Tuesday 3 August 2010

JEWEL's Publication Day



It's here at last - The Jewel Of St Petersburg. My latest book's Publication Day in the US.

I wake with the soles of my feet tingling and my pulse beating too fast. It's a great feeling after a year's hard work, not just by me but by my whole team at Berkley - my editor Jackie Cantor, as well as those in Production, PR, Sales and Marketing. Thanks guys. I want to say a particularly big thank you to Berkley's design department who have done a fabulous job on the cover. It's truly sumptuous.


Good early reviews are coming in:

"Gripping, elegant and fierce, this is a classic war-torn love story, and Furnivall's best yet." Library Journal

"A delight for Furnivall's fans, and equally a joy for those new to her work." Publishers Weekly

"A memorable love story that will speak to readers' hearts and minds." Romantic Times Magazine

"A jewel of a book." Barnes & Noble.com


One thing readers are probably not aware of is the significance of Amazon at book-launch time. Amazon is the largest bookseller in the world and during the first few weeks of a book's life, you'd be surprised at how many publishers and authors keep a sharp eye on what comments are being posted on the Amazon website. It gives them a finger-on-the-pulse feel of public reaction to a book. If you like an author's work, take the time to say so. It's easy if you are signed up to Amazon, and authors honestly do appreciate it.


Communication with my readers is part of what makes this whole writing thing so rewarding for me. So hey, if you enjoy The Jewel Of St Petersburg, do me a favour and stick a comment on Amazon. And if you want to talk more, you can email me as well on katefurnivall@hotmail.co.uk - I promise I'll reply to every one of them.


Happy reading!

6 comments:

Marg said...

Congrats on release day!

Kate Furnivall said...

Hi Marg,
Thanks for the best wishes. Fingers crossed that JEWEL will fly off the shelves. Great to have the support of readers like yourself - it's like sending your child off into a great big vacuum with no reference points. Disorientating. So thanks again.

Tanya said...

I have just this minute finished The Jewel of St. Petersburg and had to rush here to say thank you, thank for a wonderful book. It made me cry - but I shall now go and buy all your others. I wish I had The Russian Concubine right now, so that I could continue Valentina's story immediately. The way you weave the story and the history together is brilliant.

Kate Furnivall said...

Hi Tanya,
Thanks for writing. It is great for me to know that you so enjoyed Valentina's story. The early days of a new book are always a nervy time, especially this one, as it is the start of the story of the Ivanov family - though I wrote it at the end. When I wrote The Russian Concubine I had no idea that I would feel the need to go back and tell Valentina's story as well but I loved doing so. Have fun reading the others.

Jay said...

I just want to say that I think The Jewel of St Petersburg is a wonderful book. I was totally enthralled from the first page to the last. I love historical fiction and this was one of the best I've ever read. Absolutely brilliant. Thank you.

Kate Furnivall said...

Hi Jay,
Thanks for you generous comments. It's great to know the book is getting such a warm welcome.