Sanguine Scenario is on NetGalley this month (you can still request it there, or if you’d like an ARC outside of it, just let me know), and not only it already got its first review, but it’s also one that highlights everything about the book that I hoped would characterize it. The reviewer noticed and praised likeable characters and world building, and mentioned that kryveks and vorrals do draw from the traditional vampires and werewolves, even if they’re both my spin on it (kryveks are people drinking blood for magic, and vorrals are a shapeshifting species), and there was also mention about how violent scenes mesh with the found family themes and lighthearted banter, and how well it works together. Then, there was something that gave me pause. The reviewer marked the book’s moods as “cozy” and “dark,” and I realized that it might be the perfect description of what I write, even if the genre doesn’t exist (yet?).
Because most of my books have some dark aspects. In Pacts Arcane and Otherwise, as my fellow author Paul pointed out, there are demon battles and conniving, with some darker dealings and themes being there too. The world of Shadows of Eireland is a rather dark place, with the atrocities of the past war looming over people as much as the potential for another devastating conflict. In Memories of Sorcery and Sand, cruel sorcerers play their sophisticated games, catching innocents and bystanders alike in those intricate nets of deception and power… But there are also happy endings in my stories, and my main characters at least try to stay on the side of the “good;” there are friendships and found families, and friendly banter that definitely can make it feel like the books to belong in the cozier territory.
And Sanguine Scenario is no different. The world is dark: blood magic is ever present, some people drink blood like vampires would, and mutated monsters threaten the lands. There are murders, forbidden experiments, and ruthless politics, and there are vorrals: a powerful shapeshifting species that look similar to werewolves (even if they don’t transform forcibly in full moon). But the friendship that forms between the three main characters, Nyraleth, Delaressa, and Vythren, and their lighthearted banter, often in the face of danger, takes that firm dark edge off.
For those reasons, I think that in general, “cozy dark” might be a good description of what I write. Sometimes more “cozy”, sometimes more “dark”, and sometimes with an epic flare too… What do you think?
PS If you aren’t following the Kickstarter campaign already, here’s a handy link. Click “Notify me at launch” to be the first to know when the project launches.
