Cataclysm series by Ann Gimpel (#1-4)
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Overview: Ann Gimpel is a USA Today bestselling fantasy and romance author. She’s also a clinical psychologist with a Jungian bent. Avocations include mountaineering, skiing, wilderness photography and, of course, writing. A lifelong aficionado of the unusual, she began writing speculative fiction a few years ago. Since then her short fiction has appeared in a number of webzines and anthologies. Her longer books run the gamut from urban fantasy to paranormal romance. She’s published over 75 books to date, with several more contracted for 2019 and beyond.
Genre: Fiction > Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Harsh Line: My very existence is under attack. I’ve kept a low profile, told myself the craziness sweeping the world would pass me by. Yeah, it was wishful thinking, actually an outright lie, but it’s kept me sane.
I’ve been hiding out forever in one guise or another. Currently, I run a nightclub. Ascent is an “ask me no questions, and I’ll tell you no lies” haven. For everybody. I’m a Vampire. Far be it from me to judge.
My closest ally is a shapeshifting dire wolf. I adopted him when he was a scrawny puppy, but I’m getting ahead of my tale.
The fragile détente between supernaturals and humans has crashed and burned. I can’t avoid the truth any longer. Lucky for me, mortals don’t know exactly what I am. When I moved to Seattle, some vampiric sixth sense urged me to play my cards close to my vest, but I’m done burying my secrets.
And my power.
It’s past time for supernaturals to get over their stupid infighting. Meh. So what if Witches hate Druids? Or Fae never deal with Sorcerers? We have to pull together, or we’ll have no chance at all.
Not that it’s likely, but if any mortals see the light and sign up for our side, we’d damn well better welcome them.
I’m Ariana Hawke. No more skulking in the shadows for me.
Warped Line: I chose stasis—a long sleep—for me and two of mine. Hard to time these things, but we woke in the eye of a cyclone.
When I went to sleep—to avoid being drained of magic and blood by dark Sorcerers—Vampires weren’t exactly on the endangered species list, but not many of us are left. No one ever accepted us. Not mortals and not others with power, either. At least one of those dams has developed a few cracks. Supernaturals aren’t quite welcoming, but they’ll take help from any quarter.
Mortals have declared war on magic, and they won’t rest until we’re all sitting in iron-clad prisons. What a bunch of cowards. If they weren’t hiding behind false humanitarian walls, they’d be honest about their intentions and kill us outright if they could.
The world turned into an alien place while I slept. Not much point returning to my clan house in Italy. It’s probably long since disbanded. Besides, fate tossed me squarely in Ariana’s path. She’s like me, a Vampire, but I hunger for her in a very un-Vampirelike way.
She’s done her damnedest to chase me away, but I’m tough to dissuade. She doesn’t know it, but I won’t back off until she’s mine.
No matter what it takes.
Cracked Line: Vampires don’t fall in love. Except I did.
Not the best decision of my long life. I definitely cracked an unspoken line, but Ariana trounced me as far as line-crossing went. Very few acts constitute crimes in Vampire circles. Hers was the worst. I fled to the Old Country to buy myself thinking time.
I still loved her, but what she’d done was so vile I couldn’t set it aside.
The world is a very different place from when I went into stasis. I woke to wars on every side. Vampires are scarcely strangers to battle. No one’s ever accepted us, but they’ve mostly let us be. It’s different this time. Very different. Mortals won’t rest until they’ve wiped out magic.
Normally, their efforts would be laughable, but they’ve coopted help from mages. Ones they’ve imprisoned and systematically stripped of power until the poor sods would agree to anything in exchange for their freedom—and their magic.
We face huge problems, but I’m tackling them one by one. I’ll return to Ariana’s side, but perhaps only as her comrade-in-arms. Time will tell if we can be more to each other.
Time and circumstances. In a world without magic, Vampires will wither along with every other magic-wielder. I cannot let that happen.
Broken Line: In all my years as a Vampire, hundreds of them, I never imagined humans would be anything other than food.
Rich, pure, delectable blood. Prey that fought back never posed a problem. Mortals couldn’t stand against those of us with supernatural ability. That world still exists, but it’s taken a backseat to humans who’ve joined forces with turncoat mages. Mortals were never meant to wield power. Over the long haul, they’re sure to be very sorry for the choices they’ve made.
Meanwhile, they’re a huge pain in the rear and a threat to every type of mage, not only Vampires. Some days, I just want to go back to running my nightclub. Ascent is a “don’t ask, don’t tell” establishment. I never cared who frequented my bar, so long as they brought plenty of money and a powerful thirst for booze.
Maybe someday I’ll be a humble innkeeper again, but it’s so far in the future I can’t even think about it. Nope. For now, all I see is blood. Rivers of it, and not running down my gullet, either. On the plus side, I have good friends, powerful allies, and a Vampire who loves me.
We have to come through this unscathed. Have to. I’m Ariana Hawke, and I take care of what’s mine.
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