Blood Relations by Lori Titus is the author's best work yet. I knew, when I interviewed her in
June 2015, she was working on a novel about a cult, but I had no idea how elaborate her creation would be. While fallen angels, religious fanatics and supernatural creatures have been quite common in the horror genre for decades, Titus has found an original way to incorporate these themes into story filled with murder, drama, mythology and the metaphysical.
Set in the fictional town of Chrysalis, South Carolina (a setting used in some of her other stories as well), Titus introduces readers to the Congregates, worshipers of the Goddess Phoenix, and the Vilkas, a biker gang resembling a wolf pack. The two groups have fought with each other for generations upon generations, but somehow come to an understanding to create peace. That agreement is broken when both groups have members murdered. The sheriff and few others soon find themselves pulled into an ancient feud, revealing the ongoing horrors hidden within the town of Chrysalis.
The main storyline follows the investigation of a murder, but the flashbacks move forward and backward on their own timeline, depending on which character is remembering past events. As the pieces are laid out here and there, readers will discover previously unknown connections between the characters. It's an unusual writing style, but it adds layers to the suspense. There is never a moment without drama. I loved the ending.
I've known a lot of authors who write amazing stories in the beginning of their career, only to lose their spark and fizzle out into a hot mess. Lori Titus not only found her inner fire early on, but she has also been blazing from one book to the next. I can't wait to read more of her work!
I was so impressed with her latest novel, I invited Titus back to the Lair for another interview:
Q. How did you come up with the premise of Blood Relations?
Is this the Creed of Cain project you mentioned back in 2015?
A. Yes, with a few changes. The idea of writing about a cult
has been with me for a long time. Back in 2015, I was co-writing on a project
with another author. One of the back stories was about a cult, and it got me to
thinking about a story idea I had put away and never worked on. I already knew
that I wanted this group to utilize supernatural powers, and that one of their
ways to keep people submissive is to stalk followers and anyone who dares speak
against them.
You’ve probably seen some stories in the news where former members
of certain religious organizations have been harassed, stalked or black listed
from employment. When you add the supernatural component, it adds an extra amount
of pressure and creepiness to the mix.
Q. Did you know from the beginning you would incorporate so
many different genres into one story?
A. Yes, I knew it would, but I wasn’t really worried about
doing that. There’s a crime story component to it which I thought was important
to draw the reader in. There needed to be something to start an investigation.
In many cases, you’ll find that the intervention of law enforcement is the only
thing that really stops these kind of groups because they aren’t questioned
about their lifestyle. No one wants to infringe upon anyone’s religious
beliefs.
We follow the sheriff on what appears to be a normal murder
investigation, but the reader already knows there’s something worse going on.
Eventually we see that all the characters in the story are involved in one way
or the other. The mythology aspect comes from adding The Phoenix. I didn’t want
a god figure that is like anything focused on in popular religion, so that was
an easy fix. I have a thing with birds as symbols of evil in my stories, so it
works for me.
Q. How did you decide on your timeline structure? Did you
have difficulty placing the pieces of all the different storylines?
A. I started off with the Sheriff. I knew the set-up for the
murder, and the story actually began with him. As the story expanded I shifted
some scenes, allowing the reader to be one step ahead of Evan as his eyes are
being opened to what’s going on around him. I had a clear idea of most of the characters,
though a few of them really surprised me. Marlene was originally going to be a
character who only appeared in one or two scenes, but she chopped her way into
a much bigger role.
As far as timelines, I usually imagine stories beginning at
a mid-point that I can work both forward and backwards from. In this case the
midpoint is the murder of one of the characters, and the story moves forward
from the actions (toward consequences) and backwards (to how this all came to
be). Each character holds their own piece of the puzzle.
Q. Some of the characters are involved in deeply
traumatizing situations. Were any of the scenes more difficult to write than
others?
A. Alexis’ scenes were very hard to write. The words flowed but
it was painful. I can say the same
about some of the scenes including Bonnie and Sara. Anything involving children
and their suffering is difficult.
Q. Will readers see any of these characters again in future
novels? Do you think you might write some companion short stories for any of the
main characters and their backgrounds, such as Beau and Violet?
A. Violet has actually popped up again in another novella.
She’s a descendant of Abigail Drake, the child with supernatural powers in Lazarus. I’m open to maybe working with
some of the other characters again. I’m pretty sure people are interested to
know more about Marlene.
Q. I have to ask, were any of the characters in Blood
Relations related to any of the characters in The Bell House?
A. No, but there is mention of some of the same places since
they are in the same town. The bar/burger joint, Finny’s is the same place in both stories, though the owner,
William Finny, isn’t mentioned in The Bell House. I imagine Marlene brings
Jenna and her friend their lunch in one scene.
Q. Do you have plans to keep using Chrysalis, South Carolina
as a setting?
A. Yes, I do. You’ll see that setting mentioned in other
stories even when it’s not shown. I am working on a story about a group of
characters living in Los Angeles, but one of them is from… you guessed it,
Chrysalis. The Vampire Diaries novella I did last year, Chrysalis Lights, is also set there.
Q. We’re only two months into 2018 and you’ve already had an
incredible year. Would you please share what you’ve accomplished so far?
A. 2018 has been really something! I started off the year with
hitting
USA Today Bestseller List in January for
Sigils and Spells, a boxed set that I headlined with
Hunting in Closed Spaces. I can’t even
explain how emotional that was for me, since
Hunting was my first full length novel. My fellow authors and I are
finalists for The Bram Stoker Award for
Sycorax’s
Daughters. We’ll find out March 3
rd if we actually win it. Linda
Addison is the only black woman to ever win a Stoker, so just being a finalist
is a huge thing, especially in an anthology with 33 black female authors.
Q. What will the rest of this year bring for you and your
fans?
A. Oh, there’s a lot in store this year. I have three releases
planned for this Spring/Summer. I am also working on Soul Bonded, a novel that
I hope to have out by the end of the year. I am in contract negotiations for
another project and I will let everyone know the details of that when I am
able.
Thanks for the updates! Always a pleasure chatting with you!
Readers can find out more about Lori Titus at these links:
