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Erica Robyn Reads

a horror book review blog

Recent Posts

Black Out The Stars by Christopher Bond - book sitting on wooden flooring. Book cover of Black Out the Stars by Christopher Bond, cover illustrated by Todd Kiesling. The design showcases a dark, atmospheric pond and sky filled with swirling fog and scattered stars. The title is prominently displayed in bold, white, pink and purple lettering, contrasting against the deep purple and black hues of the background.

Black Out The Stars by Christopher Bond | Book Review

Indie Bookstore Day 2025 | Book Event

A tablet lies on dry grass and surrounded by dandelions in a natural outdoor setting. The screen displays the cover of the book Everybody Is in the Place by Emma J. Gibbon. The cover features a colorful, fantastical illustration of a female figure with glowing eyes and curved horns, holding something mysterious in her hands. Stars and swirling cosmic elements fill the background, giving the cover a magical and otherworldly feel. The title text is in bold, colorful letters across the top and middle, with the author's name at the bottom.

Everybody Is in the Place by Emma J. Gibbon | Book Review

[Book Event] Meeting Gregory Bastianelli @ Water Street Bookstore in Exeter, NH

February 23, 2020      Erica Robyn      21 Comments

Meeting Gregory Bastianelli @ Water Street Books in Exeter, NH

On February 19th, I had the wonderful opportunity to visit a bookshop that I had never been to before in order to see one of my new favorite authors, Gregory Bastianelli!

The drive from my home only took about 40 minutes. Luckily the winter New England weather coorporated so I could attend, but how funny it would have been if the event had been cancelled due to the snow (if you’ve read the book, you’ll get this spooky thought!)

I’m so so so happy that I went! Let’s dive in!

Meeting Gregory Bastianelli @ Water Street Bookstore in Exeter, NH

This was my first time both visiting Water Street Bookstore and attending an author event there. The shop was wonderful! I’ll be posting a feature on the shop soon, so stay tuned for that!

I arrived at the shop an hour before the event. As I walked in, the owner, Daniel Chartrand, greeted me immediately and asked if I needed help finding anything specific. I let him know that I was mainly there for the event and that it was my first time there! He welcomed me, thanked me for coming, and then pointed out an area that I could go sit if I wanted to wait until they were all set up.

Of course, I couldn’t help myself… I had to check out the shop! For quite a while, I spent my time walking around and snapping some photos of the shop. Let me tell you… I will be stopping in again the next time I pass by Exeter! They had SO many things to check out! From the books to notebooks, to bookends and bookish merch!

I ended up walking away with quite the haul! On the top of my stack of books is an awesome pop-up book end! I’ve been needing book ends now for awhile, so I can’t wait to see how this one works!

My Feb 2020 Haul from Water Street Books

The author arrived and started getting set up. I snagged him for a moment to ask if he would sign my book. I had an ARC copy of his book, but I just had to also snag a hardcover… I’ll be keeping the hardcover that I had personalized, but I’ll be hosting a giveaway for the ARC! That will be up this week.

Gregory Bastianelli Autograph

Soon afterward, the event began!

Gregory read the first chapter of his book, Snowball. When he finished, I was grinning as I knew what was going to happen next, but the crowd groaned; they didn’t want it to end! It was SO neat seeing the author read his own work. When I re-read this book, I’m sure I’m going to read it with his voice in my head.

Gregory Bastianelli @ Water Street Books in Exeter, NH

After that, he did a Q&A session. Per usual, I chickened out and didn’t ask a question, but the crowed had some great ones! I loved learning that he didn’t make an outline, that he just wrote and let the story unfold as he was going. That was shocking to me! This book is organized so wonderfully and each character has such an interesting backstory… I can’t believe he didn’t have a massive character chart to keep it all straight!

After the Q&A, I took a moment to speak with the store owner who was absolutely wonderful! I also gave out my first book blog business card so that was wicked exciting! A member of the staff, Stef, also snapped the shot of myself and the author, which I am super grateful for! Thanks Stef!!

An all around wonderful event! If you’re ever in the Exeter, NH area, I highly recommend popping into the shop! Feel free to visit the Water Street Bookstore website here. And if you haven’t read any of Gregory Bastianelli’s work, I highly recommend checking him out!

Thanks for reading!
What was the most recent bookish event you have been to?

Here are a few more recent posts you might like:

  • Black Out The Stars by Christopher Bond | Book Review
  • Indie Bookstore Day 2025 | Book Event
  • Everybody Is in the Place by Emma J. Gibbon | Book Review

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Priscilla Bettis says

    February 23, 2020 at 4:01 pm

    I enjoyed reading about your trip to the Water Street Bookstore and meeting Bastinaelli. I haven’t read Snowball yet, but I want to!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      February 24, 2020 at 10:22 am

      <3

      Reply
  2. Carole's Random Life in Books says

    February 23, 2020 at 6:39 pm

    I love going to author events. It is always interesting to me to learn a little about how each author puts their books together. It sounds like the bookstore was lovely. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      February 24, 2020 at 10:23 am

      Thanks for checking out my post! It sure was an awesome event!!

      Reply
  3. Suzanne @ The Bookish Libra says

    February 23, 2020 at 9:24 pm

    Sounds like a great event and I’m fascinated that he wrote this book without doing any kind of outline for it. Impressive!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      February 24, 2020 at 10:24 am

      Right?! Such an awesome talent!

      Reply
  4. chucklesthescot says

    February 24, 2020 at 3:30 am

    That sounds like a book store that go out of their way to help their customers, and how exciting for you to meet Mr Snowball himself! I haven’t read anything by the author yet but I do have an e-book of Snowball which I hope I enjoy!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      February 26, 2020 at 5:12 pm

      For sure!! it was so wonderful meeting everyone! I can’t wait to see what you think of Snowball!!

      Reply
  5. Angela says

    February 24, 2020 at 7:45 am

    It’s always so awesome when you get to meet a favorite author!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      February 24, 2020 at 10:24 am

      For sure!! <3

      Reply
  6. ShootingStarsMag says

    February 24, 2020 at 8:06 am

    Sounds like a great bookstore, and a fun event! It’s been awhile since I’ve gone to an author event and I really want to check one out soon.

    -Lauren

    Reply
  7. Barb @ Booker T's Farm says

    February 24, 2020 at 10:38 am

    That sounds wonderful and of course you know how much I love this book. How awesome that you got to meet him. I can’t wait to see what he comes up with next? Did he give any hints?

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      February 26, 2020 at 5:00 pm

      <3 <3 He said he has a few things he's working on, but he was pretty vague about it. I can't wait to see what he does next! I need to check out his previous works as well!

      Reply
  8. Jennifer | Book Den says

    February 25, 2020 at 10:48 am

    Yay! What a lovely event!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      February 26, 2020 at 4:58 pm

      <3

      Reply
  9. Darina says

    February 26, 2020 at 1:48 pm

    This is so cool! Author events are always so exciting and it’s extra special when you can get a signed book and chat with them.

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      February 26, 2020 at 4:58 pm

      Agreed!! I’m so thankful I was able to attend! 🙂

      Reply

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Welcome to Erica Robyn Reads!

Erica Robyn of Erica Robyn Reads
Hello! I’m Erica, a Mainer living in New Hampshire who runs on hot tea, good books, and loud music. Join me as I seek out amazing horror tales and help support the indie horror community!
 

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