Janina Grey

LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM now available at amazon.com!

I’ll be holding a Release Day Party at my Facebook page – Janina Grey– today, so come on over and say Hi!

There will be lots of chances to win all sorts of prizes and to get to know me (and my characters) better!

See you there!

LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM coming May 17!

May 17 marks the release of LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM—the third book in my EARTH and SKY Series published by Soul Mate Publishing.

While Jack and Liza give us a steamy hot and sizzling love story, the book is about so much more.

It’s about recognizing dreams, turning them into goals, embracing life, being brave, and not taking NO for an answer when the Universe shuts a door.

After struggling with cancer at age 23, Liza Purkypile hid away for years in her parents home, too afraid to live. A fifth generation Purkypile, Liza never dreamed of leaving the village her great-greats settled in Upstate New York.

Then one day, on a whim, maybe she was feeling brave, maybe claustrophobic (pink bedrooms with white provincial hand-me-down furniture can be a bit suffocating), she applied for a photographer’s position at Earth and Sky Retreats.

AND SHE NAILED IT.

Jack Issa, aptly nicknamed THE APPLE OF THE BIG APPLE’S EYE, had it all. A hot Rockette Wife, a fantastic career on Broadway performing with the world reknown THUMP! musical troupe, and a future filled with travel, success, and fame.

It all came crashing down during a THUMP! dress rehearsal when he fell two stories off scaffolding set up for a 9/11 memorial concert in Manhattan. He lost his wife to his best friend and co-Thump!er, he lost his job, he lost everything he thought he was.

Once he was able to walk again, Jack ran to the Adirondack Mountains, never wanting to deal with people again.

And then he met Liza Minelli Purkypile and totally forgot his vow to never fall in love again.

LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM is the third book in the Earth and Sky Series, following Book 1, LOVE IN THE FOREST, and Book 2, LIFE IS FOR LIVING.

If you love contemporary romance, this series is for you. It’s got a slight paranormal twist to it, and offers a glimpse into life of real every day witches and the types of experiences they consider ‘normal.’ (Normal. Isn’t that all relative anyway?)

Check out my other books at Amazon.com, and grab them all for free on Kindle Unlimited!

If you prefer print, you can head over to Barnes and Noble as well, and grab your copies there!

What’s your story? When did you say ‘not today’ when Life threw you a curveball?

Thank you, M. A. Phillips!

The Ditzy Druid

“I pride myself on being a Pagan author writing authentic Pagan fiction in Upstate NY. Imagine my surprise and delight when I learned I wasn’t alone! Janina Grey and I “met” on an online group devoted to Witch Lit, and I knew I had to start reading her Earth and Sky Series set in the nearby foothills of the Adirondack Mountains.” (M. A. Phillips)

To read the rest of this awesome review, and to learn more about M.A. Phillips, check out: https://ditzydruid.com/2023/05/03/witch-lit-wednesday-love-in-the-forest/

She’s an amazing author and a wise and wonderful Druid.

If you’ve not read my Earth & Sky series yet, grab your copies of LOVE IN THE FOREST, LIFE IS FOR LIVING, or LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM, over on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Soul Mate Publishing, and pick up your copies today!

Or you can click on the QR codes below!

Happy Reading!

LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM
Get Book 3 as soon as it releases on May 17 with by Pre-Ordering today!

LIFE IS FOR LIVING

Get Book 2 at Amazon or Barnes and Noble today!

LOVE IN THE FOREST

Get BOOK 1- And fall in love with the Earth and Sky
crew from the very beginning!

Featured Author Spot for May 2023!

May 17 marks the release of my fourth Soul Mate Publishing contemporary romance novel (3rd book of the Earth & Sky Series) LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM!

Here’s the first of a blitz of spots featuring Janina Grey and my works. An indepth look into Janina Grey, her characters, and all sorts of interesting info!

Thank you to Marketing For Romance Writers for featuring me, and for all the resources, information, community, inspiration, and wisdom you provide.

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A celebration of Life, Springtime, and the coming of Summer!

Dandelions stretching across my field always tell me that Spring is well underway!

May Day is a longstanding celebration recognizing the height of spring, the coming of Summer, and acknowledging the life bursting forth all around us.

May Day, or the First of May, is sometimes referred to as the cross-quarter day of Beltane. But they are not the same.

I’ve been celebrating May Day since I was a little girl. In Kindergarten in P.S. 16 in the Bronx, NY we danced the maypole and had a May Day parade.

For the last two decades of my life, I’ve celebrated Beltane as the Cross-Quarter day, but also as a spiritual celebration, honoring the union of Goddess and God and the creation of Life and abundance in our lives. We hold gatherings (sometimes large, lately small) where we dance the May Pole, Jump the Fire and sing, dance, and drum around the fire.

However you celebrate, or which ever date you choose to celebrate, remember to surround yourself with people who love and appreciate you, who are like-minded, and who bring you happiness. And who like to have a good time!

