooking hasn’t kept me too busy, the prep for the little one’s arrival absolutely has. Trying to get all Christmas things done and other miscellaneous loose ends tied BEFORE she comes with a toddler running around has been much more challenging than baby prep went with my first.

So that’s my excuse, and frankly I think it’s a pretty good one.

I’ve perused some reviews of SOTSC and I see that you guys actually like it 😭 thank you! If you haven’t picked it up yet, it’s the perfect holiday read! (I mean deserts, jinn, magic, and love just scream HOLIDAYS right? 😅)

Thank you so much for sticking around even though I’ve been largely absent. I am sure my absence will continue over the next few months as I learn to be a parent of two, BUT I’ll be back. Even if it’s just to drop in with a selfie of how tired I look 😴

#publishedauthor #published #fantasyauthor #iwritefantasy #bookishcommunity #readerandwriter #bibliophilelife #asthornton #camcatbooks #bookblogger #bookshelfie #independentpublishing #daughterofthesaltking #saltchasers #39weekspregnant #pregnantlife

“Remembering our past is the burdensome rite of

“Remembering our past is the burdensome rite of living.”

Although at its most superficial the Salt Chasers series is a story about a young woman entangled with a jinni and his magical past, the theme of growing from a traumatic past is woven into every part of Emel’s story. I wrote this story for myself and for everyone who has experienced something in their life that has irrevocably changed them and perhaps still haunts them. SON OF THE SALT CHASER, the conclusion to Emel’s story, in particular drives this theme home.

I hope that if you, too, live with trauma whether big or small, you find some comfort in Emel’s story. How she holds onto her past, how she learns from it, and how she ultimately accepts and grows from it. Most importantly, I hope you both hear and find strength in the words that I have written for Emel, for myself, and for you:

“…you will remember your past. It may shake you and try to cripple you, but it can’t pull you apart… because it is what has put you together. See the past, and know that because of it, you are here now. It cannot defeat you, because with it, you have won.” ♥️

SON OF THE SALT CHASER, the sequel to DAUGHTER OF THE SALT KING, is out November 1. If you read and loved DOTSK, I hope you love its conclusion just as much. If you have not yet picked up DOTSK, now is the time! You won’t have to wait for the sequel to come out when you finish and want to know what happens next 😏

#publishedauthor #published #fantasyauthor #iwritefantasy #bookishcommunity #readerandwriter #bibliophilelife #asthornton #camcatbooks #bookblogger #bookshelfie #independentpublishing #sonofthesaltchaser #daughterofthesaltking #saltchasers

I can now add “bestseller” to my list of thing

I can now add “bestseller” to my list of things describing DAUGHTER OF THE SALT KING 😭

Okay, was it just an Apple Books bestseller for a week when the ebook was on sale? Yes, maybe. BUT STILL. Who cares?! It was still a BESTSELLER. 🤩

So in addition to being a gold medalist for Romance in the Foreword Indies, a silver medalist for Best New Voice in Fiction in the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards, and a silver medalist for Best First Book in Fiction in the Independent Publisher Awards, IT IS A BESTSELLER.

That is simply too much for my brain to handle. Getting a book published was beyond my expectations, but to have a published book with awards AND a second book being released in mere weeks?

🤯 I can’t.

So if you haven’t read it yet, maybe you should 💁‍♀️

#publishedauthor #published #fantasyauthor #iwritefantasy #bookishcommunity #readerandwriter #bibliophilelife #asthornton #camcatbooks #bookblogger #bookshelfie #independentpublishing #daughterofthesaltking #sonofthesaltchaser #saltchasers

GIVEAWAY closed!! 🥳 winners have been contacted

GIVEAWAY closed!! 🥳 winners have been contacted!

I am so, so, so past due on this BUT better late than never. Want to snag an ARC of SOTSC and read it before everyone else? 😏

SON OF THE SALT CHASER is the epic conclusion to award-winning DAUGHTER OF THE SALT KING. Things to expect:
🐪 A whole new world!
🙃 SEXUAL TENSION
💔 Heartbreak
🤐 Big reveals
👯‍♀️ Reunions
❤️‍🔥 Unexpected love

I’ve got 3 copies I’m giving away to US residents. 🇺🇸

SON OF THE SALT CHASER will be out in the world in November and it is a available for pre-order wherever books are sold! But here’s your chance to snag a free copy before everyone else 💙

#publishedauthor #published #fantasyauthor #iwritefantasy #bookishcommunity #readerandwriter #bibliophilelife #asthornton #camcatbooks #bookblogger #bookshelfie #independentpublishing #sonofthesaltchaser #bookgiveaway #arcgiveaway

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A.S. Thornton's "The Bandar Blog"

Copyright: A.S. Thornton