Shadow World series

New-Queen of Shadows (Shadow World -1) by Dianne Sylvan — Queen of Shadows (Shadow World #1) by Dianne Sylvan—art by Gene Mollica

The Shadow World series by Dianne Sylvan.

Genres and Sub-Genres[]

Urban Fantasy with a PNR tinge

Series Description or Overview[]

Shortly after she picked up a guitar, Miranda Grey conquered the Austin music scene with a newfound ability to psychically manipulate her audience’s emotions. But as her powers outgrow her control, her mind is increasingly invaded by haunting secrets and overwhelming sadness. Unable to look anyone in the eye, Miranda is fast approaching the edge of insanity – with no one to catch her fall…

When he outlawed killing humans, David Solomon ignited a civil war among Austin’s vampires. As Prime of the South, his sympathy for mortals angered the old guard who refuse to control their violent urges. David has his hands full with the growing insurgency, but he takes in a broken-down woman, a musician in need of supernatural guidance. Little does he know that Miranda Grey has the power to change his world as well. ~Queen of Shadows (Shadow World, #1)

Lead's Species[]

Empathic, telepathic (combination)

Primary Supe[]

Vampires

What Sets it Apart[]

Narrative Type and Narrators[]

Third person narrative, mainly from Miranda Grey's perspective, and from David Solomon's perspective, the two protagonists.

Books in Series[]

Shadow World series:

Queen of Shadows (2010)
Shadowflame (2011)
Shadow's Fall (2012)
Of Shadow Born (Mar 26, 2013)
Shadowbound (Mar 25, 2014)

Shorts, Anthologies and Guides[]

Deleted Scenes: SW Extras | Dianne Sylvan

World Building[]

Setting[]

Austin, TX — live music capital, musicians as plentiful as actors were in LA.

Places:

The Haven: David's impregnable stronghold
Chicago, Illinois:
Manhattan, New York:
Sacramento, California:

Supernatural Elements[]

✥ Vampires, Primes, Shadow World, witches, gods, magical ring, Telekinesis, prescience (seer), ancient cult of witches,

Glossary:[]

The Awakening: of the goddess, Persephone, who is considered to be the creator of the vampire race;
Signet: the Prime's badge of office, a large ruby worn as a necklace around his neck.
Elite: the Prime's inner circle of warriors.
Empath: can feel the emotions and get snatches of memories of others, can mainpulate emotions with their own; Miranda can also do this through her music;
Prime:
Queen:
Persephone: Firstborn of vampires and their creator; origin of the Signets; and goddess to an ancient cult of witches;
Circle: without Circle that Persephone will be unable rise;
Prescience: ability to know what will or might happen in the future (a seer), Miranda has it;

Groups & Organizations:[]

Blackthorn: group of rogue vampires—want to use humans as blood sources (they call humans "meat"). The rogues generally kill their donors without a second thought.
Red Shadow: network of assassins/spies, founded by Deven O’Donnell
The Order:
The Counci:
Morningstar: Group of humans determined to eradicate Persephone’s creatures, the vampires—figured out a sinister way to target Primes and eliminate them. if they murder enough Primes it will destabilize the shadow world and break the Circle

World[]

In this world, the vampires are divided into 27 territories around the globe, each ruled by a Prime. Although humans and vampires exist together in the mortal world, they live separate lives, with humans mostly unaware of the vampires and their Shadow World, and vampires interacting with humans only for nourishment. Primes are powerful male vampires, identified by the Signet each one wears around his neck—a huge ruby. Primes are actually chosen by the Signets. If the right vampire hangs the Signet around his neck, the ruby flashes, signaling that he is indeed the Prime. If a Prime's Signet flashes when he meets a particular woman, that woman becomes his Queen and his soul mate, and she wears a matching Signet. Here, a Prime explains to his newly discovered—and very nervous—Queen that the Signets "are a badge of office to show the world who the strongest vampires are, but they choose their bearers themselves. It's magic as old as the world—there are even some vague references from biblical times. When a Signet finds its Prime, it flashes and continues to glow...and then when that Prime finds his Queen, it flashes again." (Shadowflame, p. 279) Each Prime lives in a Haven—an estate that provides living quarters for a huge staff, including massive security forces.

