May 21, 2012
Xandra Vardan is a member of the Royal Guard in an alternate Britain where the aristocracy includes vampires and werewolves, and Queen Victoria—the first vampire to take the throne—reigns, young and beautiful as ever. An immortal ruling class has implications beyond mere blood-drinking; technological and social changes are inhibited, often in strange and unexpected ways. Same-sex marriage is legal, for example, but horse-drawn carriages run the fashionable streets. Xandra, the daughter of an aristocratic vampire, is drawn into a world of deadly conspiracies when her sister vanishes under suspicious circumstances. What with plots to kill the queen, sinister secret medical experiments, and some oddly sympathetic cannibal goblins, there’s treachery at every turn. Locke’s writing is smart and fast-paced, full of sharp dialogue and vivid detail. This stylish, original story is perfectly suited to a wonderfully constructed world. Agent: Miriam Kriss, Irene Goodman Literary Agency.