A Thing of Beauty – Excerpt from TOURNAMENT OF CHANCE

Dane conjured a sword and armor for Joe and the two of them practiced swordplay above deck when the sun shone. Joe was well trained, but he lacked discipline and focus. Heather was impressed with Dane’s ability as an instructor. She also noted how quick Dane was to give Joe the encouragement and praise he sorely needed.

“Not too bad that time, Jovander. I thought you had me once or twice.”

“I learned from the head of the king’s guards,” Joe boasted.

“I was the head of the king’s guards,” Dane replied, winking at Heather. “Let’s work on that disarming move. You’ve almost got it down.”

The third morning dawned wonderfully clear and bright. Heather soaked in the sunshine while enjoying Joe and Dane’s latest match. She was glad for a ready excuse to gaze at Dane, admiring not only his quick reflexes and finesse, but also his athletic frame and handsome face. When she’d first met him, she thought his looks were arresting—despite his disdainful and arrogant attitude. Now, she acknowledged privately he was the most handsome man she’d ever seen. After he caught her staring a few times, however, she tried to be more discreet. She had no wish to give Dane the false impression she was besotted with him. One can admire a thing of beauty, such as a stallion or a dragon, without desiring to possess it, she told herself firmly.

In Tournament of Chance, a hunter’s daughter becomes the spark that ignites a revolution—in time.

When a beautiful commoner enters the Tournament of Chance archery competition, her thwarted victory sparks a revolution in the oppressive kingdom of Destiny. Although Heather never believed the legends about the restoration of Ormaria, after three shape-shifting Ormarian wizards awaken from a long magical slumber, she joins their perilous quest to regain the throne. Heather battles vicious predators and angry trolls to free the wizards’ magic, but at a horrendous cost. She is unexpectedly torn from the arms of the man she loves and hurled back in time to fulfill a prophecy not yet written. The ensuing maelstrom tests Heather’s survival skills, wits, and endurance. Will she become an unwritten footnote in history, or can she trust the magic to lead her back to her one true love?

Release date: September 28th, 2012

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