Vicki Nelson
Created by Tanya Huff

VICKI NELSON thought most of the bloodshed was behind her when she quit the Toronto homicide department due to the onset of tunnel vision, and set up shop as a P.I. But when she stumbles onto a vicious killing in the subway Nelson becomes involved in an investigation that leads her to partner with a studly 450-year old vampire and romance writer, Henry Fitzroy... who just happens to be the bastard son of Henry VIII -- also a vampire.

They team together to fight werewolf killers, mummies, and other supernatural horrors in an otherwise very regular Toronto. Nelson eventually is turned into a vampire herself by Fitzroy, in a last ditch attempt to keep her from dying.

Tanya Huff worked at Bakka, Canada's oldest SF and fantasy book store, for years, writing in her spare time, before she decided to shuck Toronto and write full time.

Unfortunately, despite a devoted cult following, the five-volume series was slightly ahead of its time, and had pretty much run its course by the time the final novel, Blood Debt, appeared in 1997.

A few years later, though, it received an unexpected boost in the post-Twilight vampire boom. A television series was produced for the Lifetime Network, filmed in Toronto (of course) and starring Christina Cox as Vicki and Kyle Schmid as Henry. Although the stories were occasionally intriguing, Blood Ties' low production values and particularly the cheesy special effects made it look a lot like several other Toronto rush jobs pumped out quickly to appeal to the larger American market. Night Heat, anyone?

It did, however, prompt the re-release of the entire run (with tie-in covers), and in 2008, one more book in the series, Blood Bank a collection of short stories. Since then a couple of new short stories have surfaced, but the author has stated she has no plans to cintinue the series.

NOVELS

• Blood Price (1991) ...Buy this book ...Kindle it!
• Blood Trail (1992) ...Buy this book ...Kindle it!
• Blood Lines (1993) ...Buy this book ...Kindle it!
• Blood Pact (1993) ...Buy this book ...Kindle it!
• Blood Debt (1997) ...Buy this book ...Kindle it!

SHORT STORIES

• "This Town Ain't Big Enough"
• "What Manner of Man"
• "The Cards Also Say"
• "The Vengeful Spirit of Lake Nepeakea"
• "Someone to Share the Night"
• "Another Fine Nest"
• "Scleratus"
• "Critical Analysis"
• "So This Is Christmas"
• "No Matter Where You Go" (2010, A Girl's Guide to Guns & Monsters)..Buy this book .Kindle it!
• "Quid Pro Quo" (2010, Evolve) ...Kindle it!

COLLECTIONS

• Blood Bank (2008) ...Buy this book
  Includes the screenplay for "Stone Cold," an episode of the TV series that Huff wrote.

TELEVISION

• BLOOD TIES
  (2007, Lifetime)
  Based on characters created by Tanya Huff
  Starring Christina Cox as VICKI NELSON
  with Kyle Schmid as Henry Fitzroy
  Dylan Neal as Mike Celluci
  and Gina Holden as Coreen Fennel
  

• Season 1 ...Buy the complete series on DVD ...Buy the complete series on Blu-Ray
• "Blood Price" (March 11, 2007)
• "Blood Price" (March 11, 2007)
• "Bad JuJu" (March 18, 2007)
• "Gifted" (March 25, 2007)
• "Deadly Departed" (April 1, 2007)
• "Love Hurts" (April 8, 2007)
• "Heart of Ice" (April 15, 2007)
• "Heart of Fire" (April 22, 2007)
• "Stone Cold" (April 29, 2007)
• "Necrodrome" (May 6, 2007)
• "Post Partum" (May 13, 2007)
• "Norman" (May 20, 2007)
  
  
• Season 2
• "D.O.A." (October 12, 2007)
• "Wild Blood" (October 19, 2007)
• "5:55" (October 26, 2007)
• "Bugged" (November 2, 2007)
• "The Devil You Know" (November 9, 2007)
• "Drawn And Quartered" (November 16, 2007)
• "Wrapped" (November 23, 2007)
• "The Good, The Bad And The Ugly" (November 30, 2007)
• "We'll Meet Again" (December 22, 2007)
• "Deep Dark" (unaired)

Rerspectfully submitted by Keith "Bite Me" Logan, with follow-up and additional notes by Kevin Burton Smith.