Katee is on tour for the last book in the Dark Olympus series--which is so wild to think about! Couldn't be more thrilled for them to celebrate such a huge accomplishment! Down here in the Southern Hemisphere, we're getting properly into winter with long nights and snuggly weather.
Between now and when we fulfill this project, we'll send you a monthly update to keep you in the loop about production, timeline, and helpful info. If you have any questions at any point, please email us: [email protected]. Comments sometimes slip through the cracks and social media is a mess, so if you want a timely response, email is the way to go!
We won't have any huge updates for a little while, but we'll still check in monthly. The poll for what happens next in our Bluebeard story is at the end!
Pay-Over-Time
If you opted to pay over time, the payments will automatically be processed by Backerkit once a month. We don’t have any part of that process, visibility into it, or any ability to modify it. Here’s a help article that answers most questions about it.
eBooks and Surveys
Your surveys will be sent in August and that’s when the ebooks will be delivered. When the surveys are sent, you’ll have one week to fill it out to ensure that you get your name in the back of the books.
Address Changes
Since you won't give us your address until you fill out your survey in August, you don't need to worry about this at all right now. If you move between August and when we ship the items, you'll be able to change your address in the survey right up until we lock the addresses to ship.
What’s Coming Next from Bonkers Romance?
We have some really exciting projects coming down the pipeline, but the one we’re losing our minds over will happen in August. With Bonkers Romance, we set out to celebrate bold, fearless storytelling—the kind of big swings that push a genre forward. With our Paranormal Romance Royalty project, we’re going back to where it all began…and opening the door for a whole new generation to step inside.
If you want to see a teaser of what's to come, check out the launch party page! On the heels of your enthusiasm for this project, we'll be looking for even more ways to engage with readers there. We're letting project followers vote on which scenes we'll bring to life for the vellum overlays!
The project includes some of our favorites from J.R. Ward, Nalini Singh, Shelly Laurenston, Gena Showalter, and Kresley Cole! Here's a taste of the stunning slipcase art by Finn Frei. Our art direction and cover design will once again be under the genius of Elizabeth Turner Stokes!
We've worked with Bookfunnel and Backerkit to refine the ebook delivery process. We were the very first ones to use their new integration, so we appreciate you guys helping us to test it out and make it better. You no longer need the link to access A Monstrous Need--it will already be in your Bookfunnel library waiting for you when you either sign in or create an account with this email address. From there, you can send it to your e-reader or read it on their app. https://my.bookfunnel.com
Choose-Your-Own Adventure!
Vote on what should happen next! In the last part, we ended with a dilemma:
“I’ll consider it.” He seems closer, that sensation of falling while standing up hitting you again, as if he contains his own personal gravitational pull. “First, you will tell me who you are and how you came to be here. Now.”
You bite your bottom lip, considering how to answer him–or if you should answer him at all. You could always tell the truth, or try to brazen your way through. Gods, you could just start running and hope for the best…
Vote below!
Thank you for your enthusiasm and support! We're thrilled to be on this adventure with you!
We’re going to be continuing the story in a monthly format alongside our general updates on the project. We couldn’t cut you off too soon! If you need to catch up or don't remember what was happening in the story, you can find the whole thing here! We'll be back in a few days with our monthly update and a vote on what will happen next, so drop your suggestions in the comments!
You chose to try to save the stranger stealthily. Will it work? Only one way to find out…
The Rescue
You back away from the door as silently as you can. You’ve heard stories about mothers who have lifted cars off their children and other impossible feats, but hoping for a miracle to beat these two masked people is a surefire way to end up alongside the woman. No, there’s got to be some way to distract them safely.
You hurry to the next door and peer inside. It’s a nearly identical room to the first, even down to the chaise. The third room is the same. Okay, you know what you’re working with now. How should you…
A pained cry from the woman. You don’t know what they’re doing to her, but you’re out of time. You duck across the hall to a fourth room and grab the first thing you can get your hands on–a large vase. It’s heavier than you expected, but with adrenaline coursing through your body, you heft it and manage to toss it across the hall into one of the empty rooms. It makes a horrible clatter, and you barely have time to duck out of sight before footsteps sound.
“What was that?”
“I don’t know. No one else is supposed to be back here.”
You hold your breath as they walk into the empty room and then you sprint to the first room and shut the door. As you’d hoped, there’s a lock here. You flip it and turn to find the woman sitting up and blinking blearily at you. “Who are you?”
“I’m here to help.” You hope. There was no time to come up with a real plan, and now you’re locked in here together and the masked pair absolutely know someone is meddling. In desperation, you search for another way out of the room. Like the other rooms you saw, there are no windows and no other doors. You’re trapped.
Perhaps you should have thought this through before acting, but there simply wasn’t time. You’re no hero, but you’re also not monster enough to stand by while someone else is harmed. You cross to the woman and help steady her. “What’s your name?”
“Savannah.” She jumps at the sound of someone pounding on the door. “I shouldn’t be here.”