Although this series may turn out to be urban fantasy (one hint: the heroine is a redhead—de rigueur for UF), at this point I'm calling it SMR (PNR) because the first two books focus on the Miranda-David relationship. ~ Fang-tastic: SHADOW WORLD SERIES

Shadow World rules: SW Basic traits of Vampires | Dianne Sylvan
Excerpt & Extra Scenes: SW Extras | Dianne Sylvan

Protagonists[]

✥ Miranda Grey is a survivor. She came back from the brink of insanity after being sexually assaulted by a group of men in an alley. She spent the next year fighting depression and despair, learning to control her empathic gift, and generally putting herself back together. She is an independent young woman, courageous, and somewhat hot-headed; she leaps before looking sometimes and has little patience for injustice, assholes, or stupidity. Years of depression have left her with a tendency toward melancholy and occasional bouts of self-pity she struggles to overcome. Her empathy forces her to care deeply for people and to understand their motivations even when she’d rather not. She has developed a surprising capacity for forgiveness to keep her empathy from driving her mad again. She lives in a low level of fear that one day she will lose control again and not be able to regain it, thereby following her mother’s footsteps into the hell of a broken mind. Miranda is estranged from her human family due to their treatment of her mother Marilyn (deceased). Her only major romantic relationship has been with her husband and Prime, David Solomon.

Weapon of Choice: Shadowflame (sword)
Signet: Ruby
Outstanding psychic abilities: Extremely strong empathic gift invoked most easily via music, but can also be weaponized. Secondary gift, precognitive (Consort-level strength, mostly untrained); tertiary gifts include telepathy (weak), telekinesis (strong, partially trained); able to Mist
Achievements: Won two Grammy awards (Best New Artist and Album of the Year), four People’s Choice Awards (Best New Artist, Song of the Year for “Bleed,” Album of the Year, Best Female Artist), the Austin Musician’s Guild Golden Bat Award for favorite local Austin artist, Favorite Local Musician in the Austin Chronicle’s Best of the Year poll. First album, Bleed, certified Platinum
Sire: David Solomon
How She Took her Signet: Beheaded Ariana Blackthorn, who had stolen the Signet while it was still unclaimed.
Much More: ~ SW Character Profiles | Dianne Sylvan

✥ Miranda muses about her current life: "So I'm a vampire, a musician, an empath; I sword-fight; I can move stuff with my mind and sometimes sort of halfway see the future. What's next?" (bk. 3, p. 154)

✥ David L. Solomon, PhD: Personality/History: David tends not to react emotionally to situations and has earned his reputation as heartless and cruel through his history both in California and Texas. His hard shell begins to crack, however, once Miranda comes into his life, and after having resigned himself to a lifetime alone suddenly having a Queen throws him into a bit of a tailspin that results in a Very Big Mistake. David, though older than many Council members, has a very modern outlook on progress and technology, and is determined to bring vampire kind into the 21st century to ensure their survival. Though he was born in England and traveled extensively for several decades, he emigrated to America quickly and fell in love with its spirit.

David has a long and painful track record with lovers; his human wife, Lizzie, was burned at the stake for witchcraft. His next major relationship was with a human woman, Anna Hausmann, whom he killed in an abortive attempt to bring her across. Shortly thereafter David became Deven O’Donnell’s lover and the two were inseparable for ten years before Deven dropped him like a bad habit upon meeting his true Consort, Jonathan Burke. David, heartbroken, left California and finished his doctorate, meanwhile preparing himself to make a play for the Southern Signet, which he won from Auren in 1995.

