Published Novels
A Strong and Sudden Thaw, Iris Print, 2006
A Strong and Sudden Thaw is a post-apocalyptic gay coming of age story, with a healthy dollop of romance, some mild erotic content, and dragons! While a government conspiracy places the lives of his friends and family at risk, David Anderson struggles to come to terms with his feelings for healer Callan Landers in a world where homosexuality is condemned.
- Shortlisted for the Lambda Literary Award in SF/Fantasy/Horror
Rebecca Day 
Danielle said
Hey there! I am so excited to see your web page is up. I have recently finished this book, and I have to tell you that I truly loved it. I am ecstatic to see that a sequel is coming. I just wanted to send a quick note to tell you how much I loved it!
~Danielle
Mark from sunny Brighton said
Hi Rebecca –
I don’t usually comment on the books that I’ve read, or even search out the authors. But, I was so moved by ‘A Strong and Sudden Thaw’ that I felt compelled to let you know – I am in awe of your writing ability. More than several times, I was so moved, I had to find something to wipe my eyes – I couldn’t see to read. Not many novels do that to me (at least, not to that extent). I actually felt I was right along side of David and Callan, experiencing their emotions, struggles, pain. I am happy to see that there is a sequel in the works. I have placed ‘Thaw’ in my favorites/re-read pile. Thanks again for such an enjoyable read.
Mark
rwday said
Mark, I’m so sorry it’s taken me so long to reply. I can’t tell you how much comments like yours mean to me. To say I’m glad you liked my book is an understatement. Thank you again.
rwday said
Danielle – thank you! Sorry it’s taken me so long to reply. I missed your comment notification for some reason. Anyway, comments like yours remind me that I really do need to get that sequel cleaned up for publication. Thank you again!
Annette from Cologne, Germany said
Hi Rebecca,
I’m really thrilled to hear that there will be a sequel to “Thaw”. I liked it a great deal on a personal level – I simply loved the characters and the narration. However, since you put so many rifles on the wall, sometimes I felt it lacked a bit of refinement with respect to the subplots, and (in my mind) composed angry letters to your editor for not pointing this out to you (in a very gentle, writer-friendly way, of course). I’m very much looking forward to reading the sequel, and no, not only because I am wildly curious how your are going to explain the dragons away ;-).
I need books, you write books, so please, keep up the good work, you are one talented writer :-).
Best regards,
Annette
rwday said
Annette, I am so embarrassed – I don’t know how I managed to miss this comment, especially as I’d replied to others after it. No excuse at all.
Anyway, thank you for your comments, and as to the criticism – you’re right, there are a lot of ‘rifles on the wall’ and I probably should have done a better job of making use of them. Most of that is my fault – I didn’t do enough pre-planning, just let the story develop as I wrote, which isn’t the best method of writing a novel! I will say that my original editor actually had me remove a section that (in part) resolved one of those ‘rifles’ – she felt it didn’t directly contribute to the main story, and she was concerned with length.
The sequel should be going to the publisher soon. It does wrap up a lot of those loose ends and explains most of the subplots introduced in Thaw. The dragons are explained, yes, though that’s not the major focus of the book. I hope those explanations (and the story in general) will satisfy you.
Thank you again for commenting, and I apologize for the delay in my response.
Lara Ferox said
Concerned about length? Hah! I’m sure most people who’ve read it will agree with me when I say: “WE WANT MOAR!“
rwday said
I certainly hope so!
Cassandra & Allison (devoted fans!!!) said
We would like to register our official acknowledgment that we absolutely adore your book. No really. If you have a fan-club or an email newsletter for when you get other things published (because in case you weren’t aware, that is so happening again š sign us up!
A Strong and Sudden Thaw was one of the most well crafted novels by a new author that I (and Allison) have read in a long time. You have a gift for fully rendered worlds, lovable (or hate-able) characters who are incredibly unique and real. Who would have thought that, as you put it, “a post-apocalyptic gay coming of age story…with dragons!” would bear such stylistic and deserving comparison to Mark Twain, but very quickly your work developed such a strong voice that it was impossibly to put down. My friend Allison loaned your book to me with the simple command: READ. And I did. Two and a half times (I made myself stop the third time shortly after what happened to Almond, for fear of returning my friends book in less than pristine condition.)
We wandered onto your website just now, as I was returning it, to see how long we were going to have to wait for the sequel, and hopefully we can interpret the above posting as a “not too much longer.” But never fear, however long it takes, you have two guaranteed sales on opening week.
Yours in adoration,
Cassandra & Allison
rwday said
Cassandra and Allison, thank you so much for your lovely comments. I feel very guilty now that I’ve just not been working on the sequel the way I should be, though to be fair, I’m kind of in holding mode now till the Lethe Press edition comes out.
