Uprising

Home > Other > Uprising > Page 35
Uprising Page 35

by Mariani, Scott G.


  What is it about vampires that makes them so appealing to people?

  Firstly, vampires are scary, and we all love to be scared. But I also think that vampires symbolise qualities many of us secretly yearn to have ourselves. Vampires are incredibly free – at least, when they’re not subject to Federation laws. They’re unbelievably powerful, can have tremendous sex appeal and glamour; and of course there’s the immortality factor. That’s the allure that seduces Jeremy Lonsdale, the politician in Uprising who falls into the clutches of arch-villain Gabriel Stone. Lonsdale had everything a mortal man could desire, and yet he craved the kind of power that only becoming a vampire could offer. Of course, it didn’t quite work out for him that way…

  Do your characters ever surprise you?

  Sometimes a character will grow in the telling, or even deviate completely from the original plan. In Uprising, Dec Maddon was initially destined to be a minor character, something of a lowlife whose only function in the story was to witness the ritual murder at Crowmoor Hall, and then tell his story to the hero Joel Solomon. He was then going to be turned into a vampire before being viciously destroyed by Gabriel Stone. In short, he was expendable! But as I began writing him, I became sympathetic towards him and his role changed. It was as though there was another layer of him underneath, waiting to be discovered. I realised that Dec should have more of his own journey in the story. And he will have a big role in the next book, which is something I would never have imagined at the outset.

  Some of the vampires in Uprising, for instance the villain Gabriel Stone, are much more frightening than many of the recent crop of vampires in books and films…

  From the start, my vampires had to have fangs! I consciously wanted my character Gabriel Stone to hark back to the Stoker tradition that portrays the vampire as a lethal predator without a single shred of morality. It’s a great white shark in human form. Even friendlier characters like Alex Bishop, with whom I wanted the reader to empathise strongly, have something of an edge to them when you realise that you and I are really nothing more to them than a food source! So you’re rooting for the heroine, but some part of you is afraid of her, too…

  If you were a vampire, would you support the Federation?

  Good question! I think the Federation was born from a genuine need for vampires to protect themselves from detection in the modern age, in order to be able to carry on. But what may have started out in a spirit of well-meaning idealism may have been open to abuse and ultimately led to a degree of corruption. I would not entirely blame certain vampires for finding the Federation oppressive and dictatorial; then again, who would want evil predators like Gabriel Stone and his sister Lillith in charge?

  A fun setting in the book is the vampire-themed bar/restaurant run by vampires for vampires, right in the middle of London. What made you think of it?

  Movie fans may spot lots of film references in my books, especially this one! The idea for the ‘Last Bite bar and grill’ was inspired by Jack Rabbit Slim’s diner in Pulp Fiction, where the walls are lined with stills from classic movies and your waitress for the night is Jayne Mansfield or Marilyn Monroe. I loved the idea of doing the same thing with vampires, so it was always in my mind. Then one night I happened to wander into this very loud, very packed, upmarket bar in St James’s Street in London, and I thought that it was exactly the kind of place where vampires would hang out – as well as wannabe vampires and people who just want to seem a bit dark and dangerous. So I modelled it on that, and cheekily placed it in the same location. I think the Last Bite would be a great success in real life, actually!

  What can readers expect from the next Vampire Federation book?

  Lots of surprises, some new characters, some new developments with the existing ones. Dec Maddon will continue his evolution and become a fully-fledged vampire hunter. Joel Solomon will have to try to come to terms with what he’s now become. He and Alex will somehow have to confront what’s happened between them. The secrets of the cross of Ardaich will be explained, plus we’ll be seeing more of those nasty, mysterious creatures living in the Siberian ice caves. And will Gabriel Stone be back? You’ll just have to wait and see!

