A big thank you to Marion Sipe for interviewing me on her blog! Marion is my cover artist, and she is made of awesome.
Today we have a real treat: a toe-curling excerpt from Part II of L. Blankenship’s six-part novel, Disciple. Part II was released in March and is available from all major online retailers. The third installment will be out late this year. Here’s the scoop on what’s happening in Part II:
The prince first kissed Kate Carpenter for fear of missing the chance if they didn’t survive the journey home through the monster-prowled mountains.
Now that kiss seems like a fever dream. It’s back to work for her, back to the fellow physicians jealous of her talents and the sneers of an infirmary director who wants her shipped off to some tiny village. Kate means to be on the front lines to save lives. She’s worked too hard to overcome her past to let them deny her the chance to serve her homeland when the enemy’s army reaches their kingdom.
The grand jousting tournament is a chance to prove she can manage combat wounded, and at the royal Solstice banquet Kate means to prove she isn’t an ignorant peasant girl anymore.
But the prince’s kiss still haunts her. Their paths keep crossing, and the easy familiarity they earned on the journey home is a welcome escape from their duties. It’s a small slip from chatting to kisses.
This is no time to be distracted by romance — a vast and powerful empire is coming to slaughter anyone standing between them and the kingdom’s magical fount.
Kate ought to break both their hearts, for duty’s sake.
Sounds good, eh? Let’s hear an excerpt!
Excerpt from Disciple, Part II
After spending the day debriefing the king on the results of their mission, Prince Kiefan leads Kate into a quieter part of the castle …
He still held my hand. No voices, nobody nearby to see us. I swallowed a nervous lump in my throat, wondering where he meant to take me. And what he meant to do there. Surely I didn’t have to worry whether anyone would hear me scream … was there anything he could do that I’d need to?
My cheeks warmed.
Slim pillars held up a graceful stone arcade. Between them, we walked onto frost-burnt grass. A gnarled apple tree, leaves golden and half fallen to the ground, stood ringed by a waist-high juniper hedge. Beyond, the castle wall rose sheer and seamless. To either side, the watchtowers bulged from its face and spiked up like smooth horns. I had to crane my neck to find the tips, and in doing spotted the catwalks that connected each tower to the roof of Castle Kaltkern. The garden lay below the keep, hemmed in by saint-cut cliffs on both sides.
A crescent garden, I saw now. To either side, more fruit trees dropped their leaves, and the rose bushes had gone bare for the winter, but the juniper hedges held their green. Under the central apple tree waited a broad wooden bench. By my hand, still warm in his grip, Kiefan led me toward it and a tangle of hopes and fears snapped tight around my heart.
He didn’t sit, though. He stood under the tree and looked up. “Sometimes I can get some quiet here,” he said. “When Mother isn’t seeking solitude herself.”
I looked up, too, into golden leaves and dark branches. Blue, beyond. “It must be lovely in the spring.” I could imagine the trees hazed by white blossoms.
“And in the summer, when the roses are out, the scent hangs like a fog between the walls.”
He still held my hand. My nerves eased, I sidled closer to his shoulder. He smelled of sweat, under his layered woolens. “You spent the afternoon at swordplay?”
He nodded, bringing his gaze down to me. “I thought he would send for the captain, but Woden tossed me a sparring sword himself. I nearly dropped it when he chose one and stood at guard.”
“You sparred with a saint?”
Kiefan shook his head, disbelieving it himself. “I saw him spar with Captain Aleks, once. She said it was her most valuable lesson.”
“You lived to tell. You didn’t ask him to give you quarter?” I risked a smile.
A chuckle. “He gave none, that’s true. I won’t know how many bruises I have until morning, I’m sure.” He tugged out the collar of his cote to feign checking inside. “We spoke about the lamia, and he told me I was using my kir to keep their teeth off me despite the close quarters. The beginnings of a kir-shield. With training, I’ll be able to control it more.”
“We all learned something out there.” I looked up as a chilly breeze sent a few more leaves spinning from the branches and caught a wince on Kiefan’s brow. “Are you hurt? A headache?”
“A little.”
I knew what that meant. I put my hand on his fresh-shaven cheek and turned his head toward me to call his kir. It glowed in answer, revealing a few tangles on his meridian, but I got no further in checking him.
Kiefan leaned over and kissed me, wrapping me in both strong arms. Coaxed my mouth open to spar with his tongue. He left me breathing harder with my palm still on his face.
I combed my fingers over the ridges of his Blessing at the back of his neck and pulled him down for another. His arms tightened on me. His lips made their way to my throat and his tongue tracing the hollow there stabbed a shiver into my spine. My pulse surged.
With a hard breath, he buried his face against my neck and squeezed me till I squeaked. I clung to his shoulders, my feet lifted an inch off the ground. He held me warm and safe, despite the cold breeze.
“You must come to Prohzgrad with us,” he said against my neck. “Cure me with a kiss each night.”
I swallowed a sudden lump. “You’re going away?” I managed to ask through his grip.