Speaking of which, Cassandra, if you would like your own copy, please email me at rwday at cox dot net, and I’ll see what I can do to thank you, and Allison as well, for your support.
Thanks again!
Becky
Bruce said
Rebecca,
I just finished your novel yesterday and I am SOOOOO impressed! I am a gay male and I read approximately 5 novels a week, almost all gay fantasy novels. And I haven’t read anything lately that I enjoyed as much as this book. I loved the whole futureworld set up and the ease and skill at which you presented it. It was so eaqsy to ease into this world and I have to say I loved the characters of David and Callan. Their love was so real and as it grew so did my attachment to the couple. I loved your story! And I immediately wanted more, I needed the story to continue, I wanted a sequel so bad, so I got on the internet and found this site and was thrilled that you’re working on a sequel. Can you tell me when it’s coming out because I want to buy it the second it’s available.
There are many questions I have and need to see them answered. Why hasn’t David taken Callan or his dad up the monutain to the cave? It seems to me that it would be number one on David’s things to do. He’s discovered the past still alive and he’s ignoring it! There’s got to be a reason and I’m dying to know it. It’s got to be a big part of what’s going on.
And I want to compliment your bravery in making David underaged. I get so tired of every book bending over backwards to avoid love between age groups. I am over 50 now, but I didn’t wait until I was 18 to start my sex life. I was active from 14 and all my partners were older than I. It wasn’t the best way to grow up, but I did grow up. I knew I was gay before I even started school and nobody ever writes about kids like me!
Please tell me you’re finished the sequel and the book will be out soon! I haven’t loved a novel like this in years! Congratulations!
Bruce McDade
rwday said
Bruce, I don’t know how I missed this comment – I get email notification, but my inbox gets kind of full sometimes, so I must have missed it.
To be honest, the age issue is something that irks me. I’ve heard friends who write romance having to twist history to make sure all their heroes/heroines are over 18 when in reality, throughout human history and cultures, adulthood has not depended on some arbitrary age and many (most?) people have been sexually active before 18. It bothers me that someone writing a sexually active 16 or 17 year old can be accused of encouraging pedophilia. It’s insane. I hope I never back away from telling the story as it’s meant to be told, and David is meant to be 17.
The sequel is done – it’s currently being reviewed by one of my beta readers, and then will be sent to Steve Berman at Lethe. I don’t have a release date yet, but as soon as I do, I’ll announce it. I hope you’ll like it.
Thank you, Bruce, for taking the time to leave this comment, and I am truly sorry it took me so long to respond. Your praise means so much to me – comments like yours make me feel like I ‘got it right,’ and do more to keep me writing than all the money in the world.
Rodrigo said
I just finished your book and I am speechless at how brilliant it was! I don’t read much gay fantasy but I must say this is one of my favorite books out of any I’ve read, and I do read quite a lot… David and Callan felt so real it was as if I knew them, I cried about twice while reading it and now that I’ve finished it’s as if I lost a friend š¦ (i know it sound cheesy lol, but it’s true) I cannot wait for a sequel if you are planning on releasing it, hope I can get ahold of it on Amazon =D
I can totally say I am your fan now, and I can’t wait to be able to lose myself in your next book!
Thanks for such a breathtaking novel and I must congratulate you for writing that piece of literary heaven, thank you so much!
Your Costarrican fan,
Rod C
rwday said
Thank you, Rod. I’m speechless myself at this wonderful comment, and I don’t think anything about your reaction to the book is cheesy at all. I’m honored that my characters and story touched you so deeply – it’s the best payment any author can have.
The sequel should definitely be available on Amazon. As soon as I have a firm publication date, I will share it on this site.
Again, thank you so much!
Matthew said
Hello Rebecca,
You are only the fourth author, 47 years that I have gone out of my way to find and complement on a book well written. You can find my review of ASAST on Shelfari. As I said in my review, this book came within a hair’s breadth of being a 5 star for me, and please don’t take my quibble as true criticism, I have loved your book much more then most of the stuff I thought I liked over the past few months (they would all be rate a lot lower by me if I were to review them now, only because they suffer when held up to ASAST).
And we are talking about a pioneer setting, and in Europe and here in New Zealand where I now live (and even in some states in the US), let us not forget that the age of consent is 16, because kids on the cusp of adulthood, fall in love and express their feelings with sex. There was zero pedophilia in this story, David was an adult and knew with full heart and clear head what he was doing.
