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Cast in Silence Cover and News

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Cast in Silence

Cast in Silence

I meant to actu­ally post this at about the same time as I posted it on my Live­journal, so forgive me for the delay.  I really, really like the cover, which comes across on my computer as much lighter in the scan than it is in real life.  The on-sale date is the 28th of July, 2009. What this means is that in theory it should be avail­able on the 28th of July in any store that has ordered it. What it means in prac­tice is that some of those stores will have it earlier, some possibly a bit later. I’ve been saying “August 2009” in the store.

 

While doing this, I real­ized that I have not actu­ally responded to comments here; I have been trying, since the final revi­sions on Cast in Silence were finished, to make headway into my sadly neglected email box, and need­less to say, there is much grov­eling to be done there.  As well as here. 

But my excuses are as follows:  I’ve never been the world’s fastest writer, and I break my day into two working blocks.  One of those is devoted to the Michelle West novels, and the other to the Michelle Sagara books.  I wasn’t entirely certain if it would work, but to me the books are so different that they don’t bleed into each other and get in each other’s way.  This, as you can imagine, was a huge relief to me.

When I reach the end of a book, though, it still devours most of my mental acuity, and at that time, I’ll put aside whichever book isn’t ending and concen­trate solely on one.  This has worked out really well — for the writing.  But I used to use one of those blocks of time to do the already small amount of things I did on the internet, and unless the writing is going really well, or I’m working on Page Proofs, I tend to disap­pear for long stretches.

This is not because I hate people, or I don’t appre­ciate the fact that they like my books, and that’s one of my constant fears in all this.  It’s because I have found a way to work on two novels at once, and it doesn’t really leave me with a lot of other words to say which might be inter­esting or rele­vant.  Or, you know, sane and professional.

But I have news:

Luna has bought three more Cast novels, following Cast in Silence.

I only know the (working) title for the first of these three: It’s Cast in Chaos, and is the one I’m working on now. Or was, until the Page Proofs arrived.

But as a number of people have emailed to ask me what someone also asked here on this blog, I wanted to segue into some­thing that looked like an intel­li­gible answer.

Sandra said,
October 11, 2008 at 5:15 am · Edit

Michelle,

I’m really loving the new ‘Cast in’ series. How many books are you plan­ning to write for this series?

I hope the answer is not too upset­ting for people, because the answer is: I don’t know. I have a series of events that are unfolding entirely in the back­ground (with a little in the fore­ground in Shadow and Fury), and those events will culmi­nate in closure for Kaylin.

But… Cast in Silence is about the missing six months of Kaylin’s early life. Cast in Chaos is what I refer to as my Refugee book. I very much want to write a Dragon Court book, and I would like to write a book about the Aerians; I would like to write a novel about the Wolves, and in partic­ular the Shadow Wolves. I need to write a book about the fiefs (this last will become clearer after Silence, about which I will say no more). I would like to write one book which sees Kaylin actu­ally leave the city. I’m not sure if his would be on holiday, but given her life, I kind of doubt it.

I hope, with every book I write, that the story contained in it stands enough alone that people coming to the world for the first time won’t get lost the minute they hit page one, but at the same time, I want Kaylin to change and grow as she expe­ri­ences things.

43 Responses to Cast in Silence Cover and News

  1. Shelley says:

    I’m really loving your Cast Series … but i was wondering if you could tell me if there is going to be more of a rela­tion­ship between Kaylina dn Night­shade as it seems to be more of a teaser at the moment

  2. Michelle says:

    There’s more Night­shade in the upcoming Cast in Silence, but it’s not directly rela­tion­ship based. I honestly can’t say more than that without spoilers, but I think people will find it interesting.

    But as for a solid rela­tion­ship between the two, I’m not honestly certain. It depends on a couple of things, one of which is in the book I’m writing now; I don’t know how a certain meeting plays out — and again, I can’t really say more than that without spoiling the new book. This will make more sense in August >.<.

  3. Shelley says:

    Thanks Michelle it sounds great and as i said I’m loving your books .…. please keep writing.

    I think that your building a heroine that everyone can relate to, that at times is strong but also shows a weak side that makes her infi­nitely more relate­able. its her imper­fec­tions that make her such a joy to read.

  4. bonnie says:

    what is the date and place for worldcon in montreal.

