SNEAK PEEK: Demonkeepers by Jessica Andersen

ISBN 9780451229571
(c) April 2010, Signet, Penguin Putnam
Jessica Andersen's website

Buy Link: Amazon, Book Depository

Summary : (from Amazon)

According to Mayan doomsday prophecy, 12/21/12 marks the end of the world in a global cataclysm that can only be prevented by the Nightkeepers, magical warriors enlisted to fight the rise of the underworld demons. To fulfill the final prophecy the Nightkeepers must find their mates, but when Lucius and Jade are charged with rescuing the Mayan sun god, they try to ignore their growing attraction. Unless they can confront their own demons and accept that love isn't a weakness, even destiny might not be able to save them...

Excerpt : (exclusively here at The Raving Readers)

“What’s this?” Jade moved to the TV and raised a hand to trace the stylized figures of six men arranged in an asymmetrical pattern, two on the left, four on the right. Five wore elaborate, feather-worked headdresses made from the skulls of jaguars and coyotes, along with protective shielding that covered only one side of their bodies. The sixth stood at the far right, apart from the others. Wearing a musician’s loincloth and lacking a headdress, he held a conch shell to his lips. Glyphs emerged from the crude instrument as though they were musical notes, though no such scheme had been identified for the ancient Maya. The paint colors ranged from pale mauve through rusty red to charcoal black. The earthy hues reflected on Jade’s face as she frowned, trying to parse out the glyphs.

“Don’t bother, it doesn’t make any sense,” he said. “The current theory is that the artist was illiterate, and just copied a bunch of cool-looking glyphs from other places. It’s just gibberish.” He didn’t say why he’d been studying the painting, why it was important to him.

Under other circumstances, with another woman, talking translation would’ve spoiled the mood. With Jade, though, it only served to heighten the sense of intimacy provided by the small, quiet cottage and the rust-red light. They shared a love of language, and although he couldn’t honestly say he was more attracted to her brains than her body, the two together had made a hell of an impression when he’d first met her.

Or rather, once he’d gotten past her habitual reserve, which came across as shyness, but he’d learned was her way of hiding in plain sight. They each suffered from their own cultural conditioning, he’d long ago realized, though hers had come from a too-demanding winikin and a set of writs rather than a disappointed family and the gods of football.

“There’s something …” She trailed off, still frowning at the glyphs, but then she shook her head and turned back to him, expression going from intrigued to warmth with a hint of nerves. “Never mind. We’re here for a different reason, aren’t we?”

Which was true—it wasn’t like this was just about sex, for either of them.

There was a far larger goal, one that hung over them, weighing on him as it had for nearly half a year now, only this time edged with a sharp sense of anticipation. Determination. He was getting his ass into the library, whatever it took. And if that meant that the Nightkeepers’ needs and his own desire to be part of things wound up getting all mixed together with the desire he felt for Jade—had felt for her from that first day they’d worked together—then that was part of the Nightkeepers’ culture, wasn’t it?

Sex was magic, magic was power, and power could save the world.


Reviews of other books in the series:

Nightkeepers
Dawnkeepers
Skykeepers
Quiz on Nightkeepers - How well do you know the book? Test your knowledge!
Interview with Jessica Andersen

~ o ~

Last 2 days for the giveaway contest!

Three (3) copies of book #4 Demonkeepers to be won! (Two are signed copies.)Everyone on the planet can join, even the penguins in Antarctica, if they can get on the 'Net and write a comment. LOL

How to enter?

Go to Jessica's website and tell us what you like about it. It can be about her books, the extras she has there, or even the design of the website. You can also tell her what you want to see there. Anything. While there, look at the amazing information she has for you. But be warned that the animated intro is a little loud, so if you're at work, hit the volume!

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If you do all of the above, at a minimum, that's 9 chances to win (8 chances if you're a new follower)! Remember, the more things you do to help us spread the word about this contest, the better are your chances.

Contest ends on April 2 (Friday), 1159pm EST. (Original deadline was April 1, which is April Fools' Day, so we thought it might be better if we extend the contest by another day. *grin*)

Winner will be picked via Randomizer.org and announced within the week. Instructions will be given then on how to claim your prize. Be sure to come back and check because we won't hunt you down. If prizes are unclaimed after 1 week, new winners will be chosen.

Good luck!