Christine Feehan's Blog - Posts Tagged "drake-sisters"
A Little Town Called Sea Haven
You may think it all started with the Drake Sisters series, but actually it happened before that. I discovered Sea Haven, the fictional town by the ocean that homes both the Drake Sisters and the Sisters of the Heart.
I lived, for a very long time, in Lake County, California on Cobb Mountain. I loved it there and the small town feel of it. My children went to school and most were raised there. My career took off while I lived in that house and at that time my big dream was for a remodeled kitchen and the ability to send my children to college. Last year, that house burned to the ground in the Cobb Mountain fire that took hundreds of homes. Few things of mine were still there, but it was our family home that we still owned and it breaks my heart to think that it is gone. But, the memories are still there. The closeness of sisters, the small town feel where everybody knew everybody and secrets were harder to keep the longer you lived there.
I moved to a small town on the coast, near the Redwood trees. I can see the ocean from my living room window on a clear day and walk in the forest on my property. Several small towns surround me and those towns, plus the small-town feel and experience of Cobb Mountain, make up Sea Haven. Sea Haven is all that I love about small towns and its people, about the ocean and the woods.
Sea Haven is nearly a character all on its own, but it’s the community of Sea Haven that make it come alive and give it character. People know you and ask about you when you walk into the grocery or go get your hair or nails done. The artisans, inspired by the beauty surrounding them, are plenty and talented and I know so many of them by name now. People care about keeping their community clean, their children safe and the people active in all that goes on around them. You almost feel as though you have stepped back into time when helping your neighbor was a priority, generosity was commonplace and laughter was contagious.
Sea Haven exists, in parts, everywhere. I have been there. Perhaps not visiting a town by that name, but by visiting many small towns along the coast that make up this beautiful place I write about. Towns like that still exist throughout American, and I imagine, throughout the world.
Fire Bound
I lived, for a very long time, in Lake County, California on Cobb Mountain. I loved it there and the small town feel of it. My children went to school and most were raised there. My career took off while I lived in that house and at that time my big dream was for a remodeled kitchen and the ability to send my children to college. Last year, that house burned to the ground in the Cobb Mountain fire that took hundreds of homes. Few things of mine were still there, but it was our family home that we still owned and it breaks my heart to think that it is gone. But, the memories are still there. The closeness of sisters, the small town feel where everybody knew everybody and secrets were harder to keep the longer you lived there.
I moved to a small town on the coast, near the Redwood trees. I can see the ocean from my living room window on a clear day and walk in the forest on my property. Several small towns surround me and those towns, plus the small-town feel and experience of Cobb Mountain, make up Sea Haven. Sea Haven is all that I love about small towns and its people, about the ocean and the woods.
Sea Haven is nearly a character all on its own, but it’s the community of Sea Haven that make it come alive and give it character. People know you and ask about you when you walk into the grocery or go get your hair or nails done. The artisans, inspired by the beauty surrounding them, are plenty and talented and I know so many of them by name now. People care about keeping their community clean, their children safe and the people active in all that goes on around them. You almost feel as though you have stepped back into time when helping your neighbor was a priority, generosity was commonplace and laughter was contagious.
Sea Haven exists, in parts, everywhere. I have been there. Perhaps not visiting a town by that name, but by visiting many small towns along the coast that make up this beautiful place I write about. Towns like that still exist throughout American, and I imagine, throughout the world.
Fire Bound
Heroes, Anti-Heroes and Guys Who Just Need Their Ass Kicked Part 2 of 5 - Sea Haven
Sea Haven
Drake Sisters Series and Sisters of the Heart Series
Sea Haven is my home away from home. It’s a fictional community made up of so many wonderful small towns I’ve been to in my life. So, when I started writing the Drake Sisters I knew this town would be a central part of the story and I asked myself, “What kind of people live in Sea Haven?”
What draws men and women to a town like this? The small community feel where people know each other, help each other and look out for one another appeals to a variety of people. But, when it came to my heroes I thought that, these men, came there to find peace they could not find elsewhere. To escape a troubled past. To sooth their troubled souls. Many of the heroes in the Drake Sisters series are just these sort of men. They are hardened by life, trained in the military, law men, men who enjoy peace and are willing to do anything it takes to keep their little part of the world safe.
