Tuesday, June 08, 2010

Q & A

I'm opening the floor for questions (both series). But, make sure you read the rules below before posting!

Rules

1. Before asking a question, check that it hasn't already been answered - either in the earlier comments on this post, on the website, or in either of the previous Q&A sessions.

2. No questions about Hawke, as I'm working on his book at present.

3. Please keep any "fine detail" questions to a minimum - ie. specific ages etc. It just takes me a little longer to answer these as I need to refer back to my notes.

4. If someone else asks a question and you know the answer, feel free to help me and answer! :-)

I'll keep this open through the weekend.

Ask away!


227 comments :

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Anonymous said...

Who is Faith's half brother from Anthony's reproduction contract??

Anonymous said...

This may be a foolish question, but someone asked if Raphael will meet face to face with Parker, my question is who is Parker?

Anonymous said...

I LOVE your books. You're an amazing author and I thought you should know.

For my questions:

In Angels' Blood, Sara saw Elena and Raphael surrounded by wings when they were falling. Who caught them?

Did Raphael know that Elena was going to wake up from her coma that day or was him talking to her something he just did every day until she awoke?

How long did it take Elena to grow her wings? Was it an instantaneous thing or did they take time to grow?

Did Zoe Elena take her mom's or dad's last name? If it was Deacon's, what is his last name?

I know that angelic pregnancies are rare, but do any of the angels have siblings? For that matter, are there any twins?

Oh, and I thought I should mention that I was thoroughly disappointed to find out that Raphael wears shirts. It seems impractical now that I think about it, but, for some reason, I just thought he walked around shirtless all the time. To find out that he actually wears shirts totally shatters my illusions. ;)

Calliope said...

Parker is Ellie's father.

And I know what you mean, Kaikes. Although I thought it was sweet how Ellie wears his shirts to feel better in AB, like when she receives the gift from Lijuan.

Anonymous said...

Do the Seven have their own places to live or do they live with Raphael at the Tower/mansion? I know Illium mention having an aerie - will Elena ever visit on page?

Kay said...

How much money did Raphael pay Elena for the hunt aganist Uram?

In AK Elena got a letter from her father's lawyers saying that they had paid the fee for a storage unit, were they talking about the stuff stored in the bank vault?

What was meant in AB when you said that if Vivek hadn't been injured he would have been hunter-born, is it an ability that you can lose?

When Elena asked Sara to see what had happened to her apartment what did Sara find?

How did Beth react when she found out that Elena had been badly hurt in the fight between Raphael and Uram and does she know that she is alive?

Did Jeffery find out Elena was alive before or after she came out of her coma, and how did he find out, since I doubt Elena called to tell him?

Well that's all I can think of, thank you for your time and all of your answers Nalini! I can't wait for July.

Anonymous said...

I'm sorry I'm still confused I thought Ellie's father was named Jeffery? Where does the Parker come from, what book AB or AK was it mentioned in?

Anonymous said...

How many years do hunters have to train in the academy in order to become a guildhunter?

And are all hunters requested personally like how Raphael did Ellie or are they just assigned hunts by someone in the guild?

How did Raphael find out that Illium told the mortal woman the secret about angel's, and did she tell somebody else before her memory was wiped?

Roughly how many centuries has Dmitri been a vampire?

Calliope said...

Parker is his middle name (what his "P." stands for) - at least I'm like 99% sure it is. I think the poster just mixed up and used his middle name in lieu of his first.

Nalini Singh said...

1. Will we ever find out specifically why Faith's sister Marine was killed, or is that not particularly relevant?

You got a bit of info in Visions of Heat, and that's probably how it'll stay unless it comes up as part of another storyline.

2. I can't find any place that specifically mentions Nikita having that metallic Psy smell. Is that a deliberate omission to keep us guessing about her motives, or did I just miss it in the books?

It's not in the books. Whether she has it...the next few books will tell you a lot more about Nikita.

3. You said Faith's cousin Sahara's fate is currently unknown. Will we ever meet Faith's brother, Tanique, the Ps-Psy, or Juniper, the young foreseer still in NightStar? Or are they too far out on a tangent to apply to the main story?

Tanique is mentioned in Bonds of Justice. You won't meet Juniper yet. At the moment, yes, they aren't a direct part of the main storyline.

