Battle Creek, MI -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/21/2014 -- On February 20th fantasy author Tracy Falbe visited the blog of Kristen S. Walker as a guest blogger. Falbe described the card game primero that is played by the hero of her new novel Werelord Thal: A Renaissance Werewolf Tale, a historical fantasy set in 1561 Bohemia.

In Primero and the Rise of Card Games in the Renaissance Falbe shared her research about the game that is considered a precursor to poker. Although the game play is different than modern poker, primero had hands like flushes, known as a fluxus, and the four of a kind, known as a chorus, that are similar to poker.

The hero of the story is the werewolf Thal who is hunting the men who tortured and executed his witch mother. He learns to play cards from the Gypsies and then applies the skill to win money while he travels the Holy Roman Empire on his quest.

“I thought card playing would suit a werewolf character because I imagined him being very perceptive to the moods of people, which would give him an advantage when betting his cards,” Falbe said.

In her guest post she wrote, “This power is based on the notion that you can’t lie to a dog. His perception gives him the ability to bet aggressively or drop out of a hand based on the feelings of other players.”

Her blog tour host Kristen S. Walker is a versatile artist who plays piano and guitar in addition to writing novels. She is the author of A Flight of Marewings and Small Town Witch. She anticipates releasing two more books in 2014.

Like Falbe, she is a member of the Magic Appreciation Tour where authors of all types of fantasy support each other’s publicity efforts.

Falbe will continue to tour blogs through March 13th. Werelord Thal: A Renaissance Werewolf Tale is widely available at online book retailers as an ebook or paperback. It is the 9th novel by Falbe who has been writing fantasy books since 1997.