Dear friend,

Can you believe we’re already six months away from BIRD KING RISING’s release date? And just look at how gorgeous the cover is:

Since March, BIRD KING RISING has been available for request on NetGalley. The reviews have started to trickle in (I’m by no means a slow reader, but I’m seriously impressed by how fast some people read it).

One thing is clear: if you loved BLACK SALT QUEEN, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll love the sequel. It’s got everything that made my debut so special (at least to me): a lush, Filipino-inspired world; unapologetic women; and the heartrending contradictions of loyalty and love.

Books reflect the time in which they were written. I’m not entirely the same person I was when I wrote BLACK SALT QUEEN. Most of that manuscript came out of the pandemic—a time when many of us were looking inward. I believe that’s why, to some people, the plot of the first book reads slower and introspective. Each scene felt like a character study, the air thick with unresolved tensions and the heat of Mariit.

The sequel, on the other hand, reflects the heightened stakes and frenetic energy around me. Whenever I read through my proof pages, I’m plunged back into the Skylands, the mountainous region where much of BIRD KING RISING takes place. The air there is crisp and buzzing with potential.

This is a story that lived in my head for years before I started writing it. Even after all this time, I’m still delighted to follow the characters I fell in love with—especially at this faster pace.

BIRD KING RISING comes out on October 13, 2026. But if you can’t wait that long, you can request an ARC here.

✏️ Authorly musings:

I’m not going to lie: I’ve been struggling to move on from Maynara. Perhaps it’s a bit premature to say, as book 2 isn’t even out yet, but publishing timelines are long. By time time you’re out promoting one book, your mind is already wrapped up in your next project.

This isn’t a bad thing. I want to sell more books. I want to challenge myself and grow as a writer. But I’ve been in the world of this duology for so long now that it’s hard to move on.

In between editing rounds over the past few years, I’ve started writing new drafts and developing other concepts. Once you get over the fear of the blank page, it’s one of the most exciting stages in the creative process. Everything is fresh. There are no limits.

The worst thing you can do at the beginning is rush things. You’ll never understand the meat of a story from the first few pages or a handful of bullet points. If you don’t let your characters surprise you, you might misjudge them, and then you’ll miss the whole point of writing in the first place.

To write a book, you need to fall in love. It’s a slow, intimate process, during which you and your story evolve along intertwining paths. If you want things to work, you need plenty of time, trial and error, as well as a willingness to dig deep inside yourself. And if you want to write something honest, you need to develop a close, uninhibited relationship with your words.

BLACK SALT QUEEN was the first book I’ve ever finished, and it will always hold a special place in my heart. I’ve asked myself many times whether I’d ever feel that strongly about a book again. Back then, I was alone with my manuscript, ignorant to the publishing industry and the real world’s demands.

It can be hard to feel any kind of intimacy with your books as a working writer, with competing commitments and other people’s voices inside your head. But I’m starting to understand that there’s no going back to that quiet period, and that it might be time for a shift in perspective.

Because, by now, I’ve fallen in love with my sequel. I love the journey we’ve shared and the more mature writer it reflects.

Maybe my debut wasn’t the book of my heart but rather one piece of it. Maybe we’re meant to shatter our own hearts and scatter them across a million pages.

Maybe it isn’t about leaving one story behind. Maybe it’s about finding new versions of ourselves in the words still unwritten—and the worlds we haven’t discovered yet.

💌 What I’m loving lately:

• The Carousel of Forgotten Places by S. Hati (out August 25, 2026). I was at a low point when I read this, and boy did the story deliver. It met me like a warm hug and gave me all I could want from a cozy fantasy. The whimsy! The found family! The swoon-worthy time god!

• The Witch in the Dead of Night by Charlotte Buckley (out August 13, 2026). I guess you can say I’m on an ARC streak, because this romantasy grabbed me in a way no romantasy has grabbed me in a long while. It had everything I love in the genre, including court intrigue and sexy vampires.

🔗 Links:

• Request an ARC of BIRD KING RISING on Netgalley (coming out October 13, 2026).

• Add BIRD KING RISING to your TBR on Goodreads, Storygraph, and Pagebound.

• Preorder BIRD KING RISING via Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, and wherever books are sold!

All my love,

S.B.