4. Will we find out about Marlee's and Toby's abilities in this arc or the next one?

You've glimpsed quite a bit of both of their abilities through the books so far, and that'll continue. They'll continue to develop and grow and find/explore their strengths.

5. Has anyone in DarkRiver ever made any kind of “official” recognition of the fact that Jon and Sasha are related? I know it's a very distant blood relationship, but since neither of them have blood kin they're particularly close to (at the moment, at least), does Jon know or care that he's related to Sasha?

Are you referring to the section in "Mine to Possess" where they find out Mika was likely one of the Forgotten? Because remember, they were looking at a whole bunch of family trees at the same time, not simply Jon's. I don't think there's a specific blood tie mentioned between them.

6. Will we ever get to see Nikita's reaction to the fact that her (at least one) grandchild has fur? Please??

Quite likely.

7. You might have answered this before and I missed it. Is the mark on Kaleb's arm something he was born with or was it put there?

He wasn't born with it.

8. Will Anthony ever get a story, maybe in the second arc? He certainly deserves one!

I'm getting the feeling that Anthony's story will be told through the books. However I reserve the right to change my mind!

9. How, exactly, do data crystals work? I'm far from a techno-geek, but this question does arise every time I see Judd with a data crystal.

Now we have sd cards & cds - in the future, I figure they'll have moved beyond that to even stronger data storage, something that'll last forever unless you wipe it on purpose, or physically crush it (not easily done). Hence the crystals.

Anonymous said...

Since you are so far only contracted for one more guild hunter book, is that one also likely to be told from Raphael and Ellie's point of view or will it be someone else's?

Anonymous said...

When the other angels brought Raphael and Elena back to wherever they were when did they realize that Elena was transitioning into an angel? Did they think she was dead or just turning into a vampire?

Nalini Singh said...

Has a hunter ever decided to leave the Guild and request to be made? And if so, have any of them tried to escape and have to be hunted by hunters?

Yes, I would think so - the Guild's been around a long time. I think they'd been far too smart to attempt to run.

Will we see Vivek again in or outside the cellars again?

Oh yes - he's part of Elena's world, her friend, and appears in Archangel's Consort.

What sort of business is Jeffery in exactly?

Let's just say he has a finger in a lot of pies - he's very good at making money.

In AK Jeffery was fighting with someone so that Elena could go and see her sisters in the morgue, I think it was an Aunt, was it Jeffery's sister or Maguriete's?

Jeffrey's.

Oh and last question for now, why did Slater leave Ellie alive and who found her after he had left?

You get some of these answers in Archangel's Consort, and more will come as the series continues. Also, remember, Slater was insane, so not all of his choices will make rational sense.

What is "laz" of "laz-fire"?
Some kind of abbreviation??


I think at one stage it probably was (and still technically is), but now it's become it's own word as things do after constant use.

Elena says that all her father's business contacts are not all legal, what are some of the illeagal ones?

Jeffrey is far too smart to be doing anything obviously illegal, so it's not as easy or as simple as pointing out a particular enterprise.

How long was the guild hunter strike going on while Elena was in her coma? And was it global or just national? Oh and did alot of vampires really escape or did their angels' just work overtime to keep them in line?

Oh, it went on long enough that it began to have an effect - if you were a vamp thinking of escape, it was the best time to try and do it. Angels can't be everywhere at once, plus they have more important matters to attend to. And it was global - hunters stick together.

What constitutes an escape attempt for a vampire, like do they have check-in times with their angel's and if they don't show up they get hunted?

No, but since they are in service for 100 years, they have certain tasks to do. If they miss those tasks without explanation for a period, or go incommunicado, then the angel (or more likely the senior vampire in charge) is going to start the search.

Also I wanted to know how Harrison tried to escape and how and where did Ellie catch him? Oh and what was his punishment?

I think you can probably imagine the kind of punishment he received. As for the when and the how, you may get answers in future books, so I'm going to skip that part for now.

Nalini Singh said...

Will there be any scenes featuring Walker in Bonds of Justice or Play of Passion? What's his position in the den? In the Net he was working as a teacher, but since he's more or less Silent, is he allowed to teach the pups in the den?

I know I've got info about what he does in the pack in one of the upcoming books - I think it's Play of Passion. You get to find out more about him in both Play and in Hawke's book.

Knowing that Judd can actually move thecells in his body, are there any other psy who have a similar ability which allows them to actually change how they look physically?

