Happy Halloween, Samhain, and Dia de Los Muertos, readers! Every year around this time, I do a special Everyday Gothic blog where I was poetic about the darker aspects of the magical world. This year, I decided we needed a special treat.

I am so happy to announce the publication of my first short story, “Hungry Business,” from my very own Kitchen Witch Press. This is a creepy little tale about how causal dating is the zombie apocalypse of the soul. But where there’s heart, there’s hope. Reviewers have called this story creepy and comforting, gothic and cozy all at once. It’s a horror romance, with plenty of chills and thrills with the safety of a guaranteed HEA (Happily Ever After).

Find it here for only $0.99, unless you’re interested in waiting for my…

Halloween Giveaway!

As an extra special spooky bonus, I’ll be giving away for free “Hungry Business”on Friday October 30th and Saturday October 31st as part of Bewitching Book Tour’s Trick or Treat Halloween Book Event. Simply download your sale copy here on Friday or Saturday and get ready to enjoy this cozy gothic tale.

In the meantime, you can read more about “Hungry Business,” including advance praise and the synopsis, below.

Advance Praise

“The best zombie story I've read in a very long time and possibly because the story is so clever and the metaphor of zombification is so well done that it was like nothing I've ever read. The author has a great grasp of subtext and the story used it very cleverly. This author is now at the top of my to-watch list.” ~ Craig Hallum

“Hungry Business is a short story by Maria DeBlassie that manages to be a surprisingly large number of things very effectively all at the same time. It’s a creepy zombie story – with a neat premise about how being a zombie works and what you have to do to avoid it. At the same time, it’s a clever piece of social commentary where the being-a-zombie works as a metaphor for certain kinds of modern experiences. It is somehow both a sinister horror story and very funny, often both at the same time. It’s also a romance and a story about the nature of romance and the importance of romance stories.  

Author Maria DeBlassie has all of these things going on, but none of them get in the way of it being a charming and entertaining read. Impressive! Do check it out.” ~ Nimue Brown

Read more reviews on Goodreads and Amazon.

From the Back Cover

From the multi-award-winning author of Everyday Enchantments: Musings on Ordinary Magic & Daily Conjurings comes a cozy Gothic short story about searching for connection in a world that's forgotten the power of everyday magic.

Looking for love can be deadly... 

You know how it goes.  You go out, hoping to meet someone.  You wade through your fair share of brainless automatons, lifeless bodies, and ravenous undead good at passing as human.   

The more you go out, the less hope you feel and the colder your body gets.  But you keep at it.  All you need is one beating heart to match your own before yours stops pumping altogether.  How hard can it be to find one living, breathing human in a city full of bodies?  

Dating.  

It's hungry business.  

Enchantment Learning & Living is an inspirational blog celebrating life’s simple pleasures, everyday mysticism, and delectable recipes that are guaranteed to stir the kitchen witch in you. If you enjoyed what you just read and believe that true magic is in the everyday, subscribe to my newsletter below for regular doses of enchantment. Want even more inspiration? Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Here’s to a magical life!