I was so excited to write Elaine’s story. It was actually inspired by a really lame short story I’d written years ago called Igor and Lee. The basic idea was about young love being destroyed through someone else’s manipulation.

I changed every character’s name and reworked the entire concept to fit into Shadow Series. Elaine had already been introduced in Child of Grief, so this book let me continue her story and really build on what I’d started there.

From the beginning, I knew Elaine would be married to an abuser and eventually kidnapped by three thieves. Writing her emotional journey was incredibly powerful — from being strangely relieved and happy to be kidnapped, to realizing she was pregnant, to sharing what little information she could with Gianna while dreaming.

I worked really hard to make her experience feel real and respectful. I’ve never personally been in an abusive relationship, and I was very intentional about never romanticizing Elaine’s marriage to Huxford in any way. He was always meant to be the villain — and he was never going to get a redemption arc, because he didn’t deserve one.

Elaine and Leroux’s true reunion was one of my favorite moments to write. Instead of happening in one scene, it unfolds over multiple chapters and switches between their points of view so readers can fully feel both sides of the emotion.

I also loved writing Elaine’s scenes with her brother Noah. Watching her use her magic to restrain him (when needed 😄) was fun, and I really enjoyed how their relationship slowly grew and healed over the course of the book. I wanted to give Noah more time in the series, but most of his story ends up happening off-screen — though he does appear again in book five, and readers get updates about his life later in Tales of Solapin.

One of my absolute favorite parts was finally bringing Gianna and Elaine together in real life. They’d been best friends in Shadow World for so long without ever meeting face-to-face, so that moment had to feel authentic and emotional. It was also the first time two Shadows met as allies in the real world (Gianna and Bryce technically meet earlier, but as enemies).
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Elaine was always Gianna’s heart — and writing their reunion and friendship on the page was incredibly special to me.