“That makes two of us.” You try very hard not to flinch as the pounding on the door becomes more pronounced. The pair aren’t shouting, which somehow makes it more disconcerting. You shudder. “Surely there’s like a secret passageway or something out of here.”
Savannah blinks. “Do you think that’s likely?”
“No.” You flinch when the pounding on the door simply…stops. Somehow, the sudden silence is so much worse than the alternative. Are they standing out there, listening? Surely they haven’t left. That would be too easy. You press on more of the stone wall, but it feels exactly what it looks like–immoveable stone. You’re well and truly trapped. Damn it. “Why are you here?”
She presses her fingers to her temple. “I don’t really remember. I got an invitation to a party, and I accepted but…” She starts to shake. “I don’t remember leaving my apartment. Or anything before you ran in here and shut the door. Was I drugged?”
“I don’t know.” Drugs seem terribly mundane after everything you’ve witnessed. You might be able to write it off as some kind of questionable party that you absolutely weren’t invited to if not for the clear evidence of magic in the gown you’re wearing that you most definitely didn’t change into. All you did was put on a mask. But if you tell this stranger that she might have been influenced by magic… Well, you’d sound as wild as this situation currently is.
The door seems to gain a new weight. There’s no other way to explain it. Your gaze is drawn to it, magnetic and so heavy your legs shake. Something new is on the other side of the door, and it’s hungry.
Before your eyes, the lock twists and the door eases open. On the other side, darkness reigns, the shadows so deep, you only get the suggestion of broad shoulders and a tall form before he speaks. “You’re not where you’re supposed to be, Savannah.”
She jolts. “What?” The word comes slow and strange, as if she speaks on the other side of a long tunnel.
A hand extends into the room. It defies logic that you can see his hand so clearly but can’t see his face. “Come.”
You reach for Savannah, but somehow she’s already on the other side of the room and slipping her hand into the man’s. Is it Bluebeard? He sounds a little like Bluebeard, but his voice is deeper, more dangerous. “Savannah, don’t go with him,” you say.
“It’s fine.” She steps into the dark without looking back.
You haven’t come this far to let her be led to her doom–again–so you rush after her. The first step into the shadows feels like wading through waist-deep water. You grit your teeth and keep going. There were only a couple steps from one side of the hallway to the other. You have to catch Savannah.
Except, you take those few steps and don’t encounter the wall. You frown and hold your hands out, wary of walking into something, but you take another dozen steps without encountering anything. Did you get turned around? The hall wasn’t that long. Even if you somehow turned one way or another, you should have come to the end of it by now.
“You’re not where you’re supposed to be, either.” The words come from directly behind you.
You spin, arms still outstretched. “Who are you?”
“I could ask you the same question.” There’s a new rumble to the words, deep and forbidding. “Every person who accepted my invitation is accounted for, and yet here you stand, clearly an interloper.”
“Interloper,” you repeat. Who talks like that? You never should have come to this place. The amount of money in question might be life-changing, but you have to survive long enough to have your life changed. “Where is Savannah?”
“Where she needs to be.”
You still can’t quite see him. It’s Bluebeard, though. It has to be. “I would like to see her.”
“I’ll consider it.” He seems closer, that sensation of falling while standing up hitting you again, as if he contains his own personal gravitational pull. “First, you will tell me who you are and how you came to be here. Now.”
You bite your bottom lip, considering how to answer him–or if you should answer him at all. You could always tell the truth, or try to brazen your way through. Gods, you could just start running and hope for the best…
YOU BLEW OUR MINDS!!!! We’ve never seen so much excitement at the end of a campaign. You kept Overtime Mode going for more than 5 HOURS with a Backer Train that lasted 6 hours and 45 minutes! You unlocked the Forbidden Vault and you better believe it’ll get filled with digital goodies!
Here’s everything you need to know now that the campaign has ended:
Failed Payments
If your payment didn’t process for some reason, you’ll have two weeks to correct it in Backerkit. It should automatically run it again if you update it. Here’s a help article that answers most questions, but if you need help with something specific, please email us: [email protected]
Pay-Over-Time
If you opted to pay over time, the payments will automatically be processed by Backerkit once a month. We don’t have any part of that process, visibility into it, or any ability to modify it. Here’s a help article that answers most questions it.
eBooks and Surveys
Your surveys will be sent in August and that’s when the ebooks will be delivered. When the surveys are sent, you’ll have one week to fill it out to ensure that you get your name in the back of the books.
Late Pledges
If you’re getting this update because you were a project follower and missed out on backing, there will most likely be a limited number of items available in the late pledge store for a higher cost than the campaign. This will only be for a limited time. If you want to be notified first when that goes live, please add your email address to the Waitlist.
Choose-Your-Own-Adventure and Monthly Updates
You didn’t think we’d leave our story unfinished, did you? We’ll continue the story with our monthly updates and keep giving you a chance to vote on where the story leads. Expect the next part of the story before the end of the month, then the poll for what happens next will be included in our June update. You’ll get a new update each month that lets you know what’s happening behind-the-scenes as we move through the production process and closer to shipping. Our current expectation is that we’ll ship in Q1 of 2027.
