As John Cleese would say, "now for something completely different!" Colleen Gleason didn't find men in tight breeches interesting enough; she thought the Empire waist would look even better with a wooden stake hidden under the skirt. Readers, meet Buffy's great-great-great…some more greats, probably… grandmother, Victoria Gardella, just making her debut into Regency society…and staking vampires between the waltz and the quadrille. This is definitely a fresh take on the vampire mythology—vamps are evil, not lonely misunderstood undead folks who just want to be loved—and well, the Regency may never be the same. Colleen not only let me get a sneak peek at this book, she's giving away a not-to-be-missed prize this month: an ADVANCE copy of her follow-up book, Rises the Night, due out later this year. Trust me, when you get to the last page of The Rest Falls Away, you'll really, really want to win. Read on to get a hint why…
Caroline: You and I write in the same time period, but you obviously have a very different take on the era. What gave you the idea to make a Society debutante a vampire slayer?
Colleen: Well, I got hooked on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and, as you may know, there's only "one in every generation." So I got to thinking about her predecessors and what their lives might have been like as vampire slayers in other time periods. And of course, Regency England is such a popular setting for romance, I put the two together and wham! Had an idea that was a blast to write!
Caroline: This book (I don't want to spoil it, but I have to ask about it) does not have a typical happily-ever-after ending; in fact it leaves the heroine with some issues to carry into the next book. Do you have the whole story arc of the series planned out, or is it open-ended at this point? Could Victoria be staking vamps for years (and books) to come?
Colleen: I have five books planned for Victoria, and I don't think I'd want to write anymore—at least, about her. Five books should be enough for her story to be told.
And the fact that the book doesn't have a typical happily ever after ending was part of what made it fun to write. Because I knew I was writing a series (or at least hoped I'd be), and I felt I had more than one book to tell the story, I felt like I could leave some things dangling.
Not to say that the book ends on a cliff-hanger…it doesn't.
Caroline: No, it's a much more complicated moment. I was very impressed with the way you did it.
Colleen: The developmental journeys the characters make couldn't be resolved in one book—it just wouldn't have been believable, in my mind. Victoria has a lot of things she has to experience and learn, just as we all do over the span of our lives.
Caroline: I love that there's an honest love triangle in the book. In most romance novels, it's usually clear from very early on who the predestined couple is, even if the plot plays with a triangle of sorts. Why did you decide to give Victoria so many men to choose from, and how do you feel about her balancing her feelings for them?
Colleen: Again, because I intended to write over several books, I knew I had the time and space to do that and to let things resolve and shake out. I know who Victoria will end up with…and no, I'm not telling. You might not even have met him yet. **tease**
Caroline: NO!!! Are you serious? You cruel thing…
Colleen: Most of us women fall in love many times in our lives, and our first love isn't always our last love…or sometimes it is our last love, but we have detours before we get there and realize that's the case.
I also loved the idea of Victoria not being restricted to a definite "hero" from the beginning on. After all, romance is a fantasy—we read it because 1) we like to imagine what it would be like to be wanted by a hero; and 2) because we fall in love with the heroes ourselves.
Why settle for one when we can have several on the journey?
However, having said that, I believe there has to be a balance. Victoria's not going to be promiscuous; but she's going to have a healthy love life. After all, the kind of woman she is—beautiful, intelligent, strong and brave (not to mention being in a unique position as a vampire slayer)—would attract handsome, strong, brave men—and more than one of them!
So I figure, I'd let her (and my readers) enjoy it!
Caroline: All right! Now that's what I'm talking about!
The most compelling figure in the book for me was Max, especially as his story unfolded. But you left out so many things! Please tell me Max gets even more page-time in the next book…?
Colleen: I'm glad you found Max compelling. Thank you for saying so! As for the next book, well, all I can say is, you'll find out more about him in Rises the Night. After all, that's supposed to be him on the cover (though to me, the cover guy looks much too young).
Are you saying that Max is your pick for Victoria? Or…not? Hmm.
Caroline: I'm not saying nuthin. Just that I want to see more of Max. Lots more. And check him out for vampire bites. And— Ahem. I don't suppose you have any photos that approximate your mental image of Max?
Colleen: I sure do. Here's Christopher Plummer as Max.
Caroline: Oh my. He's even all shadowy and mysterious, just like Max.
So don't leave us hanging; tell all about your upcoming books and when they'll be out.
Colleen: Rises the Night will be out in June, and the story takes Victoria and company to Rome to match wits against the Tutela, a secret society of men who are vampire protectors, and a demonic obsidian column known as Akvan's Obelisk.
The Bleeding Dusk, which I'm writing now, will be released in the first quarter of 2008. It will also take place in Rome, but the fourth book will bring Victoria and friends back to London.
Caroline: And that fifth book? When we finally know whom she chooses? Will it be Max???
Thanks so much for giving us the scoop, Colleen!
The Rest Falls Away is on sale now, and you can pre-order Colleen's next novel, Rises the Night as well.
Return to the Contest page and enter to win something REALLY FANTASTIC from Colleen!