  5. Michelle says:

    The Worldcon for 2009 is being held in Montreal, on August 6 – 10th. The web-site with infor­ma­tion about the conven­tion, the hotels, etc., is http://​www​.antic​i​pa​tionsf​.ca.

  6. Elizabeth says:

    I have a Sony ereader and bought the Cast in Fury ebook from the Sony e‑store, The problem is, they have the author listed as Sarah Zettel. Can you fix that? When I have the ebook opened, it has the author as Sarah Zettel. P.S. I love the CAST books and bought them in trade paper­back, mass market paper­back, and now as ebooks.

  7. Michelle says:

    I just sent email to my publisher. I know there was initially a problem with this on Amazon and B&N as well, so I assume there was a bit of data­base diffi­culty some­where in the chain. Hope­fully, this will help, and thank you for pointing it out.

  8. Kim says:

    Hi Michelle! I absolutely adore your books : ) And I don’t care that you rarely update this site – you do what works for you.

    I do have to say though, that the title scared me at first. Cast in Silence. Silence. It just didn’t sound good. Almost as though every­thing was dead, couldn’t speak. Which could show the extent that I mull over things when I want the next book.

    About your hope that each book can stand alone – I think I read Cast in Court­light first. I do not remember clearly (I have read them all so many times), but I think Cast in Shadow wasn’t avail­able (as in not in my house, couldn’t go get it) and I needed to read the books. I this was the case, I quickly found Cast in Shadow, but I had no problem with Cast in Courtlight.

    I like all of your ideas, but the Aerian story espe­cially capti­vates me. : ) I love the Aerians, like Kaylin.

    Thanks again!
    (and it sounds as if you deserve a rest… if you need one, you should take one)

  9. Yasmine says:

    I love your books! Just re-read Cast in Shadow again and imme­di­ately had to check when the next book was out. Imagine my joy when I came here and found out the next book is about Kaylin’s missing 6 months. I’ve been dying to hear about it. I can barely wait till August. Still I’ve got ‘Blood­hound’ by Tamora Pierce in early May and the next Anita Blake in June. Is it wrong that I pace my year by the release of my favourite Author’s books? Nope, didn’t think so. Thanks for the wonderful universe you’ve created. I love it so much and look forward to the next installment.

  10. Jen says:

    I discov­ered your books very recently and I really enjoyed them. Please do some of us a favor and don’t pair Kaylin roman­ti­cally with Night­shade. Ick. Sure you could go that way and get some mileage out of it but you could also create some action by pairing her with someone else and seeing how he responds. Person­ally, I like Severn, they’ve been together a long time and should take it to the next level.

    Anyway, I just wanted to let you know how much I have enjoyed your books so far and I’m defi­nitely going to be reading the next installment.

    Thanks, from a new fan

    Jen

  11. Angel says:

    I’m a little scared — I hope “those events will culmi­nate in closure for Kaylin.” doens’t mean the last 3 books won’t have Kaylin?? I’m inter­ested in a book about the other races & fiefs but only with Kaylin along for the ride.

    Your site not being updated doesn’t bother me in the least — I’m anxiously awaiting March 2010 now I’ve been an avid reader of your Hunter/Sunsword/House series since the very beginning.

  12. Michelle says:

    I’m a little scared — I hope “those events will culmi­nate in closure for Kaylin.” doens’t mean the last 3 books won’t have Kaylin?? I’m inter­ested in a book about the other races & fiefs but only with Kaylin along for the ride.

    Oh, no — they’ll all have Kaylin in them. It actu­ally hasn’t occurred to me to write anything set in this universe without her >.>

  13. LJ says:

    I’ve been reading your Cast books since Cast in Shadow was first released and just wanted to say thanks for so many hours of enjoy­ment spent reading the books. Three more books to come (after Cast in Silence) = FANTASTIC!!!

  14. Maud says:

    Hello Michelle,

    just a quick word to tell you that I adore your CAST books. I have read them many times, and justi­fies it by saying that it’s a way to improve my English (since I’m French). I just saw that the next one will be out at the end of July, and I’m really happy — espe­cially as I also pace my year by the release of my favorite authors’ books. I’m glad to see there will be more books after this one — I’m excited about the Aerians and Dragon court’s books, as well as Kaylin leaving the city. And I’m also a big fan of Severn ;)

  15. Lee Carlson says:

    I have a ques­tion, sorry, no answers I just needed a way to post this. I was wondering, Mrs. west, as to whether you are going to make a movie out of ” The Hidden City” because I liked, still liking(I haven’t finished it) the book immensely. thank you for your time.

