Writers tend to get laser-focused on their latest release, but a solid backlist deserves love, too! I’m super proud of the four-book audio production of my Waterspell fantasy quartet. Narrator Simon de Deney did a masterful job. As this listener notes (see the picture): “He really brings the words to life.” And his ability to voice female as well as male characters is remarkable. Simon embodies the brooding warlock but he also delivers a totally believable young woman who is all bravado on the outside but terrified on the inside. Bravo! 🎉
If you’re planning a road trip this summer — or maybe a staycation, given the current (2026) price of fuel — give this 51-hour epic a listen. It’ll keep you engaged.
“The narrator is very real conveying anger as well as softness and intrigue. This is the type of audiobook you can listen to for hours and not get tired of.” —Sue, Amazon
Super Spring Sale! 🎉 The Waterspell fantasy series is bargain-priced, the whole month of April 2026.
Series-starter Book 1: The Warlock is perma-free every day, but your best buy in April is the four-book boxed set for $3.99. Add the two sequels — Kareninaand Farsinchia— for $0.99 each, and you’ll have the entire, finished, highly rated, six-book series for under $6. Available wherever ebooks are sold.
Waterspell: The literary, portal fantasy, epic, heroic quest, coming-of-age, gothic slow-burn romance (give it time!) adventure you’ve been looking for.
The series follows Carin, a lost traveler who embarks on a journey to discover her true identity and learn where she belongs. When she falls captive to a hot-tempered, secretive wizard, he draws her into schemes of magical power and possible murder. There’s a world to save, even if it costs Carin her life. The relationship between Carin and the wizard grows increasingly complex, balancing in a tense power struggle as, together, they navigate a world of dangers while yearning for redemption, a sense of belonging, and maybe a little unconventional romance.
Waterspell springs from the realm of epic fantasy (with an environmental fantasy twist). It’s got ancient and mysterious magic, a passage from one world to the otherworld, a (reluctant) Chosen One, and a Hero/Heroine’s Quest. It’s a portal fantasy with complex characters who become embroiled in mystery, murder, and a little slow-burning romance. Think “Jane Eyre meets a sorcerer.”
“A marvelously complex and captivating fantasy series.” —The Published Page “The story just keeps getting bigger and bigger.” —Book Briefs
Not an April Fool’s joke! 😊 My entire Waterspell fantasy series is on super-sale for the whole month of April 2026. Available wherever ebooks are sold.
Waterspell: The literary, portal fantasy, epic, heroic quest, coming-of-age, gothic slow-burn romance (give it time!) adventure you’ve been looking for.
Four-Book Boxed Set $3.99
The original quartet follows Carin, a lost traveler who embarks on a journey to discover her true identity and learn where she belongs. When she falls captive to a hot-tempered, secretive wizard, he draws her into schemes of magical power and possible murder. There’s a world to save, even if it costs Carin her life. The relationship between Carin and the wizard grows increasingly complex, balancing in a tense power struggle as, together, they navigate a world of dangers while yearning for redemption, a sense of belonging, and maybe a little unconventional romance.
Waterspell springs from the realm of epic fantasy (with an environmental fantasy twist). It’s got ancient and mysterious magic, a passage from one world to the otherworld, a (reluctant) Chosen One, and a Hero/Heroine’s Quest. It’s a portal fantasy with complex characters who become embroiled in mystery, murder, and a little slow-burning romance. Think “Jane Eyre meets a sorcerer.”
“A marvelously complex and captivating fantasy series.” —The Published Page
“The story just keeps getting bigger and bigger.” —Book Briefs
The Karenina Chronicles $0.99
House Verek lives on! Continue the family saga that began in the Waterspell fantasy quartet (Warlock, Wysard, Wisewoman, Witch). Follow the further adventures of eldest daughter Nina in The Karenina Chronicles (Waterspell Book 5).
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In the grip of a grief-fueled wanderlust after the death of her Earthly husband, Lady Karenina of Ruain—Nina to family and friends—escapes into unfamiliar lands, a harsh and distant country peopled with enigmatic characters: the Leviathan, the Nomad, the Outcast, and the Wolf. In their company she finds adventure, danger, champions, and rogues—some of the latter worth killing, but at least one worth loving.
