Huff, Tanya

Huff, Tanya (1957–)

(pop culture)

Tanya Huff, a Canadian writer and author of several science fiction/fantasy novel series and preeminently of two series of vampire novels, was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and attended Ryerson Polytechnical Institute where she earned an associate’s degree in Radio and Television Arts. In the mid-1980s she opened Bakka, now Toronto’s main science fiction book store, and turned to writing during her spare time. Her first published works were children’s fantasy fiction stories.

Huff endeared herself to vampire fans with the series of novels about detective Vicki Nelson, formerly a police officer who had been forced to retire due to failing eyesight. In her first advent, Blood Price, she becomes involved in a case in which a serial killer is leaving bodies scattered around Toronto drained of blood. She soon encountered Henry Fitzroy, an illegitimate son of King Henry VIII and a vampire now living in Canada. Fitzroy was brought out of his private world by the killing, which he attributed to a young vampire in the throes of a feeding frenzy. Their work together to solve the case would lead to their sharing both their bedroom and a series of adventures into the supernatural.

Fitzroy is similar to traditional vampires except, since he is not evil, Huff saw no reason for religious symbols like the cross to harm him, and equally could see no reason that he should defy the laws of physics by creating no reflection in the mirror. After the fourth Nelson/Fitzroy novel in 1993, rumors flew around that Huff was abandoning her characters and for five years nothing more was heard of her. However, in 1997, they again appeared, much to the delight of Huff’s fans. Then in 2007, the novels were adapted for two seasons on television that aired in the spring and fall of 2007 under the title Blood Ties. The DVDs of the series were released in 2009. Meanwhile, Huff launched a new series of novels built around Tony Foster, Fitzroy’s former donor and gay lover. In this series he has moved to Vancouver to take a job in television, interestingly on a show about a vampire detective. The first of the trilogy, Smoke and Shadows appeared in 2004, to be followed by Smoke and Mirrors (2005) and Smoke and Ashes (2006).

Sources:

Harrell, Megan. “Interview with Tanya Huff.” Foxfire News. Posted at http://firefox.org/news/articles/258/1/Interview-with-Tanya-Huff/Page1.html. Accessed on April 8, 2010.Huff, Tanya. Blood Price. New York: Daw Books, 1991. 272 pp.———. Blood Trail. New York: Daw Books, 1992. 304 pp.———. Blood Lines. New York: Daw Books, 1993. 271 pp.———. Blood Pact. New York: Daw Books, 1993. 332 pp.———. Blood Debt. New York: Daw Books, 1997. 330 pp.———. Smoke and Mirrors. New York: DAW, 2004. 374 pp.———. Smoke and Shadows. New York: DAW, 2004. 375 pp.———. Smoke and Ashes. New York: DAW, 2006. 400 pp.———. Blood Bank. DAW, 2008. 336 pp.