  16. Angel says:

    Thanks so much for answering my ques­tion about Kaylin being in the rest of the books. I adore Kaylin and a I adore both your universes. Thanks for answering my question!!

  17. Jen says:

    I am soo excited to see the next book is coming out soon. I’ve read the series so many times, I just love them! You are such a fantastic author I can’t say enough!

    I am crossing my fingers for a little more romance, or some­thing, between Kaylin and ..well. whoever ha ha! I like bad boys and I think both Severn and Night­shade both fit that LOL

    Can’t wait for your next House Wars book too! I was so excited for it coming out my husband was gracious enough to drive me 1 1/2 to the city to get it. :)

    Thank you again for writing such fantastic books!!!

  18. Sophia says:

    Dear Michelle, I thank you for the hours of excite­ment and drama that you have brought in my world. Of course i am confi­dent that night­shade will have his say at some point…and people in case u have not realise to date, night­shade is kaylin’s man!!!! We are just going through her growing pains/joys with her and quite, quite enjoying it…thanks again michelle

  19. Ralph Walker says:

    While waiting for House Name, I decided to read your Cast series. Now I have two joys to look forward to; Cast In Silence and City of Night!!
    I do have a ques­tion. Is there a book before Cast In Shadow? The series reads like I missed some­thing before that book. Some­thing like Kaylin’s life with her Mom before Severn arrived?

  20. Eva says:

    Hi!

    I have just read through all the comments (of course I have read your books XXXX times — and of course I love them) and I have I have two of my own:
    1) It makes me happier to read your books then to read your blog (although I like it). PLEASE do prior­i­tize your health/home/books before your blog. I will stay a stead­fast fan blog or no blog!

    2) Dont pair Kaylin and Severn (roman­ti­cally that is)! Even the Dragons would be better!! By the way, I am really looking forward to the audi­ence with the emperor…

    Enough of rambling…Looking forward to your next books and All the Best

    Eva

  21. jaf says:

    Thank you so much for your great books. I am totally enjoying Kaylin’s expe­ri­ences. I was wondering, who was/is Kaylin’s father? In Cast in Secret, Teyaragon called her “daughter,” is there a connec­tion to the Dragons in Kaylin’s lineage? Also, could you elab­o­rate on the defi­n­i­tion of the “erenne”? Just wondering!! I look forward to Cast in Silence. Take Care. Jaf

  22. natasha says:

    Hello Michelle,

    I have just read through all the comments (i love doing that/this, reading the comments, you always get new insight into the books)

    Plezzzz Dont pair Kaylin and Severn roman­ti­cally (i know you choose if you will or will not) theree more like brother and sister then they are lovers.…..and bad boys are always good.…..like Nightshade.

    And i’m so happy i’m not the only one who paces my year by the release of my favourite Author’s books.

  23. wolfbaby says:

    I enjoy your cast series and eagerly awaite the next book in the series. I like your charaters plots and subplots:) As to how you work… You are one of those writ­ters that get’s the new books out in a shorter span of time then most… (trust me I have waited pait­ently for 3 years for another series I am reading) So i would guess you’re writ­ting stye pretty much is awesome when it allows time for two stories at once!

  24. Olivekid says:

    Hey
    i started read the cast series around 2 years with cast in court­light and i loved it! i have managed to convert one of my friends and now she won’t give the books back! :-( but i will convince her. Anyway i’m just writing to say how much i love your books and i can’t wait until cast in slience comes out :-)

  25. autumnwoods says:

    Michelle,
    I absolutely love your Cast series! As have the others, I have read all of the over and again. The books have actu­ally inspired my own stories and I could only hope to be as good as you are. I sound like a suck up lol but it’s true. I would love for Kaylin and Severn to end up together but I also love the inter­ac­tions between her and Night­shade. But I agree with Jaf. I would like to know what “erenne” means and what was the connec­tion with the dragon calling her daughter?
    Anxiously awaiting!
    Autumn

  26. Roslin says:

    Michelle,
    Pleaseeeee put a romantic element in your upcoming “Cast” books. I am half angry with Kaylin for not real­izing how much Severn loves her (because to be that devoted to someone, he’d have to be very much in love with her) and half angry with him for waiting on her to figure out that she is also in love with him (again, how could she not be?). I want Severn to get frus­trated. I want him to get sick of waiting and let her know how he feels. And, damn it, I want her to feel bad that he kept it in so long. Guilty, even.
    So far, each time I have picked up a new “Cast” book, I held out hope until the very last page that there would be a romantic element. I loved “Caste in Court­light” because there was so much focus on Severn and Kaylin’s rela­tion­ship, but it just didn’t go far enough. Does “Cast in Silence” address this issue? At all??