Oh, Nelly! Okay, I think I have to add this one to my TBR pile, pronto. You can check out Disciple of the Fount for more info, updates, and samples from Parts I and II. Enjoy!
I read because I love words.
But when I read, I get sucked in and forget about the words.
I read because I’m tired of talking to people.
But when I read, I end up talking to people about it.
I read because it relaxes me.
But when I read, I get excited.
I read because it helps me forget my cares.
But when I read, I start caring about a whole new batch of people.
I read because stories let me escape the world.
But when I read, I learn more about the world.
I read to forget that I’m going to die and so will everything else.
But death happens in books sometimes, too.
I read to be happy.
But books can make me sad.
I read because I love it.
But I don’t know why.
They say it’s not good “sleep hygiene” to read in bed. Your bed should be just for sleeping and, you know — baum-chicka-baum-baum! That way you associate your bed with sleeping (and/or sex) and sleep (or make whoopie) better.
(I added the stuff about making better whoopie, but by the law of associations, it makes sense, right?)
Problem is, I love reading in bed! I can’t give it up. No way.
But what if you’ve already read Tolkien a zillion times?
(Um … “more than five but fewer than ten” doesn’t count as “a zillion,” right? Okay, good. Just checking.)
As I was saying, what if you’ve already read Tolkien a zillion times? Well, read a different book with Tolkien in mind. Or read Tolkien today and buy something written by one of Tolkien’s hopeless-nerd groupies another perfectly respectable author for another day.
A bunch of fantasy writers have gathered to offer their books at the bargain-basement price of $.99 in a Tolkien Reading Day promotion. Nolander is $.99, and so are more than twenty other books. Stock up and enjoy!
Thirty magical fantasy ebooks will be on sale March 20 through 22, and my book is one of them! The graphic may say “under $5,” but more than half of these books are $.99 or free — super deals. The promotion includes a multi-paperback giveaway for U.S. readers and a multi-ebook giveaway for anyone anywhere in the world. There are more than thirty-five free prizes in the offing. So, please check out the Spectacular Spring Equinox Fantasy Sale, and pass on word to your friends, as well.
Here are just a couple of the featured books:
Vaetra Unveiled (Vaetra Chronicles, vol. 1)
Bored with his life as an innkeeper, Jaylan Forester takes a promising mercenary contract. The adventure goes out of control when he discovers that his client is being pursued by Sulana Delano, an intriguing Sword Sorceress from an enclave of sorcerers known as The Archives. Taught from birth to shun sorcerers, Jaylan must overcome his distrust of magic when an unexpected turn of events embroils Jaylan in Sulana’s mission to recover a stolen mysterious artifact. Along the way, Jaylan learns that he too has the capacity to become a sorcerer. He must decide if he wants to explore his newfound abilities or resume the comfortable life he has always known. Fate has its own ideas about the path he should take.
The Partners (Dire Calls, vol. 1-4)
Dire…
Griffon Dire is a former Army Spec-Ops Lieutenant with a tragic past and an uncertain future. The ex-soldier is a lost soul left searching for meaning in the wake of his summary discharge. Yet Dire is also an orphaned prodigy, the scion of a powerful legacy he’s kept hidden for decades.
Thief…
Hargold Thief is a veteran New Dagonia Police Department detective. A lowborn fighter who has clawed his way up through the ranks, Thief is stuck riding herd on an overworked squad of Social Crimes Division detectives.
Fate…
Dire stumbles onto an undercover operation gone horribly wrong. As he steels himself for battle, Thief races to the scene. Violence erupts, and the bloody confrontation brings the two men together. It is this chance encounter which will lead them down the road as The Partners.
Pretty cool, huh? I going to hit the promo site first thing tomorrow and stock up on future reads. — Becca
The longer I spend with my characters, the more I feel like a parent. I mean I am a parent: I have twins who are about to turn three. What I mean is that I’m beginning to feel like my characters’ parent as well. That is to say, I feel responsible for them in a particular way that reminds me of how I feel about my kids.
When I’m parenting, I try to give my kids opportunities to succeed. I mean, I’d much rather not put them in situations where they’re very likely to fail. I’d rather try to create situations in which they’re likely to succeed. For instance, I’m trying to teach my kids to share with each other. Perhaps with twins, especially, that’s an ongoing battle. I’ve found there are moments when the suggestion to share is more likely to be accepted, and I try to jump on those, so that I can praise good behavior. Of course, that’s not always possible. Kids don’t always succeed. But I want to give them opportunities to do so — as many as possible.
I’ve realized I feel the same way about my characters. I feel responsible for giving them opportunities to be their better selves, to reveal positive traits that might not necessarily be apparent, at first. As with my kids, it’s not always possible. After all, most of my characters are adults, and real life sadly doesn’t construct itself so as to encourage any particular person’s success. Events seem far more random than that. And, even when given the opportunity, not everyone steps up and does the right thing. A fictional world in which they did would ring false. But still, if I don’t at least create opportunities for showing a better side … well, I sort feel like a heel!
