Olympus Inc: Now on Kindle Unlimited!

Plus, pre-order news!

My day job finished last Thursday with a sunny end-of-year outside lunch, while the staff band performed a great mixture of classic hits, brilliant pop, country, and a couple of non-Jesus carols. The rest of us drank bubbly wine and cold beers and clustered under the shade of a dozen cheerful sun umbrellas.

I was raised Catholic, and my family celebrates Christmas, and we live in Aotearoa New Zealand, where late December is firmly summer. Every time I mention Christmas as a summer holiday in places where northern hemisphere dwellers congregate, there's always someone who's so shocked, like how can it be Christmas in SUNSHINE? How can you get the full coziness of the season?

I find this hilarious, because summer Christmas is objectively the superior Christmas. I like the vibe of winter Christmas, and can always be seduced by snuggling in front of a fire, but the practicalities of trying to actually celebrate a holiday at that time sound horrendous.

In summer Christmas, there's great food with fresh produce, you're giving kids toys and camping gear at the time they are best positioned to use the hell out of them over their summer break, and your travel plans won't be altered by a blizzard. Did you have an argument with your brother-in-law about tax cuts and need to calm down? You can go for a walk without risking hypothermia! You don't have to talk a grumpy seven-year-old into going back to school in ten days, because right now they're not even contemplating the existence of school. No, you can't go sledding or build a snowman, but you can slap on a bucket of sunscreen and float in warm, salty water, bobbing gently up and down with the waves.

It's delightful.

Correct.

Anyway, I'm now "on holiday" which means I am actually "full-time writing", and I have announcements:

  1. The first arc of Olympus Inc. ebooks (Persephone in Bloom, Aphrodite Unbound and Hera Takes Charge) is now enrolled in Kindle Unlimited! These books are "free" with a KU subscription, and are otherwise available for purchase from Amazon.
  2. Love, Laodice has, drumroll please, 101 pre-orders! That means, as per my last newsletter, YOU, newsletter reader, are going to be getting a free Olympus Inc. novelette, The Love Labyrinth (as soon as I finish writing it!). Thank you so much; y'all really came through for me and I appreciate it!
  3. Ask Cassandra is still free, and will be until the end of the month! You can grab it and pre-order Love, Laodice and make me super happy this holiday season! (And both of these books are still wide, available from a ton of e-retailers.)
  4. XO, Xena is ALSO available for pre-order now, coming out June 2025. I have described this book to friends as "Bisexual Babes Bringing It." Here's the teaser:
Polyxena Troiades used to be somebody. Now she's struggling to figure out her future.
Cressida O'Brien used to be somebody else. Now she's struggling to free herself from her past.
When the two women team up to take down their common foe, they risk danger, and even death. But the greatest risk of all might be to their hearts…

I was not kidding when I said 👏 Trojan 👏 Women 👏

Confession: I haven't written a word of fiction in a week, because I was editing and then preparing Laodice for launch. I was about to tell myself off for slacking, but looking at that list? Nope! I'm on the job.

But I hope you're not (unless you want to be). Whether you're looking forward to summer or cozying up in winter or enjoying equatorial life, I hope you get a chance for rest in this hectic time.

That Healey Girl is the newsletter of Karen (or Kate) Healey, a romance and speculative fiction author who lives in Ōtautahi, New Zealand and shakes plots loose by wandering along the river. Please feel free to forward this newsletter to anyone you think might like it!