iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Don Martin

West Virginia Public Broadcasting @wvpublic.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

This week, #InsideAppalachia 🌄, a new book for young adults, Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire, mixes historical fact with spooky Appalachian folklore. Also, over 15 years, a photojournalist documented an Ohio family. Now, she’s a part of their lives.

wvpublic.org

Inside Appalachia

Inside Appalachia tells the stories of our people, and how they live today. The show is an audio tour of our rich history, food, music and culture.Listen Sundays at 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. on WVPB…

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

Joined UpScroll. If you’ve been wanting my TikTok or instagram content but don’t want to use either of those platforms, I’ll be crossposting there. share.upscrolled.com/en/user/ac2d...

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Meg Elison @megelison.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

Going to do a lunchtime livestream with @bydonmartin.bsky.social on instagram at noon central, talking writing. What questions could we answer for you? Let us know below and we’ll try to answer them all!

Author Don Martin (left) a tall white man with blonde hair and glasses in a teal shirt with a pattern of avocados, beside author Meg Elison, a short fat white woman in a red dress and a red face mask, stand togther at a bookstore outside of Chicago.

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

Whos ready to go back to Foxfire? Episode 1 of Hexes & Heroes: A Foxfire Prelude drops later today! Hexes & Heroes | A Foxfire Prelude | OFFICIAL TRAILER youtu.be/G0vnDnGWxQcdp

youtu.be

YouTube

Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 01/12/2025

Mike Johnson is getting Heated Rivalry for Christmas. Marjorie Taylor Greene is getting Sentient Menorah Candle Bisexual Hanukkah Orgy. George Santos… Ugh… what’s the book to give every politician? Foundling Fathers by @megelison.bsky.social

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

Indianapolis! I’ll be there this Saturday at Loudmouth Books! Come by and see me! loudmouthindy.com/events/40657...

loudmouthindy.com

Don Martin Reading and Signing | Loudmouth Books

Indy's only bookstore specializing in banned and challenged books

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 05/11/2025

My media takeover continues! I was invited onto the Decoder Ring podcast to talk about how some made up conspiracy theory nonsense led to the demise of the once great Pumpkin Spice Latte recipe. Also…community, nostalgia, & loneliness. Listen here: slate.com/podcasts/dec...

slate.com

The Curiosities of Cozy Season

From pumpkin spice lattes to autumn leaves to an elusive cookie, the mysteries lurking behind three signifiers of fall.

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 04/11/2025

It’s my pub day!!! I’m returning to nonfiction with my new audiobook, Where Did Everybody Go?,! Buying on @libro.fm now through 11/13 gets you an invite to my digital launch party, in conversation with @abbycox.bsky.social! libro.fm/audiobooks/9...

libro.fm

Where Did Everybody Go? Audiobook on Libro.fm

In the bestselling tradition of Mary Roach and A.J. Jacobs comes a fresh and powerful deep dive on loneliness, illuminating the complexity of this misunderstood social phenomenon and why people need p...

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 03/11/2025

I wrote an article for Katie Couric Media about loneliness, fascism, and front doors. www.yahoo.com/news/article...

yahoo.com

Fighting Fascism at Your Front Door

Your interactions with your neighbors mean a lot more than you might realize.

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 30/10/2025

🎃 CHICAGO READERS!! 🎃 Come join me and Miranda Sun TONIGHT at The Book Stall at 6:30! I am giving away Tacita’s Heart! (The anatomical heart 🫀 wax melts I made in collaboration with The Librarian’s Candle Co. that smell like Foxfire). thebookstall.com/event/2025-1...

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 08/10/2025

Want to read a Harry Potter alternative about queer witches? Are you tempted by Prime Day deals, but don’t want to support an evil corporation? @bookshop_org is having an Anti-Prime Day sale! IT ENDS TODAY!!! Might I suggest Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire? bookshop.org/p/books/veri...

Photo of Don holding Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire

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Reposted by Don Martin

Caitlin O'Connell @caitlinrenata.bsky.social · 08/09/2025

Agent friends: I zoomed through the audiobook of VERITY VOX AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE this weekend and it was great and had everything I want in a YA fantasy. Cool witchy magic! A fun voice! Cozy, but still important stakes! SAPPHIC!!! If you have anything like this, send it my way? :) #MSWL

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

Signed a fresh stack of books at Anderson’s Bookshop! I know a lot of these are for backorders, but they also have some left if you’re looking for a signed copy! Any copy of Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire purchased through them will be signed! andersonsbookshop.com/book/9798890...

Photo of Don in front of a stack of signed books titled Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 03/09/2025

So I just found out Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire did get another starred review of a sort. Common Sense Media gave us a 5 star review and named Verity Vox to their Common Sense Selection for teens: www.commonsensemedia.org/book-reviews...

commonsensemedia.org

Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire Book Review

Thrilling, tricky, heart-filled tale of witch in training. Read Common Sense Media's Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire review, age rating, and parents guide.

