Anya Bast

Cross-posted from the Witchy Chicks Blog.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. To me it has little to do with the traditional Thanksgiving story, (which is revisionist history at its worst), and everything to do with the straightforward name of the day—giving thanks.

Every Thanksgiving is the same for me, has been for years. I get up, make coffee and curl up on the couch to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. It’s a yearly tradition that has grown sweeter with the addition of my daughter, who sits rapt beside me under a blanket, staring at the floats and waiting for the Radio City Rockettes to do their rendition.

Toward the end of the parade, I’ll be getting up occasionally to prepare the turkey and put it in the oven. We always host Thanksgiving because we have a large Amish-made dining room table that seats many. I don’t mind hosting, since I love to cook and I love having my family over. I’m never alone in the food preparation, however. I do the turkey and the sweet potatoes (recipe below) and others bring side dishes and dessert. I make the sweet potatoes the day before not only to save time, but also because the ingredients taste that much better when they’ve had time to thoroughly blend in the fridge overnight.

Sometime around noon my family shows up. The wine and conversation flows freely. Before dinner we talk about all the things we’re thankful for. My list goes a little like this:

I’m thankful for our continued ability to help others less fortunate make their Thanksgiving plentiful.
I’m thankful for the good health of myself and my family.
For my daughter, who makes my world shine brighter than I ever thought possible.
For the roof over our heads and the food in our cupboards.
For my ability to find joy, peace and happiness in simple things and simple acts.
For my cats, who never fail, not even one day, to make me laugh and my heart to swell with affection and love.

We eat. YUM. Turkey, stuffing, scalloped potatoes, sweet potatoes, steamed veggies, biscuits with melted butter.

Then comes dessert. Usually we keep it traditional. Sometimes my mom bakes a pumpkin pie, but oftentimes we choose instead to purchase a few gourmet pies instead (the pros can do it so much better than we can). I warm the pies up a bit in the oven, top the slices with whipped cream or drop a dollop of ice cream beside it. You can’t beat that for dessert.

Thanksgiving is always a day filled with good food and good company. I look forward to it every year. May your Thanksgiving be filled with all the things and all the people you love.

Anya’s Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients:
4 cups sweet potato, boiled and mashed
4 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup chopped walnuts and/or pecans

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 325F.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the boiled/mashed sweet potatoes, sugar, eggs, salt, butter, milk and vanilla. Mix until smooth. Transfer to a 9×13 inch baking dish.
3. In another bowl, mix the flour and sugar. Chunk in the butter and the walnuts/pecans. Sprinkle the mixture over the sweet potato mixture.
4. Bake for 30 minutes.

Cross-posted from Witchy Chicks

I’ve talked before about how sometimes stories come easily to me and sometimes they’re harder to write. One of the hardest books for me to write was Jeweled, which just released a couple of weeks ago. Its sequel, Jaded, flowed like water even though it’s a similar book in tone and set in the same world.

Why was Jeweled was so difficult? I think several factors combined to make it so, but the major factor was Evangeline, my heroine. She was the inspiration for the novel, but she was also one of the hardest characters I’ve ever written.

Evangeline has not experienced her own emotion since she was a child. Her magickal gift is stealing emotion from others, trading it, and “manufacturing” feeling in others. A part of her gift is the ability to build strong walls against emotion for herself and after a very traumatic experience as a child, she did just that.

But when the palace where Evangeline lives is taken over by a mob during a bloody revolution and she’s turned out into the street, penniless, all her walls coming tumbling down and Evangeline is forced to learn how to feel again.

There to help her is Anatol, an adept of light and illusion. He is also a “Jeweled,” one of those with enough magick to earn him a precious jewel set into his flesh and be considered good breeding material for the royal family, (that, over the years, has bled out all the magick from their line through inbreeding).

The backlash of Anatol’s gift of being able to sculpt illusion is the ability to see truth. He sees that Evangeline is a very special person, but she needs lots love and support to get through the sudden changes in her life. He has loved for her for a very long time and is willing to give her anything she needs.

Anatol loves Evangeline because he can see through to the truth of her. If a person can’t do that, it’s hard to find affection for her in the beginning of the book. Until those walls holding back her emotion fall, she is a petty, selfish, cold-hearted person. Once the walls fall, she’s vulnerable and, really, a mess. Primarily, Jeweled is Evangeline’s story about how she finds love and also finds her true self.

Complicating matters is Gregorio Vihkin, the scholarly mastermind behind the revolution that has disrupted Anatol and Evangeline’s lives. When the upheaval in the streets threatens Anatol and Evangeline’s lives, he takes them in.

At first Evangeline hates Gregorio for what he’s done, but when she gets to know him and sees the truth behind their former pampered lifestyles and how it hurt the rest of the people, her feelings for Gregorio warm. Warm a little too much for Anatol’s taste. Soon both men are in love with Evangeline and Evangeline has more than she can handle.

Together, in a world gone mad, they must find a way to come together.

Jeweled, like Jaded, is a very emotional book. It was Evangeline, a very complex character with a complicated arc of development, that made this one a bear for me to write. But I like a challenge, so I enjoyed every minute of it. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

I just received the final cover for JADED, sequel to JEWELED. I think I can live with it. 😉

Haunted by a traumatic attack when she was eighteen, Lilya Orensdaughter has become a courtesan in the Temple of Dreams, determined to never again lose control. But she will do anything for Byron Andropov, the man who nursed her back to health all those years ago—and who now wants her to help his friend Alek Chaikoveii come to terms with the powerful magick he possesses.

In Alek, Lilya finds a kindred spirit. The attraction between them is immediate, and soon Lilya surrenders to nights of unimaginable ecstasy. But she can’t forget Byron, who’s concealed his feelings for Lilya because he believed she would never love again. As tensions escalate between the two men who are vying for Lilya’s heart, Lilya finds herself torn between her desire for the man who saved her, and the man whose soul resembles her own—only to discover that in the world of unrestrained passion there are no boundaries. If only you’re willing to give up control…

Dark Enchantment, Third in the Dark Magick Series.

April 5, 2011

A sultry dream can become a real-life nightmare…

Tax consultant Charlotte Bennett isn’t the type to lose control. Until she’s seduced in a dream by a handsome, rugged man named Kieran. In her dream state, she decides to let loose, letting pleasure and desire lead the way. But she quickly discovers her “safe” night of passion has dangerous repercussions.

The lust-driven dream was in fact a magickcal illusion that’s left Charlotte indefinitely bound to a controlling fae named Kieran. Under his order, she must find the last piece of a powerful relic. Only Charlotte knows the location of the Bosca Fadbh, but the knowledge is hidden deep within her bloodline—and only wicked magick can draw it out.

Forced to work with the enticing Kieran, she finds it hard to escape their seductive chemistry. Even though he’s harboring a deadly curse, one that puts Charlotte in danger—and could make this attraction fatal…

Raven’s Quest — A stand-alone fantasy romance.

February 1, 2011

New York Times bestselling author Anya Bast spins a spellbinding fantasy of a man and woman torn between love and war, magic and mystery, passion and revenge…

Once, Gallus Lucan was in line to inherit the Dragon Throne of Numia–until his future was crushed and his family slain by his malevolent uncle Magnus. Now Lucan has only one ambition: overthrow Magnus and take back what is rightfully his.

Branna ta Cattia is the Raven, a high priestess who has come to Numia to defeat its tyrant. It’s a journey made on the strength of her prophetic dreams, visions of ancient rituals, sacred spells, and of a handsome stranger destined to help her–all in the name of stopping Magnus’s oppression. But Branna’s stranger is more than she expected. For Lucan wants victory his own way. To hell with the consequences.

As the magic of one woman’s love and the brute force of one’s man revenge unfold, Lucan and Branna realize their destiny as spirit mates–and their fears that the ultimate cost of winning freedom could be greater than either imagined.

Getting the word out about a book signing in a particular locale is like searching for a needle in a haystack. I’m broadcasting nationally in an attempt to hit the few who live nearby.

If you’re in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, this may be of interest to you. I’ll be signing Saturday, September 25 at 2pm at the Borders in Woodbury, MN 8472 Tamarack Village, St Paul, MN 55125 (651) 578-2931. I’ll have my newest release, CRUEL ENCHANTMENT, along with assorted other titles.

I’d love to meet you!

(Scroll down for yesterday’s winner and today’s book-of-the-day.)

Author CJ Redwine is trying to raise money to bring her daughter home from China. If you donate to this cause, you’re entered for a chance to win some pretty great prizes. Check it out! The Last Word: Skip A Starbucks Day!

Hi guys — So Cruel Enchantment releases SOON, on September 7th, and I have a couple big celebrations planned.

On Monday, August 16th, make sure you come by my blog for the first day of TWENTY DAYS OF ENCHANTMENT. I’ll be giving away a book every day, either from myself or authors like Julianna Stone, Beth Kery, Lauren Dane, Denise Agnew & Ann Aguirre (just to name a few). Day one of the celebration I’ll be giving away the ONLY ARC of CRUEL ENCHANTMENT. I haven’t decided on a grand prize, but I’m leaning toward a nice GC to a bookstore. Those are always good, right?

