The Benandanti Book Series

Tazlynn Hunt, Benandanti werewolf, has always been able to fly beneath the dreaded Luparii radar. So far no assassins have been sent to deal with her. That's good. It's also about to change.

There's a killer stalking the people of Taz's town. And the victims look a lot like rogue werewolf victims. The Benandanti have been at odds with the Luparii (Vatican sanctioned werewolf hunters) for centuries, but if Taz can find the crazed wolf killing in her town, she'll gladly turn him over...with a big bright muzzle.

You see, Taz is a Benandanti. And the Benandanti are protectors. God's wolves. So between tracking a serial killer, dodging an assassin, and just trying to earn a living, she pretty much has her hands full.

And then the Trickster comes to town.,.

Well, you've found me out. I'm not just an author of online articles and Squidoo lenses. I write fiction, too. And not just any fiction, either...WEREWOLF fiction. Finders Weepers is the first book in a planned series of at least three. The second book, Sister's Keepers, is in rough draft form now. Hopefully it will be released in the next few months. The third book is in the 'percolation' stage right now, in very rough outline form. It will be the project for this November's Nanowrimo. (By the way, if you are an aspiring novelist and have never heard of Nanowrimo--do yourself a huge favor and check it out. I'll be adding a lens on it when I get a chance.)

So how does my life compare to that of my main character, Taz? Well, for starters we both work at a Limestone Fabrication mill in Spencer, Indiana. We both absolutely love McCormick's Creek State Park. (The absolute best state park ever.) We both live with a German Shepard. We both have a little more gray hair than we should at our young (cough, cough) age. But there is an outstanding difference between us, too. I'm not a werewolf. No really, I'm not.

This book is now available as both a softcover print version and an e-book. Hopefully book 2 will be coming very soon.

The price of the e-book is $2.99.

I know, I know. It doesn't have much on it. Two posts thus far. But it is a place to go when you need a little between the novels fix of Benandanti. I promise I'll try to update it more often. Unfortunately, I'm still limited to that whole 24 hours in a day thing.

When I first decided to write a werewolf novel, I did a lot of research. What I found was nothing short of amazing and totally changed the shape of the book I had planned. Very much for the better. What did I find? The Benandanti.

The Benandanti are not a figment of my over-developed imagination. They truly existed. They were real. Remember the Salem witch trials? Well, in other countries they had a version of them, too. Only there, it wasn't witches being burned at the stake. It was werewolves. History shows the horror of the so-called trials these werewolves went through, only to end in a fiery death. But there was a glowing exception to that rule of death: the Benandanti.

The really cool thing about the Benandanti? They didn't deny being werewolves. You would think that would have been their first defense, right? But that wasn't who they were. The Benandanti were the hounds of heaven and the protectors of their village. To deny that would have been to deny the gift the Creator had given them. So they said, yes--we are werewolves, but we are God's wolves, not Satan's.

The result? In a time of rampant and unfounded stake centered bonfires, not one Benandanti burned. Not one. And the trials lasted for over a century. During that time, according to history, the Benandanti died out.

Interesting note here: Not all Benandanti are--I mean were--wolves. They could literally be any form of creature...even butterflies. But the crusaders lumped all were-creatures into one general term: Werewolf.

(By now you should know where I stand.)

What characters do you most like to read about: Vampires or Werewolves?

When I can break free of my daily grind, I really do intend to post more on the Benandanti Blog. Do you have any suggestions on posts you would like to see?

(You can also just leave a comment if you'd like.)