A week before Pantheon

One week to go. Pantheon comes out on 1 November, and over a hundred of you already have an early copy.

I keep looking at that number. A few weeks ago it was a very different one.

How the copies found you

Most of them I sent myself, one by one. A lot of you I met on Instagram, where a nice chat turned into "can I read it?" and I said yes. Others came through reader groups, book bloggers, a few review desks, and Voracious Readers Only, a lovely newsletter that matches early readers with books.

If you would like a copy too, there is a little form linked from this site. Ask, and I will send it the same day. No account to make, and no deadline for a review.

And if you would rather have a peek first, the first seven chapters are free on Pantheon's own website. Nothing to sign up for. Read as much as you like.

That very different number? It came from a review site where I put up twenty-five copies, and for weeks only three were claimed. I was sure I had broken a setting somewhere, so I went hunting for it. Everything was fine. What I had missed was simpler. A free book still asks a lot. It asks for 492 pages of somebody's evenings, from an author they have never heard of, on my word that it is worth it. Claims there closed on 23 October, and honestly, everything above came out of that lesson.

A copy with your name in it

Sending a whole book to someone I have only chatted with can feel a bit scary. So every copy I send goes out stamped for that one reader. The file carries tiny marks, invisible on the page, that are different for every person. If a copy ever turned up somewhere it should not be, I would know whose it was.

If you are just here to read, you will never notice. You get your book, and I get to keep saying yes to the next person who asks.

What you are saying

The first reviews are in, and I have been reading every one. Goodreads shows seven ratings this week, averaging 3.75.

Lupe Farkas called it "an ambitious, psychologically charged romantic conspiracy thriller" in her review, and asked whether I had studied law. Fair question.

Over on Goodreads, Elsa wrote: "Vivienne was the highlight of Pantheon for me. She is clever, guarded, and fascinating to follow." Georgia called it "a slow burn story with plenty to love", which is fair, and also a gentle warning. And DC J found a soft spot for someone in the supporting cast: "Benny Chow definitely deserves his own special mention!" I agree.

Not everyone loved it, and I am grateful for those reviews too. A few readers found the money and legal detail slowed things down, and I have taken that to heart. I am writing book two now, and that feedback is sitting right beside me while I do. Every review, the glowing ones and the honest ones, has taught me something about how the story lands with a real reader.

Thank you for reading it, truly. See you on release day.