As the Drake Sisters series wound down and the Sisters of the Heart stories began I found that I just couldn’t let go of those men and women from the previous books and we do get to see some of them in the new series. I think Sea Haven gets in your blood and you never want to leave.
Later on in the Drake Sisters series though we are introduced to the Prakenskii brothers, Russian assassins trained since they were boys. They, like the Drakes, have special powers. They are darker, harder, more violent men. But, regardless of the reasons they came to Sea Haven, these men find home here.
I wanted to get across that there’s a place and a person for you, no matter how broken you are. No matter your past, you can overcome it, be a good person and be welcomed into the heart of a community and the heart of a woman willing to accept and love you. As the Sisters of the Heart series begins to come to a close I wanted to bring the final Prakenskii brother into the fold in a way that would keep us in Sea Haven. With him, he will bring another set of characters who need a home, a community and family and are willing to fight to have it.
Fire Bound
In the end, we all long for family and love. For some, they must first see that it is real, be embraced by it, accepted. And when that kind of love is offered freely and fills the void that was once only darkness, a light begins to shine, like the beacon of a lighthouse, keeping you safe and bringing you home.
Drake Sisters Series and Sisters of the Heart Series
Sea Haven is my home away from home. It’s a fictional community made up of so many wonderful small towns I’ve been to in my life. So, when I started writing the Drake Sisters I knew this town would be a central part of the story and I asked myself, “What kind of people live in Sea Haven?”
What draws men and women to a town like this? The small community feel where people know each other, help each other and look out for one another appeals to a variety of people. But, when it came to my heroes I thought that, these men, came there to find peace they could not find elsewhere. To escape a troubled past. To sooth their troubled souls. Many of the heroes in the Drake Sisters series are just these sort of men. They are hardened by life, trained in the military, law men, men who enjoy peace and are willing to do anything it takes to keep their little part of the world safe.
As the Drake Sisters series wound down and the Sisters of the Heart stories began I found that I just couldn’t let go of those men and women from the previous books and we do get to see some of them in the new series. I think Sea Haven gets in your blood and you never want to leave.
Later on in the Drake Sisters series though we are introduced to the Prakenskii brothers, Russian assassins trained since they were boys. They, like the Drakes, have special powers. They are darker, harder, more violent men. But, regardless of the reasons they came to Sea Haven, these men find home here.
I wanted to get across that there’s a place and a person for you, no matter how broken you are. No matter your past, you can overcome it, be a good person and be welcomed into the heart of a community and the heart of a woman willing to accept and love you. As the Sisters of the Heart series begins to come to a close I wanted to bring the final Prakenskii brother into the fold in a way that would keep us in Sea Haven. With him, he will bring another set of characters who need a home, a community and family and are willing to fight to have it.
Fire Bound
In the end, we all long for family and love. For some, they must first see that it is real, be embraced by it, accepted. And when that kind of love is offered freely and fills the void that was once only darkness, a light begins to shine, like the beacon of a lighthouse, keeping you safe and bringing you home.
The Importance of Family, Community and Sisters of the Heart
Lissa, the heroine of Fire Bound, is special to me. She is as secretive and quiet as she is loyal and fierce. She exemplifies the element she is bound to; fire. You see fire, know it’s warmth and importance, but it’s easy to take it for granted and that’s when you get burned. Lissa has kept a secret from the women she calls her sisters because that secret is dangerous. She’s already lost her parents, she would do anything to keep her sisters of the heart protected, even from herself and her secret double-life.
Casimir is a man of secrets as well. Also orphaned, he has only his brothers as family. So when they ask him to watch over Lissa when she leaves for Italy he agrees. But, he is also bound to fire, his magic gifts as dangerous as Lissa’s. So when the two realize they need to work together things heat up, as you can imagine.
I love how the two are a perfect a compliment for each other. They both know the need for secrecy, double-lives, alias, disguises. They know how to kill and how to survive. Threaten what they love…who they love, and their magic becomes combustible.
Fire Bound
They are two puzzle pieces that fit perfectly together.
Casimir is a man of secrets as well. Also orphaned, he has only his brothers as family. So when they ask him to watch over Lissa when she leaves for Italy he agrees. But, he is also bound to fire, his magic gifts as dangerous as Lissa’s. So when the two realize they need to work together things heat up, as you can imagine.
