Fall leaves, cozy reads, and a new Wing Builder preview

Happy fall and big news! I’ve just finished the first draft of Wing Builder, and to celebrate, I’m sharing a new preview today at the bottom of this message!

The rains have started here and my burrowing-instinct has entered over-drive, desperate to make my home a little extra cozy. It’s been a great environment for the last stretch of Wing Builder’s first draft.

It’s been amazing to see this draft come together. This setting is breathtaking, these characters are complex with rich relationships, and the plot—oh, is it exciting.

There remains plenty of editing between now and publication—my first drafts can be pretty messy—but completing the first write-through is still a critical point in development. I’m already excited for the day I’ll share this story with you.

Hope you enjoy the blurb and wishing you cozy days of reading,
Mel Braxton

He has his wings, she needs to build hers.

Wren was a determined student with the 5-year plan to prove it. Silver-eyed and a little bit different, growing up hadn’t been easy, but now her plans are finally coming to fruition. Everything was going perfectly… Until the assassin attacked.

Ezal was head guard and had reached the end of his goals. Because of his gray-wings, evidence of Letharia’s Blight, it was the most he hoped to become. His fascination with Earthan science would never be more than a peculiarity.

When an assassin attacks Wren, Ezal saves her. He returns her to Letharia, the homeworld she didn’t know she had. Due to the mysterious deaths of her birth parents, she is now heir to her house and, despite her winglessness, must be established as Lady Bani.

But power comes with a cost. Wren must marry—and quickly—for she needs a winged spouse to carry her in the upcoming rite. Her pedigreed suitors are eager, but none have caught her eye—not the way gray-winged Ezal has.

As the assassination attempts continue, Ezal and Wren race against time. They must uncover the truth of their attackers—and the value of their love—before making decisions they’ll both regret.

Wing Builder is a sci-fantasy romance. Expect aerial world-building and a swoon-worthy romance torn by political agendas. This story features a competition between suitors, beautiful dresses, an unhealthy obsession with string theory, and so many feathers. Coming April 2021.