This image is the cover for the book Of Blood and Magic

Of Blood and Magic

Warning: Guillermo del Toro-style monsters with the heart of a Studio Ghibli film roam free in the streets of Occult Prague. Fans of THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS and THE VAMPIRE CHRONICLES will be eager to visit. Shayne Leighton’s contemporary fantasy series, Of Light and Darkness, is a dark tale about found family, forbidden love, oppression, Slavic folklore. "Shayne has set a new precedent for vampire novels. Her style sucks you into the story and doesn't let you go - it's incredibly hard to put it down. The characters are complex and the setting is breathtaking. For people craving a vampire novel of the same substance as Anne Rice, this is for you. I will be holding every book I ever read to the Leighton standard." - Verified Reviewer
"I’m at a loss of words, in the best way possible. This series is amazing and a must read! I can’t wait for the third one, I need answers!" - Verified Reviewer
"Of Blood and Magic maintains all the whimsical marvel of its predecessor, yet brings to the fore a darker, more sinister tone that weaves metaphor, history, and folklore to transgress the boundaries of the fantasy genre. Shayne Leighton's growth as a writer is evident as she effortlessly immerses her reader in stunning gothic imagery from historic Prague and abandons some of the youthful mirth that marked her earlier work." - A. J. Vrana, Bestselling Author of The Hollow Gods Months after their brutal victory over an oppressive regime of Wizards, Charlotte and Valek have returned from Prague to their home in the Bohemian Occult City.
This time, however, they are accompanied by their new band of magical misfits. By daylight, all seems peaceful since they've toppled the Regime, and the coven of rogue yet lovable monsters has finally found freedom. But Charlotte soon discovers that, much like her adopted Vampire family, she has developed a strange addiction of her own, and it's steadily destroying her from the inside out.
Ensnared in the thorns of a political war between light and darkness and raised by a monster she’s learned to love, Charlotte Ruzikova finds belonging, but only if she can face her worst fears. Welcome to the occult city, but mind your throat.

Shayne Leighton

Channeling over a decade of experience of film and music into fiction, Leighton's debut novel, Of Light and Darkness, has landed on coveted bestsellers lists, reaching over forty-thousand readers and has lead to the production of a book trailer starring Michael Welch (The Twilight Saga) and Cassandra Scerbo (Sharknado). In 2016, she co-founded her speculative fiction imprint, The Parliament House, and in 2021, began the South Florida chapter for the Association of Publishers for Special Sales, hoping to build a community of like-minded storytellers close to home. She strives to be the Guillermo del Toro of the publishing industry, curating works that appeal to readers who favor a darker, quirkier fare. Her Of Light and Darkness series is heavily inspired by her husband, Frantisek, and her love affair with Prague, Czech Republic, and her own Slavic heritage.

The Parliament House