Hurray! New Covers

I have not one, but two new covers to share today. Hurray! I’ve been so fortunate to have such great covers done for my books.

The first new cover is for Lovers’ Stone, the second book in the Jewels of Ursus series that began with Mating Stone. Lovers’ Stone is Luke Ursine’s story and Luke is quite the gem in the rough. He’s plain spoken and not necessarily a nice guy. He lives to make his older brother Mark’s life interesting. Accompanying a cousin to the sacred caves of his clan to stand watch (more of a ritual thing than a safety thing) while his cousin seeks his own mating stone, Luke finds himself drawn down the forbidden central corridor. Inside the sacred chamber he finds a woman. One who draws him in a way no woman ever has before. Their coming together is passionate to the point of explosive. When Luke awakens afterward he still in the chamber but the woman is gone. But in his hand lies the one thing he has never sought. His own mating stone. The only problem is he has no idea who the woman that fate has just tied him to is.

I’m told by the incomparable Anny Cook that the cover model for Lovers’ Stone is a man named John Fish from Houston, TX. According to Anny, who met him at the recent Romantic Times convention, he is quite a “teddy bear.” He’s definitely very nice to look at and if he’s a teddy bear, it makes him twice over perfect for Luke’s book.

The second new cover is for the third and final book in the trilogy, Soul Stone. Books one and two feature a secondary character who is an integral part of the Ursine brothers’ lives. Tarris Ursine is not a Were, but an orphaned Incubus raised by the Bear clan. He lives by very strict rules. Rules that are designed to keep him from ever fully maturing into the dark creature he was born to be. A creature that feeds on the sexual energy of women until it loses interest, drives them mad or kills them. Tarris refuses to become that monster and has extracted an oath from his Bear brothers to make sure it never happens. If he is turning, before he turns, they will kill him. When a sleeper calls Tarris into her dreams he is lost. In her are all the things that a soulless creature like him could never have, love, a family, a mate. Now his choice is clear. If he takes this one chance to find real love, he risks breaking all the rules that keep him sane and risks forcing Mark and Luke to keep their promise.

I don’t know the name of the model for this book but I can tell you that myself and several friends saw him on another cover and all went, “Oh my God, it’s Tarris!” I got emails and IM’s from friends telling me they’d seen this guy on one of the Ellora’s Cave books and could I ask for him for Tarris because he was perfect. I agreed. I asked and the wonderful artist produced this perfect cover. All I can say is thankyouthankyouthankyou.

Kelly Kirch, another amazing writer, brought up something that has me worried from my last blog. She suggested taking the elephant (who is being called a hephelump to the annoyance of my SO who doesn’t quite get the Winnie the Pooh obsession that claims the wife) and putting the elephant against the belly so that Smudgie can learn the sound and it will help sooth him or her.

Okay, now I’m worried. My musical tastes are a bit unusual for someone my age and I now find myself a bit concerned that lullabies may end up including Linkin Park, Everclear, My Chemical Romance and other alternative or serious rock bands. I’d rather not have a child who comes out singing Numb or Bleed It Out. Of course Smudgie’s first concert will be the Project Revolution tour. We have tickets this August for Linkin Park and others playing nearby. This could end up being very interesting.

Of course my friend Kaia has said I’m going to end up with a little Goth kid who likes to read all the time. I don’t think it was meant to make me happy and excited.