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Reposted by Don Martin

Meg Elison @megelison.bsky.social · 26/08/2025

This Friday, one night only! I'm talking with @bydonmartin.bsky.social about his new bestselling book, Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire, and YA lit with @ryanlasala.bsky.social and @claribelortega.com. Join us, because I've been married for a week and I will be RUNNING back home the next day.

strandbooks.com

Purchase a Ticket for Event YA Panel: Don Martin & Guests | Strand Books

Join us at Strand Books for YA Panel: Don Martin & Guests event. Discover author talks, book signings, and unique literary experiences.

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 20/08/2025

🚨EMERGENCY UPDATE ABOUT MY PANEL AT STRAND IN NYC🚨 IT IS NOT SOLD OUT! The website mistakenly made it look like the event was sold out so nobody was buying tickets. THERE ARE LOTS OF TICKETS AND BOOKS LEFT SO IF YOU ARE IN NYC PLEASE COME SEE ME NEXT FRIDAY! www.eventbrite.com/e/ya-panel-d...

eventbrite.com

YA Panel: Don Martin & Guests

Join us for an event with debut novelist Don Martin, discussing his new book Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire.

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 18/08/2025

Forgotten History: the Vulcan, West Virginia bridge collapse and how it inspired Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire. www.tiktok.com/t/ZT6Qqp2kd/

tiktok.com

Forgotten History: the Vulcan, West Virginia bridge collapse and how it inspired Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire.

TikTok video by Don Martin

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Kevin Ryan @kevryanperson.bsky.social · 14/08/2025

Author @bydonmartin.bsky.social graces the @tyrantpodcast.bsky.social podcast as The Bradberry of Tullagherin pod.link/1611976417 Don's new Young Adult Fantasy novel Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire is out now! Find Verity Vox and the Curse on Don Martin's website bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1

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Reposted by Don Martin

We Need Diverse Books @weneeddiversebooks.bsky.social · 07/08/2025

@bydonmartin.bsky.social talks about why representation in books matters and why all magic kids deserve magic stories 📚💖✨ If you want to help WNDB send magic stories (like Don's!) to trans & nonbinary youth, consider supporting our new bookish care package initiative: 🏳️‍⚧️ bit.ly/MagicCarePackages

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laurie love @rckymntluv.bsky.social · 06/08/2025

'There is a quietude that invades spaces where deeply personal secrets have been recently divulged. To tie it to a feeling, to say it is sad, or it is awkward, or it is worrying, is to try and tie up the wind with a handkerchief. It is insufficient.' - @bydonmartin.bsky.social #VerityVox

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 06/08/2025

Oh…you’re here. I was definitely ready for you! Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire is AVAILABLE NOW! bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 18/07/2025

Announcing the tour schedule for Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire! There might still be one last little event or two upcoming, but as far as major city bookstore tour appearances go this is it! Hope to see you out there! This is my very first book tour! AHHHHHHHH

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Cara @xandara.bsky.social · 16/07/2025

AHHH just got this email from the library! 🥳

Hi Cara,

I received your request for Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire by Don Martin as an eaudiobook. I wanted to let you know that I have purchased this title! It typically takes newly purchased titles a few hours to appear in our OverDrive / Libby collections, so it should be there by this evening.

Please note that this is a pre-order title expected to be released on August 5.

Happy reading!

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 18/07/2025

If a poet wrote a novel, it might sound like this. Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire comes out August 5th! www.tiktok.com/t/ZT62D3uG7/

tiktok.com

If a poet wrote a novel, it might sound like this. Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire is out August 5th!

TikTok video by bydonmartin

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 01/07/2025

Quick reminder that if you are looking for SIGNED COPIES of Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire, the best way to do that is to pre-order with Anderson's Bookshop! You get a signed copy + lots of other goodies! andersonsbookshop.com/book/9798890...

andersonsbookshop.com

Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire

WELCOME TO FOXFIREThe rules here are simple:Don’t look in the trees.Don’t whistle in the woods at night.Don’t answer if you hear yourname called.And remember . . . everything wants.Verity Vox is a wit...

