LK Below - release announcement #guest

Today I hand over my blog to a guest who's visited before, LK Below, so, without further ado, I hand over the rest of this post to her.

33 Days until the release of This Blackened Night, The Order: Book 3!

Every author has a set of characters more dear to their hearts than any others. In most cases, this stems from these characters being among the first ever created. I won't claim Lori and Terrence were my very first, but they did come close. Their first book, Stalking Shade, which released in 2011, was originally written in 2007. And rewritten. And rewritten.

And now it feels like a dear friend is moving away. With the release of This Blackened Night on September 24th, 2012, the trilogy will come to an end. Lori might be a prickly character, not easy for anyone but Terrence to love, but I had a lot of fun with her. When I wrote this third book late last year, I dragged my feet to see it finished for the same reason. I didn't want to let the pair of them go. A not-so-secret part of me is hoping for an overwhelming response from readers asking me to continue so I have an excuse to revisit my favorite characters.

For now, I'm counting down the days until the third book releases. Maybe you'll fall in love with Lori and Terrence every bit as fiercely as I have. Lori might be stubborn in pushing people away, but Terrence is the most persistent character I've ever written. Good thing, too.

Join me in celebrating the release of the third book a bit early with this short, sweet teaser excerpt:

This Blackened Night by LK Below

With murders cropping up all around, who should she trust?
After months of searching, Lori finally scrounges up a clue as to the whereabouts of the missing leader of her secret organization. But her vision isn't encouraging--it points to her vampire companion Terrence as the culprit.

Terrence is adamant that he isn't at fault. Even though she knows she might be walking into a trap, she follows his lead to a shabby island port. When her informants start turning up dead with puncture wounds in their necks, Lori wonders just how well she knows Terrence. And why does he act different during the search than in their hotel room?

Lori doesn't know who to trust anymore. She only hopes that she won't be the next victim.

* * * *

Six Sweet Sentences from the book:

There--The Mastiff Hotel. The sign loomed just down from the bus station. Resettling her bag on her shoulder, Lori strode toward it.

Doubts assailed her. What if Terrence had only asked her here to separate her from those she knew? Was she walking into a trap?

* * * *

Learn more about the series as a whole on the Lyrical Press, Inc. website: http://bit.ly/TheOrderSeries.

Read a longer excerpt from This Blackened Night at http://bit.ly/ThisBlackenedNight.

* * * *

Bio: If L.K. Below gets far too attached to her characters, well, that's because they're interesting people. Read two of her favorites in her urban fantasy series, The Order. Join her online at www.lbelow.net to learn more. Want to keep up to date with her tour stops? Follow her on Twitter  or Facebook

Reading the Cards with LK Below #guest

As an author, I love weaving my knowledge into the books I write. In the case of my newest release, Beauty in His Bed, that knowledge is about Tarot cards. I've been reading tarot cards since I was fifteen years old. For those of you who don't know how readings work, allow me to enlighten you:

The reading starts with a question from the Querent, the person wanting the reading. This question can not be a yes or no question. It also must have a timeline. For instance, the question Amy asked in Beauty in His Bed is: "What will my future bring during my stay in New Orleans?"

Once the Querent knows the question, he or she thinks about it while shuffling the cards. This is to bring the cards in tune with the Querent's thoughts. Then the Querent returns the cards to the reader. They do not tell the tarot reader their question. This is so that the reader can be objective in reading what is in the cards, rather than seeing the most likely answer to the asked question.

The reader then turns over the cards in the desired layout. The layout used in Beauty in His Bed was a simple 3-card spread. The first card overturned represents the past. The second represents the present. And the third represents the future.


Amy's layout was this:



The first card, the two of swords features a blind-folded figure, meaning that the Quenent was once blind to something or someone. The second, the six of swords, shows the Querent sailing through choppy waters. This could mean they are running away from something, or towards something. The third card, the four of wands, indicates a celebration to come -- anything from a wedding to a housewarming party to a promotion to the celebration of an accomplishment.

Here's an excerpt of the reading:

After a minute, she looked up. “Has something turbulent happened to you recently?”

Flabbergasted, Amy felt her mouth drop open. She craned her neck to peer at the cards. Did they show that Tim had broken up with her? All she saw was a bunch of swords and staffs. What did that mean?

Danielle continued, “I only ask because of these cards.” She pointed at the first two. “This one, representing the past, is the two of swords. You see how the figure is blindfolded? That could indicate that you were once blinded to something or someone. Even so, based on the figure’s position, you also felt defensive. Maybe you’ve felt that way for a long time.” She moved on to the second card. “But here in the spot representing the present, you have the six of swords. It shows that you’re running away from something. See the choppy water on this side of the boat? You’re sailing from something bad into calmer waters. That could be the reason you’re here in New Orleans.”

Amy didn’t look at Monique. But she didn’t have to. Danielle was completely right--she was running from something. Her breakup.

When she didn’t say anything, Danielle pointed to the third and last card. This one was brighter than the others, with a yellow background and garland twining around four staffs. “This is your future, the four of wands. It indicates a celebration to come. Normally, this card means there will be a wedding in the future, but it could be any kind of party. A baby shower, a housewarming party, or even the celebration of an accomplishment.”

Unfortunately, Amy knew which one the card indicated. There would be a wedding in the future--it just wouldn’t be hers.

***

Do you believe in the power of tarot? Have you ever had a reading?


Beauty in His Bed is now available from Lyrical Press, Inc. Read more or buy it at http://bit.ly/BeautyInHisBed. Visit L.K. Below online at www.lbelow.net.