Chaos reigns in The Sleepless City, and it’s really beginning to piss Detective Jonas Forge off. He’s got inner demons to battle and a life to build with his new soul mate, Blair Turner. Nothing is going right, and he already feels the universe is conspiring against him when a turn of events he never saw coming flips his world upside down.
Hallucinations grip the town and everyone in it, threatening to tear their precariously built family apart, and the only way forward is to bare all to each other. This means Declan and Blair need to learn to accept one another. Lucas Coate has to move forward without ties to his werewolf pack and live a monogamous life with Declan.
But while Forge and Declan confront horrors from their shared past, Simon learns a terrible truth about vampires—one he couldn’t have imagined in his worst nightmares.
“What happened?” Blair asked. He turned his head toward the back door. A second later Moose was running to the back of the house.
Jonas strode in, jerked his jacket off, and tossed it down beside Ben’s helmet, muttering as he went. He stopped and faced them. “Those fools have decided I must be head detective.”
Lucas came to a stop behind Jonas, grinning.
“Wait, you’ve been pissed off all day because you got a promotion?” Blair asked.
Ben lunged forward and threw his arms around Jonas’s neck. “Sweet as! We have to celebrate. It’s about time they recognized you like this. I think it’s crappy you haven’t been promoted until now.”
Jonas pulled in a breath and stepped back from Ben. “I thank you, but it’s a fucking disaster.”
“Another of the Council’s tricks,” Declan added.
“They can’t do this, can they?” Simon said and sat down abruptly on the couch. “That’s against the Council rules.”
“What’s wrong with all of you?” Ben turned in a circle, glaring at each of them in turn.
“I can’t be the head detective.” Jonas took a DVD from the shelf under the television and put it in the player. He grabbed the remote control, aimed, and pointed. “This”—he waved at the scene appearing on the TV—”is why I can’t have this job.”
An image of Stewie in relation to some incident that, by the looks of it, had happened a few years ago appeared on the screen. Underneath were the words “Flint, Ohio, Head Detective Stewart Belle,” and Stewie was speaking to a reporter.
“Oh crap,” Blair said. He and Ben stood side by side.
“Yes. Oh crap covers it nicely. The head detective must be a human, has always been a human. You know, someone who can be seen by a camera and is available during the full moon,” Jonas said. “Before Stewie there was some dick by the name of Felton, and before that we had the oh-so-delightful Smyth.”
Ben nudged Blair and waved one hand between Declan and Jonas. “Have you noticed that between the thief and the cop, the cop is the one with the problems with authority?”
Today I’m very lucky to be interviewing Elizabeth Noble author of Shifting Chaos.
Hi Elizabeth, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself, your background, and your current book.
Tell us about your book.
Shifting Chaos is the fourth and final installment of The Sleepless City, (http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/index.php?cPath=54_1067) an urban fantasy series written with Anne Barwell. The premise of the series as a whole is there are vampires and werewolves living alongside humans. There are good and bad individuals in each species. Our characters are among the good guys. Each man has a different skill set. They put those skills to use protecting their corner of the world—Flint, Ohio—from natural and supernatural bad guys who come in all shapes and sizes.
The first three books in the series focused on the establishment of a romantic couple within the series. Shades of Sepia is Simon and Ben’s story. In Electric Candle we see Forge and Blair meet and begin a life together. Family and Reflection features Lucas and Declan. Shifting Chaos is more about all six men and the family they’ve created. While there is continuation and more exploration of Forge and Blair’s relationship it’s not the focal point of the story.
Shifting Chaos is about the relationship between all six of these men, how they relate to their romantic partners and each other. Like all families this one has its ups and downs. I’ve also tried to highlight the friendships formed within the family, not just the romantic relationships. We get a look at each man’s interactions with someone other than his romantic partner. This book is a group effort between the characters. Oh, and there’s a great, big nasty supernatural bad thing to defeat!
How difficult was it to get into the main character’s head?
Since this book technically has several main characters getting into their heads wasn’t the issue. The biggest problem I faced was switching gears. The book is told from Declan’s and Forge’s perspective. Of the group they are the two oldest vampires and have known each other longer than any of the others. The relationships they have with each other as well as the other four characters are interwoven in a complicated manner. Keeping it all straight was sometimes a challenge!
Is this book a standalone or do you plan on visiting it again?
This book is the end of a four book series, The Sleepless City. However, the universe it’s written in is going to continue in at least two spin-off series (there has been talk of more). Anne is planning a series called Opus (https://annebarwell.wordpress.com/series/opus/) which will continue the urban fantasy storyline in Flint with Simon and Ben while also introducing other characters and couples. I believe she plans to begin writing the first book next year. I understand there will be a variety of supernatural beings introduced throughout the series.
I have a different sort of spin-off series, Akhkharu Nasaru The Vampire Guard. (http://elizabeth-noble-thevampireguard.weebly.com/) The first book in that series, Code Name: Jack Rabbit, will be released by DSP Publications in July 2016. It features Forge, Blair, Declan and Lucas working with an independent and very secret intelligence organization. They face a biological weapon wielded by a radical werewolf terrorist organization, among other things. This series is a mix of high tech espionage and supernatural myths. The Vampire Guard is the place where legend and myth meet science and technology!
Why did you choose to write M/M stories?
I write M/M stories mainly because I like them. Men have a different, and to me very interesting, way of reacting to the world around them. I enjoy exploring those interactions.
Where do you find your inspiration?
Everywhere! I read a lot of tech and science oriented non-fiction so a lot of ideas come from there. Others simply hit me over the head and I have no clue what sparked them.
Elizabeth Noble started telling stories before she actually knew how to write, and her family was very happy when she learned to put words on a page. Those words turned into fan fiction that turned into a genuine love of M/M romance fiction. Being able to share her works with Dreamspinner is really a dream come true. She has a real love for a good mystery complete with murder and twisty plots as well as all things sci-fi, futuristic, and supernatural and a bit of an unnatural interest in a super-volcano in Wyoming.
Elizabeth has three grown children and is now happily owned by an adorable mixed breed canine princess named Rosie, and two cats, Murphy and Yeti. She lives in her native northeast Ohio, the perfect place for gardening, winter and summer sports (go Tribe!). When she's not writing she's working as a veterinary nurse, so don't be surprised to see her men with a pet or three who are a very big part of their lives.
Two of Elizabeth's books have received Honorable Mentions in the Rainbow Awards.