What’s Coming Next from Bonkers Romance?
We have some really exciting projects coming down the pipeline, but the one we’re losing our minds over will happen in August. With Bonkers Romance, we set out to celebrate bold, fearless storytelling—the kind of big swings that push a genre forward. With our Paranormal Romance Royalty project, we’re going back to where it all began…and opening the door for a whole new generation to step inside.
If you want to see a teaser of what's to come, check out the launch party page! On the heels of your enthusiasm for this project, we'll be looking for even more ways to engage with readers there. For instance, the artist is just about to start working on the spicy artwork, so we'll be sharing sketches and letting you vote on what scenes we'll bring to life for the overlays.
The project includes some of our favorites from J.R. Ward, Nalini Singh, Shelly Laurenston, Gena Showalter, and Kresley Cole! Here's a taste of the stunning slipcase art by Finn Frei. Our art direction and cover design will once again be under the genius of Elizabeth Turner Stokes!
If you didn’t immediately download and devour the magnificence of Elizabeth Stephens’s book–first of all, what are you doing with your life?? But more importantly, your link may have expired. In the Backer Only content section below, we'll include an active link you can use instead. If you're reading this in email form and you don't see a link, you may need to open the update on Backerkit to access it.
Thank you for your enthusiasm and support! The end of the campaign is only the beginning of the fun we'll have together!
We genuinely didn’t have a plan for what would be beyond $600k because a few days ago, it didn’t even occur to us that we could get there. We thought we’d maybe sneak across that threshold just as the campaign ended.
Instead, you CRUSHED IT!!!
Door #5 unlocked a free sticker for everyone who is receiving a physical item, and we’ll include it as a digital file for our ebook backers to use and share digitally.
Sticker
You’ve all been a part of something incredible, and it gives us so much hope about the future of publishing--as well as human authors and artists’ places in it.
We’re now into the FINAL HOUR of the campaign…
But what if the end just became another game?
Backerkit has a feature called Overtime Mode that engages as soon as the campaign ends. Every time a new backer pledges or an existing backer adds something to their pledge, 10 minutes gets added back onto the clock.
If you can keep the Backer Train going long enough that Overtime Mode lasts for more than one hour, we'll unlock one final community reward:
The Final Door: The Forbidden Archive
This will be a digital treasure hoard for ALL BACKERS.
The Forbidden Archive will begin with digital treasures you’ve already unlocked or created with us, including:
⚡ The polished version of our collective Bluebeard Choose-Your-Own Adventure story once it’s finished! ⚡ Katee’s Bluebeard Candy Land short story ⚡ Behind-the-scenes Bluebeard content with Katee and Jenny
But because this is Overtime Mode and y’all have been wild…
The longer you keep the clock alive, the more we’ll add to the Archive.
Possible additions include:
⚡ Bluebeard artwork wallpapers ⚡ Bonus chapters ⚡ A “Which Door Should You Open First?” reading guide ⚡ Audio of the Bluebeard Candy Land short story ⚡ More digital delights that we’ll dream up as we go
This campaign has been an absolute joy. We’ve been thrilled and honored by your enthusiasm and the energy you’ve brought to this space. Thank you for bringing this to life!
When the timer hits zero, stick around with us to see what happens!
Keep the Backer Train going... Keep the clock alive... Open The Forbidden Archive.
By opening Door #4, you unlocked Spicy Art Cards AND a BLUEBEARD CANDY LAND short story from Katee! I'm proud of you! We did it!
The Spicy Art Cards are now available as a $12 add-on or included free with the One-Click Box!
The One-Click Box now includes:
⚡Bluebeard Coin
⚡Book Nook for displaying and storing your classy vellum artwork ⚡Spicy Vellum Set ⚡Cover Art Vellum Set ⚡Bluebeard Drinking Glass Set for sophisticated spicy reading ⚡Forbidden Curiosity Candle ⚡Stepback Art Cards ⚡Bluebeard Metal Bookmark ⚡NEW! Cover Art Sticker Set ⚡NEW! Spicy Art Cards ⚡NEW! Bluebeard Candy Land Short Story—yes, everyone gets it, just let me be excited!
That brings the One-Click Box to $186 worth of merch for $139—now a 25% discount instead of 15%!
This One-Click discount is only available until the campaign ends, and it will not be available in the pledge manager. So if you’ve been eyeing it, this is the time!
And we’re not done yet... (*said in Infomercial Voice*)
We are so close to unlocking our final stretch goal at $600k. One more door. One more temptation.
Add the One-Click Box, grab the Spicy Art Cards, tell a friend, rattle the gates of Bluebeard’s (Candy Land) castle—whatever strikes your fancy.
Let’s see if we can unlock that final stretch goal before the campaign closes!