Judd's gift is quite a rare variant of the Tk ability, so while there might be others around, one, it's not likely to be common, and two, most people won't be as strong as he is on the Gradient.

Will we be meeting any other psy abilities (like the evolved ones the forgotten have) in the upcoming books?

Yep. More likely to happen in the second arc.

Are priests of the second reformation church allowed to marry?

Yes.

n Caressed by Ice, while Brenna, Jude, Riley, and Drew were at Nate's house, Riley made the comment to Brenna that Drew and Jude were exactly alike.

I think in that particular scene, he was referring to their stubborn protectiveness.

I would REALLY REALLY love to know do we get see that amazing Psy Vasic more in the books? maybe he could get his own book...? (just asking,but so thrilled about him)

Answered earlier in the thread.

My question: is the Bluebell in love with Elena? would he love to be with her instead of her being with Raphael? I'm always wondering about that possibility of darkness...

For the answer to this question, you'll have to read the upcoming books :)

Why did Elena's transformation take a whole year and why was her mind silent to Raphael that long?

First of all - she was badly, badly injured. Most of her bones were broken, her internal organs shattered. It took even Illium a while to recover from his injuries and he's five hundred years old.

Second - no one really knows how long such a transformation should take. Plus, the physical part of her transformation - that simply couldn't happen overnight or even in a week.

I was wondering if you could tell us anything more about the Transmutation Psys. I've been wondering about those for a while now. They've only been mentioned in the first book so far.

Basically, they can force or manipulate a physical object to change its shape - I have a feeling this ability may well turn up in the second arc, so you'll find out more.

So, have you ever thought about doing a soundtrack for the books?

No, not so far.

I read in MTP where tally was dreaming and it seemed like she was dreaming about the web of stars and if so how is that possibe when she didn't know about it yet? Does she have abilities that she as yet doesn't know about and if so will we find out in future books? Thanks

That was Sasha who was dreaming about the new element of the Web if you mean at the scene in the end.

That above answer is right. If you're referring to a different section, let me know the page number so I can make sure I'm looking at the correct part.

Calliope said...

If the Hunter Strike was global, wouldn't the other archangels have been miffed? How did they react?

Anonymous said...

Are any of the characters from this arc likely to show up prominetly or even frequently in the second arc?

Anonymous said...

What's the hierarchy within the seven? I know Dmitri is pretty much in charge and Venom is the youngest, but where does everyone else lie in the chain of command?

Anonymous said...

how did the other archangel's find out about Elena they just started showing up after she woke up, why not before when she was still sleeping and vulnerable if they wanted to kill her (Michaela)?

Nalini Singh said...

At what age do angel's have to start purging the toxin into humans? Like when will Sam have to do this, if he hasn't already?

No, it begins when they're adults.

How exactly is an vampire made, how do angel's transfer the toxin?

The transfer can be intimate, or it can be utterly the opposite - very clinical and formal. Depends on the individuals in question.

There is a bit of discussion of this in Archangel's Consort, so I'll leave it at that for now.

I thought that to kill an archangel thier heart had to be ripped out and replaced with angelfire? If so how did Raphael's father die in a regular fire? Or was the whole place set ablaze with angelfire?

He wasn't in a building. He was killed by Caliane's angelfire in the skies above the village. And you don't necessarily need to hit the heart - if you remember from the end of Angels' Blood, get enough angelfire into an archangel's body, and it'll burrow its way to the heart.

Is the Quiet an angel thing, archangel thing or a Raphael thing?

Archangel.

how old were elena and beth when their sisters were killed?

How many year after their deaths did jeffery get remarried?


I believe Elena was 10 and Beth was 5. It was mentioned in Archangel's Kiss

The answer to the second question is in Archangel's Consort.

So, to clarify, angels/archangels only do amber. They never do gold?

Do any other jewels/metals carry meaning?

Amber is more natural given who and what they are.

As for gold, while they do not marry in the human sense, they may use gold in another context.

In all honesty, archangels don't exactly follow "rules" of behavior (except for a few important ones) - they're a law unto themselves. So a couple might well decide to use gold or other metals if they wanted.

Do Elijah and Hanna wear amber?

Hannah says that that is a terribly personal question - because it is an individual choice. Nothing is a given when it comes to archangels.