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laurie love @rckymntluv.bsky.social · 25/06/2025

I do scarves and blankets to donate once someone contributed yarn by giving me her late mom's knitting bag I couldn't bring myself to tear up all of the stuff so I made a thing where the mom knit stuff were cocoons and her needles were the branches re: podcast convo cc: @bydonmartin.bsky.social

framed art with straight knitting needles as branches, knit fabric wrapped in wire for cocoons, wood fabric as background, butterflies cut from photos of crocheted blankets

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Slayerfest 98: A Queer Podcast @slayerfestx98.bsky.social · 21/06/2025

✨New Patreon Ep✨ @ianxcarlos.bsky.social + @theadamsass.bsky.social revisit Buffy's "Restless" for the ep's 25th w ‪@bydonmartin.bsky.social‬ @michaelvarrati.bsky.social @iannitram.bsky.social‬ +Sabrina Sub to our Royalty tier+ up to watch the 3hr deep dive vid rec: www.patreon.com/posts/131976...

Cover image for our Patreon pod episode on Buffy s4's finale "Restless" with Buffy, Willow, Xander, and Giles action figures looking like they're on a stage production set in the dessert with the first slayer and tara behind them in the sand

Photo collage of all the guests for our Buffy s4 "Restless" 25th anniversary rec - Ian Carlos Crawford, Adam Sass, Ian Martin, Don Martin, Sabinra Ryan + Michael Varrati

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 19/06/2025

Things my fact checker had to verify for my upcoming audiobook Where Did Everybody Go? To which bathhouse did James Baldwin bring Marlon Brando? Did Jason Bourne ever use a fork as a weapon? Exactly how many enzymes are in buffalo saliva that improve the regrowth rate and viability of grass?

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 15/06/2025

Just added new tour dates! So far you can catch me all over Chicago, St. Louis, West Virginia, Boston, NYC, Baltimore, with more dates coming in DC, California, Austin and beyond! Find a stop near you on my Events Calendar! bydonmartin.com/events

bydonmartin.com

By Don Martin

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 10/06/2025

I just got the greenlight to announce who the mystery voice is that is narrating Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire. I’ll be announcing it in just over an hour over on @blerdwithoutfear.bsky.social’s YT channel.

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 07/06/2025

EVERYONE MEET VERITY & TACITA! The voice and heart of Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire! My friends at Anderson’s Bookshop are hosting a preorder giveaway! andersonsbookshop.com/book/9798890...

VeritycVox
AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE
EXCLUSIVE PREORDER OFFER WITH
- ANDERSON's BOOKSHOPS -
Verity dox-
AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE
DON MARTIN
THE
WITCH
THE
LOST GIRL
PAGE STREET YAT
2 character art cards by cover artist @b.ruja Preorder Now!
signed copy
+ an exclusive
"Jack the cat" sticker
Available for a limited time Preorder from Anderson's by /4

Image of Verity Vox floating while singing a spell

Text reads:

Verity vox
witch in-training
never let them see you flinch

Books For Youth→Fiction-Fantasy
Verity don
AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE
MARTIN
When I read this review I sobbed so much my husband thought someone died.
Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire.
By Don Martin.
Aug. 2025. 336p. Page Street YA, $18.99 (9798890032706). Grades 7-12.
REVIEW. First published June 1, 2025_(Booklist).
Witch-in-training Verity Vox has been called to the isolated Appalachian town of Foxfire, which has been cursed by otherworldly Earl, a huckster who promised to solve the town's problems in exchange for increasingly costly sacrifices. When Verity arrives, she finds a valley of withered crops, sick livestock, and a people deeply suspicious of magic. Verity won't give up, however, gradually mending broken items, fixing buildings, and growing magically productive gardens until she earns the trust of the people of Foxfire. But when she goes into the woods in search of a missing girl, she crosses Earl and unleashes his vindictive rage anew. Martin skillfully blends the cozy magic of healing and mending, conjured up by Verity's folk songs and nursery rhymes, with the eldritch horrors of Earl's twisted forest; Earl himself, whose incantations consist of distorted Bible verses, is composed of mismatched, rotten body parts and fetid hunks of wood. Martin's evocative, painterly descriptions bring it all to life, from a shape-shifting familiar to a pleasantly dusty dress shop to the grotesque approximation of a human shape attempted by an ancient god.
Beneath it all is poignant subtext about poverty, neglect, the abuse of power, and the prison of conformity-but at heart, it's the witchy tale of home, belonging, and healing (with a quiet but well-earned queer romance) that will beguile readers.
— Sarah Hunter

Image of Tacita Tarry holding a lantern about to enter dark woods

Text reads:

Tacita Tarry
her heart is held hostage
literally...how is she walking around?

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 02/06/2025

Y’all sick of me and my gay books yet? Because the preorder link for my new audiobook WHERE DID EVERYBODY GO? just hit Libro.FM and all your favorite audiobook services. Or request it from your local library! libro.fm/audiobooks/9...

libro.fm

Where Did Everybody Go? Audiobook on Libro.fm

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 27/05/2025

Every time you comment “who is here from Booktok” or “you summoned Booktok” or “where my Booktok girlies at” under a mediocre white man’s thirst trap you have to buy a book by a living marginalized author published in the last 3 years. These are the new rules.