  Acknowledgements

  As ever, many sincere thanks to Keshini Naidoo and Sammia Rafique at Avon for all that they do; to Inspector T.B for helping the author maintain a semblance of realism in all matters police procedural; and to all the other usual suspects involved in this story’s long, slow evolution from a mad spark of an idea into the book that is now in your hands.

  About the Author

  UPRISING

  Scott Mariani is the author of the acclaimed bestselling thriller series featuring ex-SAS hero Ben Hope. Uprising is his first Vampire Federation novel, writing under the name Scott G. Mariani. He lives in rural West Wales.

  To find out more about Scott Mariani go to www.scottmariani.com

  Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.

  By the same author:

  The Shadow Project

  The Alchemist’s Secret

  The Mozart Conspiracy

  The Doomsday Prophecy

  The Heretic’s Treasure

  Copyright

  This novel is entirely a work of fiction.

  The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are

  the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to

  actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is

  entirely coincidental.

  AVON

  A division of HarperCollinsPublishers

  77-85 Fulham Palace Road,

  London W6 8JB

  www.harpercollins.co.uk

  A Paperback Original 2010 1

  FIRST EDITION

  Copyright © Scott G. Mariani 2010

  Scott G. Mariani asserts the moral right to

  be identified as the author of this work

  A catalogue record for this book is

  available from the British Library

  EPub Edition © June 2010 ISBN: 978-0-007-34283-9

  All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

  FSC is a non-profit international organisation established

  to promote the responsible management of the world’s forests.

  Products carrying the FSC label are independently certified

  to assure consumers that they come from forests that are managed

  to meet the social, economic and ecological needs

  of present and future generations.

  Find out more about HarperCollins and the environment at

  www.harpercollins.co.uk/green

  About the Publisher

  Australia

  HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd.

  25 Ryde Road (PO Box 321)

  Pymble, NSW 2073, Australia

  http://www.harpercollinsebooks.com.au

  Canada

  HarperCollins Canada

  2 Bloor Street East – 20th Floor

  Toronto, ON, M4W 1A8, Canada

  http://www.harpercollinsebooks.ca

  New Zealand

  HarperCollinsPublishers (New Zealand) Limited

  P.O. Box 1

  Auckland, New Zealand

  http://www.harpercollinsebooks.co.nz

  United Kingdom

  HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

  77-85 Fulham Palace Road

  London, W6 8JB, UK

  http://www.harpercollinsebooks.co.uk

  United States


  HarperCollins Publishers Inc.

  10 East 53rd Street

  New York, NY 10022

  http://www.harpercollinsebooks.com

  Table of Contents

  Cover Page

  Title Page

  Excerpt

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  Chapter Fifty

  Chapter Fifty-One

  Chapter Fifty-Two

  Chapter Fifty-Three

  Chapter Fifty-Four

  Chapter Fifty-Five

  Chapter Fifty-Six

  Chapter Fifty-Seven

  Chapter Fifty-Eight

  Chapter Fifty-Nine

  Chapter Sixty

  Chapter Sixty-One

  Chapter Sixty-Two

  Chapter Sixty-Three

  Chapter Sixty-Four

  Chapter Sixty-Five

  Chapter Sixty-Six

  Chapter Sixty-Seven

  Chapter Sixty-Eight

  Chapter Sixty-Nine

  Chapter Seventy

  Chapter Seventy-One

  Chapter Seventy-Two

  Chapter Seventy-Three

  Chapter Seventy-Four

  Chapter Seventy-Five

  Chapter Seventy-Six

  Chapter Seventy-Seven

  Chapter Seventy-Eight

  Chapter Seventy-Nine

  Chapter Eighty

  Chapter Eighty-One

  Chapter Eighty-Two

  Chapter Eighty-Three

  Chapter Eighty-Four

  Chapter Eighty-Five

  Chapter Eighty-Six

  Chapter Eighty-Seven

  In Conversation with Scott Mariani

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  By the same author:

  Copyright

  About the Publisher

 

 

 


‹ Prev