Chronologically fifth in the Waterspell series, The Karenina Chronicles is a standalone story which is fully accessible to readers who have no knowledge of the previous four books. This entry in the series can be approached as an introduction to the Waterspell universe.
The Fires of Farsinchia $0.99
Will it all end in flames? The final book in the Waterspell series is The Fires of Farsinchia (Book 6).
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With the revival of magic in the world of Ladrehdin, an ancient foe reawakens. Lady Karenina is called home to wield her wizardry against a power far older and deadlier. Will she survive? Who will hear her call for help?
In this second sequel to the original Waterspell quartet, Nina returns to the Ore Hills, summoned from across the void to face peril alongside her brother Galen and niece Jacca. This time, the threat is existential. Nina will discover that her great Gift of water-magic does, in fact, have its limits. Love, however, is eternal, and true friendship is boundless.
The Fires of Farsinchia concludes the further adventures of Lady Karenina of Ruain, eldest daughter of House Verek. It’s a tale of loyalty, humility, and selflessness in the face of overwhelming odds. Who can you count on to always be there to save you from drowning when you’re in over your head?
Sale Ends April 30, 2026!
This is the lowest price ever for all six ebooks in the Waterspell series. Get the full series for only $5.97.
This is a game-changer! Readers who prefer ebooks now have a truly viable alternative to the monopolistic Amazon monster. Ebooks may now be easily purchased and downloaded at Bookshop.org, where every purchase supports a local independent bookstore. Millions of writers, including ME, are absolutely thrilled! We’ve waited and hoped for this breakthrough.
Without further ado, here’s a list of my books and where you can purchase them at Bookshop.org. Did I mention? Every purchase supports a local independent bookstore. You can designate your own favorite indie. It’s a win-win-win for the reader, the writer, and the bravely determined independent stores who fight the good fight against an evil monopoly.
The big Half-Price Sale continues at Smashwords through January 1. Get the four-book Waterspell Boxed Set for only $4.47!
Readers call it:
“Riveting”
“Unforgettable”
“Marvelously complex and captivating”
“A must-read”
The Waterspell fantasy series follows the story of Carin, a lost traveler who embarks on a journey to discover her true identity and learn where she belongs. When she falls captive to a hot-tempered, secretive wizard, he draws her into schemes of magical power and possible murder. There’s a world to save, even if it costs Carin her life. The relationship between Carin and the wizard grows increasingly complex, balancing in a tense power struggle as, together, they navigate a world of dangers while yearning for redemption, a sense of belonging, and maybe a little unconventional romance.
Magic, mystery, murder, and romance. Waterspell: An intricate save-the-world fantasy adventure with complex characters, cosmic calamities, and the gothic sensibilities of Jane Eyre.
Since I returned to writing and publishing in 2022, my habit has been to run one promo a month, alternating among sites such as Book Barbarian, The Fussy Librarian, and Freebooksy. In 2025, my pattern fell apart because the world fell apart around me. (Damn you, Nazis and Fascists!) Several months passed with no promotional or marketing efforts at all from me. I was busy trying to save Democracy.
When November-December rolled around, I decided on a year-end push to raise my books’ visibility. Without really planning it, just scheduling whatever promos occurred to me, I ended up with:
A massive sale of my audiobooks, deeply discounted at Chirp
A half-price sale on all of my ebooks at Smashwords
Here’s hoping this flurry of publicity nets some new readers! The big audiobook sale at Chirp ends December 12, but the half-price sale on ebooks at Smashwords continues through January 1. Spread the word, won’t you? In these difficult economic times (people can’t even afford McDonald’s anymore) every reader of books needs and wants bargains.
I’m excited that my books are included in the Smashwords 2025 End-of-Year Sale! This is a chance to get the complete, entire Waterspell fantasy series at a 50% discount.
For more details, check out my double author profiles. I don’t know how it happened, but I’m listed twice at Smashwords, once with an underscore in my name, and once without. Go figure.
This would be a perfect time to stock up on books for your holiday and wintertime reading. You can also give books as gifts. Smashwords makes it easy. See the “About Gifting” page.