  27. Clara says:

    One of the many things I love about the Chron­i­cles of Elantra books is, yes, the rela­tion­ship between Kaylin/Severn and Kaylin/Nightshade — it’s almost an analogy for what she is and what she could, if she so chooses and for good or for ill, be. I also thought it was kind of inter­esting, how Night­shade and Severn have more in common than I think they’d care to admit — besides the link to Kaylin, I mean. They’re both person­ally inscrutable, both are more than they seem polit­i­cally (I get the feeling that there’s a lot about Severn, and his posi­tion in the Shadow Wolves, that we haven’t heard about yet), and the different weapons they wield, which are very indi­vidual pieces. Alright, done with the twenty-five-cent analysis. I just wanted to say how excited I am about the upcoming release of Cast in Silence. Any chance we’ll get a sneak peek some­time soon???

  28. Hello Michelle,

    I started reading your books with ‘The Hidden Series’ and I just fell deeply in love with Jewel and Rath. I loved them so much I had to buy it for a couple of friends! I simply haven’t loved an author’s work so much since discov­ering Christo­pher Moore so many years ago. The Cast In series was right there in the book store and I’ve purchased all four for myself and have read through the first three in succes­sion. I’ve been absolutely *capti­vated* by them! You are a wonderful writer; the char­ac­ters you’ve created are deep and colourful. There are just so many ways to iden­tify with them all. Who is Tanya Huff anyways?! Ha!

    Anyways, thank you so much for being there on the shelf. I have been thor­oughly enjoying them, and to find out there will be some more makes my heart sing! Yay!

    Lots of love,

    Michelle Shannon

  29. Opps… hit send to quick. I meant “The Hidden City.”

  30. jonna says:

    i just finished the book ‘cast in fury’ and then real­ized, sadly, that the story isn’t done and i have to wait for the next books. i love the story and have fallen in love with the entire idea of kaylin and severn…and i agree with some of the others, that they must be hope­lessly in love with eachother and need to just admit it…although that would ruin some of the awesome tension going on. please do keep kaylin as the centre of your stories, she’s the most amazing char­acter i have ever encoun­tered in all my reading. she’s so real and rough around, well every­where, making myself, as the reader, not long to be her but laugh with her and see myself in her. the creative useage of other tongues is also appri­ci­ated. =) keep it up and do try to main­tain your sanity throughout this busy time! best of luck!

  31. jonna says:

    oh by the way, i am not sad that the story isn’t over, i am sad that i have to wait, very impa­tiently i might add, for the next book.

  32. Janice says:

    THRILLED to hear about more Cast books, and even happier that we will see more of Night­shade. Out of all the char­ac­ters in the series (and I love them all) he’s my fave :). I admit I’m hoping he and Kaylin grow closer thru the coming books, and if they DO happen to develop a romantic relationship.….well, you won’t hear any complaints from me! LOL ;) What­ever happens, though, I’m gonna keep reading, because this series is just too good to put down!

    Now, does anyone know how to speed up time? Because August is too far away!

  33. Amanda says:

    I have just finished Cast in Fury and am excited that the next in the series is coming so soon! The char­ac­ters are fabu­lous, the world is rich and complex, and the plot is terribly intriguing!

    I also wanted to throw in a cheer for the Kaylin/Nightshade romance, as I see that most people are a fan of her and Severn. I like Severn, but I feel that what he did in the past can not be forgiven or forgotten, even by love. In my opinion, to be forgiven would somehow diminish what he did and sacrificed.

    At any rate, sorry for the tangent. These books are absolutely wonderful. Thank you for sharing them with us.

    PS: If you are going to do a book on Shadow Wolves, are you going to do a book on Barrani Outcastes…?

  34. natasha says:

    are you going 2 put a chapter of the cast in silence up before or after the book comes up??????

  35. Nancy says:

    Write as many books in this series as you want, Michelle Sagara! I will buy every one of them!