I love how the two are a perfect a compliment for each other. They both know the need for secrecy, double-lives, alias, disguises. They know how to kill and how to survive. Threaten what they love…who they love, and their magic becomes combustible.
Fire Bound
They are two puzzle pieces that fit perfectly together.
Torpedo Ink Isn’t in Sea Haven, But it’s Close
I wanted to talk about the differences between the series set in or around Sea Haven.
The Drake Sisters and the Sisters of the Heart are about family, sisters, a sisterhood. The women these stories are about are magical, compassionate, empathetic, loving, funny women. Even with the challenges many of them faced these women had each other and the boundless love and support of one another.
Sea Haven is a town full of magic and the people in the town became like family. The Drakes grew up there and were part of that town. The Sisters of the Heart integrated with the town easily, becoming part of the camaraderie with the townsfolk.
Sea Haven is perfect for those women with their magic and laughter and floating tea cups. But, when I created Torpedo Ink I specifically didn’t put them directly in Sea Haven. They live very close in a small town called Caspar. We could say they are neighbors of Sea Haven who visit frequently.
Caspar is different from Sea Haven and more closely fit the needs of the motorcycle club. The town is real, where Sea Haven is fictional (though based primarily off of Mendocino, California). I’ve been to Caspar many times and there are some wonderful things about the town that made me choose it for the MC.
First of all, the town could pass as a ghost town in some parts. It’s very small and not a lot of people live in the heart of the town. Many live on the outskirts, out in the more rural areas. But, in Caspar itself there’s not even a gas station, a grocery store or a traffic light. Many of the buildings are abandoned, but some are lovely and you can see the love put into them. There’s a store that actually exists in Caspar called Caspar Curiosities that has odd items, strange things, unique art and eclectic antiques.
Caspar has a beautiful view of the ocean, but somehow, in a way, it feels empty. To me, there was a feeling of longing, of wanting to be full of life and vibrancy like its neighboring towns. It felt like the town was waiting for something. It was a perfect match for the 18 survivors who’d formed an unusual family and created a motorcycle club.
These people need the town of Caspar, as much as the town needed them. Of course Caspar in my books is fictionalized with much of it being different from the actual town. I love the town, both the real one and my fictionalization of it. To me, Torpedo Ink’s members longed for a place to call home, to settle down in and be able to be themselves. But, they would never really fit into normal society. Not with the type of abuse and life experiences they had starting as small children. They needed a place off the main drag so to speak, but that would still give them the sense of belonging in the world that they needed. The club and the town were a puzzle with missing parts, that when put together formed a full picture of a home full of hope and family and belonging.
The Torpedo Ink books can’t be like the Drake Sisters series or the Sisters of the Heart because those women were sisters full of compassion and empathy and the Torpedo Ink members are abused assassins without a firm grasp on societal rules and ways. They know darkness because they were darkness. Their lives are completely different from the Drakes or SotH in so many ways that their stories couldn’t be like the Sea Haven stories.
The similarities come in that they have a sense of family. They want to protect people in their club, their town, those they care for or are responsible for. They are in the same general area as Sea Haven and there are relationships (Drakes and Blythe/ Blythe and Viktor) that do cross over, so we will see some of the old characters make appearances from time to time. The club members do have heightened abilities or gifts and you see a little bit of that in Judgment Road.
The Torpedo Ink series is an outlaw motorcycle club romance series which is very different than a magical sisterhood. But, Torpedo Ink offers stories of redemption, acceptance, learning to integrate into normal society, loyalty, brotherhood and struggle. The greatest similarity among the different series is the promise and delivery of a Happy Ever After.
The Drake Sisters and the Sisters of the Heart are about family, sisters, a sisterhood. The women these stories are about are magical, compassionate, empathetic, loving, funny women. Even with the challenges many of them faced these women had each other and the boundless love and support of one another.
Sea Haven is a town full of magic and the people in the town became like family. The Drakes grew up there and were part of that town. The Sisters of the Heart integrated with the town easily, becoming part of the camaraderie with the townsfolk.
