Archaeology, especially sites in the New World, have always fascinated me. In this year of the Baktun, the Turning of the Wheel of time, all things Maya are easier to find in the news than at any period I can remember.

Naturally, that started stories condensing in the mind. I was born with a huge amount of “what if” in my imagination. In this case, I fastened on to a seemingly simple idea: What if a group of people really believed that the end of the world would happen on December 21, 2012?

Where would those believers be most active? What would those believers do to assure a place in the new world to come? How would they decide what was necessary?

Who or what would be their god, and what would he or she require of believers? How would the actions of the believers echo through the larger world of unbelievers?

What kind of heroine would find herself caught between modern believers and ancient myths? What kind of hero would be likely to intersect with the heroine and the believers? What kind of obstacles would such a man and a woman find on their way to survival—and love?

BEAUTIFUL SACRIFICE is my answer to those questions. I hope you enjoy reading the book as much as I did researching and writing it.

Above all, thanks for loving books!

Elizabeth Lowell

www.elizabethlowell.com