Finally, as I said, I have emmigrated to New Zealand (from the US) and books are really expensive here, so thank you SO MUCH for letting ASAST be available on the Kindle. If it weren’t for the Kindle I wouldn’t be able to afford to read as much as I do. Here is to hoping that Ashes is also available on the Kindle from day one.
Take care of yourself and your loved ones.
And if I may suggest the best gay speculative fiction book I have ever read for you to check out, Please take a look at The God Eaters by Jesse Hijaick. I’ve been pushing his book for over 2 years, now I have two books to push, because ASAST is going on my “Hey you have got to read this” list that I share with my friends and family.
Matthew
rwday said
Hi Matthew,
Thank you so much! I’m glad you were able to get the book on Kindle, and I hope that any novel I write is always available in as many formats as possible.
I appreciate the review, even with quibbles, and thank you for the recommendation. I’ve seen The God Eaters come up as recommended on Amazon, will definitely see about picking up a copy.
Take care of yourself too, and again, thank you. Seriously, reader feedback is more valuable to me than any royalty check.
Michael said
Dear Rebecca,
I always feel slightly tacky searching out an author to respond to their work, but here I am doing it… I finished reading Thaw yesterday, and after a giddy series of e-mails to mon hypocrite lecteur/semblable/frere, I’ve decided to bite the bullet…
I wanted – needed – to give you a heartfelt thank you for writing that book. It’s not often that I’m able to heap unqualified praise on an LGBT novel – because frankly, with the best will in the world, I usually have greater or lesser reservations with all of those I read – but in this case, I really didn’t have even the slightest niggle. My own drive to write has always been based on the fact that the books that I want to read don’t exist – without wanting to sound self-indulgent, I so rarely find myself, or anything that resembles my experience, represented anywhere. And then, on the rarest of occasions, I come across a book like A Strong and Sudden Thaw… And I feel it. Not in my head, or even for that matter my heart, but somewhere deep in the pit of my stomach…
Sorry – I’m proving myself utterly incapable of expressing what I wanted to… I just wanted to let you know that sometimes art can remind you of why you continue to bother to consume and produce – of what a work that truly resonates with your being on some primal level can do. It reminds me why I read – and why I write – in the first place. So, again, thank you.
rwday said
Michael, I think you expressed yourself beautifully. I wish I had a better response than ‘thank you’ – it really seems inadequate.
As a writer yourself, you know that we never really know how our books and stories will be received – I wrote Thaw because it was a story I felt compelled to tell, and most of the time, I have nothing beyond sales figures to indicate whether it worked or not. Your comments remind ME of why I write, so thank you again. And I wish you all the best in your own writing!
Adelei said
Dear Ms Day,
I just wanted to let you know that your book, A Strong and Sudden Thaw has become my all time favorite. I picked it up maybe two years ago in an anime/manga store in my home town. It was on the same shelf as all the yaoi manga, which is a little embarrassing to admit, but after reading it over and resolving that I needed to step away from reading only comics, I decided to buy it.
I am eternally glad I did.
I couldn’t put it down. I sat on my duff for the first two days, and even brought it to work to read on breaks. I hadn’t been so engrossed in a book since reading Harry Potter back in middle school. The way it was written, how the characters grew… I love it. I can’t put it any other way. The story had me crying at times and swooning with fangirlish glee at others. After finishing the third re-read, I’m even trying my hand at drawing Callan and David!
I want to thank you for sharing such a tale with the world, for helping me rediscover my love for books, and giving me that little shot of inspiration to get me to finish my own literary projects.
You are a true inspiration to me, and I hope to see more works by you soon!
rwday said
Adelei,
Thank you so much. As a huge Harry Potter fan, I can’t tell you how much it means to hear you even mention my book in the same sentence as J.K. Rowling’s! And I’m in awe of anyone who can draw, as I have zero talent in that department, so it’s wonderful to hear that you’ve been inspired to do art – good luck with that, and with all your creative work.
Comments like this mean so much – thank you again!
Kaleb said
Rebecca,
I would like to thank you for bringing about, in my opinion, a literary masterpiece. I am only 19, but very well read for my age, and I can say with all honesty and confidence that A Strong and Sudden Thaw is, by astronomical proportions, the best book that I have ever read. I find it hard to articulate just how strongly I feel about this book, and that is NEVER difficult for me! I struggle to find the words to express how your words made me feel. I felt absolutetely immersed in the story of David and Callan throughout the novel. I boiled with apprehension, felt giddy and warm at their cute playfulness, cried during thir most trying times. No book has ever brought me to tears, but this one did a number of times throughout, as well as after I finished, crying simply out of the sake of its beauty. Your descriptions through David during his love scenes with Callan were articulated in a way that made it art. I don’t really enjoy novels with eroticism where slang-type language is used (if you know what I mean,) and this book certainly didn’t. This novel was phenomenal in every respect as far as I’m concerned and I am ecstatic with anticipation for the sequel.