Sea Haven is perfect for those women with their magic and laughter and floating tea cups. But, when I created Torpedo Ink I specifically didn’t put them directly in Sea Haven. They live very close in a small town called Caspar. We could say they are neighbors of Sea Haven who visit frequently.
Caspar is different from Sea Haven and more closely fit the needs of the motorcycle club. The town is real, where Sea Haven is fictional (though based primarily off of Mendocino, California). I’ve been to Caspar many times and there are some wonderful things about the town that made me choose it for the MC.
First of all, the town could pass as a ghost town in some parts. It’s very small and not a lot of people live in the heart of the town. Many live on the outskirts, out in the more rural areas. But, in Caspar itself there’s not even a gas station, a grocery store or a traffic light. Many of the buildings are abandoned, but some are lovely and you can see the love put into them. There’s a store that actually exists in Caspar called Caspar Curiosities that has odd items, strange things, unique art and eclectic antiques.
Caspar has a beautiful view of the ocean, but somehow, in a way, it feels empty. To me, there was a feeling of longing, of wanting to be full of life and vibrancy like its neighboring towns. It felt like the town was waiting for something. It was a perfect match for the 18 survivors who’d formed an unusual family and created a motorcycle club.
These people need the town of Caspar, as much as the town needed them. Of course Caspar in my books is fictionalized with much of it being different from the actual town. I love the town, both the real one and my fictionalization of it. To me, Torpedo Ink’s members longed for a place to call home, to settle down in and be able to be themselves. But, they would never really fit into normal society. Not with the type of abuse and life experiences they had starting as small children. They needed a place off the main drag so to speak, but that would still give them the sense of belonging in the world that they needed. The club and the town were a puzzle with missing parts, that when put together formed a full picture of a home full of hope and family and belonging.
The Torpedo Ink books can’t be like the Drake Sisters series or the Sisters of the Heart because those women were sisters full of compassion and empathy and the Torpedo Ink members are abused assassins without a firm grasp on societal rules and ways. They know darkness because they were darkness. Their lives are completely different from the Drakes or SotH in so many ways that their stories couldn’t be like the Sea Haven stories.
The similarities come in that they have a sense of family. They want to protect people in their club, their town, those they care for or are responsible for. They are in the same general area as Sea Haven and there are relationships (Drakes and Blythe/ Blythe and Viktor) that do cross over, so we will see some of the old characters make appearances from time to time. The club members do have heightened abilities or gifts and you see a little bit of that in Judgment Road.
The Torpedo Ink series is an outlaw motorcycle club romance series which is very different than a magical sisterhood. But, Torpedo Ink offers stories of redemption, acceptance, learning to integrate into normal society, loyalty, brotherhood and struggle. The greatest similarity among the different series is the promise and delivery of a Happy Ever After.
Where to Start a Series: Sea Haven
Drake Sisters, Sisters of the Heart/Sea Haven and Torpedo Ink
All of the books are written to be stand alone books, but a series is meant to offer a fuller experience, often with an additional story arc that ties them all together. It also allows a reader to become familiar with, not only characters, but with a location as well.
Sea Haven is a place in Northern California and the first time we learn about Sea Haven is with the Drake Sisters. These magical seven sisters are always there for each other though they all have very different occupations and lives. The series starts out very sweet, though there’s always an element of suspense in each story with varying levels of the paranormal. You can read any of the books and in any order but the final Drake Sisters book, Hidden Currents is darker and knowing what came before it might enhance your overall experience, but you’d still be able to understand the story even if you haven’t read the previous books in the series.
The bridge from the Drakes to the Sisters of the Heart/Sea Haven series is the community. Blythe, who is a cousin to the Drakes is in the Sea Haven series and so you have a small tie to the family. But, you do not have to read the Drake sisters series in order to read the Sea Haven series. Those characters will make an appearance occasionally, but not in a way that affects the story. They become secondary characters in a way. At least until the final book, Bound Together, where the Drakes play a bigger role.
Water Bound starts out the Sea Haven series and you learn there is a group of women tied together by their traumatic experiences. They met in group therapy and became so bonded they moved to Sea Haven and created a sort of compound or farm where each woman has their own home, but they live on the same property and help one another.