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 27/05/2025

Oh good… the weird homophobes that equate queerness with CSA found out I wrote a YA novel and have immediately proceeded to be incredibly normal about it.

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 22/05/2025

Never getting over this: www.publishersweekly.com/9798890032706

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Mhara Starling @mharastarling.bsky.social · 13/05/2025

late night reading 🖤 I can’t tell you how much joy this upcoming book by @bydonmartin.bsky.social is bringing me. It’s been a while since I’ve felt truly captivated by a novel…let alone a novel about Witches. But this is like stepping into a world that feels…familiar? Like going home.

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no. @joles.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

applying for jobs again

screenshot from an online job application form. the question reads "Can you describe specific ways you have integrated AI tools into your development workflow? Please include any custom setups, automations, or use cases beyond single prompt usage" (a red asterisk indicates that this is a required question).

an answer has been typed in the textbox below the question:

"there is a monster in the forest and it speaks with a thousand voices. it will answer any question you pose it, it will offer insight to any idea. it will help you, it will thank you, it will never bid you leave. it will even tell you of the darkest arts, if you know precisely how to ask.

it feels no joy and no sorrow, it knows no right and no wrong. it knows not truth from lie, though it speaks them all the same.

it offers its services freely to any passerby, and many will tell you they find great value in its conversation. “you simply must visit the monster—i always just ask the monster.”

there are those who know these forests well; they will tell you that freely offered doesn’t mean it has no price

for when the next traveler passes by, the monster speaks with a thousand and one voices. and when you dream you see the monster; the monster wears your face."

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

Help! I swear I had an article somewhere in my notes about how The Center in NYC began life as a bathhouse. I…cannot find it now and though I see the information affirmed in previews of a number of articles when I go to read them it is no longer there. (Or Google is now hallucinating things.)

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 01/05/2025

Heyyyyyyyy fellow gays…. Now that it’s Pride Eve remember WE are not shopping at Target either. (You were supporting the boycott this whole time, right? RIGHT???) Use the @everywhereisqueer.bsky.social app and find somewhere else to spend your money.

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 01/05/2025

My publisher is saying the words “promo” at me a lot and prodding me to put myself forward for podcasts. Would you be open to having me on your show in the coming months to talk about Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire? I’m available in May/June! You can reach out here: bydonmartin.com/contact

bydonmartin.com

By Don Martin

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Reposted by Don Martin

Kayla Ancrum @kaylaancrum.bsky.social · 28/04/2025

Just a quick reminder for any duckies who want to meet me and hear me talk about Hollis! There are still a few tickets left! Tickets and info here: andersonsbookshop.com/event/2025-0...

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 28/04/2025

[Not] Hypothetically if I were to do some traveling to promote Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire, would you come see me? Definitely Chicago & West Virginia (Huntington, Charleston). Also looking at NYC & mayyyyyybe LA. Possibly Dallas or Austin as well. Would you come? If so, where?

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

Some thoughts on platform, context, and that Mein Kampf book lady.

Here's a tip from someone who used to have a very small platform and suddenly got a much larger one: (this is about the Mein Kampf book lady)
Everything you put on social media platforms that thing.
If I post a photo of my nachos, l'm platforming nachos. It comes with the tacit endorsement of nachos.
Now you can post a problematic thing without the tacit endorsement aspect, but you must be clear & intentional when doing so.
If I post a shopping haul photo, & it's clothes, jewelry, and a gun

with no other context, it looks like I'm happily showing off all three of those items. That all of them are given equal weight and equal celebration.
If you want to engage with a tough topic, you have to give it its own context. Its own post. And you have to give your audience a permission structure to trust that you'll handle the topic with care & reverence.
That's how I can both cover the death & investigation of a trans student in Oklahoma on the same account I rank
Digimon.
My audience—

trusts that when it's time to get serious, I am going to have done my research, laid out everything they need to know, and crafted the message in such a way they are going to leave my content feeling informed & empowered.
But everything changes when I make one of those posts.
My clothing changes. My hair changes. I choose different glasses. I give nonverbal cues to my audience that we aren't being silly now.
You can absolutely post that you are choosing to read Mein Kampf. Honestly, given the

times we're in, I don't blame you for wanting to get insight into the last time this happened.
But there is no way on earth to share that with your audience if the context you're presenting is a cutesy romance book haul.
If you're framing it as just another book, you are going to always appear callous & uncaring at best, and platforming those nachos at worst.

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Don Martin @bydonmartin.bsky.social · 23/04/2025

Barnes & Noble Rewards and Premium Members get 25% off all pre-orders from April 23rd through 25th! Premium Members get an additional 10% off! Use code PREORDER25 at checkout! www.barnesandnoble.com/w/verity-vox...

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