Weapon of Choice: Sword (name unknown)
Outstanding psychic abilities: Telekinesis
Sire: Lydia, second-tier priestess of the Order of Elysium
How he took his Signet: Assassinated Auren, the former Prime.
Much More: SW Character Profiles | Dianne Sylvan

Sidekick[]

Name: / What: / Sidekick-to: / About: / Book First Seen:

Characters Chart[]

SW Character Profiles | Dianne Sylvan

Characters	What	About
Miranda Grey	human, singer, empathic, prescience	Extremely strong empathic gift invoked most easily via music, but can also be weaponized;
David Solomon	local Prime, computer geek, telekinesis	has modern ideas about vampire life that older vamps oppose
Kat	human friend	Miranda's best friend;
Jonathan Burke	Consort of the Western US	Jonathan came to California in the 1950s,
Deven O’Donnell	Prime of the Western US	Founded a vast network of assassins/spies called the Red Shadow; Weapon: Ghostlight (sword); can heal most diseases and injuries in both humans and vampires.
Sophie	vampire ?	Miranda's fighting mentor;
Stella Maguire	young witch
Lydia	David's sire	shows up in Austin, gives David a ring claiming it's magically related to Persephone; warns David & Miranda of big change and looming threat;
Faith	vampire, second	David's second; passion-filled one-nighter with Jeremy Hayes;
Jeremy Hayes	head of Hart's Elite warriors	one-nighter with Faith; plays a sinister role in the tragedy that unfolds;
Ariana Blackthorn
Persephone	Firstborn vampires	origin of the Signets
Denise	agent, human	Miranda's agent;
Harlan	vampire, driver	driver for the Queen and the Prime;
Stella Maguire	young witch	unrelated to the witch cult;

To expand the table, in Edit–Visual mode, right-press on a Row of the table (Control-press on a Mac)—choose add Row or Column. Or, in Source Mode: copy-paste rows.

Dianne Sylvan - green shirt — Dianne Sylvan — Author of Shadow World series

Author[]

Dianne Sylvan

Website: Dianne Sylvan | CrazyBeautiful
Genres:

Bio: Dianne Sylvan, author of the Shadow World novels (Queen of Shadows, Shadowflame, Shadow’s Fall, and at least two more forthcoming) as well as two books on NeoPagan spirituality (The Circle Within: Creating a Wiccan Spiritual Tradition and The Body Sacred), lives in Austin, Texas, the only sane part of the entire state. She is an unabashed Mac enthusiast, a froofy iced coffee beverage addict, a chronic Twitterer, a seasoned snark professional, a Spiritual Nomad, a shameless Vampire Diaries (TV) fangirl, a happy herbivore, a bit of a moody Scorpio, a sock junkie, a slightly freaky tattooed postmodern hippie, a cupcake baker extraordinaire, and is prone to hyperbole as well as fits of profanity. She collects vegan cookbooks, wacky t-shirts, blank journals, obsessions, and dust. She lives with two neurotic cats, Stella and Owen, pictured below. ~ ‎about-the-author

Cover Artist[]

Artist: Gene Mollica

Publishing Information[]

Publisher: Ace (Penguin)
Book/Author Page: Dianne Sylvan - Penguin Books USA and Berkley/Jove Authors: Dianne Sylvan

Queen of Shadows: Paperback, 389 pages, Pub: Aug 31st 2010—ISBN 0441019250
Shadowflame: Paperback, , Pub: —ISBN
Shadow's Fall: Paperback, , Pub: —ISBN
Of Shadow Born: Paperback, , Pub: —ISBN
Shadowbound: Paperback, , Pub: —ISBN

Book Cover Blurbs[]

