Phew! Now that I’ve stopped to take a breath, I thought I’d pull together an overview of what was an absolutely fantastic blog tour and crazy first week for Million Eyes, my debut professionally published novel from Elsewhen Press.
They say that publication day can be an anti-climax. I recently read an article that made me think about this. It said that happiness is a choice to be actively seized, not something that just happens to you. It’s an approach that can really change how you feel about your successes, and one that I’m going to keep in mind from now on. Having said all that, even though I totally agreed with the moral of the article, I didn’t need it on January 10th. And that’s because of the blog tour.
If you’re an author, I highly recommend arranging a publication day blog tour. I arranged mine through Rachel’s Random Resources, run by Rachel Gilbey. Rachel was lovely to work with and extremely affordable. Only £85 for a mixed content tour and she really does push the authors during the tours.
And regardless of how much impact the blog tour reviews will ultimately have on the book’s sales, I can say this: so far Million Eyes has been a resounding critical success.
I was expecting at least a few negative reviews. All authors should. And there will probably be some still to come. But I was totally psyched when all the reviews coming in were overwhelmingly positive. The largest number of reviews in one day came on publication day, so you can see why there was no anti-climax for me that day.
Here are some of the comments that were made over the course of the 8 day blog tour:
There are some completely unexpected moments which totally shocked me. As somebody who loves reading thrillers, sci-fi and historical fiction I was spoiled by Million Eyes and was completely gripped by the clever, twisty plot.
Hair Past a Freckle – read the full review here
Several of the scenes actually had me chuckling – even the very bloody ones – as there is a deliciously dark vein of humour that runs through the whole shebang. I really enjoyed the way Million Eyes gets you thinking about corporate greed and how huge conglomerates are trying to take over our lives – there are some obvious targets that C.R. Berry pokes fun at here.
Brown Flopsy’s Book Burrow – read the full review here
I really enjoyed the dynamic between Gregory and Jennifer. They did remind me a bit of Mulder and Scully (huge X-Files nerd here!), but they also had a sort of Doctor and companion vibe as well.
Jazzy Book Reviews – read the full review here
This complex, dark, menacing novel breathes new life into the time travel genre. Readers who delight in conspiracy theories will take a great pleasure in this cleverly plotted tale.
Chez Maximka – read the full review here
Million Eyes terrified me. Because it comes dangerously close to entering the realm of possibility. Author C.R. Berry has brought to light the startlingly dangerous extents technology might one day take us to.
Trails of Tails – read the full review here
Science fiction is not a genre I read, but this story focuses on an intriguing conspiracy theory. It is easy to understand, and if you open your mind to the fantasy, plausible enough to hold your interest. A quirky duo of historical detectives takes on a menacing ominous power that is at war with human history.
Jane Hunt Writer – read the full review here
It’s a tense, fast-paced page-turner of a story, with relatable and believable characters in Ferro and Jennifer. It’ll have you wondering exactly who can you trust. I’ll definitely keep an eye out for the next in the series.
Just 4 My Books – read the full review here
As a royalist and someone who enjoys historical fiction, I found the idea absolutely fascinating that Princess Diana’s crash might have been orchestrated for some reason other than the many conspiracy theories we already know about.
Short Book and Scribes – read the full review here
I loved the cheeky bit at the ending where it was insinuating that something which has happened in our real life (and is very controversial) was the result of something being changed through the timeline in the book.
Feed The Crime – read the full review here
Personally, I really enjoyed how this story involved the mystery of the Princes in the Tower and their disappearance. Alternate timeline novels can get confusing if not written very well but this was definitely not the case with Million Eyes.
Reviewsfeed – read the full review here
This is a skilful and carefully constructed novel with much to offer for historical fiction fans. Berry has a lot of ideas crammed in a book which tackles many issues. There are nods to other well known science fiction ideas, including Doctor Who. This book looks at the significance of the monarchy in Britain and its meaning in history. It comments knowledgeably about modern surveillance, and the vulnerability of individuals.
Northern Reader – read the full review here
Full disclosure – there was one, shall we say, mixed review. Mostly positive, but the reviewer was uncomfortable that Princess Diana was featured in the book because her death was so recent. (I kinda knew that might be controversial with some.)
Needless to say, I’m thrilled with the response. 🙂
The blog tour also featured an interview with me, in which I talk about the world, the characters and their backgrounds, the book’s approach to women and LGBT characters, how it doesn’t fit easily into any one genre, and how I came up with it all. This was published on From Under The Duvet.
The other thing that totally made publication day for me, in addition to the reviews, was that my writer friend, Helen Matthews (author of After Leaving The Village and Lies Behind The Ruin), reminded me to keep an eye on the Amazon Top 100 Bestsellers for the categories Million Eyes was in. I hopped on over to the Kindle page and initially saw that Million Eyes was at #149 in the Time Travel Science Fiction category, #245 in Time Travel and #479 in Historical Thrillers. Before long it had jumped to #31 in Time Travel Science Fiction, #42 in Time Travel and #136 in Historical Thrillers.
I would’ve been happy with that, to be honest. But it kept going up. It eventually hit #11 in Time Travel Science Fiction, #13 in Time Travel and #58 in Historical Thrillers before going down again. I was over the moon!
So, it’s certainly been an exciting launch – and this is only for the ebook too! Paperback’s due out on March 9th!
More exciting things to come. Not least the two launch events – one at Waterstones in Farnham, Surrey, on Friday 13th March, the other at the Nantwich Bookshop and Cafe in Nantwich, Cheshire on Friday 20th March. I’m also looking to secure dates at other bookshops as well.
If you haven’t bought a copy of Million Eyes as an ebook, the RRP is just £2.99 and it’s available from all good ebook platforms. Just visit the main page on Elsewhen’s site and click on your chosen platform.
And if you need a little more convincing to pick up a copy, see if this trailer sways you!
C.R. Berry 