“Vampires are dead,” everyone told me. (Well, no, they might be undead, but that’s another topic.) “They’re so yesterday. They’re so Twilight.”

I’ve never been one to listen much. Just ask my parents, teachers, bosses.…you get the idea.

So when I decided to branch out from writing urban fantasy, I turned to paranormal romance. I love to read it. I love a dark, tortured hero. I love the way paranormal characters, in their own troubled relationships, allow us to shine a light on some very human issues like love and family and acceptance.

Okay, I’ll admit it. I love vampires.

I’ve actually wasted brain cells trying to figure out why I love vampires, and here’s the result of my brain-strain:

1) Torture Males. No, no. Not the BDSM kind of play-torture, or the Guantanamo kind. Women love tortured guys so we can then spend much drama and angst trying to save the big old lunkheads from themselves. And who can possibly be more tortured than some quasi-immortal being who’s probably lost more loves than we can imagine?

2) Strength…and Vulnerability. Think about it. You have these virtually immortal beings, usually with incredible strength and ability to heal. Speed. Scary mental powers. And yet, unless you let your vampires twinkle in the sunlight (ahem), there are several hours per day when they are completely vulnerable. We love caring for vulnerable beings like little babies and puppies and big dudes with fangs.

3) Need. We all know guys need us, whether they admit it or not. But think about a vampire guy. He literally can’t live without what we can give him. Okay, sure, it involves puncture wounds and a siphoning of body fluids, but in a well-done romance, the plasma donor also gets a pretty good rush from it, yes? We love to be needed.

4) Bad Boy Syndrome. Women love bad boys. I love bad boys in fiction (in real life, I usually want to kick them in sensitive body parts), and vampires are usually bad boys. The heroes in my new vampire trilogy are all bad boys in their own ways. Aidan is emotionally scarred but knows how to kick ass when he needs to, and can be a stubborn jerk. William covers his insecurity with bravado and sexual, uh, proclivity. Mirren…well, let’s just say in his human life Mirren wore chain mail and wielded a battle axe, and he hasn’t changed that much. Whether they’re alphas or beta males, bad boy vampires are always masculine, confident (at least on the outside), and don’t play by the rules. What’s not to love?

5) Sex Gods. A vampire who has been around a century or three has had a LOT of time to practice his technique and has learned the art of delayed gratification. Yeah, you know what I mean.

So…are you a vampire lover? Or are you all fanged out?

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Please click HERE for a full list of Susannah Sandlin’s books and links to buy from Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com