Aloe is Book 2 in the Tales From The Night Garden series, an LGBTQIA+ contemporary dark fantasy following two ace-spectrum, nonbinary leads. Acanthus and Cypress are back, and they're fighting Nekane with everything they've got.
Cypress and Acanthus are continuing on in their adventures. Can they count on you to join them?
"Up for a run, Pup?" "I think I would've yelled at you if you didn't ask."
Aloe is the second book of the Tales from The Night Garden series, starring two nonbinary, ace-spectrum leads. It isn't a romance or horror, but it does contain romance and horror elements. Cypress and Acanthus have decided to be each other's, whatever that entails.
Aloe, at its core, is a story about resilience and standing up for what you believe in. It's about learning that you can rely on others, and also that you can stand on your own two feet while doing so. It's about fighting for what's right, even if you feel like you're in a losing battle. And it's about overcoming your past, your fears, your traumas, and your weaknesses.
Lemon Balm was a story of losing your old community and finding another where you fit, collecting bits and pieces of found family along the way. It would be much easier to understand Aloe if you've read Lemon Balm, so the campaign has options for buying the previous book if you're new to the series!
Main Characters
Acanthus Sylene
Cypress Borne
Acanthus Sylene -They/he A centuries old vampire who is frankly tired of life, and working to bounce back from a moment of extreme weakness and coming close to giving up. They're anxious, traumatized from their past, and doing their best to meet the current situation with poise and grace, but they're falling apart beneath the pressure. One thing is for certain -- they don't want to keep running, but they're not sure how to stop.
Cypress Borne - He/they Cypress is in his mid-twenties, and has been thrust into a world that he knew nothing about less than a few months ago. Optimistic, upbeat, and used to being the strong one in the room, Cypress can be insecure and brash at times. They do their best, though. He's curious and cunning, and likes to learn how things work.
A vampire and a werewolf dare to fight... (No, there's still no punchline.)
Acanthus and Cypress, an age old Vampire and a young new Werewolf, have accidentally started a war. Nekane, the Werewolf in charge, will go to any means necessary to capture Acanthus; meaning even humans are in danger. On the run, our non-binary heroes encounter others caught up in Nekane's hatred of vampires, witches, and any werewolves that fraternize with them! As Acanthus and Cypress regroup with the Night Garden, an underground organization committed to liberating any in Nekane's crosshairs, they're tasked with some of the hardest challenges they've faced yet!
Friend or foe? It's hard to judge just who to trust in a world wrought with danger. In this second book of the Tales From The Night Garden universe, our protagonists continue their adventure in this game of chess with very real consequences. A gaggle of strays begin to expand their found family and a love that blazes bright in the night starts to break out of the darkness.
What can Acanthus and Cypress do to convince Nekane to stand down, or are words not enough? How will these two fugitives handle inviting more refugees into their growing resistance? How will The Night Garden continue to save the disenfranchised Supernaturals when Nekane shows up at their Head Quarters' door!?
No one knows, but both Cypress and Acanthus have decided they can't run anymore. It's time to stand up for what is right and just. Will you stand up with them on their next journey?
I've done my best to estimate shipping costs, based on weight of the packages and current shipping rates. There's always a chance that the actual shipping cost will be different. I'll give plenty of warning before I ship things out!
I will not be collecting any VAT or customs fees. It will be the responsibility of you, the individual backer, to take care of that when we ship. Please keep in mind that if you order the e-books and add on physical items, there will be a shipping cost for those items, but it will be different than the estimates.
Ash - Aloe E-Book
Salt - Aloe AND Lemon Balm E-Books
E-Book AND Physical Copy Books
Cinnamon - Paperback AND E-Book of Aloe
Red Clover - Hardcover AND E-book of Aloe
Fern - E-Books AND Paperbacks of Lemon Balm AND Aloe
Pepper - E-Books AND Hardcovers of Lemon Balm AND Aloe
Signed Copies
Star Anise - SIGNED Paperback AND E-Book of Aloe
Bamboo - SIGNED Hardcover AND E-Book of Aloe
Bookseller's Packs
Amber - SIX Paperback copies of Aloe
White Birch - THREE Paperback copies of Lemon Balm and THREE Paperback copies of Aloe
Bergamot - SIX Hardcover copies of Aloe
Bluebell - SIX Paperback copies of Lemon Balm and SIX Paperback copies of Aloe
Add-Ons and Merch
Bookmarks - One of four different designs, 2"x6", printed on heavy cardstock. $4 each.
Pins - One of two different1" soft enamel pin designs available in red or black. $12 each.
