Guest Author: J.K. Beck + Giveaway

J.K. Beck, author of When Blood Calls, has been kind enough to stop by Reading with Tequila to tell us about her new series.

Law and Order in the Shadows...

For a while now, I’ve been shouting from the rooftops about my new dark, paranormal romance series, the Shadow Keepers, and the first book, When Blood Calls, has been popping up on a lot of blogs and review sites (yay!), and in a lot of the reviews, folks are likening the series to a paranormal Law & Order.  As a huge L&O fan, I couldn’t be happier with the comparison.  

It’s not too far off the mark, either.  Because the world I envisioned in the series is one in which the creatures that humans have always thought of as myth or nightmares or campfire fodder are not only real, but self-policing.  A world in which some of the humans are aware of what’s under the surface, but most are blissfully ignorant, never knowing the debt they owe to the PEC, the Preternatural Enforcement Coalition.  It’s an organization that’s been around essentially to the beginning of time, the first laws codified back in ancient Sumaria.  

For ages, it’s existed as an entity in and of itself, often hiding in the shadows of the human world, just as now it hides within the auspices of Homeland Security (at least, the American arm, which includes Division 6, the division that plays the primary role in the first three books, When Blood Calls, When Pleasure Rules, and When Wicked Craves).  It’s not a perfect system, but neither is ours.  There’s corruption and political backstabbing and under the table deals.  But when you’re dealing with supernatural creatures, the consequences of not abiding by the law can be more dangerous than deadly, and feuds can go on forever.

The first book, When Blood Calls, features Sara Constantine, a human who’s recruited as a prosecutor to Division 6.  And the first defendant for whom she’s supposed to pursue the death penalty?  Lucius Dragos, a man with whom she had a one-night stand.  A man who happens to be a vampire.  

Physically and emotionally, Luke and Sara are drawn to each other.  Philosophically, they’re like oil and water, with Sara’s black and white view of the law and the judicial system conflicting with Luke’s belief that when the system fails, there is no moral impediment to undertaking a correction, which is a nice way of saying going after the defendant who got off on a technicality and remedying that little problem.  It was a lot of fun writing them, of doing the dance of where they could come together, and where they had to stand apart.  Hopefully, readers will enjoy the dance, too!

Of course, not everything is revealed in the books about the world or the laws that govern it.  But with each story, readers learn more about the world.  In When Pleasure Rules, a succubus is compelled to act as a confidential informant, required by the PEC to get information on a dangerous werewolf, in order to keep herself out of prison.  In When Wicked Craves, the story begins with the heroine about to be executed for violations of the Covenant, and her only hope is the brilliant vampire advocate who represented her, but also happens to have an agenda of his own.

I’ve had such a great time writing these stories (and now working on the next three!).  I hope you enjoy reading them.  I’d love to hear what you think!  You can email me at jk@jkbeck.com, friend me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/authorjkbeck, follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jkbeck or just visit my blog www.jkbeck.com or the series site (they’re all the same place, but you can go straight to the books by going here:  www.theshadowkeepers.com)  On the site, you can read excerpts, enter contests, watch my book trailer, and more.  Check back, because I’m adding pages with information about the characters and the world and cool tidbits from the stories!

And thanks for coming by!  One commenter (open internationally) will win a review copy of When Pleasure Rules, the second book in the series!

About the Author

J. K. Beck spent more than ten years as a litigator in Southern California and Central Texas, using her rare free time to indulge in her passion for writing. Now she uses her legal background as inspiration for her paranormal romantic suspense series, The Shadow Keepers, set in and around a secret judicial system hidden within and mirroring our own.

California born, J. K. now lives and writes in Texas, where she hangs out with her husband and daughters and drinks far too much coffee.

But wait! There’s more!

J.K. Beck is the new pen name for bestselling author Julie Kenner. We always knew Julie was a little bit schizo….

About the Book

Sara Constantine is one of the country’s most tenacious prosecuting attorneys—and she’s just secured a well-earned promotion. At first she’s thrilled. Then she finds out her new job involves prosecuting vampires and werewolves. And nothing prepares Sara for the shock she receives when she meets the first defendant she’ll be trying to put away: Lucius Dragos, the sexy stranger with whom she recently shared an explosive night of ecstasy.

When Lucius Dragos kisses the beautiful woman sitting next to him at the bar, he’s only hoping to blend into the crowd and avoid the perceptive gaze of the man he’s following…and planning to kill. But what starts as a simple kiss to secure his cover ignites into a fierce hunger that leads to an all-consuming passion. Charged with murder, Luke knows Sara will do whatever it takes to see him locked away—unless he can convince her that he’s not the monster she thinks he is. And that might mean making the greatest sacrifice a vampire can make.

Giveaway

Notice what J.K. wrote up there in her post? Yup, leave a comment for J.K. Beck to be entered to win a review copy of When Pleasure Rules, the second book in the Shadow Keepers series!

Open internationally!

Deadline for entry: Wednesday, September 8, 2010 11:59pm EST