Do all women wear their, er, status jewellery as earrings and the men as rings or is this just a Raphael/Elena thing?

See my answer above. It's all about personal choices.

Does being Raphael's consort afford Elena any specific perks/responsibilities?

Wait and see ;)

Anonymous said...

Raphael said that Elena keeping her hunter sense was useful and that "we" have use for them, what was he talking about specifically?

Nalini Singh said...

You said Lara's book is planned...is it in the first arc?

I know what you are trying to do...but I will answer the question anyway *grin*

No, I think she'll be in the second arc.

Does the psy council know how sascha and faith are surviving after dropping out of the net or do they just suspect that darkriver and snowdancer are hiding enough psy among them to create another shadow net?

I think that by now, they likely have some very good ideas or guesses at least.

In angels consort will elena's "condition" become public knowledge or will it remain a secret from the public?

Hard to keep wings a secret!

And will this effect both humans and vampires perceptions of Angels, knowing that for whatever reason it is possible to become one?

Of course it will have an impact - but you'll have to read the book for the details.

I noticed that in the Blaze of Memory letters, the Psy Gradiant was never mentioned. Is that because it wasn't there? Or because it wasn't that big a deal?

Blaze dealt with the Forgotten, and the Gradient is an element/part of the PsyNet. While the Forgotten may have kept some aspects of that measurement structure, they've also got their own.

Also, does the 1.0 gradiant telepathy requirement make it significantly harder for someone like Ashaya to conceive and successfully carry a child to term?

No.

How long will it take for Elena to be "set" in her immortality?

Unknown.

Which characters, in a perfect world, would get their own books?

Depends on whose perfect word it is :D

Is Elena wealthier than her father?

Hmm, she hasn't thought about that yet.

Is it expected for Elena to evolve and develop abilities as a normal angel would? Do all angels do that?

As I said in a prior answer, Elena is a pretty unique angel, so her development isn't necessarily going to follow a particular path.

Previous question made me wonder, what sort of hobbies does Elena have?

Remember her little balcony garden?

Nalini Singh said...

The Web of Stars is based on Lucas' connection to his sentinels. So, if something happens to Lucas, does the Web fall and all those Psy connected to it flounder?

No. As we've learned in the previous books, each of these webs or nets have a kind of sentience - the NetMind is the oldest and most developed, while others are mere beginnings, but what this means is that there is a capacity to adapt.

Hypothetically, what would that Web be like if Sascha weren't a part of it?

As it was before she joined - she came into an existing structure, but didn't create it.

If Sascha were to, for some reason in this hypothetical vein, be comatose, would her abilities continue to work within the Web independent from her?

You're making Sascha paranoid with these questions. No one knows what would happen in that situation - especially given her abilities.

Have the changes in the net created changes in Nikita?

Bonds of Justice will give you a lot of insight into Nikita, so just a few more weeks!

I know that you said Raphael "REFUELING" ment to reenergize, but why and how, or will we learn more about this in future books?

Possibly.

I wonder... will Raphael meet face to face with Parker? And if so will we see it in AC?

Elena's father? Not in Archangel's Consort, but it will happen.

Who is Faith's half brother from Anthony's reproduction contract??

Are you thinking of Tanique?

Nalini Singh said...

This may be a foolish question, but someone asked if Raphael will meet face to face with Parker, my question is who is Parker?

I think that was a reference to Jeffrey - his full name is Jeffrey Parker Deveraux.

In Angels' Blood, Sara saw Elena and Raphael surrounded by wings when they were falling. Who caught them?

Raphael's people, including some of his Seven.

Did Raphael know that Elena was going to wake up from her coma that day or was him talking to her something he just did every day until she awoke?

He did talk to her every day, but that day in particular, he would've been able to sense her consciousness beginning to stir.

How long did it take Elena to grow her wings? Was it an instantaneous thing or did they take time to grow?

That's part of why she had to sleep for a year.

Did Zoe Elena take her mom's or dad's last name? If it was Deacon's, what is his last name?

Deacon doesn't need a last name *g*

I'm kidding - I think this may be answered in Archangel's Consort. I'll have to check.

I know that angelic pregnancies are rare, but do any of the angels have siblings? For that matter, are there any twins?

Yes and yes.

