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The Shadow Guards are a mysterious order of immortals tasked with intervening, as necessary, in the lives and deaths of mortals. Archer, Lord Black, the hero of NIGHT FALLS DARKLY, is a Reclaimer, and is charged with hunting down and eliminating the most morally deteriorated, wicked souls of the earth's population. Reclaimers are known for their ruthlessness, and even other immortals fear them. Only an immortal can slay an immortal, and it is the Reclaimers who, at times, are dispatched by the Primordial Council to act as assassins. Over the centuries they have aligned themselves, when necessary, with mortal kings and leaders. Some have been awarded titles and estates, and they enjoy the privacy and comfort wealth can bring. Archer is a particular favorite of Queen Victoria.

SO STILL THE NIGHT, the second in the Shadow Guard series, which follows the story of the deeply competitive Helios, Lord Alexander, who we meet in NIGHT FALLS DARKLY, will come out in May 2009. I’m presently writing the 3rd book in the series that will come out in 2010. As for how many installments will follow — that depends on the popularity of the books with readers. I hope there will be more.

Each book can be enjoyed as a stand-alone novel, out of order, but there is a story thread that will carry throughout — an increasingly malevolent danger that threatens the existence of not only the immortals, but all of mankind.

My fascination with the Victorian era began while reading the novels and stories of late-Victorian Henry James and Edith Wharton. Such beautiful people, and careful society manners … and deep, shocking betrayals. And I've always loved anything spooky and gothic. If there's fog and shadows, I'm there. As a setting, I found Victorian London to be especially interesting. There was such an intense concentration of wealth, privilege and opulence in neighbourhoods like Mayfair and Belgravia, while just a short distance away were the neighbourhoods of the East End, where one would find the lowest and most desperate of human conditions. There's also so much “quirk” associated with the Victorian era, and I'm a big fan of quirky.

To me, there's nothing more exciting than the first meeting, and the subsequent “dance” that takes place between two people who are meant to be together. Who are meant to be soul mates. Especially when it's obvious they can never be together. I love writing romance because I get to make the “can never be together” disappear. It was even more fun putting the “immortal” twist on this series. You'll see my tag phrase: Heroes worth waiting (forever) for. When you've existed from the beginning of time, and lived a thousand “lives” already — what sort of person would make time stand still for you? I got to explore that question in these books.

That they are a strong balance of both the historical and the paranormal subgenres. I really hope I've created something very different, that many readers will enjoy.

Yes, they do!

My heroes are sexy, competent warriors who are jaded by all they've seen over the centuries. They are men who gave up on love a long time ago. My heroines are gifted, intelligent women who blaze a meaningful path for themselves, in spite of the restrictions of the time period.

I hope I've written the kind of characters and love story that will stay with a reader for days, and even weeks after they've read the book. Those are the type of books I, as a reader, seek out.