Behind the Scenes: Blood’s Shadow

This behind-the-scenes blog post is brought to you by kilts. Because…kilts.

Blood’s Shadow is set in Scotland. Although this is the third in the Lycanthropy Files series, I write all my books as standalone novels. Consequently, if you’ve read the first two, you’ll recognize Gabriel, who’s the hero of the book. If you haven’t, then you’ll enjoy meeting him. Reviewers love him:

“Book three in The Lycanthropy Files series, is a compelling page- turner filled with vivid descriptions and well-rendered characters, including some from previous titles. Intriguing mysteries and otherworldly political machinations dominate the action, but Gabriel’s confrontation of past sorrows and betrayals — and his longing for love — are deftly interwoven with the main plot…” – Romantic Times

“The characters are AMAZING! I really loved Gabriel. He is a little how Sherlock Homes with his investigations, and the way his mind works while figuring out a mystery is fascinating. He falls in love with the smart doctor Selene, but she has a secret that she is hiding from him. Can he figure out this mystery without his heart breaking in the process?” – Feed Me in Books blog

“The character of Gabriel McCord is an investigator for the Lycanthrope Council, he is a handsome werewolf with the mind of Sherlock Holmes.” – Paranormal Authors that Rock blog

Yeah, I’m digging the comparisons to Sherlock Holmes.

Hubby and I visited Scotland in 2006, and several of the elements from that trip made it into the book. With its castles, medieval towns, and beautiful scenery, Scotland practically begs to be written about. When Gabriel walked on to the scene early in the series, I knew he had to be Scottish, and I loved bringing him to his home country for his own story.

You can’t write a story in Scotland without castles, and I had lots of models to choose from. Lycan Castle, the seat and administrative headquarters of the Lycanthrope Council, is one of the major settings. I envisioned it as being big and dark and old, like Doune Castle, which you may recognize from the Outlander television series:

What you may not know about Doune Castle is that some of the scenes from Monty Python and the Holy Grail were filmed there. When we visited, we’d been tipped off that the coconuts used in the movie to make the horse clopping noises are stored in the gift shop. I asked about them, and yes, I got to clop the coconuts. The gift shop people rolled their eyes, but I didn’t care. It was one of the trip’s highlights for me.

The main reason we went to Scotland was because Hubby had a scholarship to study in Scotland from the (now defunct) Montgomery Highland Games that he had to use before he turned 30. I got to tag along, and we chose a course on Scottish medieval towns and cities. We learned SO much.

For example, in medieval times, towns had a square, where the market would happen. There would be a structure called a market cross. Since Gabriel’s Scottish, I’ll let him explain in this snippet from a scene in Blood’s Shadow that takes place in the middle of Lycan Village:

“What’s that stone thing in the middle?” Selene asked.

The square was so packed with people I could barely make out the Market Cross, a six foot high cylindrical structure in the center. Lycan Village had a particularly nice one carved with wolves and lambs together, like a stone prayer for peace between the two halves of our nature.

“It’s called a Market Cross. It marked the square, and it’s where the town crier would stand to make announcements. We don’t know much about the village since little was written down, and a fire destroyed that in the eighteenth century. We do know that lycanthropes have been here as long as anyone could remember.”

This time when she shook her head, it was the slow undulation of disbelief.

“And the humans… They were okay with it? Or did they even know?”

“We’re good at keeping our secrets.” I glanced sideways at her. “As you’ve found. If you need to hide something about yourself to survive, you do it, no matter what else the cost. Wizards, us… The ones who didn’t succeed were burned at the stake or worse.”

“That’s fascinating.” She ran a finger over the weathered stone of the building we stood beside. “If these stones could talk…”

While in Scotland, I got pictures of a couple of market crosses, one in Culross:

And one in Edinburgh:

Apparently I only took pictures of the ones with unicorns on them.

Both Hubby and I really enjoyed our trip to Scotland, and we hope to go back in the future, especially since my aunt Nancy sent me this article on 8 Magical Places in Scotland Totally Worth Visiting. I doubt any of them have werewolves, though some of them look like they could. I should go check them out to make sure.

What is your favorite Celtic mythological creature (selkies, dragons, etc.)? Please comment below and let me know!

Blood’s Shadow is available on Amazon indefinitely and will be free in Kindle Unlimited until July 5, 2019. You can grab your copy today at:

Amazon U.S.

Amazon U.K.

Amazon AU

Amazon CA

And other Amazon marketplaces.

The disease has teeth…but the cure could be deadly.

As Investigator for the Lycanthrope Council, Gabriel McCord went above and beyond his official title to keep werewolf kind out of the public eye. Now he has a new challenge as the liaison to the Institute for Lycanthrope Reversal, advocating for humans turned werewolf against their will.

The Institute’s controversial “treatment” is nonetheless generally accepted – until one of the project’s scientists is found murdered at his desk.

The suspect list is long: purists who believe lycanthropism is a non-returnable gift; wolf-borns who want the cure for their own; and the ethereal Selene Rial, an Institute psychologist who’s lost her most precious possession to a secret society dedicated to the annihilation of werewolves.

If Gabriel fails to solve this case, the fragile peace between wizards and lycanthropes could shatter, and his friends’ lives could be ruined. But even if he succeeds, he has to face the consequences of his heart being pulled in a dangerous direction – a woman whose dangerous secrets could destroy them both.

Pick up Blood’s Shadow today at:

Amazon U.S.

Amazon U.K.

Amazon AU

Amazon CA

And other Amazon marketplaces.

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