In these trying economic times, authors need your help! Keep us writing: please share this promo with your friends, family, and other bloggers. You can find the landing page here: smashwords.com/sale
As if creating an audiobook isn’t challenging enough, distributing it to retailers is a more complicated and unstable process than it ought to be. In June 2022 when the four-book boxed set of my Waterspell fantasy series was ready for release, I went with Findaway Voices as my distributor because I knew the name. At that time, I had not heard of Author’s Republic. Knowing that I wanted to go wide and not limit myself to the evil Amazon-Audible empire, I liked Findaway for its distribution model. It would get my audiobook into Chirp, Apple, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, and a bunch of audio retailers I’d never heard of, like Storytel and Downpour.
(INaudio’s Supposed Distribution Network)
Change Is Inevitable?
Alas, things kept shifting at Findaway. I had hoped to use them for production services, but Findaway dropped that service without even announcing they were dropping it. Their onetime narrator marketplace just disappeared off their website. Very fortunately for me, I then found the Usound audiobook recording service. From Usound’s roster of top talent, I snagged the amazing Simon de Deney to narrate the Waterspell boxed set, and the wonderful Hannah Eggleton to narrate the linked sequel, The Karenina Chronicles. Both of those professionals did excellent work.
But then, Spotify (yuck!) acquired Findaway in 2022, and I didn’t like Spotify’s reputation for paying musicians a pittance. I stuck around, though, because my audiobooks were still being distributed by the merged Spotify/Findaway entity to all known retailers, and I didn’t much care that my sales at Spotify were nearly nonexistent.
But THEN, in Autumn 2025, Spotify disengaged itself from Findaway, and the old Findaway Voices was rebranded once again as Voices by INaudio (led by Findaway veterans Blake Squires and Ralph Lazaro). I pretty quickly noticed a diminishment in the “off-brand” retailers to which my audiobooks were supposedly being distributed. They disappeared entirely from Libro.fm, and some of the links in INaudio’s “Retailer Link Tool” go nowhere. To be fair, however, I saw no disruption in the distribution to the major players such as Audible, Apple, Chirp, Kobo, and Barnes & Noble.
The Future of INaudio … and Me
I’m sticking with Voices by INaudio, for now, because a review at Reedsy.com says:
INaudio executives are reportedly planning to relaunch audiobook production services in the future.
They also want to bring back giveaway codes to help authors get downloads and reviews.
Both of those developments will be very welcome. In the meantime, I’m keeping an eye on my royalty statements from INaudio.
And I’ve said good riddance to artist-abusing Spotify. I have withdrawn my audiobooks from Spotify, to protest that platform’s immoral and tone-deaf decision to run recruitment ads for ICE, America’s racist Gestapo. My audiobooks remain available at other retailers.
(But only at Chirp are they on sale at really low, low prices in Autumn 2025. Such deep discounts will not soon be repeated, so you might want to check out the Nov-Dec sale.)
Just in time for your Holiday 2025 shopping and gifting! These are the lowest prices ever on the audiobook editions of Waterspell Books 1-4 (boxed set) and the linked sequel, The Karenina Chronicles: A Waterspell Novel.
Limited-time offer, available only at Chirp, where there’s no subscription fee. You buy only the audiobooks you want, when you want, and at the best prices anywhere. Click the images above, or go to:
These highly rated audiobooks return to their regular prices on December 13, 2025. Don’t miss this chance to save big!
Reviews
Highly rated for: Captivating Story • Wonderful Character Development • Magical Voice • Detailed Imagination • Unique Twist
• “A riveting series. Well written, excellent world-building with an engaging plot in each book and well-developed characters. I was gripped right from the start with twists I didn’t see and unpredictability.” —Aria, NetGalley
• “Complicated characters, plot twists, romance, adventure, and magic — all written in a voice that immerses you in a fantasy world both foreign and familiar. Get the box set because you won’t want to leave this world.” —Beck Digs It, Amazon
• “Listening to this book has been great. The story has twists and turns, it flows well and is neither too fast or too slow. The narrator is very real conveying anger as well as softness and intrigue. This is the type of audiobook you can listen to for hours and not get tired of.” —Sue, Audible
• “This story has such wonderful character, scene, and story development. I loved going along for the journey with the characters. I’ve read the books and am thoroughly enjoying the audiobook. The magical voice of the narrator makes the already great story even better, a whole new experience! Great read, highly recommend!” —Amanda, Audible
Through 5 January 2025, every book in the Waterspell fantasy series is on sale. The audiobooks are on sale, too! $14.95 for the four-book boxed set; $11.95 for The Karenina Chronicles. That’s $10 off the list price for each.