Like the Drake Sisters series, the women’s bond is caring and supportive and you feel like you could be best friends with them if you met them in real life. Each story is contemporary and brings with it a tale of suspense and/or danger. It isn’t until the final two books, Fire Bound and Bound Together, that we see the beginning of an overall story arc that ties up the series, but even then, you can read the books on their own and enjoy them.
Bound Together is a pivotal book. It completes the Sea Haven/Sisters of the Heart Series (this series is officially called the Sea Haven series, but often is referred to as the Sisters of the Heart) and is a sort of entry to Torpedo Ink.
Torpedo Ink is the newest series that utilizes the Sea Haven area. Though the motorcycle club sets up shop in nearby Caspar, Sea Haven is the next town over and is visited or referred to. Blythe is again the link between a series, this time as the wife of Viktor, the president of Torpedo Ink.
Though it’s fun to get an introduction to the Torpedo Ink characters in Bound Together and to know Blythe and Viktor’s love story, Judgement Road introduces them again in a way that’s fresh and that allows you to read the book as a stand alone.
If you want to read the Torpedo Ink series you can start with the first Torpedo Ink series book, Judgment Road, but if you’d like the love story for the president of Torpedo Ink you will have to read Bound Together.
I would venture to say that each book is a stand alone with about 10% of the book referring to or containing information relevant to an overall series arc. It’s written in a way that you may not even notice that there’s this extra storyline. There’s no confusion that takes you out of the actual story of that particular book. It’s more like a story mosaic in which the pieces are beautiful on their own, but put together you see an additional story before you.
All of the books are written to be stand alone books, but a series is meant to offer a fuller experience, often with an additional story arc that ties them all together. It also allows a reader to become familiar with, not only characters, but with a location as well.
Sea Haven is a place in Northern California and the first time we learn about Sea Haven is with the Drake Sisters. These magical seven sisters are always there for each other though they all have very different occupations and lives. The series starts out very sweet, though there’s always an element of suspense in each story with varying levels of the paranormal. You can read any of the books and in any order but the final Drake Sisters book, Hidden Currents is darker and knowing what came before it might enhance your overall experience, but you’d still be able to understand the story even if you haven’t read the previous books in the series.
The bridge from the Drakes to the Sisters of the Heart/Sea Haven series is the community. Blythe, who is a cousin to the Drakes is in the Sea Haven series and so you have a small tie to the family. But, you do not have to read the Drake sisters series in order to read the Sea Haven series. Those characters will make an appearance occasionally, but not in a way that affects the story. They become secondary characters in a way. At least until the final book, Bound Together, where the Drakes play a bigger role.
Water Bound starts out the Sea Haven series and you learn there is a group of women tied together by their traumatic experiences. They met in group therapy and became so bonded they moved to Sea Haven and created a sort of compound or farm where each woman has their own home, but they live on the same property and help one another.
Like the Drake Sisters series, the women’s bond is caring and supportive and you feel like you could be best friends with them if you met them in real life. Each story is contemporary and brings with it a tale of suspense and/or danger. It isn’t until the final two books, Fire Bound and Bound Together, that we see the beginning of an overall story arc that ties up the series, but even then, you can read the books on their own and enjoy them.
Bound Together is a pivotal book. It completes the Sea Haven/Sisters of the Heart Series (this series is officially called the Sea Haven series, but often is referred to as the Sisters of the Heart) and is a sort of entry to Torpedo Ink.
Torpedo Ink is the newest series that utilizes the Sea Haven area. Though the motorcycle club sets up shop in nearby Caspar, Sea Haven is the next town over and is visited or referred to. Blythe is again the link between a series, this time as the wife of Viktor, the president of Torpedo Ink.
Though it’s fun to get an introduction to the Torpedo Ink characters in Bound Together and to know Blythe and Viktor’s love story, Judgement Road introduces them again in a way that’s fresh and that allows you to read the book as a stand alone.
If you want to read the Torpedo Ink series you can start with the first Torpedo Ink series book, Judgment Road, but if you’d like the love story for the president of Torpedo Ink you will have to read Bound Together.
I would venture to say that each book is a stand alone with about 10% of the book referring to or containing information relevant to an overall series arc. It’s written in a way that you may not even notice that there’s this extra storyline. There’s no confusion that takes you out of the actual story of that particular book. It’s more like a story mosaic in which the pieces are beautiful on their own, but put together you see an additional story before you.
