Aces Wilde: Immortal Vegas, Book 5 (34 page)

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A Note From Jenn

Sara’s reading in the opening chapter of Aces Wilde provides clues to how she can find some (literally) buried treasure. The cards’ general interpretations are below, which fit most situations…unless you’re looking for an ancient artifact. In that case, pay more attention to the pictures than the symbology of the cards!

The Four of Swords

The Four of Swords is the quintessential “let’s take a break” card. It features a soldier at rest, apparently recovering from a battle and possibly doing so on holy ground (note the stained glass above him.) It’s likely that you’ve drawn this card in advance of some enforced down time. You may not want to take a time out, but before you chafe too much over delays/lack of progress, consider the advantages of rest. Sometimes things need to happen behind the scenes and if you’re constantly pushing, you may miss out on an opportunity that needs time to develop. Also, rest helps the body (and mind) recover from stress and taxing experiences, which is never a bad thing. Another interpretation of this card is that you simply need to “sleep on it”—take another night to consider a challenging problem or question, and you might wake up with the answer!

The Two of Pentacles

Balance is everything. The Two of Pentacles is the card of managing multiple and sometimes conflicting obligations, weighing two seemingly equal choices or facing the reality of having to go down one path while leaving another one unexplored. As a Pentacle card, often this choice can have to do with money, security or health. Sometimes it’s not a question of one-or-the-other, but how you truly can have your cake and eat it too—if you choose to accept multiple obligations, however, you’ll need to take on the aspect of the figure in this card. He’s not standing still, but in motion, almost dancing. In other words, if you’re going to try and do it all, you’ll want to stay light on your feet!

The Three of Swords

This card simply looks sad, and for good reason. It’s the card of grief, loneliness, literally feeling that your heart has been pricked by swords. It’s also, however, the card of necessary cutting—such as a surgery or the removal of that which is no longer needed. It could mean that it’s time to clear out the old to make way for the new, and for authors it could be a sign that editing is needed to improve a work. Feeling grumpy or whiny? This card could literally be advising you to “cut it out.” In any event, when you draw the Three of Swords, prepare to open yourself up to pain but also to improvement that such pain might bring, and know that you’ll be stronger for whatever you’re going through now.

Acknowledgments

Aces Wilde was one of those books that makes you nervous to write. Once I started working on it, it wouldn’t let me go—and it’s my deepest hope I got close to the vision I had for this tale. My sincere thanks to readers all over the world who asked for another book in the Immortal Vegas series by sharing Sara’s story with their friends and encouraging sales and reviews. It means more than you can ever know! I remain forever grateful to Elizabeth Bemis for your friendship and mad formatting/design abilities. Gene Mollica once again created a stunning cover for Aces Wilde, exactly capturing the feel of the book, and my editorial team of Linda Ingmanson and Toni Lee kept me (and the story) sane. Any mistakes in the manuscript are, of course, my own. I am also indebted to Kristine Krantz for your patient and thorough read—the book would not be the same without you! And as always, sincere thanks go to Geoffrey—for your vision, insight and guidance, even when you don’t realize you’re giving it. It’s been a
Wilde
ride.

About Jenn Stark

Jenn Stark is an award-winning author of paranormal romance and urban fantasy. She lives and writes in Ohio. . . and she definitely loves to write. In addition to her new "Immortal Vegas" urban fantasy series, she is also author Jennifer McGowan, whose Maids of Honor series of Young Adult Elizabethan spy romances are published by Simon & Schuster, and author Jennifer Chance, whose Rule Breakers series of New Adult contemporary romances are published by Random House/LoveSwept and whose modern royals series, Gowns & Crowns, is now available. 

You can find her online at
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