Carmilla's Gambit: Building a Phantom Strike Team
So, I’ve said before that Carmilla’s Gambit will do some world-building and reveal some secrets and relationships that I’ve had planned for a while. I won’t give too many spoilers, but I will reveal a few tidbits that I hope will pique interest in the novel. Again, yes, this is the seventh book in my Adventures of Sam Hain series, but each novel can be read as a standalone despite there being an overarching “seasonal” plot, if you will.
As anyone who reads the book blurb will understand, Samantha Hain is not the main character this time. She’s been kidnapped by one of her girlfriend’s oldest enemies, her cousin, Dracula. And Carmilla recognizes she will need allies if she is to have any hope of freeing Samantha from his torturous grasp. So, let’s talk about the team she forms… or at least one of those team members.
Readers of the series should not be surprised to learn that Destiny Grimm, Sam’s best friend and “emotional support German,” will be part of the team. This is part of her own arc that has developed since the first reference to the Berlin Incident back in Liam’s Doom. But she’s not the one I want to talk about in this post.
Readers may have missed the brief mention in Blue Moon about Carmilla sending a massive check to help fund the return of a troupe of performers calling themselves the “Opera Populaire” to the Palais Garnier in Paris. And when her estate steward Martin inquires about her motives, she mentions it may be to her interests to have allies who have personal grudges against Dracula.
Yes, after Destiny, the first member of her strike team is none other than the infamous Phantom of the Opera, Erik. Now, I know you’re probably thinking I followed the fan theory that Erik is a vampire, but I assure you, I am not. No, I was watching a performance of Phantom and certain actions the titular character took almost seemed to be neurodivergent-coded. And following that line of thought, there have been those who have suggested that the presence of neurodivergence in children was a potential genesis for the legends surrounding the changeling.
So, I ran with that.
Erik was a changeling. Specifically, his grotesque appearance marks him as being a Court of Winter fae who did not initially know how to use faerie glamour magic to disguise his appearance, hence the burlap sack as his first mask. And yes, he has a grudge against Dracula. I don’t want to go into too much detail as to what his exact beef with the King of the Vampires of Europe and the Levant is, but I’ve given enough clues so far to give suggestions.
That said, we will first see our Phantom as Carmilla declares the audacity to sit in Box 5 on the opening night of his newest opera, Don Juan Redeemed.
So, why Erik? Why the Phantom?
Due to story-specific events, Martin will be unable to stand beside Carmilla in this battle. Thus, her 2,000+ year-old defender, who has fought in countless wars and led multiple armies into battle, will not offer his combat expertise. Erik, while not a general or a warrior, has studied both combat and stealth. Destiny also has extensive combat training, but she is human and, thus, more fragile than their supernatural adversary. Erik offers a hardier balance as well as fae magic, charm, and experience.
But his reason for helping begins as a quest for revenge, but it ends as a journey of redemption for his past actions. But you’ll have to read to find out more on that.
Also, this Erik exists in a world where both of Webber’s musicals about his life exist, and he’s not overly fond of Love Never Dies.
So, why Erik? Why bring him into this world? Honestly, I felt too many retellings, adaptations, and other works have focused too much on the brooding and the sexuality and not on the motivation beyond “Ugly man was treated badly, so he did what he did.” And then the idea of making him be a fae creature, a creature of great charisma, of mystery, of charm just came to me one day after seeing, I think it was Ramin Karimloo, perform the role in a way that gave strong connections to a neurodivergent-coded being just resonated with other research and even pop-culture theories regarding the fae and changelings. And I went from there.
Do I realize this will open my work up to possibly angry critiques from Phantom fans? Yes. I’ll take that free advertising. But I also think my handling will appeal to them, in that it gives them a fresh take on his story and the possibilities for the character and his future.
As a reminder, Carmilla’s Gambit releases on 3 June. Sapphic vampires for Pride Month!
-Robin