Shadowspawn

Long ago, homo nocturnus ruled the Earth, able to manipulate the forces of nature at their most basic level. Before the dawn of recorded history they were overthrown, leaving behind them only legends-our legends of shapeshifters and blood-drinkers, of cruel gods and evil magicians, of ogres and goblins, succubi and incubi. But a strain of their blood lives on in humanity, the genes themselves bending the forces of probability to reunite. Secret clans used their half-understood abilities to hide from the witch-finders and the normal humans; occasionally one would be detected, a Giles de Rais or an Elizabeth Bathory. Then, in the nineteenth century, the discoveries of Mendel and Darwin enabled them to understand what they were and to breed back the full range of their dark powers. Now, in the twenty-first century, they rule the world again in secret; only the Brotherhood fights them, in a clandestine war of terror and assassination, of Wreaking and silver-inlaid knives. Adrian Breze was born into that war, but he defected to the side of humanity, and for decades he was the Brotherhood's most effective fighter, just as his twin sister Adrienne is the Council of Shadow's strongest. Now he has retired, weary of the endless struggle, but Adrienne has her own purposes, and they don't include letting her brother live quietly in his mountaintop retreat near Santa Fe. To force him out, she kidnaps his human lover, Ellen Tarnowski, and the war is on again-with the future of humanity at stake. For the Council of Shadows is ready to emerge into the light, with a plan that will reduce humans once again to the harried prey of the creatures of darkness.

To stop the Council from launching an apocalypse, Adrian and Ellen must ally with the Brotherhood, a resistance group dedicated to breaking the Council's hold on humankind by any means necessary. In the coming confrontation, Adrian must fight not only the members of the Council, but also his own nature, and traitors within the Brotherhood itself.

Near-purebred home nocturnus Adrian Breze and his human mate, Ellen, thought they had dealt with his twin sister, Adrienne. In fact, they thought she was dead.But she survived and now leads a faction of the Shadowspawn-the ancient, shape-shifting, blood-drinking breed who secretly control the world-that wants to leave just enough of the human race alive to satisfy their hunger and serve their needs. She has nothing but hatred and contempt for her brother, who remains on the side of humanity, fighting with the Brotherhood against the Shadowspawn.To defeat him, she has suborned his mentor-the greatest warrior of the Brotherhood. The man thinks he's bringing a weapon to the Council of Shadows that will wipe out the Shadowspawn's leaders. In truth, his actions will make Adrienne demon goddess of the world...unless Adrian and Ellen can turn him back in time.