Available a la carte (without a subscription) at Chirp, Apple Audio, Spotify, and Nook Audiobooks. If you have an Audible membership, each book is 1 credit.
Making a place for yourself in a world where you don't belong takes courage. So does moving in with a warlock.
“Best audiobook series I’ve ever listened to.” —Google Audio
“An entertaining, fast paced, and well-plotted fantasy series. The world building is fascinating, and the characters fleshed out. Highly recommended.” —Anna Maria, NetGalley
“Captivating. I loved this series from beginning to end. Complex characters who mature through the series and unexpected plot twists kept me reading far too late into the night.” —Amy, Amazon
“A riveting series. Well written, excellent world-building with an engaging plot in each book and well-developed characters. I was gripped right from the start with twists I didn’t see and unpredictability.” —Aria, NetGalley
“Complicated characters, plot twists, romance, adventure, and magic — all written in a voice that immerses you in a fantasy world both foreign and familiar. Get the box set because you won’t want to leave this world.” —Beck Digs It, Amazon
“Lightfoot has a sure touch with regard to characterisation. Each of her characters has their own authentic and convincing voice. Narrative, description and speech are exceptionally well-balanced.” —Martin Dukes, author of the Alex Trueman Chronicles
“Jane Eyre meets Beauty and the Beast. Amazing story, very original. Great series.” —Emma, Amazon UK
“A must-read for fantasy enthusiasts who enjoy immersive world-building, well-developed characters, and a storyline that seamlessly blends magic and human emotion.” —Dalton, NetGalley
“I was hooked instantly. I willingly gave up sleep and could not wait to get up to read more. I’m reading the whole series, and absolutely loving it.” —Sarah, Amazon
“An extraordinary book, four in fact! I read these over a five-day period and found the storytelling fantastic. See for yourself!” —Michelle, NetGalley
“Addictive epic fantasy, with drama and adventure. I binged through the books, eager to see how the story unfolds. Great book. 5 stars.” —Di, NetGalley
“In this four-book saga, the author has created an epic fantasy world full of magic, danger, romance, and travel through time and space. The characters are vivid and complex. This is a most enjoyable read for fans of fantasy and fine writing.” —Shirley, NetGalley
“Such a joy to narrate this. It didn’t feel like work. The story and characters take flight so naturally and then soar.” —Simon de Deney
“I absolutely loved all four books! You kept your storyline throughout the four books brilliantly. The characters were all genuine and relatable.” —Carol, Goodreads
“I was HOOKED. I read until 3 am two nights in a row to finish this. The magic system is unique and the characters are as morally gray as they come.” —Megan, Goodreads
“A great read that features world building with drama and magical characters. Highly recommended.” —Neil, Amazon
You won’t want to leave this world.
Castles in the cornfield provided the setting for Deborah J. Lightfoot’s earliest flights of fancy. On her father’s farm in Texas, she grew up reading tales of adventure and reenacting them behind ramparts of sun-drenched grain. She left the farm to earn a degree in journalism and write award-winning books of history and biography. High on her bucket list was the desire to try her hand at the genre she most admired. The result is Waterspell, a multi-layered, intricately detailed fantasy about a girl and the wizard who suspects her of being so dangerous to his world, he believes he’ll have to kill her … which troubles him, since he’s fallen in love with her. Deborah is a professional member of The Authors Guild. She still lives in rural Texas.
Magic, mystery, murder, and romance. Waterspell: An intricate save-the-world fantasy adventure with complex characters, cosmic calamities, and the gothic sensibilities of Jane Eyre.
Mix environmental fantasy with magic, mystery, and a little slow-burning romance, add dystopian undercurrents, and that’s the Waterspell series—a cross-genre story with too many layers for a single label.