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Quarter and Cross-Quarter Days!

There are four cross-quarter days in the calendar year, marking the mid-point between the equinoxes and solstices.

The two equinoxes are the Vernal and Autumnal Equinoxes, also known as “First Day of Spring” and “First Day of Fall.” These days are equally long/short, and provide twelve hours of light and twelve hours of darkness each year.

The two solstices mark the Sun’s peak and low point, traditionally heralding the coming of Summer and the coming of Winter. These are the longest (summer) and shortest (winter)days of the year.

Equinoxes and Solstices (Quarter Days) fluctuate slightly, but usually are recognized on or around the same dates each year. The following are the dates for Quarter Days in 2023:

1. March 20: The Vernal Equinox, marking the First Day of Spring, or Ostara.
2. September 23: The Autumnal Equinox, or First Day of Autumn, or Mabon.
3. June 21: Summer Solstice, First Day of Summer, or Litha.
4. December 21: Winter Solstice, First Day of Winter, sometimes called Yule.

Cross-quarter days mark the midpoints between each equinox/solstice. These fluctuate slightly. Equinoxes and Solstices divide the year up into four sections, or the seasons as we know them (Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter) and are as follows:

1. Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. (Imbolc)
2. Spring Equinox and Summer Solstice. (Beltane)
3. Summer Solstice and Autumn Equinox. (Lughnasadh)
4. Autumn Equinox and Winter Solstice. (Samhain)

All eight of these Quarter and Cross-Quarter days were at some point and some way recognized by our ancestors in an effort to survive. Different cultures recognized some of them or all of them depending on the culture. They planned, planted, and harvested by these dates, marking the cycles of the seasons with celebrations, traditions, and chores.

Many Pagans (myself included) call these eight dates “The Wheel of the Year.” Some paths only recognize the four Quarter days, some only recognize the dark half of the year and light half of the year.

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Securing Cross-Quarter Dates!

Some Pagans use the name Beltane (one of various spellings) to recognize May Day. Beltane and May Day are two different events. May Day is not the Cross-Quarter Day, even though many celebrate Beltane on May Day. You can hold your gathering for your Beltane Celebration on May Day for convenience sake, but keep in mind, Beltane and the cross-quarter day actually comes a few days later.

This year, depending on where you live on this Earth, Beltane (or the mid-point between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice) is somewhere around May 5 or 6.

While the solstices and equinoxes are traditionally recognized on their actual astronomically occurring days, for some reason (probably convenience) the cross-quarter days are not. And this is a pet peeve of mine (sorry, not sorry!).

I’m hard-pressed to find any information regarding the actual MID-POINT between these important dates. All I kept getting was the recently recognized dates for the cross-quarter days. Modern times, people celebrate them on designated days rather than the mid-points. Even information explaining what cross-quarter days are usually list these set dates as the cross-quarter days, and don’t even mention the actual mid-points or how to determine what the mid-points are.

February 2, (Groundhog Day in the USA) has long been a date acknowledging the Goddess Brighid, and then the Catholic Saint, Saint Brigid. It was also called Candlemas (another Christian association). This year, the actual crossquarter date was February 3 but in years past has been as late as February 6 or 7.

May 1, First of May, is known as Beltane. But this year, the cross-quarter day falls on May 5 or 6 depending on if you follow True Sun or Mean Sun calculations. But for some reason, Beltane has usually been celebrated on May 1 throughout the ages.

Lammas , or Lughnasadh, is recognized as August 1, commemorating the harvest of grain crops, but this year the cross-quarter day is actually August 7.

Finally, the fourth cross-quarter day of the year is Samhain. SAMHAIN (pronounced SOW-WHEN). Halloween is not a cross-quarter day. Samhain is NOT Halloween, and is NOT recognized on October 31. The actual cross quarter day of Samhain usually the first week in November. This year it falls on November 7.

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Regardless of the hemisphere you live in (May 1 is Samhain in the Southern Hemisphere), may you enjoy these holidays as they connect you to our Mother Earth, your communities, and the celebrations of life our ancestors have recognized since the beginning of time!

Happy May Day and Blessed Beltane!

April 24, 2023 is the fourth anniversary of the launch of my very first romance with Soul Mate Publishing—TEN BUCKS AND A WISH. I will never forget that day. I remember wishing I’d taken off, but when I got to work I was met by a co-worker who excitedly showed me she’d purchased my book online. My first official purchase!

At 56 years old, I became a published author. At 58 years old, I was accepted into a Masters program. At 44 years old I met the love of my life. At 60 years old I am working out at the gym, planning on hiking and kayaking more than ever this summer.

DO NOT EVER limit yourself by your age. DO NOT EVER SAY “I’m too old.”

We can accomplish anything if we put our minds to it.

There were flowers waiting on my desk and a notice and card congratulating me on my first release.

