****2018 Alberta Book of the Year & Prix Aurora Finalist***** A mysterious message from a midnight duelist sends fashion reporter Maddie Hatter to New York's finest parasol dueling academy, where she foils a daring daylight kidnapping & ends up undercover in a Gilded Age mansion. Soon she's up to her lace gloves in social teas, industrial intrigues, and irrepressible street urchins. But when she comes face to beard with a powerful figure from her past, everything she struggled to earn is in jeopardy.."Spirited heroines, secret identities, engaging orphans, dueling parasols and gadgets galore!""another well-crafted, fast-paced mystery laden with intrigue; a romp through steampunk New York""this world of steam-driven machinery, inventions, airships, clockwork-type animated birds seems as real as our own"

Gilded Gauge - The Maddie Hatter Adventures, #2

"Fabulous 3rd in a series that's already collected 2 Aurora nominations & an 'Alberta Book of the Year' win." Maddie Hatter's third Adventure takes her to 1899 Venice. With her friend Lady Serephene, she penetrates an exclusive Carnevale Costume Atelier for sneak peeks at the season's most extravagant disguises. Soon Serephene's flirting madly with a Scottish inventor in his airship laboratory.until he and his fabulous new fabric are targeted by spies from Europe's Great Powers. Surrounded by cloak-and-dagger games, Maddie must find allies among Venice's underdogs if she hopes to survive Carnevale's spectacular grand finale.  "Great characters, vivid descriptions, fashion, food and intrigue." "I love the kite-baskets that carry people to work, and all the imaginative steampunk inventions. But best of all are the characters."

Timely Taffeta - The Maddie Hatter Adventures, #3

Writing fiction isn't easy. The 26 writers and editors-and one writing group-whocontributed to this book know exactly how difficult it can be. They've seen the challenges and found the solutions, and theyare here to share their hard-won lessons with you.  Fromgetting started to choosing a point of view, to addingresonance, crafting an unforgettable villain, advanced editingtechniques, and more, Writing Better Fiction has something forwriters at every level. Topics include: - Dealing with the blank page- Surface problems and story-worthy problems- Understanding point of view- Villains and conflict- Writer's block- Writing stronger scenes- Effective dialogue- Give your writing resonance with elemental tales- Three steps to move from telling to showingAnd much more.

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