I was rather surprised when I found out that A Strong and Sudden Thaw was your first novel. I believed that an author of your caliber must have been a veteran. Your writing is incredible, holding me with every word on every page. I read your novel on my Kindle (the first I read once I got it, actually), and ordered a hard copy of the novel simply for the sake of having it.
You are truly a gifted writer and I SO look forward to all of your future works.
Sorry for such a long-winded comment; I just had to get this out!
Thank you!!
-Kaleb
rwday said
Kaleb, thank you for your well-written and not at all long-winded comment! While Thaw is my first published novel, I do have some short story credits, though nothing in major markets. But truly, the best education for a writer is being as well-read as possible and I read constantly – I credit any talent or skill I have to the years I’ve spent lost in great (and not-so-great) books.
Thank you again!
alexa said
I’m very glad to hear a sequel is forthcoming! I just found and bought this book on amazon the other day and I’m dying to know what happens next š
rwday said
Thanks Alexa – I’m so glad you liked it!
Robert said
Please tell me when the sequel is coming! I am blown away by this novel! You are an amazing writer.
rwday said
Hi Robert,
I just finished up the last of my semester’s classes (am in grad school) and will have the sequel to the publisher by the first of the year. No more procrastinating.
Thank you very much for your kind words!
Kendall said
I just completed A Strong and Sudden Thaw… I loved it!!! Hope a sequel is nearing completion! This was very well written and I just love your character development. I felt that I knew these folks and had a vested interest in the out-come. Of course, I liked David and Cullen, but the voice you used for Grandmam and Brock Anderson (Pa) was near prefect.
I look forward to reading your next piece. Thanks for a rousing good time.
rwday said
Hi Kendall,
Thank you so much for your kind words. I’m glad you were able to get into the characters so much – that’s probably the part of the book I’m most happy with.
In answer to your question, I sent the sequel off to the publisher today.
Thanks again!
Becky
Angela said
I haven’t finished reading “A Strong and Sudden Thaw” yet but I had to stop, one because I was at an incredibly heart wrenching moment in the book and couldn’t read through my tears, and two I was so blown away by you work so far I couldn’t hold back my praise any longer.
I was a huge follower of you HP fan fiction and when I got my Amazon Kindle I thought to purchase your book just because I enjoyed the notion of showing my support for new authors, I was ridiculously surprised to find how much I love you work so far and can’t wait to add any of your other work to my collection. Please keep writing novels till the sight of printed words makes you nauseous, and then write a couple more for those of us that can’t get enough. Have a great 2010!
rwday said
Angela, thank you. There really aren’t words to express how much your praise means to me.
I learned a lot from writing fanfiction and I’m glad you enjoyed my stuff. I think some of the best writing out there is being done in fandom, by authors only motivated by love of their characters and worlds. I wrote Thaw in part because I wanted to do with my own characters/worlds what I’d done with Rowling’s, and from your comment here, I feel like I succeeded.
Thank you again,
Becky
Lara said
I just emerged from the world of Thaw… it was intense, and wrapped me right up in it. I couldn’t bear the suspense on the way up the mountain: I had to skip to the end to see how it all turned out, something I never do! I’m still kind of traumatized by the real feel of the post-Ice legal system.
rwday said
Lara, thank you so much, though I’m sorry about the trauma. I work in a law library, so have a lot of contact with courts and attorneys, and unfortunately, you don’t have to do much research to find laws and courts treating people like criminals for who they love.
Again, thank you for commenting, and I’m glad you were so wrapped up in my book!
Riwanon said
I finished your book in two days (taking into account that English is not my mother tongue) and I absolutelly loved it! I just couldn’t stop reading and even shed tears for Callan and David. They are very lovely character that I will never forget. Thank you!
rwday said
Riwanon, thank you – I’m so glad you enjoyed the book, and especially that you took the time and effort to read something not in your native language. That means a lot!
Tim said
I am working on my second trip through your wonderful novel. I purchased it via Kindle in July 09 and read it in one sitting…fantastic (and I was up way too late!). I loved it so much that I bought my partner a print copy as a holiday gift. He loved it too.
I am very, very pleased to hear that the second book is coming soon.
You have done an amazing job world building and creating characters that live.
Thank you for sharing your stories with us, and please, KEEP WRITING! š
rwday said
Tim, thank you. I never quite know what to say in response to wonderful comments like yours – ‘thank you’ really is inadequate. I’m glad you and your partner enjoyed the book, and hope you like the sequel too.
Best wishes to you both!