Oh, and I thought I should mention that I was thoroughly disappointed to find out that Raphael wears shirts. It seems impractical now that I think about it, but, for some reason, I just thought he walked around shirtless all the time. To find out that he actually wears shirts totally shatters my illusions. ;)

Illium, the exhibitionist, will rebuild your illusions. ;)

Nalini Singh said...

Do the Seven have their own places to live or do they live with Raphael at the Tower/mansion? I know Illium mention having an aerie - will Elena ever visit on page?

They do have their own places, but they also always have rooms at the Tower & at the stronghold in the Refuge. Not at the mansion, however - though they are welcome to stay if they need to.

Elena may well one day visit Illium's aerie - but that's back at the Refuge, so it would be in a book where they were back there for a bit.

How much money did Raphael pay Elena for the hunt aganist Uram?

More than enough to make her filthy rich.

In AK Elena got a letter from her father's lawyers saying that they had paid the fee for a storage unit, were they talking about the stuff stored in the bank vault?

No, it's separate. There was a receipt for a storage locker in the safety deposit box in the bank vault.

What was meant in AB when you said that if Vivek hadn't been injured he would have been hunter-born, is it an ability that you can lose?

I should've said he would've been "active" as a hunter-born. You can't lose it, so he still has the ability, but no way to use it. Archangel's Consort has more about this.

When Elena asked Sara to see what had happened to her apartment what did Sara find?

Answered in chapter 1 of Archangel's Consort.

How did Beth react when she found out that Elena had been badly hurt in the fight between Raphael and Uram and does she know that she is alive?

No matter what, they are sisters and there is love there, so Beth was terribly worried and frightened. She does know Elena is alive, but like Jeffrey, doesn't know everything. There is a scene in Archangel's Consort that reveals more about their relationship.

Did Jeffery find out Elena was alive before or after she came out of her coma, and how did he find out, since I doubt Elena called to tell him?

From the Guild - though before she came out of her coma, they couldn't confirm the information.

I'm sorry I'm sill confused I thought Ellie's father was named Jeffery? Where does the Parker come from, what book AB or AK was it mentioned in?

Answered above.

How many years do hunters have to train in the academy in order to become a guildhunter?

Depends on when they start and their personal level of skill/need for specialized instruction. I'd say between 3-5 years after they turn 18. However, younger members are welcomed and taught how to handle their abilities.

Nalini Singh said...

And are all hunters requested personally like how Raphael did Ellie or are they just assigned hunts by someone in the guild?

They're assigned by the Guild.

How did Raphael find out that Illium told the mortal woman the secret about angel's, and did she tell somebody else before her memory was wiped?

He's an archangel, but more, he understands Illium. So he knew.

Roughly how many centuries has Dmitri been a vampire?

Mentioned in Archangel's Consort.

When the other angels brought Raphael and Elena back to wherever they were when did they realize that Elena was transitioning into an angel? Did they think she was dead or just turning into a vampire?

There would've been confusion for a while, but then Keir would've been brought in - and I think he'd have realized pretty soon what was happening.

If the Hunter Strike was global, wouldn't the other archangels have been miffed? How did they react?

I think one of the other things that had their attention at the time was the fact of Uram being gone, and of them taking over his territory. So the strike didn't anger them as much as it might have if they hadn't been so busy.

Plus, I'm fairly sure they all wanted to know what had happened to Raphael's hunter, too.

Are any of the characters from this arc likely to show up prominetly or even frequently in the second arc?

Yep.

What's the hierarchy within the seven? I know Dmitri is pretty much in charge and Venom is the youngest, but where does everyone else lie in the chain of command?

You see this through the books.

how did the other archangel's find out about Elena they just started showing up after she woke up, why not before when she was still sleeping and vulnerable if they wanted to kill her (Michaela)?

When she was up and around, then everyone knew about her. Before that, she was protected within Raphael's stronghold - no one knew she was there, or even if they did, they couldn't get to her.

Raphael said that Elena keeping her hunter sense was useful and that "we" have use for them, what was he talking about specifically?

For example, if there's another Uram, there's would be no need to go through the Guild and pull in another human.

Nalini Singh said...

Since you are so far only contracted for one more guild hunter book, is that one also likely to be told from Raphael and Ellie's point of view or will it be someone else's?

This is as yet undecided.

Nalini Singh said...

I think I caught all of the questions!

Thank you for a great Q&A everyone, and for the lovely comments on the books.

I hope you enjoy the upcoming releases!

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