Then, just an advance head’s up, I’ll be throwing a release party for CRUEL ENCHANTMENT on September 9th over at Bitten By Books and the grand prize will be a Kindle.

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Upcoming Booksignings….

Sunday, September 12th 12pm — 4pm in Huntington, WV at Lora Leigh’s Reader Appreciation Weekend at the Pullman Plaza Hotel (1-866-613-3611) Visit for a list of participating authors.

Saturday, September 25 at 2pm at the Borders in Woodbury, MN 8472 Tamarack Village St Paul, MN 55125 (651) 578-2931

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RT gave CRUEL ENCHANTMENT a 4 1/2 stars SCORCHER review, “Bast’s unique voice rings loud and clear in her latest Dark Magick offering. She has a knack for creating believable worlds, then populating those worlds with thoroughly enjoyable characters.” — Annette Elton

Romance Junkies gives Cruel Enchantment Five Blue Ribbons and says, “Oh my goodness!!! After reading CRUEL ENCHANTMENT, words cannot express the emotional roller coaster I feel like I’ve just ridden…. I like how Ms. Bast developed [Aeric and Emmaline’s] relationship and brought all that emotion and energy around without losing control of the story. It was intense and never wavered… I cannot wait for DARK ENCHANTMENT because I want to get back on that roller coaster.” – Ann

….I’m planning a big blow out contest on my blog to celebrate the upcoming release of CRUEL ENCHANTMENT and JEWELED. Stay tuned for details!!

I have this lovely stack of ARCs to give away to book bloggers/reviewers. Do you have a blog? Do you review books? Interested in reviewing the second book of the Dark Magick series? If you are, please send me an email to anyabast (at) gmail.com with a link to your blog or where/how you would review the book.

I only have a limited supply of ARCs and I’m looking for maximum eyeball viewage, so blogs with lots of traffic will be weighted heavier in my selection process. Otherwise my decisions will be made on a first come, first serve basis. The only requirement I have is that the review be posted sometime during the first week of September, when the book releases. I will be holding a couple ARCs back for readers who don’t have book blogs/aren’t reviewers, so everyone will still have a shot at getting one. 🙂

In other news, an idea is percolating for a month-long contest here on my blog as a run up to the release of CRUEL ENCHANTMENT, so stay tuned for details.

Selected by random by my husband. Wow, you all had some great comments, btw!

Here are the lucky winners….

Heidi S. for TRACKING THE TEMPEST who wrote: “Why do I deserve to win???
The first 1/2 of the summer I spent 5 wks w/ cast on left ankle, then my son gets sick and he has to use nebulizer for breathing/ (all this happens on Sun,Father’s day) he kicks the table and knocks us backwards on to the floor,where my 60 lb son lands on my chest, go to hospital to have xrays , find I have 2 cracked ribs, before I leave they said my labs came back my potassium is very low and want me to take 3 pills before I leave, horse pills that is, I get them down but within 5mins, I was back in the room again vomiting continues, nonstop for 3 days, 8 IV’s, and Monday morning the decide to use the scope to check my stomach and throat. During the procedure, they crack one of my teeth w/ the scope… Burn throat, burnd stomach, I still have trouble eating , I can drink anything but eating is still hard.”
(OMG, Heidi, feel better soon!)

Janece S. for NIGHT MYST who wrote, “Why should I win? Wellll, let’s see…my birthday is on the 13th, and either would make an awesome gift, but even more so, because I have been on a weight loss journey since the first of the year and I have lost 59lbs so far!! Hoping to lose a total of 100 lbs within the next year. I NEED a new book to read while I ride the stationary bikes, right??” (Great job, Janece)

Sue A. for INSATIABLE who wrote: “INSATIABLE is what I am and what I want! It is not easy being away from home, taking care of a sick family member for months on end. I’m homesick, I need to forget my troubles and release some stress and escape into a book for a while.” (Sue – I hope your family member feels better soon and you can get some relief.)

Pat C. for BONDS OF JUSTICE who wrote: ”I’ve never read any of her works and for this I don’t deserve to win! But this would be an excellent opportunity for me to begin to know her books. A win would also give me a chance to read my first paranormal!” (I’m sure you’ll love it, Pat)

Winners, please email me at anyabast(at)gmail.com with your mailing address and I’ll get your prize in the mail. 🙂

Everyone, thank you for entering and (if you celebrate) have a FANTASTIC Fourth of July weekend filled with fun, family & fireworks and friends!