3 Pack of 1" stickers, $3.
3 Pack of 2.5"x2.5" Stickers. Available in he/him, he/they, they/them, she/they, she/her, neopronouns, and ask. $6.
Vampire Stickers - a large and small sticker, matching the pins. $5 for both.
Acanthus floating sticker. $3
Art Prints, Stickers, and the character bookmark all use the artwork below!
Nekane Diaz, she/her
Austin Garrison, he/him
François de Toulouse, he/him
One-Click Merch Box - Into The Unknown cave print, two 5"x7" prints of Acanthus and Cypress, all 15 of the stickers, four bookmarks, two vampire pins, and the six art-nouveau inspired character art prints.
Digital-only backers will receive a PDF list of items and what they would be used for in a witchy care package themed in the world's mythos. Physical backers will receive the PDF along with a small satchel with some of the items.
Stretch Goal #2 - Locked - $1750 - High Seas (A Corbin and Acanthus Short Story)
Corbin is one of Acanthus' fledglings and a more prominent side character throughout Aloe. Acanthus turned him when they were in the highlight of their life -- they were a pirate, after a few centuries of strife. This is a short story about Corbin and Acanthus, set in Acanthus' pirating days. Everyone will receive an .epub and .pdf!
Don't forget to vote on your favorite vampire world! Thank you for believing in my stories, in nonbinary and ace-spec leads, and in a kinder and more empathetic world. ♥ Stretch Goal #3 - Locked - Lavender's Elegy, Chapter 1
Lavender's Elegy is the story of Acanthus' past through the eyes of the antagonist, François de Toulouse. This story is dark and intense, and planned not to release for quite a while. As a thank you, here is the first chapter to read!
Stretch Goal #4 - Locked - Aloe Audiobook
This will be a ways off from being fully produced, but everyone who backed the books will receive a free copy if we reach this stretch goal! Stretch Goal #5 - Locked - Cover Album
My husband and I used to be really into anime when we were younger, and it was common for anime VAs in Japan to do original songs and covers for their series as their characters. Because we are the voice actors for the series, we can do fun things like this. He joked that we should do a cover album of songs that I thought fit the series, as Acanthus and Cypress, for a stretch goal. I told him it would have to be an unreasonably high goal for me to do that. So, if you're seeing this, then we've hit just about 3x the funding goal! Thank you! Enjoy our silliness.
Anyone who is a paid supporter of Patreon or Ko-Fi when the campaign ends on June 30th, AND backs the project, will receive this free T-shirt! How cool is that?
Artemis Quinn
Artemis Quinn (he/they) is also known as Vamp or VampireAntihero on social media. They're nonbinary, and happily married to their husband Keegan. They live in Wisconsin with a plethora of fish, three cats, and five snakes. He's a fulltime freelance artist, and his work is a comic semi-realistic style. Their work — both art and writing — is largely focused in dark fantasy, horror, and supernatural elements. The goal of the work is shedding light on topics such as mental health, LGBTQIA+ experiences, and isolation.
They also act in a local theatre troupe on a volunteer basis. It is his goal to work on stories that can bring meaningful change to the world. He spends my time, writing, drawing, hiking, or communing with the unspeakable horrors of the void.
Conquer Thy Fear Studio was officially launched as a business in May of 2020. It started as an illustration studio, but now it’s expanded to book covers and an indie publication imprint for my books. I spend my time creating illustrations in order to both make a living off of my art and to create awareness for social causes and mental health.
The Book Bazaar has a whole bunch of awesome creators involved! Check out some of the ones I recommend, here!
Book Bazaar Summer Bonanza
Welcome to Book Bazaar Summer Edition, a celebration of all things indie and small press! We're collaborating to help make each creator's dreams come true with their publishing project. The more you back, the more goodies you earn. Here's how you can earn more:
Back more, earn more! ⭐Claim your Book Bazaar Summer Edition 2026 sticker sheet today by backing 5 or more projects. Each sticker sheet has all the book covers included! Plus, check out individual creators for special collaborations between projects. 👀
What is The Book Bazaar?
During this event, authors/indie presses run their own crowdfunding campaigns, with hopes of funding their publishing project. All campaigns run at the same time, and each campaign cross-promotes one another. Each campaign runs on an all-or-nothing basis, which means if they don’t meet their minimum goal, they can’t create their projects. 🙁 That’s why we’re hoping to count on you, the lovely reader, to help uplift these publishers and really make this Bazaar something special!
The more projects you back, the more rewards you’ll get. Some Bazaar projects are paired with another project, and by backing both Bazaar projects, you’ll get EXTRA free rewards! Back all Bazaar projects to maximize your rewards!
