Title: Twilight’s Changelings: Two Vampire Novels
Author: Margaret L. Carter
Genre: Dark Fantasy
Book Blurb:
Dark Changeling: Psychiatrist Roger Darvell suffers from a dark thirst—and a very strange midlife crisis. At the age of forty, Roger discovers that he is no ordinary man. He also learns that vampires exist and that a few of them kill as wantonly and cruelly as any monster in a horror film. When a homicidal vampire follows Roger from Boston to his new home in Maryland and attacks one of his patients, Roger must come to terms with the truth about his heritage. And he must find a way to destroy the killer before his newfound lover becomes the renegade's next victim.
Child of Twilight: Roger Darvell’s contented life with his psychiatric practice and his partner and lover, Britt, suffers a shattering blow when he’s confronted by his twelve-year-old, vampire-human hybrid daughter, Gillian. He sired her by artificial insemination and never expected to have a relationship with her. In the throes of vampiric adolescence, overwhelmed by the urges and powers surging through her, Gillian runs in panic to the half-human father she has never known. But a rogue vampire, pursuing revenge on Roger for her brother’s death, kidnaps Gillian and offers to teach her how a "real" vampire lives—and kills.
Excerpt:
At forty years of age, Roger Sean Gallagher Darvell, M. D., stood at the apex of his professional prime, and his patients were driving him crazy. This one, for instance, a slim brunette of only seventeen, with unblemished skin and naturally curly hair, dressed in a halter top and a snakeskin-tight pair of designer jeans. Through the partly open venetian blinds, the sun cast a barred pattern on her face, eyes glazed in hypnotic trance. The rest of the office lay in shadow, curtained by heavy forest green drapes that matched the deep-piled carpet. Seated on the leather-upholstered chair next to the couch where the patient reclined, Roger bent over her.
It wasn't her neurosis that disturbed him; it was the temptation she presented. His life would be much simpler if his secret obsession fitted into some currently fashionable pigeonhole. Numerous treatment programs existed for alcoholics and drug abusers. Even a weakness for conventional sexual harassment of female patients might conceivably be cured. Not this "weakness," though.
So he had to fight the urge awakened by his last patient of the afternoon. Showing up for her weekly appointment, the young woman had burst in babbling about an argument with one of her teachers. After hearing her out for almost half an hour, Roger had eased her into trance. He often used that method to calm agitated patients, much as it strained his self-control. The girl's vulnerability enticed him.
It's been so long, and this would be so easy!
As he stroked her forehead, deepening the trance, her skin seemed to burn his cool fingers. Her breathing and the throb of her pulse roared in his ears like waves on rock. The glow of her aura made the rest of the room fade into a gray fog. He leaned closer, his fingertips drifting to the warm hollow of her throat.
He shuddered in a spasm of disgust at his own behavior. No! I swore I would not do this again -- not here!
Less than a month before, he had succumbed to this temptation with another patient, and his office partner, Matthew Lloyd, had blundered in and practically caught him in flagrante. He mustn't repeat that risk. As it was, even Lloyd's shallow intuition had picked up the stress Roger couldn't completely hide.
Pulling back from the girl on the couch, he drew several deep breaths to steady his heartbeat and subdue the tumult of his desire.
He closed his eyes and fought to silence the imaginary whispers in his head. He visualized the speakers as a pair of imps, demon and angel, like the figures perched on the shoulders of a cartoon character.
The tempter with the horns and pitchfork murmured, You're not doing her any harm. A few cc's, she'll never miss it.
The amount is irrelevant, the haloed angel said. This is perverted, abominable.
It's no more than you owe yourself for the hours you devote to these people. A supplement to your fee, that's all it is. Like an old country doctor taking his pay in farm produce instead of cash.
The angel's wings quivered in outrage. It's no different from sexually molesting her while she's under hypnosis.
It is different -- it's different because you need this. You're half out of your mind with needing it, aren't you? She'll never know what you took, and you'll repay her for it with pleasure. Even if you can't let her remember.
That's disgusting!
By whose standards? Even old Doc Lloyd comments on how fast your patients improve, the demon insisted in its taunting voice.
The ends never justify the means, the angel retorted. And have you forgotten how you almost got caught last time?
You won't get caught, not if you're careful.
The angelic figure played its trump card. Never mind that, what about the Hippocratic Oath?
Roger opened his eyes, banishing the actors in his miniature psychodrama. As usual, the internal debate temporarily quenched his ardor. Now that he'd regained control, he once more leaned over the patient, his fingertips lightly touching her temples. He infused her with suggestions of serenity and self-confidence, reinforcing the trigger word he'd taught her to use for therapeutic self-hypnosis. He then woke her to full consciousness and sent her away.
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What makes your featured book a must-read?
The Dark Changeling / Child of Twilight duology offers a treat for fans of naturally evolved (not supernatural undead) vampires. It includes a half-human vampire with religious beliefs and a conscience, “good guy” vampires fighting ruthless predators, romance, suspense, touches of humor, and sensual love scenes.
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Author Biography:
Reading Dracula at the age of twelve ignited Margaret L. Carter’s interest in a wide range of speculative fiction and inspired her to become a writer. Vampires, however, have always remained close to her heart. Her first published book was an anthology of vampire stories she edited, Curse of the Undead. Her work on vampirism in literature includes Dracula: The Vampire and the Critics, The Vampire in Literature: A Critical Bibliography, and Different Blood: The Vampire as Alien. She holds a PhD in English, and her dissertation contained a chapter on Dracula. In fiction, she has written horror, fantasy, and paranormal romance on vampires, werewolves, Lovecraftian entities, and other “monsters.” Her stories have appeared in various webzines and anthologies, including several of Marion Zimmer Bradley’s Darkover and Sword and Sorceress volumes. Her vampire novels include Dark Changeling and its sequel, Child of Twilight, now available in an omnibus edition, Twilight’s Changelings, as well as several vampire romances. With her husband, Leslie Roy Carter, a retired naval officer, she co-authored a fantasy series beginning with Wild Sorceress. Her recent novellas include a Christmas paranormal romance, Chocolate Chip Charm, and a spring-themed contemporary fantasy, Bunny Hunt. Her most recent novel, Against the Dark Devourer, is a dark paranormal romance with Lovecraftian elements. She and Les, who live in Maryland, have four children and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Please explore love among the monsters at Carter’s Crypt: http://www.margaretlcarter.com
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Thank you, Margaret, for sharing your book in our Backlist Bonanza!