✤ BOOK ONE—Queen of Shadows (2010): Shortly after she picked up a guitar, Miranda Grey conquered the Austin music scene with a newfound ability to psychically manipulate her audience’s emotions. But as her powers outgrow her control, her mind is increasingly invaded by haunting secrets and overwhelming sadness. Unable to look anyone in the eye, Miranda is fast approaching the edge of insanity – with no one to catch her fall… When he outlawed killing humans, David Solomon ignited a civil war among Austin’s vampires. As Prime of the South, his sympathy for mortals angered the old guard who refuse to control their violent urges. David has his hands full with the growing insurgency, but he takes in a broken-down woman, a musician in need of supernatural guidance. Little does he know that Miranda Grey has the power to change his world as well. ~ Goodreads | Queen of Shadows (Shadow World, #1)

✤ BOOK TWO—Shadowflame (2011): It's been three months since musician Miranda Grey became a vampire and married David Solomon. But when a powerful force from David's past appears, Miranda begins to realize how little she really knows about her husband. ~ Goodreads | Shadowflame (Shadow World, #2)

✤ BOOK THREE—Shadow's Fall (2012): For three years, Miranda Grey-Solomon has kept her role as Vampire Queen of the South separate from her Grammy-winning music career. But now, her dual lives are starting to collide, threatening everything Miranda and David, her Prime, have worked for.The entire Signet Council has descended upon Austin for its ten-year summit, bringing with it Prime James Hart of the Northeast, a sworn enemy come to take his revenge on those who defied him. But Miranda and David receive an unexpected offer of help from David's sire, an ancient and powerful vampire with knowledge that may be their salvation--or their doom. ~ Goodreads | Shadow's Fall (Shadow World, #3)

✤ BOOK FOUR—Of Shadow Born (Mar 26, 2013): Spread throughout the dark corners of our world lies the Shadow World, a society of vampires who feed off the living. In Austin, Texas, one woman must rise from the ashes of tragedy and confront an ancient evil before it destroys everything she holds dear… After a heartrending night of loss and blood, Miranda Grey-Solomon, vampire Queen of the South, now stands in the ruins of her life determined to pick up the pieces and move on. David, her husband and Prime, is missing and presumed dead, and Miranda is lost without her soul mate by her side…But she has little time to grieve as enemies both old and new emerge to test her yet again. Between vampires trying to take advantage of a Queen without a Prime, incursions by a mysterious organization of humans calling themselves the Order of the Morningstar, and the continuing threat from those within the Shadow World who have already tried to destroy her, Miranda and her allies are running out of places to turn. In order to save her territory and the ones she loves, Miranda must look to the ancient past, to the first days of the vampire race, and uncover secrets about the Signets that could change the course of history. ~ Goodreads | Of Shadow Born #4

✤ BOOK FIVE—Shadowbound (Mar 25, 2014): Ever since her Prime, David Solomon, returned from the dead, Miranda Grey has been hungry. The transformation from ordinary vampires into the ultrapowerful children of Persephone has left both Miranda and David craving the taste of death—and their appetites are growing. Meanwhile, a formerly vague threat from a fringe group of humans has turned into a full-on war. The Order of the Morningstar has devoted itself to eradicating vampires and has begun to assassinate Primes all over the globe. The Shadow World’s fate depends on the circle of Signets descended from those who subdued Morningstar hundreds of years ago—but if even a single one is killed, the war is almost certainly lost. Now, with the help of a strange new ally, Miranda must put aside her hunger and access long-forgotten magic to save the circle, but time is running out… ~ Goodreads | Shadowbound (Shadow World, #5)

✤ BOOK SIX—Untitled (): ~ Goodreads | Untitled (Shadow World, #6) by Dianne Sylvan

First Sentences[]

Queen of Shadows (2010) — The guy next to her in the checkout line looked kind of like a vampire.
Shadowflame (2011) — Autumn that year came in like a lion and devoured the last few straggling moments of an endless, scorching summer.
Shadow's Fall (2012) — “You are sure that this Prime is the one we have been searching for?”
Of Shadow Born (Mar 26, 2013) — “Brave new world, friends!
Shadowbound (Mar 25, 2014) — Prologue: The earth shook. There was nothing to do but run. / Chapter one: Just another night at the office.