  36. Sarah says:

    I just did a happy dance and called my boyfriend excit­edly to inform him that my favorite author’s book is coming out soon when I saw on Amazon that the Cast in Silence cover was out. I just had to rush over here and tell you that I love, love, LOVE your books. The complexity and detail you put into every book is fantastic and I am always eager to obses­sively read and re-read them over and over again.

    Thanks very much for the update! I hope your publisher lets you continue writing about Kaylin’s world. :)

    As to the Kaylin/Severn vs Kaylin/Nightshade debate…I’m pretty sure that what­ever you end up going with I’ll love (or at least under­stand) because I’ve never seen your char­ac­ters act illog­i­cally for the sake of a plot.

    On a side note, The Sun Sword series was fantastic, it’s what got me reading the Cast in series. :)

  37. Raena says:

    Thankyou so much for this series. its great, can’t wait for the three next books.
    and it could be really cool for Severn and Kaylin end up together. I swear they were meant to be from the start.

    How old is Night­shade? Maybe I missed this little detail in the book. i’ve always imag­ined him as being maybe ten years older than kaylin, in body. Even though he is immortal and prob­ably really old in spirit.

  38. Nadiah says:

    Dear Michelle,

    Thank you so much for the update and uploading the first chapter of Cast in Silence. I just found your Elantra Chron­i­cles books a few months ago and read the first 4 books back to back within 3 days… Mad! I know! I am glad I didn’t have to wait too long for the next install­ment and have started on The Sundered series for my fix while waiting for your new books. I am glad that I am not the only one who paces her reading in a year by the arrival of new books from her favourite authors, while trolling the authors websites to see when new books are coming out!!! :-)
    I have to say that I have never felt so divided between 2 male char­ac­ters for the protag­o­nist before. Both seem really inter­esting, and I do hope you will pair her with either one of them before the end of the series (She deserves some love, don’t you think?… Although, to tell you the truth, so far, I am more inclined to Nightshade).
    Anyway, kudos to you for giving us such great char­ac­ters that we all love! I am on tenter­hooks in regards to what you are going to put Kaylin through next!

  39. Kate says:

    Hi!
    I must say that I am completely torn about who Kaylin should end up with roman­ti­cally. I tend to lean towards Severn because of his silent devo­tion and how he is always there for her (which is really sweet). However, I can also see why it might be Night­shade because there is the looming term of ‘errene’ which has romantic conno­ta­tions and there have been little tension building hints and moments between him and Kaylin throughout the novels (even though she is always weary and afraid of him). Will this issue be addressed in the coming novels? I am very excited for the next one to come out! Thank you for writing such excel­lent stories, I enjoy them all!

  40. jessica says:

    great books i love Every part of them and there should most defi­natly be one about the ariens and dragons and this point there culture seems a mistery.

    P.S. pretty please have night­shade and kaylin have some­what of a reala­tion­ship. its very entertaining!!

  41. Candilicious says:

    i just wanted to say i love the cast series and im glad that it is going to keep going for a while! i will be sad when the last book is written :( but for now i wait for the next ones with baited breath!!!

    i cant wait to see where the rela­tion­ship with Kaylin and Severn goes. part of me wants them to be together but part of me wants them to just main­tain being friends. any teasers on where they are going?

  42. Carol says:

    Love your books, I bought and read them all in the last two weeks. I’m now waiting for the next one this August.
    I was really hoping more Night­shade in the books his char­acter is intriguing. There’s more ques­tions than answers with him.
    Rela­tion­ship between Kaylin/Severn would be like other books I’ve read and Kaylin/Nightshade I would like to see were you could take it.

  43. Carly says:

    Hello Michelle I love your books!!!
    My favourite Char­acter is Lord Night­shade. He reminds me of a fantasy version of Rhett Butler (Gone with the wind) one of the most charis­matic char­ac­ters ever. Both Char­ac­ters are consid­ered outcast, well educated, wealthy, and powerful. Both under­stand Poli­tics that the heroine does not. Both patiently pursue the woman that has managed to hold their attention.
    Give Lord Night­shade the body of a Lord of the rings Eleven Noble, with an Alan Rickman (Professor Severus Snape ) velvety smooth high bred voice and Bram Stokers Dracula’s Posses­sive Dark edge, this char­acter could have its own book series. However it is my hope that you continue evolving Lord Night­shade and the main Char­acter Kaylin. I can’t wait until August for the next one.

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