I was able to leave early, only to find I had another surprise waiting for me in the parking lot.

My battery in my car was dead. So I waited for Geico to come give me a jump, then home I went to check and recheck and recheck my Amazon sales. I did a question and answer session on Facebook, to which no one showed up. When David got home, we went to dinner at a very nice restaurant, Ocean Blue, where I proceeded to hand out business cards and freebies to anyone who would listen to the phrase, “We’re celebrating the release today of my very first published romance!”

It’s been a wild ride. Four Books in Four Years.

June 21, 2021, LOVE IN THE FOREST, Book 1 of the Earth and Sky Series was released.

April 27, 2022, LIFE IS FOR LIVING, Book 2 of the Earth and Sky Series was released.

This year, on May 17, 2023, LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM is set to be released.

Many people ask me how I do it when they learn I work full time.

During the pandemic I developed a rigorous routine. I had to make sure I didn’t blur the lines between work and personal time. At first I didn’t know how to work at home. I kept my work phone on at all times. I kept my work email open at all times. I was burning out.

Then I converted Anthony’s old bedroom into my work office, and we converted the reading room down stairs into my Janina Grey office. After that, blurring the lines was history.

I’m usually up by 6 a.m., and that is when I get my best writing done. I wear my Janina Grey hat until about 8/8:30, then I shower quickly and I’m ready to put on my Y-hat. Friday afternoons I’m usually done with my day job, and so I’ll get a nice chunk of time there to write and/or market.

If I’m on deadline, or doing First or Second Edits, or completing the final read through of the ARC, I’ll grab any time I can. Lunch breaks, while dinner cooks, after dinner while David is watching his shows. Sometimes if I can’t sleep in the middle of the night I’ll curl up with my laptop in front of the fireplace on the couch and my characters will keep me company.

I’ve written in restaurants, doctor’s waiting offices, in the car, camping, on the beach, on retreats. Anywhere I can bring my lappie, you might find me tapping away on the keyboard.

The writing is the fun part. They characters tell me what I need to know.

The blogging, the newsletters, ordering merch to give away—all that is fun. The hardest part is marketing, promoting, getting people to write reviews, getting the word out that I’ve got great stories to tell, and you will love them.

So yeah, as I wind down the anniversary of my first book launch, I continue counting the days til my fourth launch – the release of LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM/Book 3 of the Earth and Sky series on May 17th.

May be I will get flowers. Maybe I will get a dead battery. All I know is that the fourth is as exciting as the first, and . . . I cannot wait for you to meet Jack and Liza!

Thank you to everyone for supporting me in this journey. The book tours, the pre-sales, the give aways . . . all of it has been a blast, and it wouldn’t be possible without any of you!

Love you all!
Peace out!

Earth & Sky Series: Book 1

What happens when a NYC CEO and Pagan Witch hiding in the back woods of the Adirondack find love in the forest?

Step into the mystical and magical forests of Upstate New York, where Earth and Sky camp photographer Brooke Meadows has taken refuge from the demons of her past as she uses her ability to communicate with the dead to heal loved ones left behind.

Unable to cope with the loss of his wife and daughters three years prior, Josh Quinn, CEO of the number one dating site Quirkyflirt.com, is ordered by his board president to take a break from his Big Apple Headquarters. He finds himself at Earth and Sky Retreats, where confronting his grief has led him to experience a life-altering transformation and re-evaluation of reality.

Will Josh leave behind his fast-paced, high society life in the concrete mountains of New York City, for the magical, bewitching world Brooke reveals to him in the foothills of the Adirondacks?

Will Brooke acknowledge and accept her own journey of transformation and healing as she and Josh explore the winding paths and summits that lead them to find love in the forest?

Cover Reveal!

Get Ready to meet Liza and Jack on May 17, when SOUL MATE PUBLISHING releases LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM!

It’s time to stop hiding.

Liza Minelli Purkypile has spent the last seven years hiding from life after defeating cancer. Left to deal with the emotional, physical, and meta-physical impacts of her battle, Liza’s survival depends on avoiding crowds, not to mention love—until Jack Issa drums his way into her heart.

A lifelong New Yorker, Jack’s spent much of his living, learning, playing, and performing on and around Broadway. No longer able to keep the lead spot with the rave-reviewed percussion performers of THUMP!, Jack retreats to the Adirondacks after a life-altering stage accident leaves his spirit broken.

A chance meeting in the local pub finds Liza and Jack unprepared for what their first touch tells them. Sizzling hot and horny from years of abstinence, both soon find out that they’re totally ready to pick up the beat and lose themselves in the rhythm of love.

LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM
Earth and Sky Series/Bk 3

COMING SOON!

LOST IN YOUR RHYTHM is set to be released MAY 17, 2023!

Book 3 of the Earth and Sky Series is on its way!

Look for cover reveal and pre-sale information!