Saying Goodbye to 2024

Out with debut year, in with the new year.

Hello hello! 2024 has been a wild ride, and while I’ve stayed true to my promise not to spam your inboxes if you subscribed to my Substack, I couldn’t resist sending you all an end-of-year update.

I had a wild debut year, in the best possible way.

The Sins On Their Bones came out in May of this year, and I will never get over how amazing it’s been to connect with readers and see my book on shelves. I appreciate each and every time I’ve seen a bookseller shout out SINS, every event I’ve been able to do, every copy I’ve signed, and every reader I’ve heard from. My book was called “Six of Crows all grown up,” I got fan art, people wrote fanfic, and my heart has never been more full.

My camera roll used to have 20,000 pictures of my cats; now it has 21,000 pictures of my cats, and also 1,000 pictures of my book.

There’s no way I’ll remember everything that happened with SINS, but here are a few highlights…

✨ I got to do a launch event at the Ripped Bodice with my fabulous friend Kamilah Cole, author of the bestselling YA fantasy So Let Them Burn (check it out!)

✨ I fulfilled an author dream - doing an event at my favorite bookstore, Barnes and Noble Union Square. And I got to do it with one of my very best friends in the world, the astoundingly talented and decidedly lovely Saint Gibson (if you haven’t read her books, what are you waiting for?)

✨ SINS was named one of Bookriot’s best fantasies of 2024, one of Bookriot’s readers favorite queer books of the year, and was featured in Kveller, Gizmodo, and more!

✨ I got to hold not one, but two gorgeous special editions of SINS - from Owlcrate (you can still grab one!) and Dazzling Bookish Shop.

✨ We have another special edition on the way, because SINS is being translated into French and getting not only a trade paperback release, but a hardcover special edition with all new art!

✨ I’ve traveled to events and cons and festivals up and down the East Coast to meet readers and sign copies and hear their stories of why SINS means something to them.

If you still haven’t had a chance to read, you can check out the first chapter for free here, and then grab a copy at your favorite retailer.

And in 2025, SINS will no longer be an only child!

I still meet readers who have no idea that SINS is book 1 in a duology…so if you’re one of those readers, surprise! Book 2 — THE LURE OF THEIR GRAVES — comes out in June 2025. There hasn’t been an official cover reveal yet, but because I love you all, I’m going to give you a small, tiny, illicit peek…

You can preorder it here and add it on Goodreads.

And in case you were wondering, here’s the blurb…

In the heart-wrenching sequel to The Sins on Their Bones, The Lure of Their Graves forces Dimitri and Vasily to confront old ghosts and a new threat: political enemies-turned-suitors, all coveting Dimitri’s throne and his hand in marriage.

Dimitri Abramovich may have won back the throne of Novo-Svitsevo, but even after defeating his former husband, the usurper Alexey Balakin, he seems no closer to securing lasting peace for his people. Enemies are closing in on all sides, and pressure is mounting for Dimitri to play the one card he has left in a bid for stability—offering his hand in marriage for a second time.

But Dimitri is still healing from the tragedies of the war, his return to the throne, and Alexey's years of torment. Vasily Sokolov is the only person with whom he feels safe, and giving up the comfort of their budding relationship feels unfathomable, even if it's the only way to sever the alliances being formed among the countries surrounding Novo-Svitsevo. So as Dimitri and Vasily reckon with political treachery, the lasting consequences of Dimitri's resurrection, and the sinister legacy of Alexey’s use of the Holy Science, they must also work to understand what it means to love each other even as they prepare to let each other go—which might prove the most difficult of all.

I not only debuted - I sold a lot of books too.

2024 was a banner year for publishing deals in the Samotin household. Here’s a look at some of the other books coming your way…

✨ THE WAY IT HAUNTED HIM is a standalone gay dark academia horror set in a haunted archive of Jewish folklore. It’s coming from Titan Books in June 2026, and you can add it on Goodreads now. If you loved the mysticism and magic in SINS but you also love dark academia bad boys, black cats (love interests and real ones), and lots of self-loathing, TWIHH is for you. You can read the first chapter right now, here.

✨ I’ll have another standalone horror coming from Titan in 2027, but right now it’s nothing more than an idea…

✨ THE SHADOWS HAVE TEETH and THE DARKNESS BITES BACK are a contemporary paranormal romance duology that I co-wrote with my other best friend in the world, Ben Alderson (the king of gay fantasy romance…and soon, horror 😉). It’s a gay Romeo and Juliet retelling set in modern-day Oxford with Saltburn x Interview With the Vampire vibes, some serious daddy issues, and at least one blood-soaked orgy. The first book comes out September 2026, and the second follows a year later! Add it on Goodreads now so you get an alert when it’s on shelves.

And I published another one!

THE ACTOR AND HIS SECRET is a high-heat MM contemporary romance that Ben and I published together! If you’re looking for something a bit lighter than my fantasy books, check it out — it features one grumpy millionaire movie star, one sunshine book publicist, one disastrous film premiere, and the one-night stand that will change their lives forever.

You can buy it on Amazon or add it on Goodreads!

My cats continued to be adorable publishing assistants:

And I’ll leave you with two secrets (of heaven):

✨ THE ACTOR AND HIS SECRET is being translated into different languages!

✨ Saint Gibson and I are in the kitchen, cooking up something absolutely earth-shattering for you all. Are we co-writing something and is the only hint we’re giving you this perfume? Yes and yes.

That’s all from me. But if you want to keep in touch…

✨ Join my chaotic fan Discord (18+ only), the Court of Rav-Mikhailburg

✨ Follow me on Instagram, the only social media platform I’m reliably on.

Wishing you health and happiness in 2025, and sending all my love,

Laura 🖤